Final 10
Our ten finalists have now been selected and will be spending a week with one of our partner architects to finesse their designs prior to the final judging.
You can find out more about our Affinity Sutton Design Competition by joining our Facebook group
Finalist 1
Heena Mistry, Oxford Brookes University - RH Partnership
Heena is a fifth year Diploma student at Oxford Brookes University, having completed her undergraduate at Sheffield University. She has a keen interest in participatory design processes and has been involved in a range of public consultation projects. She also has experience in school design. She has completed an exchange semester with Virginia Tech in the USA and is currently working on her final design project, which is a biodiversity park/night opening train maintenance depot, at the Battersea Power Station site. Heena has a keen interest in film and animation.
Finalist 2
Robert Williams, Oxford Brookes University - Cartwright Pickard
Robert completed his architectural undergraduate degree at the University of Sheffield, designing a 30 unit social housing scheme for his final project. His work experience was at Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios. There he worked on two award winning private housing schemes; one at the planning stage and the other on site, both proving invaluable experiences. Now at Oxford Brookes Robert intends to specialise in 'Development and Emergency Practice'. A keen traveller he hopes to work abroad in the future, with particular focus on Mumbai.
Finalist 3
Dominic Taujanskas, Leeds Metropolitan University - Conran & Partner
Dominic is studying at Leeds Metropolitan University. One of his major passions in life is collecting and playing music. He plays the guitar and bass guitar in a band with friends. After a short stay in Madrid he has taken an interest in languages and has been teaching himself Spanish for the past year. He worked as a volunteer in Southern India last summer and is currently involved with the 'DIY Integrated City' project run by Liverpool Architectural Society. He is looking forward to working with Conran & Partners.
Finalist 4
Mallika Bhattacharya, Oxford Brookes University - PRP Architects
Mallika is currently a fifth year student at Oxford Brookes University, where she also completed her BA. This year she has enjoyed designing housing at various scales, from a small extension to an urban development. She strongly believes in sustainable building and likes learning about new technologies. Her year out was spent in a large multidisciplinary practice in Cambridge, primarily working on schools. She has lived on four continents and in her, somewhat limited, spare time is a respite carer and voracious reader.
Finalist 5
Christopher Bell, University of Bath - Karakusevic Carson
Christopher is currently in studying for his Masters in Architecture at the University of Bath. Prior to this he undertook a 12-month internship with McLaren Group in Woking, working on fit-out projects at the McLaren Technology Centre, designed by Foster and Partners. His first degree was also from the University of Bath, where he graduated with a 2:1 in General Architectural Studies. His main architectural interests are the interplay between mass and light, and reduction of complexity in our use of materials. Outside of architecture, he enjoys playing racquet sports and motorsports.
Finalist 6
Aaron Birch, Oxford Brookes University - RPS Architects
Originally studying chemical engineering Edinburgh University, Aaron chose to change course and pursue his passion for architecture. After completing his Part 1 in Edinburgh, he took on the challenge of a barn conversion project in France, acting as designer and project manager. Learning numerous skills on-the-job, he completed a lot of the construction work himself, and developed an interest in concrete and timber furniture design. The experience cemented his interest in residential architecture, and this lead to his choice of DS1 at Oxford Brookes University, a unit focusing on social housing.
Finalist 7
George Calver, Oxford Brookes University - Hunters
George is studying Part 2 Architecture at Oxford Brookes University. He spent his early years in Folkestone, Kent, attending the Harvey Grammar School. Aside from his passion for art and design, he plays the piano. He is an enthusiastic sportsman playing rugby and football competitively, he also skis among other social sports. He enjoys travelling and has taken the opportunity in the last two years to experience different cultures in Africa, Asia and North America.
Finalist 8
Andrew Longland, Oxford Brookes University - HTA
Andrew achieved a First Class Honours Degree in Architecture and is now continuing his studies at Oxford Brookes University. He has worked in a variety of architectural firms, including internally acclaimed Fosters + Partners. This enhanced Andrew?s professional experience and broadened his knowledge of the business aspects of architectural practice. He has undertaken freelance work and aims to ultimately establish his own practice after studying for the RIBA ARB Part III examinations.
Finalist 9
Nur Zafirah, Oxford Brookes University - HLM Architects
To follow
Finalist 10
Richard Mather, Oxford Brookes University - Levitt Bernstein
Richard is studying at Oxford Brookes University and lives and works in Oxford, where he grew up. At university he is part of a housing orientated studio, and social housing is of particular interest to him. He is keen to specialise in this field once qualified. Beyond architecture, his interests include music, travel and film. Earlier in the year he made a short animated film based on the history of immigration within Bethnal Green.
