Two recent architecture graduates, Ross Anderson and Anna Gibb, travelled to Russia to investigate a loose collective of young architects who lived in Moscow in the 1980s and called themselves ‘the Paper Architects’. The group, which included Alexander Brodksy and Ilya Utkin, sought to escape the restrictions that came with working under a communist regime by entering projects in ‘forbidden competitions’. The Paper Architects tackled issues they faced in Soviet Moscow with fanciful and provocative solutions.
Anderson’s and Gibb’s research has been motivated by their own disillusion with the state of architectural practice in the UK, where the lack of job security and creative limitations means that design competitions offer the only opportunities for self-expression. For Venice Takeaway, the pair have entered a ‘forbidden competition’ in Scotland. Their entry, Castle to Cathedral to Cashmere, aims to encourage a culture of communication and collaboration between young architects: an active community of new Paper Architects in the UK.
In the link below you can find an audio interview whilst at the Biennale: enlace.
