Daniel Poshtovenko

I recall presenting my work to the jury in my final year of architecture school. While everyone in my studio had a building to present, my pin-up board was filled with contextual mapping and framework proposals – no set structure. I simply wanted a better understanding of the place. My tutor compared me to a geography student, and that’s when I realised the urban scale was where my interests truly lay.

Since then, as an emerging young professional, I became fascinated with urban design and planning early in my career. After graduating in Architecture from the University of Westminster, I have been exposed to a wide range of approaches to working within the built environment, both in the UK and internationally. In my final year of university, my skills in design principles merged with strategic planning, deepening my awareness of how interventions shape perceptions of a place and support sustainable socio-economic growth. I further investigated this in my dissertation on Berlin’s residential planning and its impact on social integration.

My enthusiasm for the urban scale continued to grow during an AA Summer School in Berlin, where the programme explored collective and unconventional approaches to regenerating a listed civic building. The eagerness to broaden my experience in the public sector and adapt to an international work setting drove me to return to Berlin and complete an internship at Sauerbruch Hutton.

Working on both UK and international large-scale masterplans revealed the urgency of our role in city creation and the need to combine creative with analytical thinking. I consider myself fortunate to be surrounded by highly-skilled colleagues, in an environment where learning never stops.

My interest in photography often informs my work in the studio, where I actively participate in and coordinate key visuals for projects. Outside of work, travelling and immersing myself in cities is how I expand my horizons – and I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.