Podcast · Arts & Books
by Buckland Architects · English · Arts & Books
Theory of Architecture is a series of in-depth conversations with architects and academics about architecture and the theories and philosophies behind it.
7 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 4 min
Jonathan Glancey is well known as the former architecture and design correspondent of the Guardian and Independent newspapers. He has just published a new book 'Where We Live: The Fractured Art of British Housebuilding and How to Build the Homes We Need'.
9 Jan 2026 · 1 hr 13 min
Eliot Postma is a Partner and Group Leader at Heatherwick Studio. We discuss the importance of the Humanise Campaign, what architects should be doing differently, and how it applies in their own work.
21 Nov 2025 · 1 hr 32 min
Geoffrey West is a theoretical physicist whose current interests are in using universal scaling laws to understand quantitatively the structure and dynamics of social organizations, such as cities and corporations, including the relationships between economies of scale, growth, innovation and wealth creation and their implications for long-term survivability and sustainability.
9 Jul 2025 · 1 hr 17 min
Nicholas Boys Smith is the Founder & Chairman of Create Streets, a social enterprise and multidisciplinary consultancy specialising in urban design, planning and regeneration. He was also Chair of the Advisory Board for the Government’s Office for Place & is an Academician of the Academy of Urbanism.
2 Apr 2025 · 1 hr 9 min
Dr. Chanuki Illushka Seresinhe is a leading figure in the data science community. She currently holds the position of Chief Data and Technology Officer at Boon, an organisation that integrates AI, psychology, and human expertise to address and solve meaningful societal challenges. Additionally, she is the co-founder of Beautifulplaces.ai, an initiative dedicated to generating informative data on the aesthetics of outdoor spaces. In her prior commercial role at Zoopla and Hometrack, Dr. Seresinhe leveraged machine learning and AI technologies to enhance user experiences and property…
2 Aug 2024 · 1 hr
Ann Sussman, RA, is an architect, author and researcher. Her books, including Cognitive Architecture and Urban Experience + Design, reveal the unconscious tendencies at work when we navigate the world around us. These ‘hidden’ predispositions reflect our long evolutionary trip per recent research in psychology and neuroscience, and can help explain why we favour certain urban conditions and building configurations and shun others. Understanding ourselves better, Sussman believes, can lead us to build more humanely and ultimately, more successfully for people.
21 Apr 2023 · 1 hr 24 min
Cleo Valentine is a systems designer, neuroarchitectural researcher and doctoral candidate at the University of Cambridge, Department of Architecture. She is also an associate at Cambridge Architectural Research Ltd. where she provides consultancy services on public health and architecture.
14 Jan 2023 · 1 hr 22 min
Niall McLaughlin is a Stirling Prize winning Irish architect based in London and Professor of Architectural Practice at the Bartlett School of Architecture.
5 Jul 2022 · 1 hr 20 min
Mark Foster Gage is an American architect, writer, and theorist based in New York City where he runs his practice, Mark Foster Gage Architects. He is an associate professor at the Yale School of Architecture where his academic focus is on aesthetic philosophy.
25 May 2022 · 1 hr 5 min
Adam Nathaniel Furman is a British artist & designer of Argentine & Japanese heritage based in London. Trained in architecture, Adam's atelier works in spatial design and art of all scales from video and prints to large public artworks, architecturally integrated ornament, as well as products, furniture, interiors, publishing and academia.
6 Apr 2022 · 1 hr 50 min
Dr Nikos Salingaros is a mathematician and polymath known for his work on urban theory, architectural theory, complexity theory, biophilic design, and design philosophy.
3 Nov 2021 · 1 hr 48 min
Dusty Gedge is a Green Infrastructure Professional, Speaker, Photographer and Nature Conservationist, as well as President of the European Federation of Green Roof Associations (EFB) and founder of Livingroofs.org. This conversation is all about green roofs, green walls and green infrastructure.
10 Jun 2021 · 2 hr 3 min
Dr Timothy Brittain-Catlin is Course Leader for the MSt Architecture Apprenticeship at the University of Cambridge. He has also just published a new book, 'The Edwardians and their Houses', the first radical appraisal of the subject for 40 years.
