Open House x Dezeen
This year, Open House has joined forces with Dezeen to spotlight nine highlights of the Open House Film series. From the 19th - 27th September, Dezeen is featuring one Open House film for every day of the festival.
With many buildings unable to open their doors to the public for this years festival, Open House embarked on an ambitious series of short film tours to open up, and celebrate, a spectacular range of spaces across London. Presented by the experts that live and work in them, Open House has been shooting these short films in manor houses and community gardens, public lidos and tower blocks recreating the intimate behind the scenes experiences and anecdotes that make Open House building visits so memorable.
With a mixture of in person and virtual events, this year’s Open House festival sought to expand the normal programme and further widen accessibility to the city, welcoming not only building managers, but community groups, activists, historians and landscape workers. The curated collections and the Open House Film series reflect the rich diversity of architectural spaces and workers that Open House celebrated this year. Featuring buildings by architects from under-represented backgrounds, community gardens, historic houses, public spaces and public housing, Dezeen’s nine highlights reveal the spirit of this year’s festival and are available to watch at www.dezeen.com
Three of the highlights in the Open House x Dezeen series
The first of Dezeen’s daily feature was Crystal Palace Skatepark. In this film, architectural historian and skateboarder Iain Borden sheds light on the design of Crystal Palace Skatepark, accompanied by members (both young and old) of the Crystal Palace Skatepark community.
Walter’s Way is another of Dezeen’s highlights- a close of 13 self-build houses built using methods developed by Walter Segal. Three residents took Open House on a tour of their homes, to share the history of this radical council housing project and how their homes have evolved over the years.
The Stanley Picker House- a late-modernist house in Kingston upon Thames designed in 1965 by architect Kenneth Wood, for arts philanthropist Stanley Picker to live amongst his growing collection of art and design objects.
You can follow Dezeen’s Open House Films highlights on their website.
All 30 of Open House’s Films are permanently available to watch at www.openhouselondon.org.uk/films.
All photos by Jim Stephenson of Stephenson/Bishop Films.
