In addition to brutalist buildings, Alison Smithson designed some of the most festive Christmas cards we've seen

Twentieth-century architects Alison and Peter Smithson are widely revered for their brutalist architecture work, which defined an era and remains highly influential to this day - such as Robin Hood Gardens (a part of it is now on show at the V&A East Storehouse) or The Economist tower, both in London.

What is perhaps less well-known is their passion for Christmas cards, of which Alison created new versions every year, often offering sneak peeks into the pair's ongoing designs.

The rich collection of season's greetings remains with the family to this day and, just in time for the holidays, is the subject of a new show, now on view at the Roca London Gallery. Titled 'Come Deck the Halls!', the display invites visitors to be immersed in the Smithsons' Christmas spirit — and architectural ideas.

The exhibition was organised by the couple's daughter, Soraya Smithson, and Ana Abalos Ramos, an academic whose PhD centred around the Smithsons’ work, including the Christmas cards project.

The organisers explain the thinking behind the architects' approach: 'In each of their projects, [the Smithsons] advocated for an architecture that finds fulfilment in the presence of users and their activities. In their vision, occupation not only gives meaning to architectural spaces but can also be regarded as an art form in itself: the art of inhabitation.'

Alison crafted cards every year, a tradition now maintained by Soraya, who has also made her own cards since childhood. The architect had planned an exhibition of the cards in relation to her ideas on inhabitation in 1981, but it was never carried out.

'Showing these cards offers a really interesting aspect of understanding my mother and also in a way both [parents'] practices because everything was very intertwined,' says Soraya. 'And even though there was a door separation, there wasn't really a blank line between what happened in the office and what happened at home. My mother would be sitting on the sofa in the evening after dinner, watching television and doing the cutting out. We [the children] always made our own cards as well. I've got cards going back to when I was eight.'

The Smithsons' varied output had a broad spectrum, as they viewed architecture as beyond the physical form of a building, and the cards, while a functional object which was sent to friends and relatives during the festive season, tapped into their wider research.

Which is why the cards often reflected current fascinations of the time they were created. Soraya explains: 'There are early ones she really liked doing of lino prints and cuts. Then, in later ones, there is a whole sort of series to do with lattices, which had echoes of the buildings they did build, and furniture designs. And there is a period where there are lots that are more of the stand-up, almost diarama kind.'

'Alison Smithson chose Christmas as the vehicle for exploring what she saw as an urgent need to renew the sense of collective responsibility for the look and use of places,' Abalos Ramos says. 'The exhibitions were a way of disseminating the couple’s ideas to a broader audience.'

'I therefore decided to bring their exhibition back to life, both in their honour and as a way of continuing their work,' Abalos Ramos adds.

'COME DECK THE HALLS! Alison Smithson: Intertwining Life and Art' is on show at Roca London Gallery from 5 December 2025 - 31 January 2026