The London Festival of Architecture, the capital's annual celebration of architecture and the built environment, is back. The month-long extravaganza launches today with a wealth of activities all over London, promising something for everybody, around a central theme: Work In Progress.
Shining a spotlight on London's international character, this year's offerings - a striking collection of over 240 talks, exhibitions, tours and installations - include a key brand new initiative. Having a Focus Country does exactly what it says on the tin and this year's protagonist is Ireland. In collaboration with Irish Design 2015, a vehicle set up for the promotion and showcase of Ireland's creative design talent, the festival marks its launch by unveiling two pavilions on Kings Cross' latest public space, the Lewis Cubitt Square.
Naturally, both structures are designed by Irish practices - there is a vibrant yellow cubic shelter by Hall McKnight and a bright red structure, reminiscent of a stage set, by a group of young Dublin-based architects, including Clancy Moore, TAKA and Steven Larkin. Flanking the square, the vividly coloured structures were created in a record 10-days and were conceived as spaces for the public to interact and engage with architecture. 'They had to be interactive, dynamic and the public should be able to engage with them,' explains ID2015 Chief Executive Karen Hennessy. 'We wanted them also to be a performance.'
The notion of performance did indeed come into the discussion quite a bit, explains Andrew Clancy of Clancy Moore, as did ideas around collaboration and authorship, which were equally important to the team. 'Architecture is not a solitary discipline and for us, it would be more legitimate to do something were individual authorship is to that visible.' Creating something that would be part of the public space was central to the design process and the red pavilion was designed as a public installation that can be used - visitors can sit there, walk through, while it will also be used for events.
This is why the SmartPly Oriented Strand Board (a plywood alternative) and concrete installation was created to be open, as 'part of a large façade', he says. 'The façade of every building is its most public space. The places were people gather are often a type of threshold.' Even its colour was a carefully thought-out choice, referencing the iconic London telephone box, a space, Clancy says, that sits between a room and a piece of infrastructure.
The yellow pavilion, in contrast, is more enclosed. Inside, it hosts bricks from a row of terraced houses from Belfast, where Hall McKnight have their base. It was designed as an exploration of how 'the city is assembled from individual parts', explain the architects, which feels like a perfect fit for the festival's overall theme.
Kicking off with a big bash tonight, around the newly completed pavilions, LFA 2015 will unroll in the next four weeks with a host of explorations around its wide-reaching theme. We will follow the developments week-by-week, picking our highlights, from London's exciting ongoing developments to the future of workspace. Watch this space…
The structures sit at Kings Cross' new Lewis Cubitt Square. One of the pavilions
The bright yellow installation by Hall McKnight explores how 'the city is assembled from individual parts', explain the architects
Illustrating this, it includes bricks from a row of terraced houses in Belfast, bringing a piece of Ireland to London
The vibrant red pavilion
It was conceived as a multi-functional space that can adapt to many uses, from leisure activities to events and performances
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Venues across London from 1 until 30 June
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On the shores of Discovery Bay, this wooden house is the ultimate waterside retreatDekleva Gregorič’s Discovery Bay House is a structured yet organic shelter that blends perfectly into the surrounding Pacific Northwest landscape
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We put the new ultra-compact Dyson Car+Boat handheld vacuum through its pacesA cordless handheld vacuum pitched at a plethora of tasks, Dyson has tasked the new Car+Boat with far-reaching functionality without compromising performance
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Gordon Ramsay Restaurants are taken to new heights with three openings in one of London’s tallest buildingsGordon Ramsay Restaurants open at 22 Bishopsgate, from Asian-inspired cuisine and martini menus at Lucky Cat and Lucky Cat Bar; to an intimate chef's table, and an all-skill level cooking academy
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Sadler’s Wells East opens: ‘grand, unassuming and beautifully utilitarian’Sadler’s Wells East by O’Donnell and Tuomey opens this week, showing off its angular brick forms in London
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2025 Serpentine Pavilion: this year's architect, Marina Tabassum, explains her designThe 2025 Serpentine Pavilion design by Marina Tabassum is unveiled; the Bangladeshi architect talks to us about the commission, vision, and the notion of time
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We celebrate the emerging London architects to be excited aboutThese emerging London architects are some of the capital's finest ground-breakers, movers and shakers; heralding a new generation of architecture
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From a mobile pub to a thatched canopy: Japanese architecture and craft explored at AA show in London'Distillation of Architecture', a new AA show in London, pairs architects with materials and makers in an exploration of craft through the Japanese lens
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A library in a London telephone box? This is a charming reading nook full of surprisesSet in a restored London telephone box, Upper Street Little Library is a cosy beacon to encourage reading to the wider community
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This revamped east London terraced house is a music lover’s dreamAn east London terraced house gets a boost of personality and sustainability thanks to Archmongers, whose transformation makes room for the owners’ creativity and extensive record collection
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This elegant infill project slots beautifully into the London streetscapeIn this infill project, a row of garages in Blackheath, south-east London, has been replaced by a contemporary family home by local practice Mailen Design
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Don’t Move, Improve 2025: the 14 London homes adding design oomph to the everydayThe shortlist for Don’t Move, Improve 2025 has been announced, revealing 14 residential projects across London that add value and pizazz to their inhabitants’ daily lives
