Merry Christmas from all at Burrell Foley Fischer LLP

A Rolls-Royce engine, the inspiration for the design of the reception desk at the new Forum for the Royal Academy of Engineering, opening in Spring 2012.

Marimeko shop opens in Cambridge

A new shop, Nord, is open in Cambridge, with a fit-out designed by Burrell Foley Fischer.  Nord is the latest of the 32 Marimekko shops in the United Kingdom and can be found in Bridge Street. 

Marimekko, established in 1951, is a Finnish textile and clothing design company renowned for its original prints and colours. The company designs and manufactures high-quality clothing, interior decoration textiles, bags and other accessories.  The design uses clean lines and neutral colours in order to give prominence to the merchandise.

Stefanie Fischer gives evidence to All Party Parliamentary Group for Young Disabled People

Stefanie Fischer today gave evidence to the All Party Parliamentary Group for Young Disabled People as part of their Inquiry into the issues that affect young disabled people and prevent them from living fully independent lives and how this needs to be improved.  Today’s session was on the subject of leisure with a focus on cinema.

Stefanie was invited to discuss examples of good and poor practice regarding disabled access to cinemas and to give the benefit of her extensive experience of designing independent cinemas.  Also giving evidence were representatives from Trailblazers, who recently investigated this issue (see previous post), the Cinema Exhibitors Association, and the cinema operators, Cineworld, Odeon, Vue and Picturehouse.  They were shown a screening of the Lights, Camera, Access documentary, which outlines the problems disabled movie-goers face and ways to address them, which is currently being screened at film festivals throughout the UK.

BFF's remodelling and refurbishment of Broadway, Nottingham's Media Centre, in a converted former Methodist Chapel was given an ADAPT award in 1998.  Our conversion of Norwich Cinema City from a single to a three-screen proved that it is possible to make a fully accessible venue even in a Grade I Listed building.  It won the National Local Authority Building Control Built in Quality Award 2008 for the Best Project for Access or compliance with Disability Regulations. 

See the Trailblazers report on the session

Mark Foley joins Shape East Design Support Steering Group

Mark Foley has been invited to join the Shape East Design Support Steering Group.  The group consists of a group of respected built environment professionals from a range of fields including development, architecture, engineering, planning, transport, ecology, heritage, sustainability and energy efficiency, landscape architecture, urban design, public art and leisure.

Shape East is a Centre for Design Excellence and Sustainable Innovation based in the East of England and a part of the Architecture Centre Network. They seek to provide a positive influence on the quality of urban design and the built environment through supporting the professional community, engaging the public and educating the future generations.  They promote sustainable and high quality living, providing people with both the knowledge and passion to participate more actively in changes and developments in their local and global built environments. 

Mark brings to the panel his experience of undertaking studies to explore cultural regeneration working closely with arts business and management consultants to develop strategies and establishing the feasibility of particular cultural projects and his specialist expertise in the design of theatres, auditoria spaces and buildings for the performing arts.

Visit the Shape East Website

John Burrell contributes to '10 x 10' drawing project

John Burrell is amongst one hundred prominent architects and artists who have contributed to ’10 x 10’,  drawing project which divides the City of London into a 10 x 10 grid.  The resulting 100 squares have been allocated to individuals who have  come together to draw the city.  The artworks will be auctioned by Sotheby’s at an exclusive event on 1st December, 2011 at the German Gymnasium in the new King’s Cross Development, courtesy of Argent.

SQUARE E9 - Sidelined ….off Martin Lane, London, EC4R ODP

This scene off Martin Lane is located in a short, privately owned pedestrian space linking Martin Lane and Laurence Pountney Lane, both of which run southwards downhill to the busy traffic congested Upper Thames Street.  The ‘alleyway’ is used now by office workers as a place to gather, chat  and smoke cigarettes.  The projecting masonry, steel doors and alcoves on the flank wall of 6 Martin Lane (now El Vinos) that were revealed and left when the terrace of houses was cut demolished in the sixties to make way for new buildings.

Visit the '10 x 10' Website to see all 100 drawings

Contributing architects and artists include Lord Norman Foster, Will Alsop, Odile Decq, Sunand Prasad, David Adjaye, Sir Jeremy Dixon and Professor Sir Colin Stansfield Smith, as well as British designer, writer and television presenter Kevin McCloud.  All funds raised will go towards the projects of Article 25, an international development and disaster relief charity which provides free or not-for-profit architectural, design and construction expertise to ensure that the right to adequate shelter is being met in some of the poorest nations. 


