LONDON.- Design Stories: The Architecture Behind 2012 provides a unique Olympic and Paralympic experience - a place where people can explore and view drawings, images, videos and amazingly detailed models of London's new key sporting venues.

The exhibition will draw back the layers of complex engineering and explore the raw ideas that inspired the architects involved. At its centre the exhibition will feature a stunning 14-metre graphic mural capturing the energy and contrasting styles of the new Olympic and Paralympic buildings.

As the Games begin the audiovisual element of the installation will transform into a live screening lounge providing an exceptional central London location to cheer on the record-breaking athletes and experience the stunning new venues they will compete in. Design Stories is part of the London 2012 Festival, a spectacular 12-week nationwide celebration running from 21 June - 9 September 2012.
The London 2012 sporting venues and lead architects featured in the exhibition include:

• Olympic stadium – by Populous
• Aquatics centre – by Zaha Hadid Architects
• Velodrome – Hopkins Architects
• Basketball arena – Wilkinson Eyre
• Copper Box (handball) – MAKE
• Riverbank arena (hockey) – Populous
• Shooting, Paralympic shooting and Paralympic archery venue at Royal Artillery Barracks – Magma Architecture
• Water polo arena – David Morley Architects

RIBA President Angela Brady said: 'The RIBA is thrilled to be opening the doors of its magnificent Art Deco headquarters for the public to come and explore our exhibitions and watch the Games over the summer. At a time when the world is watching we want to celebrate the wonderful contribution that architects have made to the Olympic and Paralympic sporting venues. I encourage everyone to and come and see how London's great new buildings were conceived and created.'

After the Party: The Legacy of Celebration
25 June - 5 October 2012, Gallery 2, RIBA, 66 Portland Place W1
London has embarked upon an ambitious building programme with new spaces and structures dedicated to marking this Olympic year, but how does this contemporary effort compare with celebrations past? What became of the monuments that we erected in the name of former Olympics, millennia, world fairs, victories in battle and expos? After the party, what happened to them and what could this be telling us about the London 2012 legacy?

This exhibition explores how celebratory events across time have left a legacy through the structures built for them. Drawing on the RIBA British Architectural Library collections, it examines the lasting social and urban impact of buildings created to celebrate a particular moment in time.