By Constança Girbal Eiras, Filipe Prudêncio and Francisco Freitas
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Connection to Harringay Warehouse District
With the substantial physical and cultural industrial character of Harringay Warehouse District in the background, our proposal sets out to interpret it in the context of the new vibrant generation of artists, makers, musicians and entrepreneurs. The design aims to create a neutral space for the community, where the existing clash of individuals diferences can now have an appropriate and creative place to gather, designed for a wider audience.
Proposal Outline
Prior to the Industrial Revolution, craftsmen and carpenters played an important role in building the city, designing it on top of centuries old methods of handcrafted construction. After the revolution, the context changed, and machinery brought a new background system to architecture, adjusting the way we conceived and erected modular spaces from the typology point of view.
Bearing in mind the real conditions under which the pavilion will be put together, we believe in the possibility to strike a delicate balance between craftsmanship and modularity. For this reason, we propose a simple standard wooden structure, which repeats itself, covered by a continuous cloth to convey a sense of response and fluidity to the Pavilion.
As the site is situated in the entrance to the District, it was crucial for pavilion to stand tall in its one entrance, right in the corner of both streets, keeping the existing fence along the longest facade. Therefore, the modular system elevates itself slightly higher than the surrounding pine trees, inviting pedestrians passing by to come in.
Once the visitor comes in, they encounter a long rhythmical gallery, around the southern and western border, equipped with a bench and sunshade curtains that can be pulled up and down according to the demand, allowing visitors a view of the street. This prolonged path can host craft market stations, and is used to articulate two major spaces: a covered amphitheater, where the spectators can seat all around enjoying any type of performance or workshops happening in the center; and a completely outdoor patio, which brings back the relationship with nature the pine trees provide. The correlation of the three different spaces, with their light fabrics, creates a synergy that naturally elevates coexisting simultaneous events of different scales within the community, anywhere from large-scale presentations or concerts, to small local markets.
Designed as a continuous experience, guided by the wooden rhythm and warm color of the textile, a well balanced ambiguity happens, letting the user wander among concurring activities.
This versatility of experiences is only possible due to the freedom the textile brings when put in confrontation with the modular structure, allowing to change heights, close and open spaces inside the pavilion and choose the views of the exterior.
Regarding the ephemerality of the project, we believe that the atmosphere romanticised can produce a permanent feeling of belongingness, initiating an honest awareness that public and local community spaces are, in fact, needed today in the city.