Just Imaginaries Exhibition | UCL Urban Room
Reflecting on 20 years of UCL Urban Laboratory research, this exhibition in the UCL Urban Room reimagines collective memory to envision more just urban futures.
Just Imaginaries Exhibition | UCL Urban Room
19 Nov 2025 - 14 Feb 2026
About the exhibition
The Just Imaginaries exhibition takes the approach of looking back to look forward. It reflects on 20 years of interdisciplinary research at the UCL Urban Laboratory.
Through the Memory Workshop’s archiving, recording and digitising capabilities, visitors are invited to glimpse the dynamic work of the Urban Laboratory and use that collective knowledge to try and imagine a just future.
The show brings together archival materials, voices and research on a range of issues, connecting the vast Urban Lab network that spans across generations and geographies. It is through these voices that a shared language emerges.
The exhibition will be activated through a series of events and conversations about technical, narrative, and ethical considerations when archiving and documenting contested histories and heritage.
About the Memory Workshop
The Memory Workshop is a collecting and digitisation project within the UCL Urban Room. Using the idea of lab-based learning, the workshop records oral histories within London and on campus. Students and users of the workshop can digitise vinyl records, VHS and cassette tapes as well as edit their own digital materials. This work is part of Urban Room’s commitment to supporting impactful student research and developing collaborations with artists, residents and organisations around the Olympic Park where UCL East is located.
Open hours: Plan your visit
UCL Urban Room is open Monday to Saturday, 10:00-16:00, and closed for teaching on Wednesdays from 11:00-13:00. All visitors are welcome. There is no need to book; however, the events below are ticketed.
Memory Workshop events
The Urban Listening Room: A Sound System Session with Charlie Dark
Date: 26 November 2025, 18:00-20:30
About: Join Charlie Dark MBE (Run Dem Sounds) and DIVINE KIND for an immersive sound system session revealing the hidden stories and connections that power it.
- Register via Eventbrite
Just Urban Futures: Live Studio Podcast Conversation
Date: 15 January 2026, 16:00-18:00
About: A full studio podcasting suite demonstrating how to use the medium as a tool for workshopping histories.
- Register via Eventbrite
About the UCL Urban Room
Located in Stratford, UCL East, the UCL Urban Room is a space for events, exhibitions, workshops and engagement with students, researchers, artists and community members. Based on the idea of an ‘urban room’ as a forum for community-based debate and dialogue, the UCL Urban Room brings together academic research and the lived experiences of city residents to inspire meaningful education for our students and visitors. Users of the Urban Room are invited to join a dynamic network of practice focused on issues of global urbanism, heritage, arts and social history. The space is equipped with oral history recording and archiving capabilities through its Memory Workshop initiative. Together, the Urban Room and Memory Workshop are supported by The Bartlett Faculty of Built Environment and the School for Creative and Cultural Industries at UCL.