Over the past three months, we have all been adapting to the challenges around removed face to face existence and having to deliver the same work + teaching experiences that needed to happen in order for us to survive in business and for our students at Reading school of architecture to complete their undergraduate education. I am hugely honoured that I get to teach in first year at the University in Reading, but I had no idea how our students would rise to the occasion of virtual teaching and learning, to go well beyond all our expectations. I am so very proud of what our students achieved and I have no doubt, that although the challenges where really quite difficult, they will all have learnt about resilience and will come through this time stronger and ready to adapt at what the 21 century throws at them!

Our latest Urban lecture series this month was focused around Gender and sexuality in the Urban realm, with expert guest speakers Ruth Irvine, Amy Scott – Pillow , Dr Phevos Kallitsis and Zoe Berman. Each speaker reflected their own experiences, research and practice within the spaces and places of the built environment. The evening revealed a deep and passionate exploration of the speakers positive and some times challenging experiences to open the important and inclusive conversation and debate about how gender and sexuality must have a wider influence and position with the design conversation for the future space and places within the public realm.

During lockdown we have been adapting like all small design studios and we have found, huge positive benefits in these times. One such benefit is the collective coming together with our collaborators and critical friends. This month we held our first virtual design review with, Gemma Barton, Roger Tyrrell, Andrew Malbon and Stuart Bertie. It was a quite remarkable hour, discussing, sketching, explaining and listening to the thoughts of our critical friends on our new Church entrance cafe extension, which is due for submission for planning in early July. There was a huge leap made in this short, sharp critic of the project, we learnt a great deal about how to review and listen in such an opportunity.

We are delighted to welcome our first guest blog, someone who has become an enormous, supporter, critical friend and I might even suggest a patron of Studio B.a.d. Andrew is a hugely talented architect and photographer documenting Southsea in all its glory!

 

 

 

 

 

Challenging times for us all & opportunities for extended photography trips have been very limited, so naturally this has led me to look a little closer to home. I’m lucky enough to work in a studio within a few hundred metres of a wonderful Victorian Park as well as some of the city’s finest modern architecture.

 

I’ve been trying to reflect photographically on how different things have felt, how we’ve had to adapt to a ‘new normal’ over the past few months; so most of my photography has been quick phone photos on the way in or home from work reflecting on distance & isolation, but also the peace of a city with (virtually) no traffic & how quickly the Solent has become very clear, how vibrant all the leaves look without the coating of pollution that usually dulls the edge of an urban spring.

 

For this first image I’ve chosen one taken with my phone, rather than any more sophisticated photographic equipment; low point of view, converted to monochrome in the phone & cropped slightly, no filter.

 

The (enormous) puddle in this empty carpark gave not only a great reflection but also the hint of transparency, ambiguity & layering that is so attractive to architects; the lack of cars reminded me of what this complex must have felt like after it was completed in the 1970s & it’s the only time I’ve seen the puddle so clear.

 

Andrew Malbon

@fivearchitects

https://www.instagram.com/fivearchitects/?hl=en

M I X E D   U S E    D E V E L O P M E N T

 

Studio – B.a.d where appointed by GO SOUTHAMPTON in Dec 2019 to undertake a strategic  over view of No 2 Ogle road, the brief being to look at a whole host of mixed uses, from co working, café, tourist Information , cultural and arts venue, retail and a space for the GO Southampton team.

 

The design strategy has been to review and respond to  the existing conditions, which currently exist within the existing building and the wider context of the Marlands shopping center and the frontage to Ogle Road.

 

The challenge has been to look at a number of design ideas that can maximize these existing conditions and exploit the potential for future uses and current use strategy.

 

A series of potential development options have been carefully created, considered and presented in this document,  looking at the various uses identified in the client brief, that sit comfortably in this context. But also to create a strategic method that can allow for the various spaces to adapt depending on the potential uses

These options seek to address the building that’s sandwiched between existing uses within the Marlands shopping center. The response has been to the existing building but also the current urban situation, we have taken our ques from some of the current thinking around developing flexible, meanwhile interiors that allow for a whole host of uses within open plan spaces. But also the introduction of the horizontal linear pod structures, give a sense of rationality and organization and separation between daily key uses and circulation,  that attempt  to add a new contemporary insertion into these spaces. The proposal to add mezzanine’s and cut through the existing floors, enables us to exploit the possibility of drawing daylight and visual connection between, basement, ground and first floor. This is important to create some connection between floors, so that the building does to appear cellular in its verticality

 

The various opportunities illustrated also seek to place great importance on the quality of space and light with the various options. The varying sectional images seek to  illustrate that these options have been carefully considered with the use of natural light that responds to each floors original  aspect.

Key to the success of this building will be to achieve a flexible plan arrangement and this is something we have strived to achieve, in the various options.

 

The various proposals at all levels, seek to engage with a series of new proposed uses, that might begin speculate on the potential uses of the coming year’s.. So key to this is thinking carefully where stair cores are located as this is critical to making each floor operate on its own merits, but also across the whole building vertically, so this frees up the larger floor plan arrangement.

The options presented are seen as a starting point to create something simple and sympathetic to the existing context of this building. The proposals, seek to speculate on what might happen, with a view to drawing in key stakeholders and end uses as per the ideas explored as part of the client engagement and briefing.

So on Tuesday 07 April we along with GO Southampton delivered our third in the series of Urban Lecture. Now that life has changed somewhat we did not want the barrier of been confined to our homes to limit our ability to continue  the debate around Urban City living and the future of public realm in Southampton.

On Tuesday evening with the expert help of Gemma at GO Southampton we switched to Zoom and and 35 people join us. We had three key lecturers this month, Clare Diaper of October Books, Prof Lorraine Farrelly Head of School at the new Reading school of Architecture and Founder of Allies + Morrison Bob Allies, delivered a deeply inspiring set of talks. Clare discussed the impact of Social influence and community driven projects in Southampton, focusing on October books. Lorraine discussed how in creating change in City conditions a distinct narrative was imperative and how Urban rooms can be a huge catalyst for change. Bob Allies discussed three core Allies + Morrison projects and how these where seen as Catalytic – Organic and Curated within Urban conditions in London. If you missed the lecture it was recorded and will be online shortly at Go Southampton. Next month we discuss the curated City on Tuesday MAY 5.