sne architects selected to develop designs for new southbank centre ...
15 October 2013
SNE ARCHITECTS SELECTED TO DEVELOP DESIGNS FOR NEW SOUTHBANK CENTRE SKATE SPACE SNE Architects have been selected to develop the designs for the new skateable space at Southbank Centre under Hungerford Bridge – 120m from and 10% larger than the current undercroft. SNE Architects, founded by skater Søren Nordal Enevoldsen, is a practice based in Copenhagen, Denmark, with significant experience of designing urban landscapes including mixed-use skateable areas and skate parks. The practice was appointed by the selection panel because of their high-quality design ideas, combined with their extensive experience in skatespace design and construction, openness to suggestions from all urban arts practitioners, and personal involvement in street-based skateboarding.
The selection panel included Rich Holland, an architectural designer at Floda31, who has made many skateable installations and sculptures, Iain Borden, Professor of Architecture and Urban Culture at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL – and both skaters – as well as a skateboard journalist, a current professional street skateboarder and three representatives from Southbank Centre – Mark Rushworth, Property Director, Mike McCart, Director of Partnerships and Policy, and Georgia Ward, a Participation Producer.
Iain Borden and Rich Holland, who were commissioned by Southbank Centre to head up this project, said: “We are thrilled that Søren Nordal Enevoldsen and SNE Architects will oversee the designs for the Hungerford Bridge skate space. Søren is a hugely talented designer of skateboardable landscapes – including the world-renowned Falledparken in Copenhagen – and a committed street skateboarder himself, with an unrivalled understanding of what makes city streets great places for skateboarding. We know that Søren will create a brilliant design, exploiting his own expertise as well as the ideas of other skateboarders and urban artists.”
Søren Nordal Enevoldsen from SNE Architects said: “I am delighted that I’ve been selected to develop the designs for the new skate space at Southbank Centre. The area under Hungerford Bridge has huge potential to become a fantastic skateable site and I look forward to working with the project team and other skaters and urban artists on the plans.”
Rick Mather Architects, the masterplanner for Southbank Centre, has been appointed to support SNE Architects in the development of their design proposals. Other appointments include support from Arup on the civil engineering and structures – who designed the original ramp under Hungerford Bridge – and West 8, the designers of the nearby Jubilee Gardens. The project managers are Arup, the cost consultants G&T and the planning consultants Gerald Eve.
SNE Architects’ initial design ideas will be the starting point for the discussions and subsequent development work that will take place over the next few months. The design brief has been finalised and the selection panel will be joined by BMXing, graffiti writing and parkour (free running) representatives to form an expert Design Focus group, who will also provide additional advice and input to the design process. Over the next two months a series of three public consultation workshops will be held and anyone interested in helping develop this new space will be able to offer their ideas and suggestions. The workshops, which will commence on the evening of 23 October, with two further dates to be confirmed shortly, are free and open for anyone to attend but as places are limited, tickets will be issued on a first-come first-served basis. Those that would like to attend need to register at southbankcentre.co.uk/skateworkshops. In addition to the members of the Design Focus group, Winstan Whitter, a professional skateboarder turned film-maker, will also attend the workshops. Winstan Whitter is a long-term skateboarder at Southbank Centre and his seminal film documentary Rollin’ Through the Decades in 2005 charted the history of British skateboarding.
The final scheme will be submitted for planning permission in early 2014 and the new skate space is planned to be operational before the undercroft is closed for the Festival Wing construction work, which is due to begin at the start of 2015.
Southbank Centre commissioned Iain Borden and Rich Holland, who have a long history with skating on the site, to prepare a draft design brief earlier this summer. Drawing on ideas suggested by local skateboarders as well as on their own expertise, they identified that the prime use of this site would focus on street skateboarding as well as encompassing a range of urban arts activities including graffiti and BMXing. Like the existing skate space, the designs should not look like a convential skatepark or skateplaza, and should also be flexible to allow for the possibility of eventsbased programming including skateboard events and dance performances, and for it to be used as an open public space for everyone. They invited three architectural practices to respond to the brief – 42 Architects, SNE Architects and Rich Architecture – to demonstrate what an alternative
skateable space could look like under Hungerford Bridge and the design options were announced last month. Rich Holland and Iain Borden said: “We would like to thank 42 Architects and Rich Architecture for their excellent responses to their brief, as well as the skateboarders and other urban artists who have already contributed to the initial ideas for this space, and we look forward to working with them and everyone else over the next few months to maximise the site's exciting potential.”
