The National Architecture Student Festival 2008 (NASF) brings together higher education students from across the UK with pupils from London schools and community groups over the course of a year, culminating in a series of temporary ‘interventions’ in key public spaces at each of the five London Festival of Architecture (LFA) 2008 Hubs.

The resulting interventions will be a series of unique and exciting projects which interpret LFA2008’s theme of FRESH!, signpost the LFA and reflect a sense of place – be it fresh ideas, fresh air, fresh grass or any other interpretation of the LFA theme.

Students have chosen sites (each of which has a specific brief to guide students in the design process) across the LFA2008 Hubs. These represent a range of different types of public spaces in the capital, from Bloomsbury squares and historic Clerkenwell to riverside sites and large expanses of water in London’s Docklands. Students from a variety of disciplines including architecture, urban design, planning, engineering, landscape design and product design will participate and work together collaboratively.

The year-long project aims to introduce local people to architecture and design in a tangible way, and to give students a chance to experience the reality of seeing their designs through to construction. Judging by the inaugural 2006 NASF structures, the final interventions will surprise and delight passers-by and visitors to LFA2008.

Institutions involved

Canterbury School of Architecture / Architectural Association / Central St Martins College of Art and Design / Centre for Alternative Technology, Wales / Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne / Greenwich University / Kingston University / London Metropolitan University / Oxford Brookes University / Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication / Sheffield University / Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance/University College London