2010 Members Events

Architecture and Wine Trip to Bilbao, San Sebastian and La Rioja
Friday 12 to Monday 15 February
Coinciding with the final day of the Frank Lloyd Wright exhibition at the Bilbao Guggenheim, this trip visited a region that has seen a dramatic investment in new architecture in recent years, from public projects such as Rafael Moneo's Kursaal in San Sebastian and Santiago Calatrava's Bilbao Airport to private winery buildings by Zaha Hadid and Frank Gehry, all of which are included in our itinerary.

The trip started in Valladolid with a guided visit to Richard Rogers' Bodegas Protos, shortlisted for the 2009 Stirling Prize, before venturing into deep old country for the evening. Saturday will be spent exploring new and old wineries in La Rioja, with time between visits to discuss and digest over a leisurely meal, finishing in the busy old centre of Bilbao, where the best tapas bars and the three -star hotel for the next two nights are located. A visit to the Guggenheim on Sunday morning will be followed by a catch-up on some of the latest developments in a city that continues to invest in modern architecture, after the success of last century's metro system by Norman Foster and Santiago Calatrava's pedestrian bridge. On Monday, a coach trip to San Sebastian will include visits to the Kursaal and Eduardo Chillida's dramatic Peines del Viento sculptures, before heading to Bilbao airport for the return flight.

Littlehampton
Thursday 18 March
Join AA Members for fish and chips at the award-winning West Beach Cafe in the seaside town of Littlehampton with the architect and recent AA graduate Asif Khan, before going to Heatherwick Studio's East Beach Cafe for afternoon tea.

Olympic Site Visit
Thursday 28 January
Two tours of the Olympic site in one afternoon. Firstly a special guided tour on foot of the Olympic Stadium construction led by architect and recent AA graduate William Chen of POPULOUS (formerly HOK Sport), followed by a bus tour of the entire Olympic site led by the Olympic Design Authority.

Design Museum Previews: David Adjaye's 'Urban Africa' and 'Sustainable Futures – can design make a difference?'
Tuesday 30 March
An exclusive preview at the Design Museum of David Adjaye's photographic journey 'Urban Africa' and 'Sustainable Futures – can design make a difference?', introduced by David Adjaye and Deyan Sudjic, the Director of the Design Museum. David Adjaye's collection of photographs is a personal quest through the eyes of an architect to address the scant knowledge of the built environment of the African continent. Capturing the salient features of Africa's cities including suburban settlements, unofficial developments and townscapes, these photographs examine the buildings and places that resonate with Adjaye's preoccupations as an architect. The photographs are set against a backdrop of African music specially composed for the exhibition by Peter Adjaye. This detailed survey documents the nature of urban life in a developing continent, a unique geo-cultural survey profiling the African city in a global context.

If you have an idea of an event, please contact Luisa Miller on events@aaschool.ac.uk or call 020 7887 4034.