A city established by natives yet highly influenced by her conquerors, London's architecture has a rich, layered history embedded in it. Because the city lacks space, few buildings are actually being erected yet sites throughout London are constantly being reconstructed, reused, and recycled. The Tate Gallery of Modern Art, which opened this past spring (May 2000), is a prime example. The gallery, located on the South Bank just opposite of St. Paul's Cathedral, was originally the Bankside Power Station. Designed by Sir Giles Bilbert Scott in the early decades of the twentieth century, the power station under went a £130 million redevelopment in order to house the extensive modern and contemporary art collection now permanently on display at the Tate. Similarly, the Battersea Power Station, with its famous four chimneys, "has a developer who plans to turn it into a multi-screen cinema, two hotels, two theatres and a shopping complex. The development will cost £500 million, retaining the facade of the famous building." Such recycling of urban space is not new to London. In the eighteenth century, architect Sir John Soane demolished and then rebuilt three houses in succession on the north side of Lincoln's Inn Fields, beginning with No. 12 between 1792 and 1794, moving on to No. 13, rebuilt in two phases in 1808-9 and 1812, and concluding with No. 14, rebuilt in 1823-24.

Located at 13 Lincoln's Inn Fields, Sir John Soane's Museum is a site visited by program participants. At first, the building was just the architect's home and library. Upon his appointment as Professor of Architecture at the Royal Academy in 1806, Soane arranged for students to view his books, casts, models, artifacts, and art collection the day before and the day after his lectures. "In 1833 Soane negotiated an Act of Parliament to settle and preserve his house and collection for the benefit of 'amateurs and students' of architecture, painting, and sculpture." The Act was established on Soane's death in 1837 and with it came a Board of Trustees, who were to "maintain the fabric of the house, keeping it 'as nearly as circumstances would admit in the state' " of which it was left at Soane's death and to allow free access for students and the public.

As part of the summer program, students will visit and explore the extensive collection as well as receive an on-site lecture of some aspect of the museum. To reach Sir John Soane's Museum from the Baker Street Tube Station, take the Jubilee Line (south) to the Oxford Circus Tube Station, where you will need to switch to the Central Line (east) and get off at the Holburn Tube Station. The museum is a short walk from the tube station and is better illustrated by clicking on this map.