The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition returns this summer after two years in winter. Aptly set against this summer’s extreme heat the exhibition’s theme ‘Climate’, chosen by coordinator, Alison Wilding RA, saw a wide range of responses to the subject from emerging and established artists.
 
The architecture room jointly curated by Níall McLaughlin and artist Rana Begum, blends art with the architecture to show the opportunity for change. An 11m post-tensioned stone beam entitled ‘Equanimity’ is a focal point, designed to demonstrate how structural stone could be used in place of concrete. The piece was a collaboration project between the engineering practice Webb Yates and the Stone Masonry Company working alongside supplier Albion Stone.
 
Consisting mainly of Portland stone with pieces of granite salvaged from a condemned postmodern building being demolished in London Docklands. The beam is threaded with steel that is post-tensioned to hold it all together. It was assembled inside the gallery as it was too large to manoeuvre into the building.
 
The blocks of Portland stone used were rescued from being crushed, rejected from other building projects for “aesthetic blemishes”. In a recent article by Natural Stone Specialist Michael Poultney, Managing Director of Albion Stone, called to attention the increasing amount of waste he witnesses: "A lot of architects come here to Albion to select their stone and we end up scrapping a lot of perfectly good material that they reject. They could use it.' He continued ‘I think people are changing their minds about the stone they are prepared to use; they are buying into the carbon reduction idea. In the next couple of years, I think it’s really going to start making a difference.”
 
Webb Yates describes the beam as a ‘combination of engineering design and craft knowledge’ they hope that the piece will encourage a switch to using lower embodied carbon materials to limit the impact of construction.‘Equanimity’ was awarded the CDUK prize for Architecture for a work that best demonstrates the capacity of architecture to signal hope.