Hasta La Ideas

British studio 1508 London has converted a Victorian post office in London into an apartment where perforated concrete shutters can be used to open and close different sections of the interior (+ slideshow).

Commissioned by an art collector, 1508 London planned an “impactful but warm” space where large artworks can be hung from the walls.

Smaller rooms are clustered together on one side of the apartment, freeing up the rest of the space for a double-height living room.

The concrete shutters were added to shield two bedrooms on the first-floor mezzanine, but the circular perforations offer residents glimpsed views down to the spaces below.

“This concrete elevation is the primary feature, allowing abstracted light to pass into the bedrooms in the morning and creating an unique installation of glowing lenses at night,” Chris Godfrey of 1508 London told Dezeen.

A double-height entrance foyer beyond is lined with steel panels that have been chemically weathered to create a grainy appearance.

“The raw, natural material palette further expresses the formal rationale and, by referencing the owner’s taste for Russian political art, creates a dramatic backdrop to the same,” said Godfrey.

A kitchen and bathroom are tucked away at the back, while a black steel staircase leads up to the mezzanine.

Photography is by Michele Panzeri.

Here’s a project description sent from 1508 Architects:

Converted Victorian postal office

Situated in a converted Victorian Postal office in central London, interior and architectural design studio 1508 London have created this imposing apartment for an art collector.

A clear and legible parti has been derived where strong, orthogonal volumes of accommodation are inserted with the pre-existing, near triangular, double-height space to create playful and intelligent inter-relationships.

The raw, natural material palette further express the formal rationale and, by referencing the owner’s taste for Russian political art, creates a dramatic backdrop to the same.

Each material has been carefully selected and crafted to provide depth, texture and richness.

Chemically weathered steel metal panels clad the double height entrance foyer; creating both a warmth of reception and a striking sense of purpose. A central perforated black steel staircase seems to float within the entrance foyer creating a strong yet delicate link between the two volumes but standing strong as its own element.

In the main reception, a powerful singular form comprising of pre-cast concrete panels define and shield the more private aspects of the apartment. Hundreds of purpose-made acrylic lenses puncture the concrete envelope are carefully positioned to playfully provide amplified light to, and distorted views from, the inner spaces; simultaneously highlighting the mezzanine programme from the reception side.

Imposing concrete doors open up onto the main living space from the mezzanine level, transforming the elevation and the spatial relationships: each space is therefore influenced the contiguous throughout different times of the day and modes of use.

The result is a impactful yet warm interior within which the owner can entertain, relax and display large and impressive pieces of art harmoniously.

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Extravagant outfits and hats from the wardrobe of the late stylist and fashion muse Isabella Blow have gone on display in London (+ slideshow).

Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore! at Somerset House celebrates the life of the British magazine editor, who launched the careers of designers including Alexander McQueen, Philip Treacy, Hussein Chalayan and Julien Macdonald.

Blow entered the fashion industry in the 1980s as an assistant to Anna Wintour at US Vogue. In the UK she worked as the fashion director for the Sunday Times and Tatler before her death in 2007.

Blow’s collection, now owned by model Daphne Guinness, includes items designed specifically for her by fashion designer Alexander McQueen and milliner Philip Treacy.

Their experimental and flamboyant garments and hat designs contributed to her distinctive and recognisable style.

Designed by London architects Carmody Groarke, the exhibition is divided into sections themed around areas of Blow’s life.

It starts with a display of family photographs depicting her aristocratic upbringing in Cheshire, UK, during the 1950s.

A section dedicated to McQueen and Treacy includes their graduate collections and early work created from found materials, such as Blow’s wedding headdress.

Both designers’ Autumn Winter 1996 collections are also displayed. McQueen dedicated this collection to Blow and it was the show that shot him to fame. Blow also styled Treacy’s show for the same season.

Clothing by Viktor & Rolf, Jeremy Scott, Comme des Garçons and Julien Macdonald all feature in a section dedicated to Blow’s love of the English countryside.

Full outfits worn by Blow have been recreated on mannequins by set designer Shona Heath using old photographs.