8 Mar 2021 · 1 hr 20 min
Towards a Holistic Architecture: What is a holistic architecture and how might we best investigate how to achieve it?
16 Dec 2020 · 1 hr 4 min
'The New Sympathy: An Exploration of How Emerging Theories in Scientific, Mathematical and Psychological Understanding of the Natural World are Affecting the State of Ornament in Architecture'.
8 Dec 2020 · 1 hr 21 min
Dr Eleanor Ratcliffe is a Lecturer in Environmental Psychology at the University of Surrey, specialising in restorative environments, place attachment, soundscapes, connectedness to nature, aesthetics, consumer behaviour, user experience and designing for wellbeing.
16 Oct 2020 · 1 hr 28 min
Dame Laura Lee is CEO of Maggie's, a charity providing drop-in support centres for cancer patients, each designed by a different architect.
12 Oct 2020 · 1 hr 38 min
Dr Rosemary Hill is a writer, historian, independent scholar and author of 'God’s Architect', a biography of the Gothic Revival architect, A.W.N. Pugin and 'Stonehenge', a history of one of Britain’s greatest and least understood monuments. In this episode we cover Pugin, Stonehenge and clothes.
27 Aug 2020 · 14 min
This is an article all about beauty entitled 'What do people like about old architectural styles and how can they be incorporated into contemporary designs?'
17 Jul 2020 · 1 hr 31 min
Phineas Harper is Director of Open City, the organisation which runs the annual Open House weekend. He also curated the 2019 Oslo Architecture Triennale and has previously worked for the Architecture Foundation and the Architectural Review.
8 Jul 2020 · 10 min
In this article I talk about why the planning system needs to undergo radical digitisation and suggest some policies that might help in that process. And please vote in the RIBA Elections!: www.architecture.com/elections
2 Jul 2020 · 6 min
This is an article I wrote back in 2016 entitled 'Public Engagement in Architectural Awards' which is still very relevant.
24 Jun 2020 · 1 hr 53 min
Nicholas Ray is co-author of the book 'Philosophy of Architecture' and is an architect in practice in Cambridge where he taught before joining the University of Liverpool. His theoretical pre-occupations over a period of more than 40 years have resulted in publications on Alvar Aalto, Rafael Moneo, Cambridge contemporary architecture and architecture's ethical dilemmas.
4 Jun 2020 · 14 min
My third architectural book recommendation is 'The Sympathy of Things' by Lars Spuybroek. Here I talk in more detail about this book and what makes it essential reading for all architects and architecture students.
27 Apr 2020 · 5 min
My second architectural book recommendation is 'A Pattern Language' by Christopher Alexander et al. Here I talk about how this book is useful to architects and architecture students and why you should read it.
16 Apr 2020 · 8 min
In the first of a series of short episodes I talk about the first book that should be on your architecture reading list, 'A Theory of Architecture' by Nikos Salingaros, and why it is so important and useful for architects and architecture students.
14 Jan 2020 · 1 hr 14 min
Dr Karamia Muller is a lecturer in architecture at the University of Auckland and is the first Samoan woman to get a PhD in architecture. In conversation with Bruce Buckland, Director of Buckland Architects.
28 Jun 2019 · 2 hr 3 min
Patrik Schumacher is Principal of Zaha Hadid Architects and has written and lectured extensively on architectural theory, most notably in his book 'The Autopoiesis of Architecture'. In conversation with Bruce Buckland, Director of Buckland Architects.
26 May 2019 · 1 hr 27 min
Piers Taylor is an architect, former television presenter, and director of Invisible Studio. In conversation with Bruce Buckland, Director of Buckland Architects.
22 May 2019 · 1 hr 23 min
Richard Beckett is a Lecturer at the Bartlett School of Architecture, where he is Co-Director of BiotA Lab, researching the use of biology in architecture and construction. In conversation with Bruce Buckland, Director of Buckland Architects.
Theory of Architecture is a series of in-depth conversations with architects and academics about architecture and the theories and philosophies behind it.
Theory of Architecture is a English arts & books podcast from Buckland Architects. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.
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