London Festival of Architecture

In the colorful offer of cultural events this sunny summer, there is a whole month dedicated to celebrating London architecture. During the period from June 20 to July 20, all architectural happenings in London (and there are quite a few) are umbrellaed under one title: The London Festival of Architecture.

The festival is organized through the joint effort of several architectural agencies, such as NLA, The Riba Trust, Cabe, Architectural Foundation, Design for London, and others. The festival enjoys media support from magazines like Blueprint, Icon, Wallpaper, BD, AJ, and others. A rich source of information about activities during the festival is the official website with endless links - www.lfa2008.org.

This year’s theme of the LFA is the word "fresh". Fresh in any sense, whether it's through the presentation of young unconventional work by students from architectural schools (Bartlett, AA, RCA, etc.), the interaction of architecture with other artistic disciplines, its presentation through cycling, river, or walking tours, to solving the issue of delivering fresh vegetables to the city center. The festival engages the public and encourages open discussion about solving architectural problems, providing space for expressing opinions, stances, and proposals. During the festival, it is possible to watch films about architecture or attend live lectures by prominent architects (Libeskind, Chipperfield, Koolhaas, Pelli, etc.).

Each festival weekend is organized by one of the five festival centers. The centers organize live performances, public discussions, and activities for the public showcasing the respective urban area. The first weekend saw the urban areas of Kensington, Chelsea, and Knightsbridge kick off their relay on Exhibition Road in West London. Subsequent weekends were organized by the urban areas:
- Canary Wharf, Stratford, and Greenwich Peninsula
- King's Cross, Bloomsbury, Fitzrovia, and Covent Garden
- Southwark and South Bank
- Clerkenwell and The City of London
Each center offers exhibitions and introductions to significant architectural history, current solutions to architectural problems, and alternative proposals for future development.

Running parallel to the main LFA program is a student architecture festival and exhibitions from another 28 countries under the patronage of individual national embassies.

The planning of the festival was intentionally targeted to the summer months when there is an increased number of visitors in the city. The festival, due to its vacation timing, does not overlap with the September event London Open House.