The space under Hungerford Bridge is at least 10% larger than the existing site in the Queen Elizabeth Hall undercroft, free, permanent, open 24/7, and with equal visibility of approximately 10 million people a year. The skateable space will provide a permanent and dedicated home for skateboarding and other urban arts at Southbank Centre, and will be ready by the time the existing space needs to close for the refurbishment and construction works of the Festival Wing.
Southbank Centre announced its plans for the Festival Wing in March 2013, which includes the refurbishment of the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Hayward Gallery complex as well as the addition of major new arts and educational spaces to create, together with the successful Royal Festival Hall refurbishment, a world-class cultural centre for the 21st century. As part of the Festival Wing proposals, a new riverside area for urban arts was proposed 120 metres upriver under Hungerford Bridge, in a space that has been used for skateboarding before. In recognition of the history of skating and urban arts on the site, Southbank Centre would like to work with skaters and other urban artists in being a part of our urban arts festivals, which would include events in new spaces in the Festival Wing – both the youth village in the undercroft, where skating started, and the history house.
The outcome of the further Festival Wing consultation will be announced later this month. For more information and images please contact Patricia O’Connor, Head of Press, Southbank Centre at [email protected] / 029 7021 0632 or Oliver Krug, Press Manager at [email protected] / 020 7921 0676. Notes to editors Southbank Centre is the UK’s largest arts centre, occupying a 21-acre site that sits in the midst of London’s most vibrant cultural quarter on the South Bank of the Thames. The site has an extraordinary creative and architectural history stretching back to the 1951 Festival of Britain. Southbank Centre is home to the Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and the Hayward Gallery as well as The Saison Poetry Library and the Arts Council Collection. www.southbankcentre.co.uk SNE Architects Søren Nordal Enevoldsen graduated from Aarhus Architecture School in 2003 and founded SNE Studio in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2006. Since 1988 Søren has been a committed skater himself, and still remains passionate and active on a high level. Skateboarding presents opportunities to creatively interpret the urban environment. This became the stepping-stone for an interest into architecture and design, and remains key to this day.
SNE Architects works within all aspects of architectural design and has extensive experience with all phases of the building process, from creating an initial design to the completion of a project. The founding ideology of SNE Architects is to combine user-friendly designs with aesthetic and spatial qualities. They perceive each project as an opportunity to unlock the hidden potentials of a place. The ever-present aim is to create places and spaces that possess their own beauty, but at the same time challenge how we perceive them. They believe this encourages multiple ways of engaging with our urban environment and ensures true sustainability. Sustainability is at the core of their objective. Both social and environmental considerations must be met, and in this synergy they create new ways of shaping the urban fabric. This approach assists the continuous commitment to set new bars to how we want our cities and towns to be shaped and developed. SNE Architects finds its unique approach to architecture and design in a deep-rooted understanding of different urban dynamics and multiple entries to sustainability. www.snearchitects.com Rich Holland is an architectural designer at Floda31, a design research centre based in the wilderness of northern Sweden. Previously he was a creative director for 15 years of the 'all media' creative agency Bullet Creative in London, which he co-founded. Rich is well known in the world of skateboarding, firstly as a skateboarder for 25 years, secondly as an artist and maker of skateable installations and sculptures, and thirdly as the creative mind behind many unique brand initiatives. His concepts in this field have been published globally. Iain Borden is Professor of Architecture and Urban Culture at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL. He is the author and editor of more than a dozen book on architecture and cities, including Skateboarding Space and the City: Architecture and the Body (Berg) and Drive: Journeys through Film, Cities and Landscapes (Reaktion). Iain has also been a skateboarder for over 35 years.
