Projects
During the course of practice we have accumulated a substantial portfolio of architectural works.
This includes over twenty realised projects, a large number of masterplan and building concepts, and an array of initiatives and related professional activities.
Our work is multifarious in nature. We specialise in providing design solutions and strategies across a broad spectrum of typologies.
We have completed private houses and apartments, refurbishments and conversions, residential settlements, office buildings and interiors, and even one church. We have also been involved with large scale urban planning, design of public spaces, masterplans for residential settlements and logistics parks, and a number of building concepts for cultural centres, hotels, and retail outlets.
Practice Research at RMIT
In 2011 the practice partners were invited to take part in the Practice Research Program at RMIT University. This involved three and a half years of reflective and innovative study under the direct supervision of Professor Leon van Schaik, and included the participation in Practice Research Symposia in Ghent and Barcelona.
During the course of the Practice Research program at RMIT University we investigated the workings of biculturalism in the specific context of our practice. We imagine the practice as a microcosm of biculturalism where two individuals (Tanya Kalinina and James McAdam) from two countries (Britain and Russia) have learned and adapted to each other’s cultures to practice architecture for many years as one entity
The Practice Map
In our research, the reflection on 20 years of work began by mapping practice activities against time, political context and social events.
The process of practice
From the offset, our aim has been to understand the process of practice – the essence of design, the workings of the partnership, and our role in the profession.
Conversations
The main ideas and thoughts in our practice activities are developed through conversation and discourse.
This format develops through a continuous exchange of information, ideas, thoughts and opinions between the partners, associates and close colleagues.
It is an important process which allows us to stand back and view from a distance, as well as being able to focus in on a subject at close range.
These thoughts and considerations cover a wide range of topics about architectural practice, the design process, urban planning, and other wider professional and social issues.
Innovation through interdisciplinary activity
If we type the words innovative architecture into google search, we are presented with an array of elaborate forms and shapes which represent a catalogue of recent architectural feats.
Whilst these appear to be extraordinary and dynamic examples of architecture, we must ask the question – Are they correctly described as innovative?
Project Imagination
The first major British-Russian architectural workshops since the 1920s. The Smithsons, Theo Crosby, Will Alsop, Ian Ritchie, Mark Fisher, and many more arrived in a snowy Moscow to run workshops alongside 500 professors and students at Moscow Architectural Institute. The Russian architectural press headlined – Project Imagination - the Invasion from London, whilst the Architects Journal wrote - After six decades of thinking big – what next for Russia?
McAdam Architects is an architectural practice, established by Tanya Kalinina and James McAdam in 2002.
The practice has experience on a diverse range of projects including - private houses and apartments, refurbishments and conversions, residential settlements, office buildings and interiors, retail centres, arts and cultural buildings, and large scale urban planning.
Our studio is based in London but we work without geographical limit. To-date we have completed projects in the UK, Russia, France and Israel.
Contact Us
Get in touch with McAdam Architects to learn more about our services.
Studio LG05, 22 Highbury Grove, London N5 2EA, UK
020 7253 1738