Five architecture firms reveal how they got ahead

We brought together five you firms of note - architects who've turned formative experiences with leading architecture practices into promising studios - together at the V&A+RIBA Architecture Gallery in London, asking them to reveal how they got started. Pictured, from left: Tarek Merlin of Feix & Merlin; Ciriaco Castro of ESC-Studio; Kieran Gaffney of Konishi Gaffney; Silvia Polito of ESC-Studio; Gordon Affleck of 10 Design; Adrian Boot of 10 Design; Makiko Konishi of Konishi Gaffney; Stefano Dal Piva and Friedrich Ludewig of ACME. Read on for more from each practice...

Photograph by Daniel Stier

architecture 08 Dec 2011