23 October 2017

Blueprint Awards 2017: The winners

Best Small Project

Winner: IF_DO, UK
Dulwich Pavilion, Dulwich Picture Gallery, London, UK

Dulwich Pavilion, Dulwich Picture Gallery, London, UK

Judges’ Comments

‘Architecturally and conceptually strong. Subtle in the statement it makes in relation to Soane’s work and the landscape that is expressed beautifully within the structure, its materiality and how people interact with it.’ Kate Goodwin

Dulwich Pavilion, Dulwich Picture Gallery, London, UK

This low-cost summer pavilion was erected in the grounds of the Sir John Soane-designed Dulwich Picture Gallery in south London during the London Festival of Architecture 2017. The pavilion was used to host a series of multidisciplinary events and a bar area. It was developed in response to the festival’s theme of ‘memory’, which informed a design intended to provide lasting experiences. The building’s simple, rectangular plan and the composition of its plinth, roof structure and suspended mesh veil directly referenced elements of the gallery’s architecture.

A series of mirrored panels that concealed nine steel columns supporting the structure’s roof reflected fragments of the adjacent building and surrounding gardens. Combined with the veil-like canopy, these reflective surfaces created a layered appearance that altered as visitors moved around the space. ‘Responding to the solidity and monolithic nature of Sir John Soane’s gallery and the porous, ever-changing nature of the landscape, the pavilion mediated between the two in order to break down their delineation and create a new visual experience for the gallery’s visitors,’ said the architects.

The flexible structure could be reconfigured by moving some of the mirrored screens to suit the requirements of different events. It was constructed in less than three weeks on site using readily available standard materials and within a limited budget, thanks to a close collaboration with the engineer and fabricator.