On a Counter-monument in London / Elliot Nash

Architecture Off-Centre

“I started to design things that might catch passersby or the weather, the things that aren't normally remembered...”

The act of building a counter-monument is an oxymoron in itself. Artists and architects around the world have used voids to create these counter-monuments while challenging the notion of physically building spaces to retain public memory. Elliot Nash’s project 'Forgetting Whitehall; Casting Blackhall' subverts traditional methods of physical and non-physical preservation while navigating through the themes of redaction and transience.

Elliot is a recent MArch graduate from The Bartlett, UCL. His work there focuses on alternative definitions of heritage in London, and poetic methods of construction. His latest project 'Blackhall' proposes a counter-monument for London through various material histories. Elliot also teaches at The Bartlett, and leads Open City’s Accelerate programme, which aims to diversify the built environment industry.

Check out his project: https://summer2021.bartlettarchucl.com/pg12/year5-elliot-nash