2021 marked the centenary of the first completed buildings on the Becontree Estate, which when built, was the largest council estate in the world.
To coincide with RIBA's Becontree exhibitions, Lived in Architecture – Becontree at 100 and The Tree of a Man Named Beohha – Becontree now, and our temporary public realm installation Bringing Home to the Unknown, we put together a season of talks, tours and workshops for guests to learn more about the East London estate.
Key themes explored in the programme included the historical significance of the estate, the broader contemporary issues facing large scale town planning, housing and the importance of architectural textures and surface finishes across Becontree. Find out more below about our Becontree season of events:
Artist-led tour of The Tree of a Man named Beohha, 14 October 2021
Led by RIBA Curator Pete Collard and fine art photographer Kalpesh Lathigra.
As the first event of the Becontree season, RIBA Curator Pete Collard was joined by fine-art photographer Kalpesh Lathigra in an artist-led tour of the exhibition, The Tree of a Man named Beohha – Becontree Now. Lathigra reflected on what he had learned about the buildings and people of the estate through his process of close and continual observation. This provided guests with an exclusive insight into the architectural details found across the individual homes of the estate. Guests were intrigued by the omission of figures from Lathigra’s photography and were encouraged to ask questions directly to the artist throughout the tour.
A Becontree walkabout with Verity-Jane Keefe, 16 October 2021
Guests joined visual artist Verity-Jane Keefe, on a guided walk through the Becontree estate, as she reflected on the key themes of her work, including the political and architectural decision making that has shaped Becontree, and in particular the significance of Becontree’s physical location between London and Essex.
Building on Keefe’s self-termed ‘accidental love affair’ with Becontree, guests were led through time and place, learning of key historical moments from the estate’s inception through to the current day. Keefe’s careful and close observation across several years has given her unique insights into both the history of the area and the strong character of the estate, all of which ensured for a descriptive and enlightening walking tour.
Radical housing: A coach tour, 23 October 2021
In partnership with Focal Point Gallery through their Radical ESSEX programme.
Guests joined RIBA for a coach tour, which focused on examples of radical housing between London and Essex. The tour began with a visit to Becontree, with a guided tour from the artist Verity-Jane Keefe. Guests were interested to see examples of pargetting on the houses, walking along with one of the many banjos on the estate, and were shocked to experience the sheer scale of Becontree. The group were then driven to Focal Point Gallery in Southend-on-Sea, where Deputy Director Hayley Dixon delivered a tour of their current exhibition Tip of the Iceberg and provided an overview of their much-celebrated ongoing Radical ESSEX programme. Before returning to RIBA, the coach made a final stop at the Bata Estate in East Tilbury, the site of the exemplary modernist workers’ housing for the Bata shoe factory, where guests were treated to tours led by members of the Bata Heritage Centre.
Becontree curator tours, 2 November 2021, 10 February 2022
Led by RIBA Curator Pete Collard and exhibiting artist Verity-Jane Keefe.
Throughout the exhibition season, multiple tours of the exhibitions at RIBA's HQ took place, providing visitors with an exclusive insight into the history and architectural adaptations of the Becontree Estate.
Guests were given an intimate tour of the two RIBA commissions, Lived in Architecture – Becontree at 100 and The Tree of a Man Named Beohha – Becontree Now, with the work of both Verity-Jane Keefe and Kalpesh Lathigra providing alternative angles on the estate, its scale and its architecture.
“Pebbledash ain’t slapdash!” Textures from across the British counties, 9 November 2021
Through a night filled with images from the RIBA’s world-class photography collections, our panellists traced the history and significance of some of the often misunderstood traditional building techniques from across the UK, inviting guests to think differently about the buildings we see every day. As writer, biographer and chair of the panel Gillian Darley OBE explained, our speakers explored, "the ways in which people put their fingerprints on their houses," exploring how we adapt our homes to reflect our changing tastes.
The panel discussed many traditional styles of architectural finishes, including pebbledash, pargetting and timber shingling, with guests delighted to learn that Hugh McEwen, of Office S&M, even has a cat called Pebbledash.
Speakers:
- Hugh McEwen and Catrina Stewart, Office S&M
- Matthew Wilson, Bricklayer, SPAB William Morris Craft Fellow 2019
- Dr Timothy Brittain-Catlin, Author of The Edwardians and their Houses
- Valeria Carullo, RIBA Curator, The Robert Elwall Photographs Collection
- Verity-Jane Keefe, Visual Artist
Becontree takes over: A RIBA Late, 1 December 2021
Co-programmed with Verity-Jane Keefe
Opening up 66 Portland Place after hours, this event included simultaneous events, featuring dance performances, learning workshops, exhibition tours and pop-up talks. Welcoming a whole host of guests, many of whom were Becontree residents, the event truly brought the life of the Becontree Estate community into the heart of central London. Spectacular dance performances by Barking & Dagenham Youth Dance proved incredibly popular, bringing guests together in the atmospheric Florence Hall.
Revolutionary voices in housing, then and now, 18 January 2022
For this digital event, RIBA brought together a panel of esteemed speakers, to highlight individuals, groups and initiatives who have, or are thinking ambitiously about what subsidised housing could or should be.
Chaired by Claire Bennie, Director of Municipal, the panel featured short presentations, looking at a range of topics including the work of radical housing consultant Elizabeth Denby, Peter Barber Architects’ revolutionary approach to social housing, Be First’s innovative affordable housing model and the Archbishop’s Commission on Housing, Church and Community’s report ‘Coming Home.’ These inspiring presentations encouraged audience members to volunteer their own stories of radical housing in the comments, creating rich discussion about the possibilities for future subsidised housing.
Speakers included:
- Elizabeth Darling, Reader in Architectural History, Oxford Brookes University
- Peter Barber, Peter Barber Architects
- Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani, Bishop of Housing
- Amandeep Singh Kalra, Associate Architect at Be First
- Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani, Bishop of Housing
Architectural inspirations: Becontree 2D/3D, 29 to 30 January 2022
Led by artist Wilson Yau.
This two-day digital workshop delved into new ways of depicting architecture by drawing and model making. Guests were encouraged to explore themes and ideas inspired by the Becontree exhibitions while developing their skills and discovering new creative techniques. Guests were supported in creating their own artworks while learning more about the techniques of architecture and drawing.
Becontree: Housing a history, Four-week course held on Tuesdays 8, 15, 22 February and 1 March 2022
This weekly evening course, organised in partnership with The Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain (SAHGB), examined different aspects of how Becontree came into being, the changes that have occurred, and how recent history has changed its architecture. Each week’s discussion was led by guest experts, including social historian John Boughton, architectural historian Mark Swenarton (The University of Liverpool) and Rebecca Preston (Royal Holloway, University of London).
Exploring the social and design history of the estate, and of council housing in Britain more widely, this course was inspired by RIBA’s exhibitions and aimed at adults with a general interest in architecture.
This programme of events was part of the Becontree Centenary, a partnership between Create London and RIBA, supported using public funding from Arts Council England, Art Fund and Span Trust.
