James Harrington
architecture + art
Studio Polpo
I am creative professional working across the fields of architecture, art and sustainability.
I often work with
, a social enterprise architecture, art and research practice.
I work individually and collaboratively with a variety of organisations and communities to research and develop creative and architectural strategies and outcomes, as well as managing and delivering projects across a range of disciplines and scales.
I am a RIBA Part 2 qualified architectural designer, graduating with a distinction from the Sheffield School of Architecture in 2020. I have strong practice based experience; prior to working with Studio Polpo I previously worked with award-wining practices Levitate, and Ash Sakula, across a range of sectors, such as conservation, public and cultural buildings, housing, as well as temporary architecture, and installations.
Current positions:
Studio Polpo, Collective member.

Social Art Network Sheffield, Co-lead.

Social ARTery Pioneer (in collaboration with artist Jennifer Booth).

SSoA Students for Climate Action, Co-founder.
Establishing 'Future Neighbourhoods', a platform for exploring sustainable, speculative futures of the places we live in today.

Architecture thesis 'Future Burngreave', presenting a model of community-led neighbourhood retrofit in Sheffield.

Co-curator of the Theory Forum, a symposium by the Sheffield School of Architecture around themes of Liveness, Intersectional Theory and Activism in architectural education and practice. This event hosted speakers Nana Biamah-Ofosu & Bushra Mohamed (Studio 2.2 Kingston), Samuel Kalika (Critical Concrete), Jordan Whitewood-Neal, Joseph Zeal-Henry (Sound Advice, GLA), Feifei Zhou (Feral Atlas), and Lola Conte (Forensic Architecture), Doina Petrescu (SSoA, University of Sheffield), and Bernd Kniess (HafenCity Universität Hamburg).

A Social ARTery Pioneer with artist Jennifer Booth, collaborating with Axis in the development of the Social ARTery. The Social ARTery is a new platform to address the need for better online platforms and networks for artists working in participatory and social practices.

'Monuments, Plinths, Memorial.': An online events and co-authored zine by the Social Art Network Sheffield, coordinated by Jennifer Booth and James Harrington. This is delivered as part of the Social ARTery Pioneers programme by Axis.

Representing Studio Polpo as a 2020 Social Art Library Ambassador. The Social Art Library is a new online library for social practice, developed to collate and archive the wealth of practice at the intersection between art and society.

COVID-19 response work for a social enterprise coworking space. [Studio Polpo]

A home retrofit developing the use of low impact materials and feasibility work for live/work residency models. [Studio Polpo]

Current projects:
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