London’s Savile Row in Mayfair invented the word “bespoke” to describe tailor made fashion created to an individual client’s specifications. EPR Architects in London used that concept for their design for 24 Savile Row, an office and retail building which sits at the corner with Conduit Street.
The building is notable for its handcrafted ceramic tiles that feature crystalline structures. These were designed by London ceramic artist Kate Malone. The motif is shared by the building’s bronze plinth. The bronze panels were designed by Michael Eden in collaboration with Malone. Follow his link to read about his input in his own words.
From the architects:
This building is a piece of art; it is a tribute to Savile Row’s tailoring heritage, clad in 10,000 hand glazed ceramic tiles and positioned on a decorative sand-cast bronze plinth.
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Art is integrated into the fabric of the building using a bespoke glazed ceramic tile on the main elevations, a collaboration with renowned ceramic artist Kate Malone. The crystalline glazes on the tile are three-dimensional and come in four varying textures: three white and one black with blue crystals. The tiles reflect and refract daylight, capturing differing moods and subtly changing the appearance and tone of the building, depending on the weather and time of day.
Click to see a larger image.
This 7-storey landmark building includes high quality workplace above prime retail. The use of projecting and recessed window treatments addressing Savile Row and Conduit Street is complemented with dark recessed reveals, providing depth to the façade and enhancing the unique hand glazed elevation.
The Mayfair Conservation Area’s natural grain is reflected in the use of ceramic tones within the façade treatment, preserving the historic plot widths that were created in the 1960s, when Savile Row was extended to meet Conduit Street.
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Click to see a larger image.
Click to see a larger image.
Kate Malone’s designs for the tiles. Click to see a larger image.
Design renderings.
Design rendering of the bronze plinth.
Rendering of the bronze plinth.
Images courtesy of the architects. Photographs by Jim Stephenson.
The bronze plinths were designed by Michael Eden, who Kate Malone brought in as a collaborator. He interpreted Malone’s sketches of crystal types [shown above] and over a very lengthy period of developing iterations of the design came up with the final design used to sand cast the bronze panels. The full story can be found on the website: http://www.michael-eden.com/savile-row/