UNIT 17
Yeoryia Manolopoulou, Niall McLaughlin, Thomas Parker, Michiko Sumi, Phil Tabor

Unit 17 designs contextual buildings that interplay with the social, political and material cultures of specific places. Each project is research-based, aiming to construct an architectural thesis that is explicitly manifested in the design proposition.
 
We are interested in the student`s imagination and original voice, and seek diversity in the work produced by the unit as a whole; projects complement and sometimes intentionally contradict each other to form a multilayered dialogue about the nature of architectural thought and practice today. Design iteration through drawing and making is a constant activity that we encourage. Stimulating debates through open crits and tutorials, and a critical osmosis of ideas and techniques in the studio, are vital aspects of the unit`s culture. Fieldtrips play an important role in the development of the work and we invest substantial energy in designing itineraries which include experiencing extraordinary places and cultures. 
 
Unit 17 has a long history in the MArch Architecture (ARB/RIBA Part 2) programme at The Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL. In the early 1990s it was taught by Phil Tabor and Niall McLaughlin and for twenty years, between 1999 and 2019, by Yeoryia Manolopoulou and Niall McLaughlin. Michiko Sumi taught Unit 17 between 2011 - 2017 and Thomas Parker has been teaching it since 2019. The Unit has also been taught in shorter periods by the architects Bev Dockray, Adam Cole and Tilo Guenter. Our Design Realisation tutors have been Maria Fulford and James Daykin. 
 
The content of this website is led by Unit 17 students since 2012. If you are interested to see more of our work, please access our  design anthology.