Archinect - News

London's Royal Opera House reopens after three-year transformation

2018-09-19T18:49:00-04:00

Following a three-year, £50.7m programme of works, dubbed the “Open Up” project, the ROH hopes to have a more visible, welcoming presence. Its motivations have not only been to shed its rarefied reputation, but also to improve crowd flow inside the constricted corridors, inject daytime activity and transform its secondary studio, the Linbury, into a new world-class theatre. Walls have been bulldozed, spaces excavated, and restaurants extended [...]

Oliver Wainwright reviews the result of Stanton Williams's extensive $66m 'Open Up' revamp of the Royal Opera House in London.

Photo: Hufton+Crow

Photo: Luke Hayes

Stanton Williams design a new extension for Cambridge's business school

2018-01-17T16:10:00-05:00

Stanton Williams completed a new design extension for the Cambridge Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge. The £21.5 million expansion utilized the existing site's potential in creating The Simon Sainsbury Centre. The Centre will serve as a versatile hub in providing flexible education spaces for the school’s Executive Education program.

The Centre is conceived as an extension of the original hospital replacing two former nurses' hostels. Stanton Williams' design draws inspiration from the hospital's historic masonry facade while also complimenting the adjoining 1995 John Outram-redesigned building. This approach unifies the campus's architectural identity beyond a single period style.

Cambridge's new extension is also on track to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating for sustainability. The design utilizes an innovative strategy of distributed ventilation with the incorporation of 60 small heat recovery units within the building envelope to create a ‘breathing facade’....

Asif Kahn and Stanton Williams to design new Museum of London

2016-07-28T16:46:00-04:00

Asif Kahn and Stanton Williams will design the new Museum of London, beating out competition like BIG and Caruso St. John from the shortlist of six architects. Their winning design features a dramatic domed hall with a central staircase down into the museum's excavated subterranean space.

Currently located at the Barbican, the museum will relocate into a much larger, Victorian-era, Grade II-listed building, which used to house several markets. The new design also includes a sunken garden. The new museum is tentatively scheduled to be built in 2022.

h/t the Spaces

In related news:

Museum of London design shortlist revealed

2016-06-10T14:41:00-04:00

Smithfield market will be the museum’s new home, but which architectural vision should shape its future: the eye-catching one, the ghostly one, the corporate one … or the one that rings alarm bells? Little detail has been revealed about the shortlisted schemes, which will go on public exhibition from 10 June to 5 August with a winner chosen by an expert panel later this summer.

Curb your cultural curiosities with the articles below:

Shortlist for new Museum of London revealed

2016-04-04T10:43:00-04:00

Caruso St John, Stanton Williams with Asif Khan, and BIG in a team with Hawkins\Brown have been shortlisted to design the Museum of London’s new home in Smithfields. The shortlisted teams saw off 80 entries from more than 140 practices and were chosen based on their relevant skills and experience, in particular of significant cultural projects. The competition will create a £150 million new base for the Museum of London in the historic West Smithfield market.

Also selected:

Lacaton & Vassal Architectes with Pernilla Ohrstedt Studio
Diener & Diener Architekten with Sergison Bates Architects, East Architecture and Graphic Thought Facility
Studio Milou architecture with RL & Associés, Axis Architects and Alan Baxter Associates

Read more articles relating to the chosen practices here:

Sainsbury Laboratory is the 2012 RIBA Stirling Prize Winner

2012-10-13T16:58:00-04:00

Stanton Williams’ Sainsbury Laboratory has won the 2012 RIBA Stirling Prize. The winner was announced at a special event in Manchester on Saturday 13th October. The building is situated on the northern edge of the University of Cambridge’s Botanic Gardens.