16
insights
practice profile Norman Hayden meets WG+P,
(L-R) James Potter, Phil Waind and Sonya Gohil a young London firm going places.
September 15, 2008 is a date Phil Waind will not forget in a hurry. As the global financial crisis bit hard, his fledgling practice hit what turned out to be its low point. “Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection, and our phone rang twice. Both calls were clients suspending designs,” he recalls. Phil and fellow director Sonya Gohil had set up Waind Gohil
Architects (WG+A) in 2005 and opened their Shepherd’s Bush, London studio in July 2007, with two members of staff and a very modest turnover undertaking mainly residential projects for private clients. But the financial crunch forced them to cut the team of five they had built up as the outlook became far less rosy during this very uncertain period. They fought back and their optimism, hard work and
persistence paid off as the directors began to turn things around. “We secured planning approval on our first significant housing development –Raymond House in Enfield,” says Phil. By 2010 things had improved to the point where opportu-
nity started to knock on the door of smaller practices. “We had ambition to develop the practice into commercial sectors, including housing and leisure. Opportunities came, and relationships were formed, leading to multiple unit housing developments, an extension to a modernist church, new one-off houses, holiday homes and hotels. As a result, the practice grew quite quickly to around 12 architectural staff.” December 2013 proved to be a big landmark as WG+A
became WG+P. James Potter, previously a director at The Manser Practice, joined the team as a director. James’ significant experience in the design and delivery of large-scale buildings clearly complemented the team, Phil says: “We shared the vision to provide a great service and buildings which exceed expectations.”
Regeneration: Ipswich Westgate Masterplan
Core Collective Gym Kensington Has the practice approach changed along the way? “When
Sonya and I set up WG+A in 2005 we had a vision to develop a design-led studio, with commercial understanding, and an outstanding level of service,” Phil explains. “Simplicity Beyond the Obvious was the strapline we used to describe our process of interrogation of complex (and sometime opposing) design constraints and opportunities, to distil rational, coherent solutions.” In those early days Sonya developed her skills in the financial
control and management of an architectural firm, while Phil established essential relationships with clients and colleagues, along with learning more about the importance of entertaining! On the delivery side, Sonya harnessed her interest and
specialism in conservation, while Phil, whenever possible, brought his interest in experimenting with fabrication processes into play. Early residential projects in London that shaped their
approach included structural glass and economic timber-framed extensions. Through these projects WG+P was able to develop and hone the role of a designer for construction/fabrication processes – or, as product designers would put it: “design for manufacture”. This approach, including identifying the appropriate
construction/fabrication process for each project at an early stage,and reinforcing this at every scale, is inherent in the practice’s design process today. Designing for construction/fabrication, WG+P devises a
clear strategy to meet the various scales of requirement, opportunity, context, cost and programme, with the process providing form, materiality, decoration and sustainability of contemporary built results.
www.architectsdatafile.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92