PROJECT REPORT: HERITAGE & CONSERVATION
29
© Dave Morgan
© Dave Morgan
landscaping.” Entering the house’s gardens and immediate surroundings, the design team continued the regency themed planting, and reinstated the vehicle suite in the forecourt area using period-style gravel to replace the municipal tarmac that had been applied over the years. Within the 1939 Public Library building which almost doubles the original manor’s footprint, the scheme now houses 225 square metres of gallery space. Three bays of ornamental glass lay-lights flood light into the main gallery, and clerestory windows serve as a reminder of the building’s former use.
The gallery will present three exhibitions a year of work by artists, designers and architects, each offering a new perspective on Soane’s ideas and architecture. In the first of these exhibitions, Anish Kapoor presented a series of sculptures echoing Soane’s sophisticated use of mirrors and light to amplify as well as dissolve space. Harris comments on Soane’s use of translucent and reflective materials: “He wasn’t afraid to use large expanses of glass. There were things he did at Pitzhanger that he did on other projects; mirrors, for example.” The architect notes how the client was keen to have a small space for nationally renowned pieces of art, so it was crucial that the ambient and security qualities of the gallery areas matched these intentions in design terms. As part of the Government indemnity scheme for such key cultural projects, the right environmental conditions, such as humidity, UV and
temperature are preconditions to borrowing and exhibiting the most treasured pieces. As well as a large, flexible naturally- ventilated gallery space, there’s a smaller controlled ‘Grade-A’ gallery space with track lighting installed; all of the walls are lined with a construction that makes it easier to hang artwork and fix other installations to the wall. The entrance to the gallery connects, via a new staircase and lift, to visitor toilets, an exhibition preparation room and plant room on the lower-ground floor. From here leads the accessible route into the manor, via a covered colonnade link through the recreated Soane courtyard.
Up & running “We completed in summer 2018 and the building opened this spring, which gave us a useful period of familiarisation and preparation for the opening,” says Harris. “A few niggles had to be worked out with the contractors, but nothing serious.” As a measure of success for the client, Pitzhanger now attracts word-renowned artists and is welcoming numbers of visitors in excess of what it had anticipated prior to restoration. Based on current rates, some 70,000-100,000 visitors will visit the new Pitzhanger Manor and Gallery per year, a hefty increase on the 35,000 preceding the restoration. This is just part of why Jestico + Whiles, and the rest of the design team, can rightly consider this a success.
EXHIBITIONS In the first show in the extended gallery spaces, Anish Kapoor presented a series of sculptures echoing Soane’s sophisticated use of mirrors and light Artwork © Anish Kapoor, courtesy Lisson Gallery
PROJECT FACTFILE
Architect and lead consultant: Jestico + Whiles (cafe, gallery and lodge) Conservation architect:
Julian Harrap Associates (Manor) Client: Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery Trust and Ealing Council Landscape architects: J & L Gibbons Exhibition designer:
Ralph Appelbaum Associates Structural engineers: Ellis & Moore Environmental and M&E engineers: King Shaw Associates Build cost: manor £12m; park £5m
ADF DECEMBER 2019
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
