The clown photo above (colour version of course!) was used as the closing image in a very well attended and inspiring talk given by Richard Rogers in London in the mid 90’s, (can’t remember exactly where or when, as a student you go to so many). His architecture, charisma, principles and vision, at a time when the design of the built environment in the UK cities & London especially was a very underwhelming and culturally selfish experience (the filthy lucre obsessed post modernism…). The New Architecture RA exhibition and media for London As It Could Be in 1986 and the Walter Neurath 1990 Memorial Lecture had that intense and earnest influence on my decision to study architecture, and his comments on the social systems of the time (here we are again….) and the potential for the future seem still to be something just out of reach. Always an innovative inspiration to see schemes such as Lloyds, T4 at Barajas, the Law Courts in Bordeaux, Neo Bankside, the Linkstraße buildings near Potsdam Platz, Channel 4 HQ, the Macallan Distillery, IRCAM & surroundings, the Dome, Mossbourne Academy, Patscenter, Thameswharf, The British Museum……, a great hero to have.