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BUILDING PROJECTS
NO 1 NEW OXFORD STREET LONDON
A funnel of light
A central London office regeneration sees a melange of Art Deco and Art Moderne reinstated and illuminated from within through a glass funnel. Sébastien Reed reports
T
he prow clock tower at No 1 New Oxford Street has long been a familiar feature of London’s
‘midtown’ streetscape. Designed by English-born, Swiss and French educated architect and planner Henry Philip Cart De Lafontaine as an ‘ultra-modern building of imposing appearance’ that exhibits a melange of Art Deco and Art Moderne styles, Commonwealth House – the building’s original name – was completed in 1939. Based on these design merits, the building had long been noted as a positive contributor to the local area’s cultural value. The scheme occupies the prominent nose of a tight corner junction where High Holborn meets New Oxford Street – “the gateway to the west-end”, says John McRae, director of Orms, the practice that led the refurbishment and extension to the building. Orms were approached after being recommended to client Nuveen Real Estate (formerly TH Real Estate) by office agency Bluebook on the basis of their considerable accrual of experience renovating commercial buildings, which include recent projects such as Medius House, Forum St Paul’s, and 160 Old Street. “The building had been held in various investment vehicles over the last 30 years – all managed by the Nuveen Real Estate team during that time – and more recently in a joint venture with British Airways Pension Fund,” explains McRae. As some of the office floors were becoming vacant, the architect’s first contact with the project was focused around how best to renovate a single typical floor of the building, in addition to repositioning the office entrance. McRae continues: “The ambition of the client was always to do a full refurb job, however the rental profile of the
ADF MAY 2019
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