One of her most famous and successful shoots, for British Vogue December 1993, has been put up alongside London-themed installations by Heath that exhibit more hats and shoes.

The final portion shows the Spring Summer 2008 collection that Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy collaborated on and dedicated to Isabella after her death, on show to epitomise her legacy.

The exhibition, created with the Isabella Blow Foundation and Central Saint Martins, opened earlier this week and runs until 2 March 2014.

Photos by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images for Somerset House

Somerset House sent us the following information:

Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore!

20 November 2013 – 2 March 2014 Embankment Galleries, Somerset House

This autumn, Somerset House, in partnership with the Isabella Blow Foundation and Central Saint Martins, is proud to present Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore!, a major fashion exhibition celebrating the extraordinary life and wardrobe of the late British patron of fashion and art.

Born into the rarefied world of British aristocracy, Isabella’s thirty year career began in the early 80s as Anna Wintour’s assistant at US Vogue. On her return to London in 1986 she worked at Tatler followed by British Vogue. In 1997 she became the Fashion Director of the Sunday Times Style after which she returned to Tatler as fashion director. Driven by a passion for creativity, Isabella is credited for having nurtured and inspired numerous artists and designers.

The exhibition will showcase over a hundred pieces from her incredibly rich collection, one of the most important private collections of late 20th Century/early 21st Century British fashion design, now owned by Daphne Guinness.

This includes garments from the many designer talents she discovered and launched, such as Alexander McQueen, Philip Treacy, Hussein Chalayan and Julien Macdonald amongst others.

Isabella is also known for discovering models Sophie Dahl and Stella Tennant, and for her collaborations with major photographers such as Steven Meisel, David LaChapelle and Sean Ellis, which pushed the boundaries of convention in her increasingly provocative fashion spreads and establishing herself as a legendary figure within the international fashion and contemporary art worlds.

Curated by Alistair O’Neill with Shonagh Marshall and designed by award-winning architectural firm Carmody Groarke, with installations by celebrated set designer Shona Heath, the exhibition will display thematically the breadth of Isabella’s collection, a life lived through clothes.

Isabella’s Background

The first section of the exhibition will explore Isabella’s background, and her British aristocratic ancestral roots.

Born Isabella Delves Broughton in 1950s post-war Britain, with a family seat at Doddington Hall in Cheshire, her family history can be traced back to the 14th Century – a factor which played an important part in Isabella’s life. Highlights include family photographs and the sculpture entitled Isabella Blow by Tim Noble and Sue Webster.

Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy

This section will feature pieces from Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy’s graduate MA collections from Central Saint Martins and the Royal College of Art respectively, including Isabella’s wedding headdress.

Exploring the way in which both designers used whatever they could get their hands on to make their garments and hats, this section celebrates the beginnings of their careers and the talent Isabella saw in them, celebrating her eye for discovering young talent.

The next section exhibits key items from McQueen and Treacy’s AW 1996 collections. McQueen dedicated his AW 1996 collection, entitled Dante, to Isabella and this was his first season toreceive international critical acclaim. This same year Isabella styled Philip Treacy’s AW 1996 collection, key items of which will be exhibited.

Countryside

A huge hedge installation, inspired by Isabella’s love of the English countryside will display groups of clothing from her collection presented in four themes that conjure the fantastical world Isabella inhabited and drew inspiration from, reflecting her love of birds, flowers and the surreal.

Works in this section show off a number of Isabella’s favourite designers, including clothing by Jeremy Scott, Comme des Garçons, Julien Macdonald, Viktor and Rolf and Undercover alongside accessories by Philip Treacy and Erik Halley.

Isabella’s Outfits and Style

Shona Heath will create bespoke Isabella Blow mannequins wearing full outfits worn by her, built referencing archival documentary images. These will demonstrate her distinctive, eclectic style and mixing of designer pieces. She was quoted as saying “Fashion is a vampiric thing, it’s the hoover on your brain. That’s why I wear the hats, to keep everyone away from me”, demonstrating the way in which Isabella wore her clothing as a form of armour.

