Brass origami: delicate planes of patinated brass fold around this imaginative extension to a house in south London.Trinity Road in south London South London (known colloquially as South of the River) is the area of London south of the River Thames. Some neighbourhoods north of the Thames have South London postal codes (SW), but these neighbourhoods are classified as West or Central London. is a typical leafy Victorian suburb. Stolid stol·id adj. stol·id·er, stol·id·est Having or revealing little emotion or sensibility; impassive: "the incredibly massive and stolid bureaucracy of the Soviet system" brick houses with bay windows and big gardens exude ex·ude v. To ooze or pass gradually out of a body structure or tissue. an air of decorousness dec·o·rous adj. Characterized by or exhibiting decorum; proper: decorous behavior. [From Latin dec and prosperity. Yet even in a sleepy conservation area the urge to remodel re·mod·el tr.v. re·mod·eled also re·mod·elled, re·mod·el·ing also re·mod·el·ling, re·mod·els also re·mod·els To make over in structure or style; reconstruct. is quite common. Here, however, Alison Brooks attempts something rather different. Commissioned to extend a Victorian house Overview A Victorian house as built in the United States and Canada is a type of house popularized in the Victorian era. They are often three stories high with an octagonal or rounded tower, a wraparound porch and great attention paid to detail. as part of a larger remodelling, she saw it as a chance to experiment, both with form and materials. More specifically, it intensifies her investigations into the use of metal that began when she worked with Ron Arad Ron Arad may refer to:
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The extension opens up the house to rear, consolidating its relationship with the large garden. Brooks was adamant that the new, architecture should not compete with the robust character of the existing Victoriana, so her tactic is to make the addition as intangible and ethereal as possible. But the outcome is not the stereotypical glass box. Instead, lightness is expressed through a single planar skin of patinated brass that is apparently cut and folded to form walls, roof, columns and benches. The exquisitely thin brass planes enclose a new kitchen, dining room and external terrace, as well as framing and filtering views to the garden beyond. Though the crisp, orthogonal geometry was derived from simply folding a piece of cardboard, the actual construction was inevitably more complex and crafted. The richly patinated brass panels are, in fact, supported by a slim steel structure. Cor-ten was initially considered for the cladding, but it tends to bleed and stain before the coating of rust finally stabilises. By contrast, the patination of brass is gentler and its effects can be more closely controlled. Though not commonly used as a cladding material, brass is also harder (stiffer) than its closest relative copper, and more economical. Brooks likens the construction process to the fabrication fabrication (fab´rikā´sh  n),n the construction or making of a restoration. of a large-scale piece of jewellery. The 3mm thin sheets of raw brass were cut and folded in a specialist metal fabrication workshop and temporarily assembled on site. The panels were then dismantled and removed to be patinated by hand. Varying the effects of acid and heat generates different hues, from pale blue to deep turquoise, but the patina also responds to the daily effects of the weather, so the panels have a genuinely chameleon-like quality. Finally, the patinated pieces were carefully reassembled. Full-height glazing adds to the sense of lightness and seamlessness and the composition is anchored by charcoal grey porcelain floor tiles. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Thinness is another crucial aspect of this language of elegant abstraction. The brass panel constructions are only 60mm thick and, as the pavilion is seen from the upper storeys of the house, its roof is also a rigorously pared down structure, with an upstand Up`stand´ v. i. 1. To stand up; to be erected; to rise. At once upstood the monarch, and upstood The wise Ulysses. - Cowper. reduced to 50mm from the more usual 150mm. Though the pavilion is a meticulously crafted one-off, Brooks sees it as a useful prototype which feeds into an ongoing process of experimentation and discovery. The practice is working on a major housing development in Cambridge and plans to incorporate off-the-peg brass cladding panels (developed by copper specialists KME KME Knowledge Management Environment KME Kentucky Mining Engineering KME Kia Motors Europe KME Key Mouse Electronic ) in a six-storey apartment block. In an era besotted be·sot tr.v. be·sot·ted, be·sot·ting, be·sots To muddle or stupefy, as with alcoholic liquor or infatuation. [be- + sot, to stupefy (from sot, fool by conspicuous gestures, it is especially pleasing to see humble or disregarded materials used imaginatively. Brooks' architecture has always reflected a concern for making and materials, and her latest project consolidates this lineage. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] |
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