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| Principal theme: Sustainable estate |
22 Gordon Street (formerly Wates House) is being redeveloped and extended to create a new home for The Bartlett, UCL’s Faculty of the Built Environment and the UCL Bartlett School of Architecture (BSA). Whilst the BSA operates from a number of locations, 22 Gordon Street will be the main base of operations for the school.
When the building opened 40 years ago it was designed to house 380 students and fewer than 90 staff.
The school now has around 1,000 students. Having outgrown the original building, the BSA required a modern, high-quality home. The new building, designed by Hawkins\Brown Architects, will be approximately 3,000 square metres larger, including the addition of a floor, an eight-storey extension, a cantilever extension on the west, north and east elevation and a large extension on the south side.
This now provides double the amount of teaching and research space available to the school, meaning that every student will have access to a desk. There is more studio and break-out space to encourage collaboration amongst students and staff.
Artwork courtesy of Hawkins\Brown
The building’s existing structure is retained and the space is divided into activity areas – fabrication and making, shared social and teaching spaces, and studios and offices. Four key elements define the building:
- ‘A shop window’: a double-height ground-floor exhibition space with full-height glazing facing Gordon Street. This will open up the building and its workings, providing the public with an insight into what is happening inside.
- ‘A nearby place for discussion’: The design has created a new entrance and foyer to the neighbouring Christopher Ingold Auditorium, which seats 325, creating a new space for debate at the heart of the Bartlett.
- ‘Framed views over the city’: Now that it’s taller, 22 Gordon Street benefits from inspirational views from key positions within the building. The first year studio has been placed at the very top of the building.
- ‘The new stairs’: A new open accommodation stairwell will act as a social generator, facilitating movement between floors, with break-out areas at each level. Doors have been excluded from studios, which are open to one another to encourage interaction and debate.
The UCL Bartlett School of Architecture has been temporarily housed at 140 Hampstead Road and the move back will enable 95% of the furniture from their current home to be reused. It is hoped that the building will gain an excellence rating within the BREEAM assessment and include a green roof.
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