Archigram was a forward-thinking group of architects that joined forces in the early 60s. Whereas most architects spend their time working out where stairwells should go, this lot aimed to drag the world into the future by challenging pretty much everyone’s idea of what a house or a city should be. Bonkers ideas included a giant nomadic city that would walk around the countryside when resources were depleted, and an ‘instant city’ that would fly by balloon to dull towns, bringing the residents up to date on culture and technology.
Unsurprisingly, none of their designs were ever built, but their influence can be seen on such bizarre buildings as the Pompidou Centre in Paris and that massive new Tescos in Trafford.
The University of Westminster have just launched the Archigram Archive Project featuring all manner of Archigram ephemera, and it’s most definitely worth at least nine minutes of your time. Haven’t got nine minutes? I’ve pasted some corkers below…
See the Archigram Archive Project
Cheers to the great Shelf Life Stuff blog for the inadvertent tip off.
And whilst we’re on the subject, keep at least one eye open for our Archigram-esque Ardwick posters designed by Steve Hockett.