in a kind of cul de sac, and not very visible.
“What we did was we pulled our building
right to the forefront of the pedestrian line,
and essentially drew up a canopy extension
to intersect with the paving line at its limit
in order to maximise impact and visibility
upon the site – pulling people in.”
When submitting their ideas for what
this building would look like, the clients
asked for a ‘blue sky’ option – giving the
architects free rein to design a building as
unique as its location – which was in turn
accepted enthusiastically.
Design process
The idiosyncratic design – which is now in
full operation – was not a random product
of architectural fancy, but heavily inspired
by its surroundings, function, and the
principles of the studio.
Besides the intention to create an
amphibious creature, forming “an
extension to the lake,” the existing
architecture in the park significantly
influenced the practice’s plans.
“Being in one of the Royal Parks,” says
Jonathan, “whatever we did had to reflect
and complement the architectural merit of
the buildings around.”
This is easily understood, the park being
awash with culture and monuments; as
Jonathan puts it, it’s “a real Mecca of
creativity.” The coffee house is located
beside the Princess Diana Memorial
Fountain for example, and just across the
bridge from the Serpentine Sackler Gallery- not forgetting the numerous sculptures
that surround these spots.
Located between such famous and
artfully conceived waypoints, Jonathan
realised that they “really needed a building
that sits well within them.”
To enact this, the team wanted to use
state of the art manufacturing and design
processes to create something that crucially
reflected its function, which is essentially a
cafe and coffee house, and looked far and
wide for design inspirations.
“We looked at the art of tea houses, and
the Japanese architecture of pavilions and
pagodas,” tells the architect. By keeping it
aesthetically rooted in London however,
this inspiration did not overwhelm the
design: “The roof actually has a lot of
principles of traditional architecture –
you’ve got a classic dome at the front,
which morphs into the eaves of a pagoda.”
This roof sits upon a pavilion which, as
FLOATING
Largely uninterrupted, fully openable glazing to the
cafe makes the roof appear to float above the structurePROJECT REPORT: HOTELS, RESTAURANTS & BARS 49ADF NOVEMBER 2019 WWW.ARCHITECTSDATAFILE.CO.UK
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