Lochaber architecture took centre stage in our Living Landscape exhibition, presented as part of the inaugural Fort William Contemporary Art and Design Festival, organised by An Ealdhain Arts Trust in partnership with the Royal Scottish Academy  as part of the Academy’s 200-year celebrations.

Held at McCallum Art House in Fort William, the exhibition explored how the distinctive landscapes of Lochaber and other areas continue to shape contemporary architecture. Through drawings, models, photographs and completed projects, Living Landscape demonstrated how architecture can emerge from careful observation of place, responding to the region’s history, climate, ecology and cultural heritage.

For Ann , who grew up in Lochaber, the exhibition represented a return to the landscape that has informed much of the studio’s architectural thinking. Rather than treating landscape as a backdrop, our approach to Lochaber architecture begins with understanding the character of a site—its topography, settlement patterns, materials and the ways people have lived and built within the landscape over generations.

Part of the exhibition included the studio’s recent completed Lochaber Architecture project Achnahanate, located near Fort William.

The exhibition invited visitors to consider architecture not simply as the design of buildings, but as an ongoing dialogue between people and place, demonstrating how contemporary design can strengthen the unique identity of Lochaber while responding to the challenges of the future.

We’d like to thank everyone who came along and supported the exhibition and  the wider Fort William Contemporary Art and Design Festival. A special thanks to Ali Berardelli and An Ealdhain Arts Trust, and the McCallum Art House.

We had a wonderful weekend enjoying all of the festival events.