Last Saturday I attended one of a series of conferences on activism held at the CIVA architectural institution in Brussels. … More
Category: Uncategorized
Chairing an event for INFRA+
On Tuesday the 1st June I was invited to chair an event forming part of the INFRA+ series, organised by … More
Crits at the LSA
Yesterday I took part in the reviews of the final year briefs for the master students at the London School … More
The Blast Furnaces of Cherepovets
Making metal has been one of the central activities of humankind for thousands of years. What started off as small … More
World’s longest train route?
The train journey between Russia’s capital and its eastern extreme is considered the world’s most scenic and time consuming. It … More
The automotive culture of Kostroma
On the south eastern fridge of the Russian city of Kostroma, just across the railway from Chernorechye district, one finds … More
Tarusa, the artist’s paradise
Untouched by railways and industry, secluded and picturesque Tarusa has inspired many generations of poets and artists. During all seasons, … More
Living at the World’s edge
Living in the Arctic Tundra Around 70km to the north from Murmansk any trees disappear and one is faced with … More
Russia’s most northern port city
Over the past week I visited Teriberka and Murmansk, positioned near to the Arctic Ocean over 300 km north of … More
Emilia’s Wood Wharf
In late 2021 Emilia’s team celebrated the opening of the 3rd restaurant. At over 200 sq metres, this was the … More
Shakhty, the coal mining capital of the Russian South
In the final weeks of 2020, I spent a week in the typical former Soviet industrial city of Shakhty in … More
Publication in FOLIO
My essay Another Hotel in Africa , originally written for the University of Cambridge, will be published in the Volume … More
Physical and infrastructural isolation of Solovki Islands
Solovki is one of the most remote and infrastructurally divorced tourist destinations of the Russian North. An archipoelago initially inhabited … More
Idea for a former landfill in Weston
The site is located to the south east from Weston-super-Mare’s historic centre, alongside the A370 and the Weston bypass railway. … More
Urban Waste Eco-system
In his book Building and Dwelling, Richard Sennett1 points us towards the two opposite forms of urban evolution: rigidly pre-defined … More
Circular Economy Workshop with Buro Happold
Designing ‘waste space’ needs to change as does the way we think of all waste and recycling as awhole. Often … More
Waste management, architecture and planning
Below I review some professional functions that link the fields of waste management, architecture and urban planning, based on my … More
Carcasonne: from citadel to shopping centre
It happens that entire towns change their principal function over the centuries. An example of such transformation is Carcassonne in … More
Recent mention in the AJ
My work was recently referenced in the Architectiral Journal article about university ratings.
Latin American Market, Seven Sisters London
I continue visiting the 7 Sisters Market, a home to one of London’s two main Latin American communities for over … More
Arndale Shopping Centre, Eastbourne
During my time at TP Bennett I worked on Arndale both during my Part 1 (2015-16) and Part 2 (2018-19) … More
RIBA Presidents Medal Commendation
Yesterday I received a Commendation for my Dissertation ‘Another Hotel in Africa’. Copy of Mark Shtanov Thesis Interview:
Two lectures
My two lectures, one on Community lead hotel project in Africa (3 October) and one on integrating waste-processing infrastructure into … More
Model making workshop
Whilst visiting SEK University in Quito, Ecuador, in 2018, I ran a model-making workshop with a group of 17 UISEK … More
Al Borde
Al Borde architects, known outside Latin America after Venice Biennale 2016, are based just north of the historic city of … More
Unravelling San Roque: results
After conducing visit 1 and visit 2 to San Roque market, my students condensed their findings in an ethnographic exhibition. … More
San Roque visit number 2
Shtanov workshop discription (workshop brief in pdf) Market approach from Loja Street.
Unravelling San Roque
Shtanov workshop discription (workshop brief in pdf) With a group of students we started on the workshop aimed at studying processes … More
Boulevard 24 Mayo: approach to San Roque
Boulevard 24 Mayo, 5:57 in the morning. Quito’s former most notorious drug and prostitution street, now pedestrianised, decorated with pink … More
My office in UISEK
For the coming month I am working in an office based on a 17 century monastery of Guapulo, built by … More
Trompo
during last Monday’s visit to San Roque market I met the world champion of Trompo – an important game in … More
Public transport in Quito
In order to travel between the accomodation and the architecture school I make 2 interchanges between buses, and the connecting … More
CDMX Metro
During my one day stopover between London and Quito I used the city of Mexico Metro to visit the historic … More
Teaching at UISEK in Quito this October
I have been invited to give two lectures and a workshop at a university in Ecuador this October. More information … More
About me
I am an architect, a traveller and a researcher. My current PhD thesis, undertaken at the University of Manchester, is … More