Where world music meets grassroots design

The workshop teams will be facilitated, amongst others, by Folke Köbberling and Martin Kaltwasser (Berlin), Melissa Kinnear (Architecture Sans Frontieres UK), Bill Flinn (CENDEP/Centre for Development and Emergency Practice), and TYIN Tegnestue (Norway).

Oliver Lowenstein explains the task that the participants will face: “Roots Architecture's first challenge begins with materials: recycled, re-appropriated, re-versioned and re-used - or simply, found - materials are collected before the festival, from the local environs and from WOMAD's Charlton Park itself. Next each of the Roots Architecture teams work with both the possibilities and constraints of these materials, designing and making structures over the WOMAD weekend in front of the 40000+ festival audience!”

WOMAD is an acronym for „World of Music, Arts and Dance“ – which appropriately describes this four-day festival at Charlton Park near Swindon in southwest England. After its début in 2010, the “Roots Architecture” workshop will return to the festival this summer.

Oliver Lowenstein, one of the organizers of Roots Architecture, says: “The four-day challenge is an inspirational and practical introduction to the art and craft of building low tech and no tech structures. Organised by Fourth Door and tangentfield, those leading, coaxing and inspiring each of the inpidual 'design and make' teams of participants bring with them a persity of specialist experience and skills reflecting the world culture ethos of the festival.“

He continues: „ With the structures complete on the Sunday, the workshop culminates with the teams work being put to the test: the final night is for artists/musicians/dancers to strut their stuff on these improvised acts of participatory design. Not only this, but the evenings performers are all chosen from the audience, having already auditioned during the festival weekend. Roots Architecture integrates architectural and building culture into the heart of the festival and the audiences experience and is the first such attempt* to highlight architecture within a British music festival setting.”

The price for the workshop is £245 (£195 students/concessions) and limited in availability. The price includes full festival access from Thursday to Sunday, the Roots Architecture 4 day workshop challenge, all materials, access to tools and daily lunches. The WOMAD festival is at Charlton Park, Malmesbury, Wiltshire. Tickets can be purchased at www.womad.org or by telephone on 0118 960 6060.