review: dovecote studio by haworth tompkins.
‘dovecote studio’ by haworth tompkins.
i came across this project by haworth tompkins this morning, and have been struck by it all day. it appears to be a fine object, with an interior resembling the mdf kitchens made aware to me within the smaller works of steven holl. [some of his best works no less].
the project is sited within benjamin britten’s creative campus at snape maltings, and functions as a small extension for aldeburgh music.
the project succeeds in its relationship to the immediate context of the ruined dovecote, and the relationship to the wider campus buildings. the repair work to the dilapidated dovecote appears to be just enough to maintain its integrity, without compromising its fetishisation of its ruinous state. it appears to be pure lust-worthy. juxtapose this against the clean, clinical edges of the new intervention, and the two objects complement each other making a single story instead of two lesser individual narratives.
the look of the object against the wider context is where the symphony completes, the colour of the window frames appear to float against the red brick buildings in the background as the vibrant cor-ten steel bleeds into the composition; almost literally as it weathers in the english rain.
the detailing appears exquisite. with the single interior volume probably promoting adequate acoustics for the piano sited on the ground floor.
i enjoy the austere interior, and i feel that the aesthetic does not speak of a cheap fit-out, which mdf would usually do. the material, as holl exploited within his works, when in a good designers hands can work wonderfully within a small space, particularly in sculpted multifunctional storage and appliance objects.
the photograph of the large corner window on the mezzanine with the orange rendering of the interior mdf in the light contrasted against the watery greens and browns of the suffolk countryside looks to be a prime moment to place a bed. if only it were available on a residential contract; i would probably forfeit a kidney.
