The first year students on the BA Architecture course at the University of Kent will camp out on the grass adjacent to the Marlowe building in shelters that they have designed and made on the evening of Monday the 28th of October 2013.
The project is aimed to give the first year students an insight into the practical side of real live building. They have to design the structure to withstand wind and gravity and also organise the waterproofing. They have to do this with only a limited palette of materials which tests their ingenuity.
The shelters have to survive for one night then the materials are recycled as far as is possible, some parts ending up in architectural models later in the year.
This is a project, which has been run for several years, always proves to be great fun for all (even if the participants do get wet!). There is a prize awarded the following morning (Tuesday) by the head of Kent School of Architecture for the most innovative and successful shelter.
The shelters will be erected during the morning and afternoon of Monday the 28th of October and you are invited to visit the construction site.