Aug 21
51m 6s
In this fourth episode, we explore the colonial context of the public sector and the place of the British architectural profession within it, spanning the Second World War through to decolonisation. We spoke to Harshada Deshpande about her father Sharad's career, from training as an architect in India to working in the Architects' Department of the Greater London Council in the 1960s. We were then joined by Ibiyemi Ola and Rixt Woudstra to discuss their research into architects working within colonial bureaucracies in British Africa, and how that experience of expertise carried through independence and into organisations like the UN and World Bank.
Architectural History is the podcast of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain. This miniseries, The Public Architect, was made possible thanks to funding from the Royal Institute of British Architects. It was hosted and produced by Claire Jamieson and Jess Kelly, with editing by Front Ear Podcasts and production support from Matthew Lloyd Roberts. If you enjoyed this series, please consider becoming a member of the SAHGB to support our work and get access to exclusive content. https://www.sahgb.org.uk/join-renew
Contributors:
Harshada Deshpande is an Urbanist with over 20 years’ experience of working in the built environment sector in the UK. A strong advocate of sustainable urbanism, she leads the Design, Conservation and Trees Team, made up of specialist within Sheffield City Council. Her expertise lies in leading and coaching, to achieve a place-led outcome through finding creative solutions, while establishing a positive, constructive dialogue, enabling delivery of high-quality places. Sharad Deshpande, her father worked in the Greater London County Council within the Architecture and Civic Design Department between 1965-1972. Whilst working, he studied Planning at University of London and was a Columbo Plan Fellow (1981) and Professor of Architecture.
Ibiyemi Ola researched British colonial architecture in Nigeria between 1900 and 1960 for her PhD at the Liverpool School of Architecture, focusing on the colonial administration's Public Works Department and the architects who worked within it. She is a lecturer at the Global Banking School.
Rixt Woudstra is an architectural historian focused on the intersections between modern architecture and planning, British imperialism and anti-colonial protest. She is an Assistant Professor of Architectural History at the University of Amsterdam, Co-Director of the Amsterdam Centre for Urban History, and Co-Editor-in-Chief of the journal Architecture Beyond Europe. She previously held a postdoctoral research position at the University of Liverpool, working on a Leverhulme-funded project on the architecture of the United Africa Company in British West Africa.