Winner: Calvin Street, Shoreditch, London. Entrant: Chris Dyson Architects
Judges enjoyed the Tardis-like nature of Chris Dyson Architects’ 600m2 residential warehouse conversion in Shoreditch. From the outside, there is little hint of the spacious, light filled properties created by the architect, which has fashioned three luxury apartments, including a copper clad rooftop duplex extension, from the run-down Victorian warehouse.
According to project architect Gideon Purser, the aim was to ‘celebrate the heritage and character of the host building wherever possible’ while bringing in as much natural light as possible. This involved creating a deep internal courtyard with a living wall for the ground floor flat and a terrace for the first floor apartment.
‘The client was interested in creating generous, bright spaces out of a challenging, deep plan, and had a strong interest in details, fittings and sympathetic materials,’ he said, adding that securing planning permission had been a considerable hurdle given its location in a conservation area.
Schueco systems were used on the ground, first and penthouse levels, chosen for their high performance and also, added Purser, because they complemented the refurbished original Crittall steel windows. Schueco AWS 70 with a powder coated finish was used to create floor to ceiling glazing around the ground floor courtyard.
A movable corner post where the Schueco ASS 70.HI sliders meet enables residents to open up the kitchen/living space completely to the outside.
The same system was specified for two large sets of sliding doors opening onto the rooftop garden on the set-back penthouse levels of the extension, which was designed using materials that are deliberately differentiated from the host building. Two Schueco tilt-and-turn windows are also set into the copper box to align with the existing windows.
Meanwhile, on the first floor, Schueco’s Janisol Arte steel framed system was used for the terrace door to match the style of the Crittall windows.
The building was given a significant thermal upgrade using an insulated external render which allowed the existing brick internal walls to be exposed.
Judges were impressed with the mix of conservation and new build and its elegant detailing.
‘For a refurbishment, this looks really, really precise,’ said José Silva.
‘It’s a transformational project that very successfully takes an interesting existing facade with small openings and creates a plan that allows big openings which make well-lit spaces,’ added Jo Bacon.
Client: Chapman Button
Architect: Chris Dyson Architects
M&E engineer: Martin Redstone Associates
Main contractor: Clara Vale
Specialist contractor: Park Aluminium