Siza On Paper – 28 & 29 March 2026

Friday 27 March: William Mann and Tom Emerson in Conversation
18.00–20.00
Doors open at 18.00; talk begins at 18.30
Purchase tickets here.

Saturday 28 & Sunday 29 March: Exhibition
11.00–18.00
Free and open to all
8 Smart’s Place, London, WC2B 5LW

On Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 March, Drawing Matter will present an exhibition of drawings by the Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza (b. 1933). The exhibition focusses on Siza as a designer of public housing after the Carnation Revolution (1974–75) and his approaches to drawing—in particular, the significance of his sketchbooks, 48 of which are now part of the Drawing Matter collection.

At the centre of the exhibition are three housing projects: Barrio da Bouça, Porto (1977–79 and 1999–2008), a row of houses in the Barrio de São Victor, Porto (1974–76) (originally conceived as a larger, unbuilt development), and Quinta da Malagueira (1977–97), outside the city of Évora in the south of Portugal. Each project is represented by material selected from Drawing Matter’s collection, including drawings in Siza’s own hand, office drawings, period photographs, and a small number of models.

Álvaro Siza (1933), study sketch, SAAL Bouça Housing, Porto, c.1976–1978. Ballpoint pen on reverse of studio print, 680 × 700 mm. DMC 2398.2.
Álvaro Siza (1933), perspective sketches as elevation, conduta, Malagueira, Évora, c.1982–83. Pencil and red crayon on trace, 417 × 585 mm. DMC 2111.6.

In addition to these early projects, the exhibition also includes a material relating to Siza’s temporary intervention at the Royal Academy, London as part of Sensing Spaces (2013) for which he designed three yellow columns for the courtyard of Burlington House. After the exhibition, the columns were relocated to Shatwell Farm, Drawing Matter’s home from 2014–24.

Alongside the material for these projects are films made by Drawing Matter on Siza’s sketchbook practices and the installation Royal Academy columns at Shatwell Farm, and a selection of texts by Siza and commentators on his work published on Drawing Matter’s website over the past ten years.

On 27 March, the exhibition opens with a conversation between architects William Mann (Witherford, Watson, Mann) and Tom Emmerson (6a) on Siza’s drawing practices and the social and historical context of the housing projects on show. The talk will last for 45 minutes, followed by 45 minutes for audience questions and discussion. A recording will be published online.