COME DECK THE HALLS! Alison Smithson: Intertwining Life and Art

Come Deck the Halls! celebrates the work of the renowned post-war British architects Alison and Peter Smithson. From the start of their careers, the Smithsons had a strong interest not only in buildings, but also in the life unfolding within and around buildings.

In each of their projects, they advocated for an architecture that finds fulfilment in the presence of users and their activities. In their vision, occupation not only gives meaning to architectural spaces but can also be regarded as an art form in itself: the art of inhabitation.

Christmas is a time of year when such signs of occupancy become obvious.  Every year, the objects of celebration stir people’s creativity, prompting them to take responsibility for the look of places. Alison and Peter Smithson actively engaged in this process, renewing themselves each year with Christmas ephemera that often contained the seed of their current projects and subsequent work.

This exhibition provides an insight into their architectural thinking through the lens of Alison Smithson’s Christmas cards, spanning 1956 to 1992.  Far from being a peripheral aspect of her family life, this series of artistic expressions served as a realm of experimentation, integral to comprehending the entirety of the couple's work. The cards serve as a vivid illustration of the interconnectedness between Alison's personal life and professional endeavours, exemplifying the Smithsons' enduring belief that architecture is indivisible from life itself.

Come Deck the Halls! was the title of an exhibition envisaged (but never carried out) by Alison Smithson in 1981 whose objective was not only to construct another exhibition structure, but also to facilitate a public participatory event held by the host community, intertwining life and art.

The Roca London Gallery exhibition will showcase the postcards as a way of revisiting the Smithsons' work and invite public interaction through talks and events.

The exhibition curator is Ana Abalos Ramos, whose PhD Alison and Peter Smithson: The Transient and The Permanent (Sept 2015), explores the wider implications of the Christmas Card Exhibitions.

Alison Smithson working on the 1977 Jubilee Christmas card, undated. ‘AMS Christmas card + hand’, Christmas Cards Slide Box. Smithson Family Collection (SFC).