Dezeen School Shows: a housing project for victims of domestic violence with courtyards, winter gardens and a nursery is among architecture projects by Cardiff University students.
Also featured is a pottery workshop that uses materials found in the River Taff and a weather archive and artist residency in the Preseli Hills.
Cardiff University
Institution: Cardiff University
School: Welsh School of Architecture
Course: BSc Architecture
Tutor: Aled Davies
School statement:
"The Welsh School of Architecture (WSA), based in Cardiff, is a world-renowned institution for design and built environment studies.
"Originally founded over a century ago, the WSA has a strong tradition of excellence in architectural education.
"Our teaching and research embrace the diversity and transdisciplinary nature of architecture – we foster curious, creative, critical, ethical learners who can approach challenges with wide-ranging, flexible skills and knowledge.
"Our vision is to contribute to the making of built environments that enhance the wellbeing of current and future generations while caring for the planet.
"The BSc in Architecture is a three-year undergraduate degree course accredited by RIBA, ARB and LAM (Malaysia).
"The programme covers design, technology, history, theory, representation and professional practice dimensions of the architectural discipline.
"Through studio projects, we encourage our students to take a holistic view of how buildings are designed, used, made and what their broader impacts are, whilst fostering an ethos of 'grounded creativity', exposing students to real-world sites and live challenges as the basis for design projects.
"These approaches are reflected in the range of our year three design units, each of which empowers students to explore and tackle pressing issues for architecture, cities and society."
Managing Pollution Through Making Art by Thomas Brownlie
"The project addresses the heavy metal pollution present in the River Taff caused by historical mining and ongoing industrial activity.
"It proposes the creation of a public workshop and material sourcing space dedicated to the ceramic ash glazing process.
"An ecosystem of phyto-remediating plants will be established to extract heavy metals from the river and surrounding soil.
"Once harvested, these plants will be burned, and their ash used in ceramic glazes.
"By transforming contaminated material into a resource for pottery, the project supports local artistic practice while encouraging public engagement with environmental remediation, craft and material experimentation."
Student: Thomas Brownlie
Tutor: Aled Davies
Email: brownlie.thomas1[at]gmail.com
Social Brewery Development Project, Re-vitalising the Community of Rhos-y-Bwlch (Rosebush) by Annest Marian Davies
"Using primary systems of labour(field) and gathering(forest), this project proposes a national-scale brewery alongside civic infrastructure for the town of Rosebush, Pembrokeshire.
"Seeking to address the forgotten condition of rural Welsh villages, research is built atop former participatory economic systems in mining communities, studying how social mobility was facilitated through the reaping of a stable core industry, pooling wealth back into the local area.
"Through integrating the scheme alongside Pembrokeshire's modern renewable industries, the brewery project aims to revitalise the area both socially and economically, designing for the future while maintaining a deep consideration of existing fabric."
Student: Annest Marian Davies
Tutor: William Beeston
Email: annestmd[at]gmail.com
Tywydd a Thir (Weather and Land) by Sabah Humayun
"Tywydd a Thir is a weather archive and artist residency situated within the mythical, unpredictable landscape of the Preseli Hills, where shifting skies, ancient stone alignments and ever-changing climatic conditions become the project's primary design drivers.
"Rather than sheltering occupants from the elements, the architecture embraces weather as a living force, allowing wind, rain, fog and light to shape movement, perception and memory.
"Embedded within the landscape through rammed earth, stone, and weathering materials, the building evolves alongside its surroundings, becoming part of the site's geological and cultural narrative.
"The project reimagines architecture as an instrument for observing, recording, and experiencing the unforecastable character of place through atmosphere and time."
Student: Sabah Humayun
Tutors: Will Beeston, Parvathy Vipulendran and Varun Nambiar
Email: sabah.humayun[at]outlook.com
Re-Quarter; A Catalytic Social Housing Scheme by Isaac Walker
"Inequality isn't always visible: architecture and urbanism dictate our physical environment, affecting how we live, work and survive.
"Stokes Croft, in Bristol, exhibits an attractive and functional urban space, yet fails a vulnerable population, with 1,720 cases of violent and sexual offences in three years.
"This housing project seeks to provide housing for victims of domestic violence, utilising feminist theory and trauma-informed design.
"An active ground plan provides employment, childcare, therapy and greenspace – a confident plinth for the housing to reside on.
"With courtyards, winter gardens, a nursery and varied housing units, the scheme explores how architecture can be catalytic."
Student: Isaac Walker
Tutor: Aseem Inam
Email: iscwlkr[at]gmail.com
Partnership content
This school show is a partnership between Dezeen and Cardiff University. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.