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The Garden of Candlewrich

Part 2 Project 2021
Jack Whitehead
 Nottingham Trent University | UK
The scarcity of buildable inner-city space, as a consequence of mass urban density and necessity to achieve maximum economic gain has created a competitive market of investors and developers, capitalising from the forced insertion of privatised function. The booming neo-liberal London economy has reframed the City as a built environment informed through datasets dictating development, based upon plausible financial investment and net capital growth.

The city has been blinded by gluttony; primary civic assets have been condensed to their most basic form. A recurring theme of a loss of identity, unsympathetic rejuvenation and an absence of environmental agenda is emerging; clarity is required through a shift in attitudes and legislative design policies. London’s Cannon Street Station will form the basis of the proposal through the conscious and sustainable adaptive reuse of a pre-existing structure, adopting the maximum useable material.

The development will allow the people to have greater control in shaping public spaces and provide a structure for the conscious removal of inner-city privatisation. The public can openly embrace the building, rather than watch from afar as is common with many metropolitan spaces, paying homage to the beguiling theatre of the city, a room for London.


Tutor(s)
2021
ARCHITECTURAL AMBITION The scarcity of buildable inner-city space, as a consequence of mass urban density and necessity to achieve maximum economic gain has created a competitive market of investors and developers, capitalising from the forced insertion
CONTEXT London’s Bridges have provided a means of connection, with the most significant and renowned structures spanning the Thames. The ever-growing population and overcrowding within the city centre led to the repurposing of such structures to provide
DESIGN PROPOSAL The following proposal will form an argument against the privatisation of civic buildings as a means to provide economic gain within the City of London by reclaiming the currently defaced Cannon Street Station. The victorian masonry build
DETAILING OF MATERIALS The following design process was driven by the consideration to adaptively reuse the maximum existing structure of Cannon Street Station. The existing office use was formed from three clearly defined concrete transfer slabs spannin
SERVICING SYSTEMS Through the lifespan of the Cannon Street Station, many unsympathetic material alterations have been carried out, the proposal will ensure that minimal changes are made to the fabric of Victorian structure and the building is restored t
ACCESSIBILITY Accessibility or a growing trend of inaccessibility introduced a cornerstone in the development of the Candelwrich concept. As economic gain continues to drive inner-city developments, an increase in privatised infrastructure will see the d
STRUCTURAL As the City of London was in the postwar recovery phase, many buildings were demolished as the cost of recovery was far greater than that to build new. A multi storey infill concrete office building was constructed in 1962 on the North end of
ADAPTIVE MATERIAL FORM Throughout the design process the buildings form was defined by the parameters of the existing aggregate frame. To introduce a functional spatial configuration, secondary engineered timber elements delineate the internal transition
SPATIAL EXPERIENCE The idea of open civic space naturally introduces a sense of belonging as its users define the architectural ambition, the building simply accommodates such requirements. The Candelwrich proposal transcribed the notion by working with
SUSTAINABILITY A growing consciousness and need for an environmental agenda in the construction industry is becoming apparent. To create sustainable contemporary architecture it is critical to first understand previous inadequacies and ensure a criteria
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