Welcome!

I am an experienced and enthusiastic architect (ARB), lecturer (associate lecturer at Newcastle University) and pedagogue in architecture with more than two decades experience as practicing architect, and almost two decades in architectural education.

I provide private and individually tailored courses, tuition and mentoring for aspiring architects (student testimonials).   

Key areas are:

General design skills

Design inspiration and creativity

Effective design methodology

Contextual concept and design development

Manual and analogue techniques 

Architectural knowledge and criticality 

Theoretical and ethical frameworks 

Ecology, materiality and construction 

Architectural representation 

Having taught and supervised hundreds of students, I have come to realise that a holistic understanding of architecture can only be achieved through restoring a personal and physical engagement with architecture. Often and far too earlier the learner become captivate by electronic tools, their deceptive ease of use and perfection.  This becomes even more relevant due to the increasing influence of artificial intelligence.

The quality of design and the satisfaction we derive from it increase with the level of our practical and craft engagement. Therefore, my teaching is practical, application focused,  peer learning and demonstration based. Teacher and students form a symbiotic learning relationship that makes studying a social and fulfilling experience. 

Outdoor sketching is crucial for a contextual and environmental understanding of architecture.

Learning from the past.

Projecting into the future. 

Beyond physical safety and comfort we need the manifestation of ideas, of hopes and beliefs in the form of buildings.

Most of my memories relate to specific spaces and places - to architecture. Our hopes and worries are mirrored in architecture. We can read the ‘zeitgeist’ in our buildings; vices and virtues of our time, and times past. Comprehensive insights and knowledge can be gained, mistakes can be avoided and lessons can be learned from them.

My admiration is particularly with the manually drafted architecture before the digital era. The time when draftsmanship and craftsmanship were valued. Many principles of holistic and sustainable design have been applied, particularly in vernacular architecture.

Take advantage of the opportunities that new technologies offer: Improved collaboration and information exchange as well as increased efficiency and precision open up new possibilities and solutions.

Since my involvement in architectural education, my focus has been on a contextual and holistic approach to provide future architects and designers not only with the necessary skills and knowledge, but also with reflective criticality and a responsible and ethical attitude.

'Tower Poetry', reviving the Morden Tower on Newcastle's Town Wall,  Buildner Unbuild Award 2024 competition entry.  

"The great aim of education is not knowledge but action."

Herbert Spencer

What is relevant is less what I know theoretically and more what I actually apply.

This is an important insight for all learners: words must be followed by actions. Knowledge without application is dead knowledge. We remain learners. Learning is infinite. Integrity means that what we think and say is reflected in what we do.

It is not what goes on in my head that changes the world, but rather what I do with my hand, what I create and of course how and what I communicate.

Architectural education in the UK is shifting from 'what you have learned' to 'what you can do' as outlined in the ARB framework for education.

"We believe the most important consideration is what a budding architect can achieve - not how they got there."

(ARB brochure: Modernising Architectural Education)

Quick isometric sketch design, a demonstration for students.