Liverpool Architecture Festival starts Monday

Promising two weeks of events geared to inspire, educate and celebrate the architectural community in Liverpool, this is a festival that is not to be missed.

The festival runs from 4 October to 15 October at locations throughout the city. Activities include networking socials, workshops, and walking tours. Many of the events are free to attend.

The fun begins with the official LAF Launch + AHMM event on 4 October. The launch party includes a discussion between Liverpool City Region design champion Paul Monaghan and RIBA president Simon Allford, as well as a tour of the Royal Court Theatre by architects AHMM.

One of the highlights is a symposium on 13 October that is dedicated to looking at the future and how the architects of the future will judge the buildings of today.

The Future Listings Symposium begins at 5:30pm on 13 October at One Fine Day on Old Hall Street. It brings together a mix of conservation officers, heritage company directors, and architects to figure out what the listed buildings of the future will be.

Joining the symposium event will be Wirral, Knowsley and Sefton local listings project officer Alex Starritt, historic building advisor Peter de Figueiredo, MGMA Architects director Matthew Ashton, Paddock Johnson Architects director Victoria Alderton, Sefton Council conservation and heritage planning officer Agustina Solassi, and Hinchliffe Heritage director John Hinchliffe.

Throughout the festival various walking tours will be going on, including a tour of the Yoko Ono Lennon Centre by those who designed it – Ellis Williams Architects. The walking tour of the University of Liverpool building will take you to both public spaces and behind the scenes. That tour starts at 5:30pm on 11 October.

The festival wraps up with the Architecture Social on 15 October in the Mann Island Winter Garden. Starting at 5pm and running until 10pm, the event is not just a time to socialise, network and party – it’s also a chance to see exhibition of the work done at the festival. That includes seeing the winners of the Design Charrette event as well as the Liverpool Townhouse Competition, which honours the best design for a post-Covid town house.

You can learn more about the festival and book tickets by visiting laf-uk.com. Note that pre-booking is essential for all events and that tickets are not available on the day.