Architects: David
( ‘l I ipper/i e/d
The BBC's strident property strategy has taken another step forward with the announcement that David Chipperfield Architects will be responsible for the design and build of a new BBC Scotland HQ. The site on Glasgost Pacific Quay. neighbouring the Science Centre complex. looks set to become quite a techno hub.
()n the face of it. Chipperfield‘s competition-winning design appears to be a conventional glass office structure. Closer investigation into the heart of the building. however. reveals a series of ingenious interconnected spaces. centred on a vast atrium. zoned into meeting areas. cafes. working and public spaces. In other words. the building is defined by a real sense of light. airy and user-friendly openness: characteristics not usually associated with your average corporate monolith. And if Chipperlield‘s architectural back catalogue is anything to go by — exquisite boutiques for the likes of lssey Miyake and Joseph. as well as the much-féted Henley on Thames River and Rowing Museum — then the BBC HQ should be a well-crafted. beautifully detailed gem. You‘ll be able to judge for yourself in 2004.
Museum of Scottish Country Life, Kittochside, East Kilbride
x’lrt'liiteets: Page and Park
The new Museum of Country Life. which has just been unveiled near liast Kilbride. could not have arrived at a more heavily symbolic moment in agricultural history. what with the recent Foot and Mouth epidemic and the GM debate raging. The new exhibition building. which houses the rural collections of the National Museums of Scotland. is a fitting metaphor fora new era. constituting a remarkable evocation of traditional Scottish rural architecture using 21st century forms and technology.
Designed by Glasgow greats Page and Park. it resembles a farm building based on the scale of the barns in the rest of the estate. But this elegant building never even dabbles in pastiche. The exhibition centre is an intelligent. abstract. modern take on traditional Scottish forms. including a re- definition of the slate pitched roof. and white-rendered finishing. which in this context provides a thermal skin for insulation. It is classic and understated. and never competes with the collection on show. lts Scottishness is underpinned in its rich use of materials such as Caithness stone. lirTol bricks and even linoleum from Nairns of Kirkcaldy.
CCA Are/liteets: Page and Park The eagerly awaited
unveiling of the new C CA should not disappoint. A complete transforrmition of the Sauchiehall Street stalwart has been carried out by Page and Park. whose competition-xvinning designs challengineg aim to integrate all the existing buildings on the site. Incredibly enough. there are live buildings incorporated into the new CCA. including the ‘Greek‘ Thomson Grecian Chambers which fronts Sauchiehall Street. and astonishingly. an IXth century villa which defines part of the central courtyard of the building.
The spectacular glass-roofed courtyard. which will form the cafe-restaurant. is at the heart of the new development. It represents in this context a ‘cultural garden‘. a timely evocation of the site's previous incarnation as the grounds of
the newly revealed villa. A series of walkways or ‘bridges‘ provide a ‘promenade’. This is as close to a light and airy Mediterranean vibe as dreich Glasgow is ever likely to get. The six flexible art spaces emanate from the central courtyard. as will. crucially. the new bar which boasts a terrace with the meanest vista of the Glasgow School ofAit. All in all. the new C CA is a bold and imaginative response to a difficult site. and a revelation in itself.
Easterhouse Arts Factory Are/titeet.s'.' Gareth Has/(ins Are/liteets
This is a cracking project. due to go on site at the beginning of 2002. Glasgow architect Gareth Hoskins. Young Architect of
the Year. and RIBA-award winner for his Saughton Visitor Centre. recently won the competition to design the complex which. it is believed. will become a focal point for the l‘iasterhouse community.
The Arts Factory project. which will connect to the existing local swimming pool and the new John Wheatley College building. will house a community library and cafe as well as training and display facilities for performing and visual arts. According to project architect Joyce Michie. the building will comprise a series of cascading terraces ‘like a gentle lava flow’. linking all the different areas and levels. A series of interconnecting open-plan spaces aims to achieve maximum user-friendliness. The designs show a scheme which is not only an elegant and accessible soltrtion to a tricky site but a real commitment to providing a facility which really matters.
Homes for the Future Phase Two
Arehiteets: Master plan by RMJM
The Homes for the Future development. which graces the edge of Glasgow Green on Greendyke Street. is a perfect example of how good design really works. This group of l()() mixed-type and -tenure housing. embracing real architectural innovation. not only provides a peerless model of urban regeneration. but also goes to show that groovy pads are a sound investment: some of the property’s values have gone up by nearly 40‘}? in two years. Homes for the Future Phase Two. or the sequel. is a similarly ambitious project adjoining the Phase One site. This time the plan is to build l4] living units. from luxury to affordable and rented. embracing a rich mix of housing forms. Competition winner RMJ M. has also included a fourteen-storey ‘aspirational‘ tower in its masterplan.
So expect to see appearing at the beginning of next year. an elegant continuation of Phase ()ne‘s stylishly contemporary model for city living. with some of the sexiest housing you‘re likely to see on the West Coast and — as if that weren‘t enough — all with rare views overlooking the Green. Form an orderly line.
Adrian Welch writes for www.edinburgh architecture.co.uk; the views expressed are his own and not necessarily those of the website.
far left: The new BBC H0 is defined by a sense of light not usual in your average corporate monolith above: The Arts Factory project could become a focal point in Easterhouse
t3~20 Sop! 2001 THE LIST 15