Pieces here include McQueen for Givenchy, Alexander McQueen, Fendi, Philip Treacy, Escada, Teerabul Songvich, Dior, Prada, Jeremy Scott, Benoit Meleard for Jeremy Scott, Viktor and Rolf, John Galliano for Dior, Manolo Blahnik and Marni.

Isabella at Work/Head & Feet

Taken from Isabella’s owns words: “Tip: Always accentuate the head and the feet”, this part of the exhibition will look at the importance that hats and shoes played in her life – she was rarely seen without a McQueen outfit, Treacy hat and Manolo Blahnik shoes.

Representing Isabella’s work and urban London life installations by Shona Heath will be created to exhibit hats and shoes from her collection.

This section also features one of Isabella’s most famous and successful shoots with Steven Meisel for British Vogue December 1993 entitled Anglo Saxon Attitudes featuring Stella Tennant, Honor Fraser, Plum Sykes, Bella Freud and Lady Louise Campbell, the first time any of them had graced the pages of a magazine, showcasing Isabella’s eye for spotting talent.

Legacy

The final section in the exhibition displays La Dame Bleue, the S/S 2008 Alexander McQueen collection that Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy collaborated on and dedicated to Isabella after her death. The collection was inspired by Isabella and to end on this note evokes both her legacy and her importance.

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exhibition of Isabella Blow’s collection appeared first on Dezeen.

Architecture firm Caruso St John has completed a £45 million renovation of London’s Tate Britain art gallery, which includes a spiral staircase descending to new underground classrooms.

Following the opening of ten new exhibition spaces at the gallery earlier this year, Caruso St John has overhauled the oldest parts of Tate Britain‘s Millbank building to create new education and events rooms in spaces that were previously inaccessible to the public.

The new staircase spirals down from the centre of the domed rotunda, where a surface of monochrome terrazzo recalls the patterned mosaics of the original marble floor. As well as leading to new classrooms, it brings visitors down to the new Djanogly Cafe and renovated Rex Whistler restaurant, which features the restored 1920s mural The Expedition in Pursuit of Rare Meats.

A circular balcony around the rotunda had been closed since the 1920s, but has now been revamped to create a first-floor cafe and members lounge with a 14 metre-long bar.

Elsewhere on this floor, the architects removed partitions to reopen the interior of the Grand Saloon. An original Victorian ceiling has been restored and clustered pendant lights were added, creating a large space that can be used for events.

The project also included the reopening of the building’s Thame-side entrance and the addition of a new dedicated entrance for school groups.

“The new Tate Britain opens up the Millbank entrance to reassert and enhance the original grandeur and logic of the galleries,” said Tate Britain director Penelope Curtis. “Adam Caruso and Peter St John have created new spaces out of old and artists have helped to articulate a new sense of the public realm,” she added.

Tate Britain first opened in 1897 as the Tate Gallery, showing a small collection of British art. Since then it has expanded to encompass four UK sites and over 70,000 artworks.

To commemorate the opening year, Caruso St John furnished the new gallery spaces with tables, chairs and benches by designers active during the British Arts and Crafts movement.

Photography is by Hélène Binet.

Here’s more information from Tate Britain:

The new Tate Britain is unveiled

The new Tate Britain is unveiled to the public on 19 November 2013. The transformation of the oldest part of the Grade II* Millbank building by leading architects Caruso St John marks a significant moment for Tate Britain. The unveiling follows the opening in May 2013 of ten new galleries and new BP Displays, including the chronological presentation of Tate’s unparalleled collection of British art.

The new Tate Britain is being made possible with the support of The Manton Foundation; Heritage Lottery Fund; The Gatsby Charitable Foundation; Ronald and Rita McAulay; The Linbury Trust and The Monument Trust; Garfield Weston Foundation; Clore Duffield Foundation; The Taylor Family Foundation; The Porter Foundation; Sir Harry and Lady Djanogly; The Dr Mortimer and Theresa Sackler Foundation; The Wolfson Foundation; Tate Members and other individual donors.