SNE ARCHITECTS SELECTED TO DEVELOP DESIGNS FOR NEW SOUTHBANK CENTRE SKATE SPACE SNE Architects have been selected to develop the designs for the new skateable space at Southbank Centre under Hungerford Bridge – 120m from and 10% larger than the current undercroft. SNE Architects, founded by skater Søren Nordal Enevoldsen, is a practice based in Copenhagen, Denmark, with significant experience of designing urban landscapes including mixed-use skateable areas and skate parks. The practice was appointed by the selection panel because of their high-quality design ideas, combined with their extensive experience in skatespace design and construction, openness to suggestions from all urban arts practitioners, and personal involvement in street-based skateboarding.
The selection panel included Rich Holland, an architectural designer at Floda31, who has made many skateable installations and sculptures, Iain Borden, Professor of Architecture and Urban Culture at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL – and both skaters – as well as a skateboard journalist, a current professional street skateboarder and three representatives from Southbank Centre – Mark Rushworth, Property Director, Mike McCart, Director of Partnerships and Policy, and Georgia Ward, a Participation Producer.
Iain Borden and Rich Holland, who were commissioned by Southbank Centre to head up this project, said: “We are thrilled that Søren Nordal Enevoldsen and SNE Architects will oversee the designs for the Hungerford Bridge skate space. Søren is a hugely talented designer of skateboardable landscapes – including the world-renowned Falledparken in Copenhagen – and a committed street skateboarder himself, with an unrivalled understanding of what makes city streets great places for skateboarding. We know that Søren will create a brilliant design, exploiting his own expertise as well as the ideas of other skateboarders and urban artists.”
Søren Nordal Enevoldsen from SNE Architects said: “I am delighted that I’ve been selected to develop the designs for the new skate space at Southbank Centre. The area under Hungerford Bridge has huge potential to become a fantastic skateable site and I look forward to working with the project team and other skaters and urban artists on the plans.”
Rick Mather Architects, the masterplanner for Southbank Centre, has been appointed to support SNE Architects in the development of their design proposals. Other appointments include support from Arup on the civil engineering and structures – who designed the original ramp under Hungerford Bridge – and West 8, the designers of the nearby Jubilee Gardens. The project managers are Arup, the cost consultants G&T and the planning consultants Gerald Eve.
SNE Architects’ initial design ideas will be the starting point for the discussions and subsequent development work that will take place over the next few months. The design brief has been finalised and the selection panel will be joined by BMXing, graffiti writing and parkour (free running) representatives to form an expert Design Focus group, who will also provide additional advice and input to the design process. Over the next two months a series of three public consultation workshops will be held and anyone interested in helping develop this new space will be able to offer their ideas and suggestions. The workshops, which will commence on the evening of 23 October, with two further dates to be confirmed shortly, are free and open for anyone to attend but as places are limited, tickets will be issued on a first-come first-served basis. Those that would like to attend need to register at southbankcentre.co.uk/skateworkshops. In addition to the members of the Design Focus group, Winstan Whitter, a professional skateboarder turned film-maker, will also attend the workshops. Winstan Whitter is a long-term skateboarder at Southbank Centre and his seminal film documentary Rollin’ Through the Decades in 2005 charted the history of British skateboarding.
The final scheme will be submitted for planning permission in early 2014 and the new skate space is planned to be operational before the undercroft is closed for the Festival Wing construction work, which is due to begin at the start of 2015.
Southbank Centre commissioned Iain Borden and Rich Holland, who have a long history with skating on the site, to prepare a draft design brief earlier this summer. Drawing on ideas suggested by local skateboarders as well as on their own expertise, they identified that the prime use of this site would focus on street skateboarding as well as encompassing a range of urban arts activities including graffiti and BMXing. Like the existing skate space, the designs should not look like a convential skatepark or skateplaza, and should also be flexible to allow for the possibility of eventsbased programming including skateboard events and dance performances, and for it to be used as an open public space for everyone. They invited three architectural practices to respond to the brief – 42 Architects, SNE Architects and Rich Architecture – to demonstrate what an alternative
skateable space could look like under Hungerford Bridge and the design options were announced last month. Rich Holland and Iain Borden said: “We would like to thank 42 Architects and Rich Architecture for their excellent responses to their brief, as well as the skateboarders and other urban artists who have already contributed to the initial ideas for this space, and we look forward to working with them and everyone else over the next few months to maximise the site's exciting potential.”
