News of Buildings on Site
Scaffolding is coming down from two of our projects. The new London Foot Hospital, otherwise know as the Department of Podiatric Education for the University of East London on their Stratford Campus and housing and offices for Castle Rock and EDI, respectively, on the Cowgate, Edinburgh, adjacent to our own office.
We have also been commissioned to renovate a major part of the Craighouse Campus, for use by the Principal and her staff at Napier University, Edinburgh. This project is now on site and we anticipate completion in March.
British High Commission, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Work has now begun on site and the contractor, Gibbs Limited of Southampton, has been appointed. A representative of the Practice will be travelling to Colombo every four weeks, but we are also working with local architects, Milroy Perera. New images of the design have been posted on the website and we will update these with construction images during the eighteen month construction period envisaged.
British Embassy in Skopje, Fyr Macedonia
Our project for the Estates Directorate at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to renovate the former Seismic Institute in Skopje, the Capital of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, is now complete and the Embassy staff moved in during January. A new web page on our website shows some of the interiors. The project consisted of the complete reworking of this two storey, 2,000 m2 office building. With the commission only granted in April 2005, this was a rapid design and construction project, achieved under budget and on programme. The design, in particular with regard to security considerations, draws heavily on our experience designing the new British High Commission in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Press
Our mews house at Circus Lane was featured in The Sunday Times in January this year. The "delighted" owners, Lesley and Brian Knox were interviewed and the Japanese influences on the design of the house highlighted.
On the 11 February, the Sunday Herald featured Richard Murphy at home at Regent Terrace Mews describing the house as "Air and Grace ... a stylish mews, designed for maximum light and space".
Clients Marion and Neil Thomson at Pentland Avenue were interviewed in Homes and Interiors Scotland Magazine in February 2006 and Marion says of the house design - "…… the space, the shape, the proportions - everything is just right".
Prospect Magazine ran an article in November 2005 about our new housing in Westport, County Mayo completed last year. The concept behind the "completely different" urban style of the project was highlighted.
Building Design Magazine on 28 October 2005 featured our social housing for Molendinar Park Housing Association at Melbourne Street. Glasgow. Craig Amy, Project Architect says - "The idea is that this becomes quite a social development and that people use external spaces so it turns into a small community".
Projects
Our major project in Manchester for the Burrell Company and Inpartnership has now received planning consent and work will begin shortly on the warrant application and working drawings with a view to a start on site in Spring 2007.
Design work is progressing on our commission for Computer Library/400 seat Lecture Theatre and new Faculty of Education for the University of East London. We anticipate a planning application being submitted to Newham Council at the end of March. Together with the Podiatry Building currently on site this represents a combined commission for £14 million of construction.
Our clients in Galway, Rod and Sue Stoneman, have asked for a guest house to be placed alongside their existing award winning design. This is now on site with drawings of the final design posted on the Galway web page.
And finally... Other News
Richard Murphy has accepted an invitation from the RIBA to be Architectural Assessor for the Beamish Open Air Museum New Visitor Centre Competition.
He will be talking to the Students at the University of Bath on the evening of 22 February, the University of Dundee School of Architecture on 1 March, Barcelona University School of Architecture on 7 March, the College of Architects de Catalunya on 9 March and to Architectural Students at De Montfort University, Leicester on 22 March - all about the work of the Practice.
Richard is also curating the architecture room, assisted by Malcolm Fraser at the Royal Scottish Academy Annual Exhibition this year which opens to the public on 8 April.
And finally, the Practice will officially be presented with our latest RIBA Award for the new “Galeri - theatre and enterprise centre in Caernarfon, at the opening of an Exhibition on Current Architecture in Wales at the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland in Rutland Square on the evening of 2 March.