The £45 million project includes:

» the reopening of the main entrance to Tate Britain on Millbank, combining new architectural features with the excavation of the most beautiful original architectural elements of the building. The changes restore the historical logic of the building and include a striking new spiral staircase inside the entrance opening up access to new public spaces below;

» the reopening of The Rex Whistler Restaurant, with its famous Rex Whistler mural, The Expedition in Pursuit of Rare Meats 1926-7, fully restored; and the new Djanogly Café, opposite the restaurant, which opens onto an exterior terrace. Both serve food made with seasonal British ingredients;

» contemporary interpretations of tables and seating inspired by leading British Arts and Crafts designers active in the founding year of Tate Britain – 1897;

» new learning studios located throughout the gallery including a dedicated schools’ entrance and reception underneath the Millbank Entrance steps; and a new Archive Gallery, presenting temporary displays from Tate’s extensive archive of artists’ letters and ephemera. The first display by Paul Noble is inspired by the history of the Tate Britain site as a swamp and then a penitentiary;

» the opening of the circular balcony of the Rotunda’s domed atrium, closed to visitors since the 1920s, as an elegant new café and bar for Tate Members; and the Grand Saloon, a light-filled space overlooking the Thames created for seminars and events; and

» site-specific work to celebrate the transformation of Tate Britain by three contemporary artists: Richard Wright has designed handmade glass and leading for the eastern window in the Millbank foyer; Alan Johnston has created a ceiling drawing for the Djanogly Café; and Nicole Wermers has created a tea and coffee spoon for use in the Djanogly Café, Members Room and the Rex Whistler Restaurant.

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by Caruso St John completed appeared first on Dezeen.

Introducing a new feature on Dezeen! This former industrial warehouse in east London has been converted into open-plan apartments by English/Austrian design firm SIRS (+ interactive slideshow).

The building was originally converted into flats in the 1980s. SIRS renovated the building’s top floors and converted them into two penthouse apartments for private clients. Roll your mouse over the slideshow above, and click on the pop-up windows, to learn about the products featured in the apartment.

The designers retained the original cast-iron features and added industrial finishes to the interior.

“The client was looking for a flexible and open-plan main living space in combination with a series of compact bedrooms that reflect contemporary living standards,” said architect Manuel Irsara.

A lobby opens into a large open-plan lounge, kitchen and living room. A floor-to-ceiling bookshelf separates a TV lounge in one corner while kitchen cupboards and a counter top double as a bench with bar stools.

The dining room has a small balcony off to one side and a hallway leads to the master bedroom and bathroom, a walk-in wardrobe and two extra bedrooms with ensuites.

Sash windows offer views out two sides of the apartment, which is located at the south west corner of the building.

Solid oak parquet lines the floor throughout and continues up onto wall in sections of the kitchen and TV lounge.

The project also involved the design of a large glazed roof extension. This terrace features a grassed area with a garden down one side, a deck and a glazed pavilion with a flat green roof.

Photography is by CGP Design.

Here’s a project description from the designers:

East London Penthouse

Design brief was to convert and restore two floors of a sought-after former Victorian warehouse building within conservation area into separate large luxury penthouses.

Showpiece of each 252 m2 large apartment is a spectacular living room with open-plan layout and large sash-windows providing light and airy rooms.

Original cast iron features were retained and restored while industrial finishes were chosen to complement the former industrial character.

Each apartment contains three bedrooms with separate en-suites, two independent lobbied entrances, Guest-WC, plant and utility rooms.

The open-plan layout is designed generically allowing flexible occupant usage with variable allocation of different living, dining and working islands.

Project name: East London Penthouse
Project location: London, UK
Project type: Residential Refurbishment
Scope of work: Full refurbishment, Fit-out and Interior Design
Client: Private Client
Floor Area: 252 m2 (2,713 ft2) per apartment
Completion Date: Summer 2013
Architect: SIRS (Sir Solutions)
Project Team: Manuel Irsara, Taneli Mansikkamaki
Structural Engineer: Fluid Structures
Services Engineer: Bob Costello Associates
Main contractor: Murphy Building Services
Quantity Surveyor: Alun Watkins (Eurotapes)

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Penthouse by SIRS appeared first on Dezeen.

