Key details
Dr Laura Bowie
Senior Lecturer in Architectural Histories and Theories
Laura is Senior Lecturer in Architecture: Histories and Theories at the University of Greenwich, where she also serves as Subject Lead for Histories and Theories of Architecture. In addition, she is the Hub Lead for Early Career Academics within the Institute for Inclusive Communities and Environments in the Faculty of Law, Arts, and Social Sciences.
Prior to joining Greenwich, Laura was Lecturer in Architectural History and Theory at the Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University as part of the Disglair [brilliant] lecturers’ scheme. Prior to that, Laura taught architectural history and theory at Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture [ESALA] at the University of Edinburgh.
Laura holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh’s School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, which explored the relationship between urban planning and protest cultures in post-war West Berlin. She also holds an MA, First Class with Joint Honours in Architectural History and Archaeology from the University of Edinburgh and an MA, with Distinction, in European History from Newcastle University.
Responsibilities within the university
- School of Design and Creative Industries Representative to Faculty Research Ethics Committee
Teaching
Contributions and leadership for histories and theories of architecture within: BA Foundation in Architecture, BA Architecture, BA Landscape Architecture, and Master of Architecture.
- ARCT 1075: Contextual Studies - Module co-ordinator and tutor (Level 3)
- HART 1011: History of Architecture& Landscape II - Module co-ordinator and tutor (Level 5)
- ARCT 1014: Architecture Dissertation - Module co-ordinator and dissertation supervisor (Level 6)
- ARCT 1060: Architectural Thesis - Thesis supervisor (Level 7)
- PhD Supervision
Awards
- DAAD Language Grant (2014)
- Barrie Wilson Award for Excellence in First Year PhD Studies (2015)
- Principal’s Career Development Scholarship, University of Edinburgh, September 2014 - August 2016
- Barrie Wilson Award, Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, June 2016, ‘For excellence in first year PhD studies’
- DAAD/GHI German Summer School Grant, Humboldt Universität German Language Academy, June-July 2014
Recognition
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
- Architecture and Humanities Association
- German History Society
- European Architectural History Network
- Society of Architectural Historians (GB & USA)
- UKRI ECR Forum
- Women in German Studies (WIGS)
Research / Scholarly interests
Laura’s research interests include: the city and protest, post-war reconstruction, the radicalisation of urban space, the relationship between urban planning and the psyche, the role of the media in architectural perception, and the use of memory and cultural outputs as exploratory tools.
Her research thus far has focused on the post-war period in West Berlin and the 1968 student protests; how the historical urban fabric was rejected, reenvisaged and reappropriated in the face of internationally promoted modernist housing policies.
Current and future projects are investigating the relationship between visual images and urban space, urban protest tactics across Europe, humour and urban protest, and exploring women’s interventions in the built environment during the ‘68 moment.
Recent publications
Books
- Bowie, L. (2022) The Streets Echoed with Chants: The Urban Experience of Post-War West Berlin. In Kenny, N. & Madgin, R.(series eds) The City as Place Series: Emotions, Experiences, and Meanings. Oxford: Peter Lang.
Book Chapters
- Bowie, L. (2025) ‘“A demonstration is also FUN”: Folk Humour and Play as Tactics to Disrupt the Rational State during the 1968 Protests’ in Humour in Times of Confrontations, 1901 to the Present edited by Shun-Liang Chao, Vivienne Westbrook (Routledge), pp. 104-20.
- Bowie, L. (2024) ‘Films as Theatres of Protest: The Spatial Dimensions of Terrorism in 1970s West Germany’, in Terrifying Europe. History and Memory of Terrorism in European Identity edited by Rafael Pérez Baquero and Salvador Cayuela Sánchez (Marcial Pons), pp. 167–202.
Articles
- Bowie, L. (2025) ‘‘Earth-writing’ and the Shudder of the Eerie: Lessons from Berlin’, Design Ecologies 14, 67-90
- Aelbrecht, W. and Bowie, L. (2025) ‘Through the Camera Lens: The Role of Photography in Shaping Planning Histories’, Planning Perspectives (Routledge, 2025)
Presentations
- ‘Women’s Collectives: Photography as a Means to Counteract Dominant Urban Narratives in 1970s West-Berlin’ in 20th Biennial International Planning History Society (IPHS) Conference (Hong Kong, 2-5 July 2025
- Invited panel member and doctoral workshop discussant “Urban Humanities; The Politics of Space, Planning and Urban Experience”, funded by Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities, University of Aberdeen (19 May 2025)
- ‘ECR Zine Launch!’ in BA ECRN Academic Book Publishing Conference, British Academy (London, 28 April 2025)