Day 7 and we are past the halfway mark of the tour. Energy levels have depleted and our ability to absorb anything more has waned. Today we’ve gone from West to East and back again, visiting four practices from Assemble to Foster & Partners. Bundling back onto the Central line tube at peak hour – I’m amazed at how quickly we’ve become used to the routine. Before our first visit we whine for a real coffee (not sure if this is realistic in London) mama-hen Daniela spots a Cafè Nero and pumps us with caffeine. Poor Daniela! She must be so sick of us by now. Hannah comments that she doesn’t know how she’ll cope post tour without Daniela navigating our way across Europe.
First meeting is with Studio Octupi at an office space they’ve designed for ad agency the MULLENLOWE GROUP. There’s always a tension in these corporate creative spaces….this is evidenced in the fitout (plywood wall linings hit expansive grey carpet tiles) to the branding of the space…a safe serif font with an awkward illustration of an octopus wearing boxing gloves WTF? Ursula, Chris and James take us through a nice presentation of their projects- i feel for them…life as an emerging practice in London sounds tough!!! My idealistic ambitions of starting a SIBLING HQ in the hustle bustle of London are shotdown after hearing about the invited yet unpaid competitions that seem to be the norm. You could be competing against nine others for a commission for a gallery interior to a reception desk. This is a far cry from the paid competitions offered to the larger practices we saw in Copenhagen.
We bundle back on the tube and head further east towards the Sugarhouse studios in Stratford where Assemble hold fort. Finding our way from the tube station is a challenge – we have the studio in sight but can’t seem to find a way across four lanes of traffic to it. When we finally get across we are greeted by the Yardhouse – a two storey timber framed warehouse with studio spaces inside, designed and built by Assemble. Its pitched roof and pastel coloured shingle facade is cartoonish – delightful amongst the repetitive development blocks of the area. The charming Alice greets us and shows us around the studio spaces that Assemble run and share with other makers, carpenters and metalworkers. There is a sense of calm amongst the chaotic arrangement of spaces. I feel nostalgic being here – the ad-hoc and communal nature of the space reminds me of SIBLING’s beginnings at the Young St warehouse. Communal lunches served up on an odd collection of crockery and cutlery, a flat hierarchy amongst its 15 partners and an ambiguous situation between art, architecture and social enterprise.
As Louis from Assemble ladles out a delicious curry stew amongst us, we chat about all sorts of things, arts grants and funding, their day to day lunch rota system, Monday night group design reviews of current projects, and what parties they’ll be going to at the Biennale.
Material tests at Assemble
We now head back West toward Foster & Partners, with a stop in Waterloo at Chipperfield’s offices along the way. Entering Chipperfield’s office is like walking into a temple that is about to self combust. We are only shown the meeting space and model making areas – the staff working spaces here are private – much like Chipperfield himself. Rumour has it that the hours here are punishing, but we don’t see any of this, just a collection of beautiful models and a panoramic view over London.
Our grand finale is Foster & Partners, we whizz along the river in our minicabs, Matt is pleased that he’s caught a glimpse of the gigantic Battersea project and takes a snap to prove to Daniela. At Foster and Partners we head straight to the café for a recharge, this place is like a campus along the riverfront. We are met by Ross, whose energy and enthusiasm rubs off on us. He gives us a brief overview of the practice – 1500 staff broken into project teams of 150, different specialist departments and the practices fascination with engineering. We then head around the campus for a tour, while Ross explains their process of design reviews of current projects, within project teams, and higher up between partners. We are blown away by the resources and facilities this place has – a full animation studio and team (there’s even a full time sound producer to create original scores) complete with a sound recording studio for when Norman has to do a voice over; a team of six people dedicated to the Material Research Centre and of course all the staste of the art model making facilities. It seems nothing has been spared, and nothing is outsourced because Fosters will just absorb any necessary skill set or innovation into their company.
Material Research Centre at Foster & Partners
Reflecting on everything we’ve seen today – we draw comparisons between Assemble and Foster; the differences in their material libraries and research, how meals are eaten, how they are facilitated and Katy even compares their bathroom experiences. Assemble and Foster are at different ends of the spectrum of architectural practice however both have a collaborative process through their design reviews and both practices are leading in the way they’ve broadened the scope in what architecture can be.