‘The White Building’ is a new cultural
venue in Hackney Wick commissioned by the
London Legacy Development Corporation.
Situated across the Lea Navigation
Channel from the Olympic site, the
project overlooks the Olympic stadium.
The refurbished building, a former print
works and previously a sweet factory,
will house artists’ studios, a gallery,
hire space, café and micro-brewery.
The project was won through invited
competition by David Kohn Architects in
collaboration with Michael Pawlyn of
Exploration Architecture, specialists
in environmentally sustainable design.
The competition was organised by Design
for London, part of the Greater London
Authority, as part of the ‘Olympic
Fringe’ a string of small-scale projects
aimed at stitching the Olympic Park into
the surrounding city fabric.
Hackney Wick Fish Island, a former
industrial area, is currently
celebrated for being home to the highest
concentration of artists studios in
Europe. The end user is Space Studios
who contributed to the project brief to
create a cultural venue in Hackney Wick
that would serve the existing community
as well as provide a public face to
visitors. Space Studios is a charity that
has been providing platforms for artists
since 1968.
In response to the competition brief,
David Kohn Architects proposed that the
White Building would be:
- Is built by local people for local people;
- Foregrounds the pleasures of making;
- Resonates with the history of the
area;
- Works with the existing building
fabric;
- Demonstrates innovative sustainable
design;
- Is realised affordably and quickly;
- Shows a past and future London at the
Olympics.
The eventual built project used local businesses extensively for supplying materials and skills from glazing to sign-painting, steelwork to joinery. The project was delivered on time and budget. New interventions complimented the existing building fabric, such as blockwork walls on the ground floor that incorporated steel-framed windows. The ground floor was opened up to the canalside and Queen’s Yard to create a light-filled interior with the feel of an urban courtyard.
On the first floor, existing red-painted
steel trusses supported an asbestos sheet
roof with no insulation. In order to
improve the environmental performance of
the building and the appearance of the
interiors without interfering with the
asbestos, lambswool was suspended in red
string nets to create soft vaults between
the trusses.
Throughout, there was a design approach that sought to use conventional construction materials, but in a playful way. Material junctions were detailed in such a way as to give even the most industrial construction a lightness of touch.
Five new entrances were created that allow the building to be used in a variety of different configurations. The ground floor houses a café, pizzeria, microbrewery and group studio space. The first floor offers four artists’ studios, a gallery and hire space overlooking the Olympic stadium. External works included wide steps from street level down to the canalside.
Space Studios currently have a ten year
lease on the property. The hope is that
during that time, The White Building can
become a significant local asset, well-
used by the creative community and public
alike. If it proves to be successful,
then the project could become key to
the retention of cultural activities in
the area during future urban change and
development.
Address: Unit 7 Queens Yard, White Post
Lane London E9 5EN
Tenant: Space Studios & Crate Café
Planning Department: LB Tower Hamlets
Project Period: December 2010 – July 2012
Construction Period: 12 weeks
Gross External Floor Area: 760m2
Gross Internal Floor Area: 695m2
Construction Value: £550k
Cost psm: £789
Contractors:
Glazing: Caplin Glass
Sheep’s Wool: Black Mountain Insulation
Ltd
Metal Windows: Monk Metal Windows
Steel Doors: Dove Steel Doors
Steel Sign: PJ Signs
Outdoor steps steelwork: Lemon Steel
Hand-Painted Signage: Ornamental Conifer
and Mark Bayley