The space under Hungerford Bridge is at least 10% larger than the existing site in the Queen Elizabeth Hall undercroft, free, permanent, open 24/7, and with equal visibility of approximately 10 million people a year. The skateable space will provide a permanent and dedicated home for skateboarding and other urban arts at Southbank Centre, and will be ready by the time the existing space needs to close for the refurbishment and construction works of the Festival Wing.
Southbank Centre announced its plans for the Festival Wing in March 2013, which includes the refurbishment of the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Hayward Gallery complex as well as the addition of major new arts and educational spaces to create, together with the successful Royal Festival Hall refurbishment, a world-class cultural centre for the 21st century. As part of the Festival Wing proposals, a new riverside area for urban arts was proposed 120 metres upriver under Hungerford Bridge, in a space that has been used for skateboarding before. In recognition of the history of skating and urban arts on the site, Southbank Centre would like to work with skaters and other urban artists in being a part of our urban arts festivals, which would include events in new spaces in the Festival Wing – both the youth village in the undercroft, where skating started, and the history house.
The outcome of the further Festival Wing consultation will be announced later this month. For more information and images please contact Patricia O’Connor, Head of Press, Southbank Centre at [email protected] / 029 7021 0632 or Oliver Krug, Press Manager at [email protected] / 020 7921 0676. Notes to editors Southbank Centre is the UK’s largest arts centre, occupying a 21-acre site that sits in the midst of London’s most vibrant cultural quarter on the South Bank of the Thames. The site has an extraordinary creative and architectural history stretching back to the 1951 Festival of Britain. Southbank Centre is home to the Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and the Hayward Gallery as well as The Saison Poetry Library and the Arts Council Collection. www.southbankcentre.co.uk SNE Architects Søren Nordal Enevoldsen graduated from Aarhus Architecture School in 2003 and founded SNE Studio in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2006. Since 1988 Søren has been a committed skater himself, and still remains passionate and active on a high level. Skateboarding presents opportunities to creatively interpret the urban environment. This became the stepping-stone for an interest into architecture and design, and remains key to this day.
SNE Architects works within all aspects of architectural design and has extensive experience with all phases of the building process, from creating an initial design to the completion of a project. The founding ideology of SNE Architects is to combine user-friendly designs with aesthetic and spatial qualities. They perceive each project as an opportunity to unlock the hidden potentials of a place. The ever-present aim is to create places and spaces that possess their own beauty, but at the same time challenge how we perceive them. They believe this encourages multiple ways of engaging with our urban environment and ensures true sustainability. Sustainability is at the core of their objective. Both social and environmental considerations must be met, and in this synergy they create new ways of shaping the urban fabric. This approach assists the continuous commitment to set new bars to how we want our cities and towns to be shaped and developed. SNE Architects finds its unique approach to architecture and design in a deep-rooted understanding of different urban dynamics and multiple entries to sustainability. www.snearchitects.com Rich Holland is an architectural designer at Floda31, a design research centre based in the wilderness of northern Sweden. Previously he was a creative director for 15 years of the 'all media' creative agency Bullet Creative in London, which he co-founded. Rich is well known in the world of skateboarding, firstly as a skateboarder for 25 years, secondly as an artist and maker of skateable installations and sculptures, and thirdly as the creative mind behind many unique brand initiatives. His concepts in this field have been published globally. Iain Borden is Professor of Architecture and Urban Culture at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL. He is the author and editor of more than a dozen book on architecture and cities, including Skateboarding Space and the City: Architecture and the Body (Berg) and Drive: Journeys through Film, Cities and Landscapes (Reaktion). Iain has also been a skateboarder for over 35 years.
