Terence Conran and John Pawson put in an appearance at what will be the new Design Museum in Kensington this week. Located in the former Commonwealth Institute, the 10,000 sq m building is set to open in 2014, placing the organisation within a stone's throw of 'Albertopolis' - SW7's museum district.
Empty for more than a decade, the Grade II listed building, which features a dramatic tent-like roof, is an example of 1960s architecture at its best. 'The challenge is working inside the skin of an existing building which is more than 50 years old but it still seems very daring, says Pawson, who with his trademark palette of brushed concrete and wooden flooring is striving to 're-tune the architecture so it still feels fresh but also to give the Design Museum what they need'.
The new venue will stretch to five floors and aims to double visitor numbers to 500,000 a year. Rem Koolhaas' OMA is redeveloping the residential area around the building. Project architect Reinier de Graaf describes this as 'an exercise in fading into the background and being humble. We tried to pay tribute to that period [the 1960s]'.
Conran, who founded the original Design Museum at Shad Thames in 1989, has stumped up £17m towards the £80m project. 'We hope it will have the same spirit as Milan's Triennale,' he says, adding: 'We are no longer the workshop of the world, but we can still be a workshop and with the new - and the old - Design Museum, we can be a great one.'
The second floor of the new Design Museum, which displays Pawson’s trademark palette of brushed concrete and wooden flooring
The new venue will stretch to five floors and aims to double visitor numbers to 500,000 a year. Pictured: the second floor, showing the permanent exhibition
Exterior view of the new Design Museum, which features a dramatic tent-like roof
-
RIBA House of the Year 2024: browse the shortlist and pick your favouriteThe RIBA House of the Year 2024 shortlist is out, celebrating homes across the UK: it's time to place your bets. Which will win the top gong?
-
The Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Community Edition taps into the brand's creative followersThe unconventional features of Nothing Phone (2a)’s new limited edition come from a community-driven project to reshape the style and ethos of the smartphone
-
What is the sound of Stone Island? A new musical project helps you find outStone Island Sound is a new, evolving music project from the Italian label, seeing contributions from John Glacier, Yaeji and more across playlists and live performances
-
RIBA House of the Year 2024: browse the shortlist and pick your favourite
The RIBA House of the Year 2024 shortlist is out, celebrating homes across the UK: it's time to place your bets. Which will win the top gong?
-
The new Canada Water boardwalk is an experience designed to ‘unfold slowly’A new Canada Water bridge by Asif Khan acts as a feature boardwalk for the London area's town centre, currently under development, embracing nature and wildlife along the way
-
The Museum of Shakespeare set to open in east LondonThe Museum of Shakespeare puts the remains of the ancient Curtain Playhouse at the centre of 'The Stage', a new urban development in the heart of Shoreditch
-
Paddington Square transforms its patch of central London with its 'elevated cube'Paddington Square by Renzo Piano Building Workshop has been completed, elevating a busy London site through sustainability, modern workspace and a plaza
-
Architectural car parks to drive into, in the UK and beyondArchitectural car parks form an important part of urban infrastructure but can provide a design statement too; here are some of the finest examples to peruse, in the UK and beyond
-
Architectural Association's newest show uncovers the architectural legacies of rural China's lost generationThe Architectural Association’s ‘Ripple Ripple Rippling’ is not your typical architecture show, taking an anthropological look at the flux between rural and urban, and bringing a part of China to Bedford Square in London
-
Into the groove: Henriksen House is the UK’s first home extension featuring exposed clay block wallsArchitect Michael Henriksen uses textured clay blocks, cork flooring and self-built joinery to transform his family home in St Albans near London
-
This unassuming London house is a radical rethinking of the suburban homeStation Lodge by architect Andrei Saltykov in South West London offers a radical subversion to regional residential architecture
