A filigree corten steel facade blurs the distinction between inside and outside at a private gallery in London by Gianni Botsford Architects

Buildings.

Photos
Luigi Parise

Extending a grade-two listed building in central London, the Layered Gallery by Gianni Botsford Architects houses a private collection of photographs, prints, pastels and lithographs. The concept was to create an enclosed courtyard structure that would serve as a retreat and place to contemplate art. Central to the scheme is a finely detailed, layered, corten steel facade that brings life into the landscaped inner court.

The entire tree-like structure is supported by a corten steel frame comprising flat stiffened plates branching out over the three-storey structure and supported off two 120x12mm steel posts with a stiffening rib on the rear face, explains Entuitive director Toby Maclean. Unusually, the facade also forms the main structural frame of the gallery and supports the floors and roof, as well as providing stability. The 25 steel members are made up of a family of just three sizes: 120mm, 100mm and 70mm – all fabricated from flat plate. The numerous connections were carefully coordinated and detailed to conceal the bolt fixings. The floor beams are detailed with a thermal break at the glazing line as the facade/structural frame is outside the building envelope. In effect the main floor beam stops at the glazing line and is supported off corten steel plates cantilevered from the facade members.

Buildings.

Behind the outer structural screen is a corten-framed glass screen, followed by a series of red fabric blinds. The openings within the two screens create a filigree effect, reinforcing the relationship between the interior and exterior spaces. This is emphasised by encouraging plants to grow up within the corten structure. The rust-covered steel was favoured partly to evoke the notion of ageing over time. Used in combination with museum-quality UV-treated glazing, the facade also protects the artworks from excessive sunlight, while eschewing the need for a sealed internal environment.

The architect likens the building can be likened to a tree, because its structure has two loadbearing columns in the centre with lighter membranes branching out. Just as trees are layered structures that shift with changes in the weather, so the gallery appears to adjust with the variation of light and reflections on its glazing.

Robust finishes are employed throughout the interior. On the ground floor, an existing exposed brick wall is contrasted with a corten ‘cabinet’ housing a folding toilet. A homage to the traditional outside lavatory, or perhaps a play on Duchamp’s ‘Fountain’, the gesture is intended to add a sense of surprise and transformation to the space, explains the architect.

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Credits

Architect
Gianni Botsford Architects
Structural engineer
Entuitive
Corten structure
Thresher Fabrications

Corten glazing, sliding screens
Palladio SpA
Blinds
Silent Gliss
Ceiling lights
Modular
Wall lights
Hunza