Urban legacies
October 11–November 10, 2022
Returning in 2022 for its fourth year, Citymakers is an annual conference hosted by Allies and Morrison, which explores the often-misunderstood role of masterplanning in the making of cities today. This year’s Citymakers will interrogate the built legacies of the late 20th and early 21st centuries and how we might adapt them in the context of the climate emergency.
Our time is one of urgency. It demands that we retain more of our existing built fabric rather than demolish and build anew. It is easy to celebrate Georgian or Victorian legacies, but what do we do with awkward 20th century pieces of city? They are now part of our heritage, even if popularly unloved. Sometimes sprawling, seemingly inefficient or inflexible at times, we live today with much of this inherited fabric. Should we always retain and refashion this inheritance or rebuild? And what about what we are building today? Will future generations be able to adapt what we are designing now to the needs of their time?
Citymakers brings together designers, developers, planners, academics, journalists and collaborators to look beyond the boundaries between practitioners and the public, between site and the city, between spaces and society. In keeping with this year’s theme, each public discussion will take place at different venues in London, each embodying a different aspect of late 20th century urbanism.
Inheritance: Urban legacies
October 11, 2022, 6-8pm BST
The Barbican Centre, City of London
Assessing the legacies of the mid and late 20th century and how they have shaped today’s cities. Speakers: Julia Okatz, SYSTEMIQ; Smith Mordak, Buro Happold; and Artur Carulla, Allies and Morrison.
Hereafter: Modernist estates and post-war suburbia
October 27, 2022, 5:30-7:30pm BST
London College of Communication, Elephant & Castle
From Modernist slabs to arcadian suburbia, what are the ways and means of adapting those legacies to build a more sustainable future? Speakers: Verity-Jane Keefe, artist; Selina Mason, Lendlease; Jonny Anstead, TOWN; David Knight, DK-CM; Claire Bennie, Municipal; and Alfredo Caraballo, Allies and Morrison.
Future: What we leave behind
November 10, 2022, 5:30-7:30pm GMT
The WestWorks, White City Place
From advances in technology to a shifting landscape in ecological and social values, what legacies should contemporary masterplanning leave for future generations? Speakers: Regina Myer, Downtown Brooklyn Partnership; Paul Eaton, Allies and Morrison; Mel Allwood, Arup; Kath Scanlon, London School of Economics; and John Dales, Urban Movement.
Register here via Eventbrite or email press [at] alliesandmorrison.com, indicating which session(s) you wish to attend. All events will be held in person in London.