ARCHITECTURE ROOM AT THIS YEAR’S ROYAL ACADEMY SUMMER EXHIBITION
APRIL 2022
Níall McLaughlin and artist Rana Begum will co-curate the architecture room at this year’s Royal
Academy Summer Exhibition. Celebrated British sculptor Alison Wilding RA will co-ordinate the 254th exhibtion.
This year Wilding will explore the theme of Climate. “The theme of Summer Exhibition 2022 is
CLIMATE in all its manifestations. Whether it presents as crisis or opportunity, nightmare or
memories, or simply our everyday experience of weather, - CLIMATE is a huge all-embracing and
urgent subject.”
The Summer Exhibition is the world’s largest open submission contemporary art show which has
taken place every year without interruption since 1769. The members of the Summer Exhibition
Committee serve in rotation, ensuring that every year the exhibition has a distinctive character, with
each Royal Academician responsible for a particular gallery space. Works from all over the world are
judged democratically on merit and the final selection is made during the eight-day hang within the
galleries.
COLLABORATION WITH KIM WILKIE WINS NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM COMPETITION
APRIL 2014
Niall McLaughlin Architects with Kim Wilkie have won the bid to redesign the setting of the Natural History Museum, in a two-stage international competition, organised by Malcom Reading. The team was the unanimous choice of the jury, who included Graham Morrison of Allies and Morrison, former cabinet minister Michael Portillo, Sophie Andreae, a Trustee of Historic Royal Palaces and Dr Michael Dixon, Director of the Natural History Museum.
Jury chair, Ian Henderson said of the scheme, ‘The challenge was to find a team which would consider the changing nature of the Museum, a team who would think holistically, both spatially and intellectually, considering the Museum and the Grounds together. Niall McLaughlin Architects did this brilliantly.’
The commission gives the opportunity to re-imagine the extensive entrance grounds to the world famous museum in South Kensington, London and provide a fitting context for the architectural excellence of the 19th century Waterhouse building. The museum is a global leader in scientific research, housing over 80 million species from around the world and is one of the top visitor attractions in the UK.
The team is looking forward to working with the museum to develop a proposal that will transform the experience for the 5 million visitors that the museum welcomes each year and showcase the museum to the wider cultural quarter centered on the newly redeveloped Exhibition Road.
Link to the Architects Journal
Link to BD OnLine
Link to the Evening Standard