In December 2007, along with five other architectural firms, OMA was invited by Chelsfield deputy chairman Sir Stuart Lipton to consider the potential of the Commonwealth Institute site. OMA’s proposal sought to save the grade II* listed building by reinjecting life into the modernist monument, the new home for London’s Design Museum, while retaining its distinctive copper roof and parabolic form. OMA with Allies and Morrison were the architects responsible for the design of the refurbished structural shell and external envelope of the building. The project required a close working relationship with Design Museum interior architects, John Pawson.
Significant and complex refurbishment works were carried out, including the wholesale reconfiguration of the structure and basement excavation to increase floor area and organisational efficiency to suit the needs of the Design Museum, while balancing the retention of the dramatic views to the underside as agreed with heritage officers. The refurbishment was realised while retaining the renowned parabolic copper roof in-situ, which required significant engineering skill from Arup and the contractor, Mace.
The facades have been completely replaced to fulfil contemporary technical building standards. The glazing was redesigned and replaced to retain the pattern of the fenestration and the blue-glass appearance of the original RHWL building. This new system permits controlled daylight into and views out of future museum spaces. Original stained glass panels were removed, refurbished and reinstated to be enjoyed by future visitors to the Museum.
The setting of the Design Museum has been designed with landscape architects West 8. Original features of the Commonwealth Institute have been painstakingly researched and reinterpreted back into the contemporary design with significant trees retained along the edge of Holland Park and Kensington High Street.
The Commonwealth Institute refurbishment project has been realised as an essential part of the adjacent Holland Green development by Chelsfield LLP and Ilchester Estates, a striking arrangement of three stone cubes that respond to the geometry and grid of the retained museum building, providing 54 residential apartments placed within a highly sensitive urban / park context and also designed by OMA and Allies and Morrison.
Facades/ External Envelope/ Structure/ Landscape: OMA and Allies and Morrison with Arup Engineering and West
8 Landscape Architects
Structure/ Core/ Building Envelope: Chelsfield with Mace
Interior Architecture: John Pawson
OMA with Allies and Morrison
OMA
Partner in Charge: Reinier de Graaf
Director: Carol Patterson
Project Architects: Mario Rodriguez, Isabel Silva, Fenna Wagenaar, Mitesh Dixit, Richard
Hollington III, Beth Hughes
Team: Caroline Andersen, Luis Arencibia, Fred Awty, Olga Banchikova, Thibaut Barrault, Rachel Bate, Thorben
Bazlen, Katrin Betschinger, Philippe Braun, Matthew Brown, Kees van Casteren, Maria Cogliani, Tudor Costachescu,
Johan Dehlin, Sebastien Delagrange, Miles Gertler, Hannes Gutberlet, Joyce Hsiang, Yerin Kang, Bin Kim, Andrew
Kovacs, Caroline Martin, Roza Matveeva, Andres Mendoza, Ioana Mititelu, Barbara Modolo, Ross O’Connell, Adrian
Phiffer, Alex Rodriguez, Duarte Santo, Lawrence Siu, Ivan Valdez, Boris Vapne, Greg R. Williams, Xu Yang, Delnaz
Yekrangian, Nikos Yiatros
Allies and Morrison
Partners: Simon Fraser, Robert Maxwell
Director: Neil Shaughnessy
Associate Directors: Joel Davenport, Heidi Shah
Associates: Sean Joyce, Johanna Coste-Buscayret
Team: Irina Bardakhanova, Ozlem Balicadag, Dinka Beglerbegovic, Thomas Cartledge, Ignacio Diaz-Maurino
Jimenez, Owen Jowett, Iris Hoffman, Ines Kramer, Ioana Mititelu, Sophie Nicholaou, Fabiana Paluszny, Duarte Santo,
Tom See Hoo, Mike Slade, Janina Vetriest, Stuart Thomson
COLLABORATORS
Contractor: Mace
Structural Engineer: Arup Structures
Services Engineer: Arup Services
Facades: Arup Facades; FMDC
Fire: Arup Fire
Acoustics: Arup Acoustics
Landscape: West8
Quantity Surveor: Aecom
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