The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition showcases daring use of planet-friendly materials from Portland stone to elephant dung
A gigantic stone beam greets visitors to the architecture rooms of this year’s Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, balancing precariously overhead like a neolithic seesaw. It is a fitting introduction, looming ominously above you like the climate crisis theme that haunts this year’s show.
While the climate topic could lead to a sense of apocalyptic despair and hopeless handwringing, the architecture rooms offer a few rays of hope. Architects and engineers have, after all, some responsibility for the mess we’re in, given that 40% of carbon emissions come from buildings. They also have the means to do something about it.