This golden public toilet in Wembley, London aims to evoke the days when lavatories were “civic buildings that aimed to inspire confidence and pride in a place”.

With a perforated diamond pattern on its metal facade the Wembley WC Pavilion, designed by architects Gort Scott, sits in a newly landscaped and pedestrianised area and is intended to be “a singular and figurative building”.

The project comes at a time when public toilet provision is declining. “The aim was, after all, for a special building that harks back to the days when public toilet buildings were types of civic buildings that aimed to inspire confidence and pride in a place,” architect Jay Gort told Dezeen.

It was commissioned by Brent Council to develop the public convenience for a busy street in Wembley in northwest London. It consists of four urinals, a separate WC, a caretakers store and landscaped surroundings.

The exterior of the structure is made from a shimmering golden aluminium, which is more perforated near the roof. During the day the perforations filter sunlight into the toilets, while at night the structure appears to light up from within.

“We wanted a material that would allow the building to change depending on the weather and time of day,” said Gort. “On a sunny day, the reflectivity and shade of panels make the most of the faceted form, and then at night the perforations allow the building to glow.”

The architects used a traditional stamping machine to create the angular perforations. “A custom-made diamond-shaped cutting tool was produced after many prototype test sheets that were cut in our office to gauge the scale, shape and spacing of the holes,” he added.

Interior walls are lined with white ceramic tiles. There’s also a rainwater collection tank concealed behind a mirror, which uses recycled water for flushing the toilets.

The building has a four-sided concrete base, but looks like a star when viewed from above. Photography is by David Grandorge.

Here’s some project information from Gort Scott:

Wembley WC Pavilion

Gort Scott won the commission to design some new public conveniences on Empire Way in Wembley after an invited competition by Brent Council. The proposal is a modest, freestanding pavilion that will sit within a new garden and pedestrianised area that has been reclaimed from recent road realignments.

This is an unusual commission given the decline in provision of such services by local authorities. The brief called for a public toilet building, containing 4 urinals, a separate WC and caretakers store and landscaping to the immediate area. Gort Scott won the commission via an invited competition by Brent Council. The client required a building that could underpin the aspirations of the borough in terms of quality design and sustainability and form a key part in the regeneration of the pocket park and mixed area in which the pavilion sits.

The design intention was to produce a singular and figurative building that also related to its context and helps to define a sense of place. Standing over five meters tall the WC pavilion commands a presence at the high point of the surrounding topography and can be seen as walking up the gentle slope of Empire Way towards the Town Centre. Each of the building’s sides is subtly differentiated in response to the specific contexts, whether a busy road or public space. The design was conceived developed through a number of physical models.

The ground floor plan was developed to satisfy the brief requirements in a compact and efficient arrangement. It is based on a simple geometry, derived from a square, which suggests movement or rotation and allowing for a simple repeated construction, to minimise costs while ensuring quality.

The base of the building is constructed from concrete and will stand up to the anticipated knocks and scrapes of heavy use. Above head-height the structure becomes a filigree, shiny metal screen, allowing for light and ventilation without letting views in. The perforated water-cut screen further creates the effect of a glowing lantern during the evening.

The interior of the WC and urinals is robust and elegant: Up to 2.1m above ground, the walls are concrete, and tiled in utilitarian white ceramic tiles. A rainwater collection tank sits above the service room, clad in mirror, disappearing in its reflections of the surrounding perforated screen.

Although a small building the project acts as a showpiece for green technologies including rain water collection for flushing, natural ventilation, and PVs that power the lights, hand dryers and insulated D.W.C.

Client: LB Brent
Location: Wembley, London
Start date: December 2012
Completion date: May 2013
Construction cost: £245,000 including landscaping
Architects: Gort Scott
Contractor: Brac Contracts
Structure: Price & Myers
M&E: Skelly and Couch
Planting: Brent Council
CDM: MLM

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aims to “inspire confidence” appeared first on Dezeen.