UPDATE - Friday 2 December 2011 : Raising £600 for Article 25 Charity

John Burrell's drawing 'Something in the City' was sold for £600 at the auction by Sotheby's held at the German Gymnasium last night, 1st December. It was among the 25 artworks  chosen for live auction out of the 100 works featured. 

The drawing explores the ever changing surface patina of London as observed in a left over, but much used space in the City of London. The remains of previous interior fittings have been left, almost as if 'on display' to suffer the elements. 

Private home created in early Georgian property

We have handed over to a private client their new family home, created for them in an early Georgian terraced linked to a mews house in central London.  The Listed Grade II building had for the last century been used as offices by a firm of solicitors and BFF secured Planning Permission and Listed Building Consent for the scheme.

The house, over 5 floors, was completely refurbished installing new services, contemporary bathrooms and providing a workspace for the client.  A new “heart of the home” has been achieved by creating a glazed enclosure in a light well, allowing a spacious kitchen, dining and living area on one floor.  Purpose built joinery throughout contributes to the modern, quality but understated feel in accordance with the Client’s brief.

The property does not have a garden so a new roof terrace has been created, nestled between the retained original rear roof pitches and set 1.1m below the line of the front ridge so that it is not visible from the street in a sensitive area of London.  It will provide the family with a private oasis of calm in the middle of the bustling city.   

Onassis Cultural Centre featured in Auditoria Magazine

The new Onassis Cultural Centre in central Athens, is featured in the 2012 Annual of Auditoria Magazine.  The two auditoria were designed by Burrell Foley Fischer, in a building designed by French architectural firm, Architecture Studio.

The main auditorium is designed to respond to a variety of performance types, including opera, symphony concerts, music theatre, drama and dance.  The smaller second auditorium is designed with a variable acoustic to suit small scale music, dance, drama and lecture presentations.

 View the Auditoria Magazine 2012 Annual

Model of new sinuous bridge for the Royal Academy of Engineering

A visit has been made by the project team to view a one-fifth scale model of the new stainless steel and glass entrance bridge, which will be installed on the forecourt of No.3 Carlton House Terrace.  The new bridge, to be manufactured by Babcock International Group PLC, will provide a single accessible approach to the refurbished headquarters of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

The ‘S’-shaped bridge fuses engineering, art and architecture to create a spectacular landmark, showcasing innovation and design excellence whilst being sensitive to the historic external landscape.  Balancing heritage with modernity, the bridge will lead visitors into the Royal Academy of Engineering, across a landscaped garden inspired by the designs of Decimus Burton (1800-1881), one of the original architects of Carlton House Terrace.

Kings Cross / St Pancras Development Area

As Central St Martins College of Art and Design moves into their new premises the redevelopment of the Kings Cross/St Pancras area of London continues.  Burrell Foley Fischer have been involved with a number of commercial projects in the area including two office developments and a mixed use scheme, including D1, B1 and residential uses.

We obtained Planning Permission for the conversion of a former purpose-built industrial printing works building on Wharfdale Road, within the Kings Cross Conservation Area, into offices and small business units.

We also obtained Planning Permission for the Noah’s Yard development in York Way.  The scheme provides 6,000 sq ft of office accommodation together with a ground floor restaurant, opening onto the Regent’s Quarter development.

For Argent’s Kings Cross Central development we prepared a scheme to test the parameter plans for Block J, to confirm that the developers brief for mixed use could be accommodated within the parameters for which Outline Planning Permission was being sought. 


Click here for further information on our commercial projects

Royal Society Festival of Literature and the Arts

Over the first weekend in October the Royal Society will be hosting a Festival of Literature and Arts, titled One Culture.  The Society's very first literature festival will celebrate 350 years of their science book collection, as they bring together some of the best authors, scientists, poets, historians and theatre practitioners to express, explore and enthuse about science and culture in all its forms.

The event will be hosted at the Royal Society's headquarters at 6-9 Carlton House Terrace, a Listed Grade I building.  Burrell Foley Fischer have been the Society's architects for a number of refurbishment  and reorganisation projects over the past decade.  Most recently we completed the History of Science Centre, created in the space formally occupied by the Society's library.

The refurbishment provides study, exhibition and meeting facilities, in an atmosphere that reflects the Society's committment to excellence and inspiration.  It equally provides for the safe keeping of the collections.

