We now have some architects and engineers in our group, but many of us are amateur enthusiasts who share a passion for and appreciation of modern architecture. No prior knowledge is required. We meet every 6-8 weeks but we aim to be flexible to fit around our members’ availability. We all have busy lives and full diaries.

As well as studying modern architecture and learning more about the architects behind some of the most iconic buildings of the 20th and 21st Century, we also like to visit some of the outstanding examples in and around London.

This is a self-study group and a slide show is usually produced for each meeting which collates all the information and pictures on the given topic, produced in advance by members (with the assistance of the convenor, if required).. Scroll down this page for info on past and future topics and dates. All members are expected to lead at least one session per year.

PLEASE NOTE: This is not an open group. Participants must be current paid-up members of the Wadhurst & District u3a although everyone is welcome to attend a couple of 'taster sessions' before signing up..

If you would like to hear more about this group, please contact Jane Austin, the Group Convenor, using the email link at the top of this page.

****Please note this Group is now FULL
but we can add members to the Waiting List****

Group Survey 1 - PLEASE NOTE OUR SURVEY ON FUTURE TOPICS HAS NOW CLOSED

Future Meetings 2026 : Topics studied or planned for the future include.......

Monday, 6th July 2026	PART I - Modern Buildings that developed problems! This will be a Group session in which all members are invited to submit examples (a few pictures of their chosen building) for a slide show and discussion. (Members' contributions) Orchard Room 2.00pm to 4.00pm
Friday, 17th July 2026	OUTSIDE VISIT: Open City Thames Architecture Boat Tour - A group booking with discount will be made on 6th July. [Cost £29.33pp]. Please notify Jane before this date if you would like to join this tour. 7.00pm to 9.45pm from Crown Pier, Victoria Embankment
Thursday, 3rd September 2026	PART II - Modern Buildings that developed problems! This will be a continuation Group session in which all members are invited to submit examples (a few pictures of their chosen building) for a slide show and discussion.(Members' contributions)
Tuesday, 20th October 2026	New materials with the potential to revolutionize building design. This will be a Group session in which all members are invited to submit examples (a few pictures of their chosen building) for a slide show and discussion. SPARROWS GREEN PAVILION
Date to be confirmed	Furniture as a Agent of Architecture - a look at Eileen Grey's designs for E1027, a modernist villa overlooking the Mediterranean (Jane)
Date to be confirmed	Residential home designs of different countries (ALL)
Future topics for 2027 (Topics are selected based on member's survey responses)	- Designing for Earthquake zones - Modern Bridges (ALL) - Hong Kong Airport Part II (Kevin) - Monumental Modernism: UNESCO listed buildings from soviet era (Jane) - Airports as Modern Cathedrals - Why is good modern housing so difficult? - Tower Blocks – Success or Failure? - Brutalism – Monster or Masterpiece - Buildings the public hated then loved - Architecture in James Bond Films - Roofing Membranes - The re-building of Napier in New Zealand after the earthquake - How Government policy affects us on a local and national level - Building design for Climate Change - Maintenance costs and issues for modern buildings - Museum Architecture - City Transport Hubs
	TOURS AND VISITS of interest to members
17th July 2026	Open City Central Thames Architecture Guided Tour by boat (afternoon or evening) Booking essential
23rd April 2026	Crossness Pumping Station - Guided Tour of the Grade I Listed Building (fully booked)
	PAST MEETINGS AND EVENTS
May 2026	The Eden Project (Nicholas Grimshaw continued) - Jan Whiteley Landscape Architecture - Tim Ball
Mar 2026	Modern highlights from Open City Festival tours, including modern additions to older buildings (Nance & Colin)
Jan 2026	The Life & Work of Sir Nicholas Grimshaw (Maggie, Heather, Sheila & Jane) - Waterloo Station, Thermae Spa Bath, National Space Centre, Leicester and Other notable buildings
Dec 2026	(i) Hong Kong Airport (Kevin) and (ii) the Stirling Prize Shortlist and 2025 Winner (Jane)
Oct 2025	Utopia Postponed: Concrete before Modernism, 1860-1880 (David)
Sept 2025	VISIT: Architecture Boat Tour along the central Thames (Open City Tours)
Sept 2025	Villa Cavrois, Croix Near Lille, France (Tim) Fondation Louis Vuitton, Bois de Boulogne, Paris, France (Jane)
July 2025	VISIT: To see the listed buildings on the University of Sussex Falmer Campus (Sir Basil Spence/Anthony Blee)
July 2025	(a) Isokon Building, Lawn Road, London (Colin) (b) Introduction to the Architecture of University of Sussex at Falmer (Tim)
May 2025	BedZED - Zero energy residential development in South London (Sheila and Jane)
April 2025	(a) Infrastructure II : Paris (Graham) (b) Architects' Drawings (Tim)
Feb 2025	Infrastructure I : The Elizabeth Line (Jane and Heather)
	2024
Dec 2024	Presentation on our Previous Study Topics Part II (from 2021-2023)
Oct 2024	Presentation on our Previous Study Topics Part I (from 2019-2021) (This group has been running since June 2019, so there's a lot to revisit!)
Aug 2024	Summer Break
July 2024	Private Visit to Art Deco-style Home in Wadhurst
May 2024	The Art and Architecture of Le Corbusier
Jan 2024	Architecture of Dubai and the UAE Part II
2023	Previous Programmes
Oct 2023	Architecture of Dubai and the UAE Part I
Sept 2023	Guided Architecture Tour of the Barbican, London
July 2023	The Vessel, New York (Thomas Heatherwick)
March 2023	Transport Hubs and related buildings Part II
Jan 2023	Transport Hubs and related buildings Part I
Nov 2022	Architecture of Theatres and Concert Halls (post-1960)
Other Study Topics include:	The work of Erich Mendelsohn; Oscar Niermeyer (Brasilia); Balkrishna Doshi (Chandigarh) and Frank Lloyd Wright (Usonian & Prairie Style); Zaha Hadid (London Olympic Aquatic Centre); Renzo Piano (The Shard, London); Richard Rogers (The "Cheese Grater"); and Shiregu Ban (Sustainable housing and emergency shelters in disaster zones).

(Copies of slides from previous meetings are available on request from Jane, the Group Convenor)