{"id":737,"date":"2018-10-31T11:09:02","date_gmt":"2018-10-31T11:09:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/urban-living\/?page_id=737"},"modified":"2025-06-12T17:15:42","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T16:15:42","slug":"amy","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/urban-living\/amy\/","title":{"rendered":"Amy Brookes (formerly Butt)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lecturer in Architecture (Representation and Communication)<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

I see architecture as a social art, the practice of which should embody and support progressive social development. I have a strong belief in the importance of consultation, participation and narrative communication to widen participation in architecture, and create spaces which engage and inspire all users of the built environment.<\/p>\n

In my work as an Architect I specialised in higher and further education design, with a focus on client consultation, brief development and student engagement. I worked for several UK practices before moving to bpr architects where I was an associate director for six years. Over that time, I was project architect responsible for the design and delivery of \u00a336m worth of education projects ranging from small refurbishments and fit out projects, to an \u00a318m new build Science and Technology building for Middlesex University.<\/p>\n

Alongside my work in practice, I co-founded Involve architecture collective, which specialises in small scale installations and workshops which aim to broaden participation in architecture. We have worked with public institutions including Tate Britain, RIBA, Open City, V&A and the Horniman Museum as well as school and youth groups.<\/p>\n

Before coming to Reading I led second and third year undergraduate design studios at Brighton University and second year, third year, and MArch design studios at Newcastle University where I was nominated for a Teaching Excellence Award. These studios all focused on the importance of social engagement in design and explored the role of narrative in architecture, informed by my research into science fiction.<\/p>\n

My research explores the way in which the fictional worlds we construct influence and reflect the world we inhabit, looking at utopian thought and the imaginary in architecture through science fiction literature and film. As well as publication in academic peer-reviewed journals and conferences this work has been presented as part of public events including the UK and World science fiction conventions, sci-fi writers\u2019 workshops, and at a utopian activist festival. It has been shared in venues ranging from the BFI cinema on London\u2019s South Bank, to the dark interior of the structural support towers of the Tyne bridge.<\/p>\n

At Reading I draw on my work in practice and research to engage students in considering our collective responsibility as architects. This requires us to be attentive to the social implications of the cities we currently inhabit, to develop a utopian desire for what the world could be, and to carefully consider our role as designers of future worlds.<\/p>\n

Qualifications<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u00b7 PG Dip in Professional Practice in Architecture (RIBA\/ARB pt III) University of Westminster
\n\u00b7 PG Dip Architecture (RIBA\/ARB pt II) University of Westminster
\n\u00b7 BSc Architectural Studies(RIBA\/ARB ptI) Cardiff University
\n\u00b7 RIBA Chartered Architect<\/p>\n

Responsibilities<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u00b7 Co-lead the development and delivery of BSc Architecture stage 1 design studio, and the teaching of visualisation and communication
\n\u00b7 Admissions Tutor for the Architecture BSc programme<\/p>\n

External Responsibilities<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u00b7 Co-founder of <\/em>Involvearchitecture collective
\n\u00b7 Active member of the Imaginaries of the Future Network, London Science Fiction Research Community, the British Science Fiction Association, the Utopian Studies Society and the Beyond Gender science fiction research collective<\/p>\n

Areas of Interest<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u00b7 Education design
\n\u00b7 Widening participation in architecture
\n\u00b7 Public engagement and interdisciplinary working
\n\u00b7 The utopian imaginary and intent in architecture
\n\u00b7 Narrative communication of and in architectural design
\n\u00b7 Architecture in science fiction literature and film<\/p>\n

Selected Publications<\/h3>\n

Butt, A. (2019) ‘Only one way in and one way out’: Staging Utopia Spaces, Studies in Arts and Humanities, <\/em>05: 01, pp. 5 – 23<\/p>\n

Butt, A. (2018) ‘\u2018Endless forms, vistas and hues\u2019: Why Architects Should Read Science Fiction\u2019, ARQ <\/em>Architectural Research Quarterly<\/em><\/p>\n

Butt, A. and Roberts, D. (2018) \u2018Narrative Arcs\u2019 in\u00a0Regeneration Songs: Sounds of Investment and Loss from East London.\u00a0<\/em>Eds. Duman, A., Hancox, D., James, M., and Minton, A.<\/p>\n

Butt, A. (2018) \u2018City Limits: Boundary Conditions and the Building-Cities of Science Fiction\u2019, Open Library of the Humanities \u2013 <\/em>Special Issue Series:\u2018<\/em>Imaginaries of the Future\u2019<\/p>\n

Butt, A. (2018) \u2018Vicarious Vertigo: The emotional experience of height in the science fiction city\u2019, Emotion, Space and Society \u2013 <\/em>Special Issue \u2018Vertigo in the City\u2019<\/p>\n

Butt, A. (2016) \u2018Between the Image and the Building: An Architectural Tour of High-Rise\u2019, Critical Quarterly,<\/em>Volume 58, Issue 1, April 2016, pp. 76\u201383<\/p>\n

Butt, A. (2015) \u2018Control Towers: Life and Limitations in The World Inside\u2019,Low-Res: Architectural theory, Politics and Criticism, <\/em>Pilot Issue \u2018High-Rise\u2019, pp. 134-144<\/p>\n

Butt, A. and Knox-Williams, C. (2015) \u2018The Possibility of Failure:Chasing Utopia\u2019, Alter Periodical, <\/em>Spring 2015, Volume 2<\/p>\n

Staff Profile Page<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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