In the Studio: Corner study
In the Studio: Corner study
—General investigation into facades with depth on Fish Island Phase 3 and Archway. Architectural language developed to create buildings of scale with a detail quality that takes the expression beyond a surface treatment.
References, reflections and studies capture the thinking, making and design stages within the studio
—The structure of our two blocks at Blackwall Reach in Poplar topped out earlier this year. Looking north from the intersection of Cotton Street and Poplar High Street, the cranked massing and setbacks visually reduce the lenght and volume of the facades, while also allowing access to Millennium Green.
—Elizabeth and Hannah from Haworth Tompkins went to a furniture making session in the Benchmark workshop. Taking part in every step of the process, from picking the wood, planing and sanding the timber, preparing and gluing the legs, to sealing the finished product, they created small, sturdy oak benches
—A delicate insertion wrapping the periphery of the existing Physics Hall, the perforated, powder-coated steel structure allows for connectivity between the bookstacks and the open reading hall below. All of the elements were prefabricated, and bolt together to form a three-storey perimeter which holds both the public and private collections
—Embedded into the landscape through its extensive use of columns, the stadium reflects the adjacent trees within the surrounding flat landscape, deliberately contrasting the homogeneity of Bordeaux’s historic centre and aspiring for a sense of openness and accessibility. The grand stair blurs the lines between the boundaries of interior and exterior
—Standing out in the otherwise muted historic cityscape of old Sarajevo, this postmodernist building was the home of refugees and squatters during the civil war. The dwellings at Papagajka are laid out around a tall and narrow atrium courtyard. The entire ground floor plan is taken up by dual aspect retail and cafes, which activate and connect the courtyard and street, while informal nooks with seating and planters built into the balustrades of the access decks create a feeling of inhabitation and encourage use of the communal space
—One of the new moving image studios recently handed over at Kingston School of Art. A re-configured layout makes more efficient use of the existing double height volume at the centre of the building, enabling an expansion of studio provision. An infinity cove and technical grid complete a comprehensive upgrade to these facilities which, like all the workshops within the school, are held in common for all academic courses to access
—This recently completed darkroom houses the processing and print equipment at Kingston School of Art. It also includes a pass-through sink to make the transition between darkroom processing and review in the light less cumbersome. These new workshop facilities, largely for analogue processes, are retained as part of strong ethos that believes in a holistic approach to arts education
—Testing proposals for a courtyard extension to the Warburg Institute Library. The roof structure has been designed to evoke an elliptical rooflight in the original Warburg Institute in Hamburg. The ellipse is symbolic of Aby Warburg’s intellectual theories behind cosmological freedoms of the mind
—Prototyping waterjet cut artwork based on two interwoven poems. First by David Garrick from the Theatre Royal prologue written in 1766, he also did a spoken work performance to announce the opening of the original theatre. And second by Miles Chambers, former Bristol City Poet.
—Graham Haworth has personally led some research into multi functional buildings, including a mix of uses ranging from maker spaces, workshops and studio spaces. This is brought into live projects such as Fish Island, where the project is being developed in collaboration with the Trampery.
—Grenville Davey sculpture at Cobbs Lane. We enjoy collaborating with visual artists, and have built a number of fruitful ongoing relationships over successive projects. Artists bring a fresh, questioning energy to the design conversation, challenging linear thinking and opening up unexpected avenues of investigation.
—Prior to the current brick horizontal banded design for Network Housing in Wembley, we explored a very different material approach to the facades. Inspired by 1930's Metro Land architecture, smooth matt GRC panels with curved corner profiles contrasted with glossy concave terracotta vertical panels between the windows. Subtle terracotta colour variations created visual movement across the facade.
—An intense study of housing in Copenhagen and particularly Kay Fisker's work, on bicycles! Fisker was of particular interest as research on contextual, but bold repetitive facades, made of beautiful materials and simply detailed in urban blocks forming a natural extension of the city.
—This was held in the ruined Grand Hall and was the first time following the fire six months previously that members of the public were invited into the space to experience at first hand the damage caused and our design proposals for the rebuild project.
—On visiting several buildings designed by Alvar Aalto in Helsinki, we were struck by how many architectural elements were repeated across different projects. Fixtures such as these door handles were used frequently, with subtle adaptations in the design according to context.