Visit the festival website

Rio Cinema features in hit film, One Day

The much loved independent cinema, the Rio, in Dalston, East London, features in the recently released hit movie One Day, the adaptation of the bestselling book by David Nicholls.  The lead character, Emma, played by Anne Hathaway, is seen visiting the Art Deco cinema in the film.

The cinema was designed by George Coles of Adams and Coles in 1913 and altered by F.E. Bromige in the 1930s. At this time an Art Deco shell was created within the existing interior, reducing the size of the auditorium. While continuing to operate as a successful local cinema, by the 1990s the building was in need of a comprehensive overhaul. 

Burrell Foley Fischer’s refurbishment provided the cinema with state of the art audio-visual technology and comfortable new stalls seating within the renovated and restored Art Deco shell. The box office and bar counters are designed to appear as modern insertions within the existing building fabric.  External and internal illuminated signage and neon strips accentuate the fluted features and vertical bands of the original façade giving the cinema a strong night presence.

The cinema has also recently been featured by the Guardian when it was the first to be reviewed as part of their weekly “Cine-files” series.  Each week they review the facilities and programming policies of each venue and describe the Rio as “a morally good cinema among thousands of bad and ugly”. 

See the Guardian's review

BFF buildings open to the public as part of Open House London

Four Burrell Foley Fischer buildings are open to the public as part of Open House London, which takes place on 17 and 18 September 2011.  Open House London is the capital’s greatest architectural showcase; a city-wide celebration of the buildings, places and neighbourhoods where we live, work and play. It provides the general public with the chance to explore hundreds of inspiring buildings for free, which this year includes The Royal Society in Carlton House Terrace, the Almeida Theatre in Islington, Stratford Picturehouse and the Cine Lumiere at the Institut Francais. Please note that advance booking is required for some events – refer to the Open House London website for full details.

Cine Lumiere at the Institut Francais
Burrell Foley Fischer’s refurbishment of the, Listed Grade II, 228 seat Art Deco Cine Lumiere at the Institut Francais in South Kensington restores the character and quality of the interior whilst ensuring it is up to date in terms of projection and sound technology, comfort and operational flexibility.

Stratford Picturehouse

This new build four screen cinema has exhibition and café bar facilities, and a private restaurant integral to the design. The dominant feature is its projection room, a three-storey-high cylindrical drum, suspended by metal rods from the glass ceiling and running the length of the building. 

The Royal Society

The refurbishment and reorganisation of The Royal Society’s buildings entailed making better use of a unique set of Listed Grade I Nash buildings by providing a coherent, high profile, architectural setting for the society’s activities.

Details on the Royal Society Website

The Almeida Theatre

Burrell Foley Fischer have been the Almeida’s architects since 1982 working with successive generations of directors.  The theatre has been developed into a venue of exceptional quality for the performance of drama, opera and music, and for other related arts activities. 

Improving the cinematic experience for people with disabilities

The Guardian newspaper today highlights a report produced by the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign’s Trailblazers exposing the widespread second-class service people with disabilities experience in UK cinemas.

Read the Guardian report

Burrell Foley Fischer always ensures that all cinemas we design are fully accessible and provide a variety of seating positions for cinemagoers in wheelchairs and their able-bodied companions.  The Trailblazers report however found that this was unfortunately not standard practice in the industry, and that the smaller independent cinemas generally provide better access for disabled people than the major chains.

Download the full report

The report includes Stefanie Fischer’s tips for cinema operators and developers to make cinemas welcoming and accessible to all.  In the accompanying documentary, produced by the organisation, she comment’s, “Cinema designers and cinema exhibitors could be more aware and if the whole issue of how people access the auditoria is considered right from the outset then it is not difficult to provide a choice of seating positions”.

Watch the documentary

BFF's remodelling and refurbishment of Broadway, Nottingham's Media Centre, in a converted former Methodist Chapel was given an ADAPT award in 1998.  Our conversion of Norwich Cinema City from a single to a three-screen proved that it is possible to make a fully accessible venue even in a Grade I Listed building.  It won the National Local Authority Building Control Built in Quality Award 2008 for the Best Project for Access or compliance with Disability Regulations.  

The report also features Stratford East Picturehouse, designed by Burrell Foley Fischer, as an example of best practice, commenting “the cinema demonstrates that architects clearly considered accessibility when planning the new design.  There is inclusive access throughout the cinema and at no point does a disabled person feel segregated”.

Conservation award for Norwich Cinema City

We were very proud to be presented with The Norwich Society’s inaugural “Sir Bernard Fielden Award” for excellence in alternations and restoration of an historic building, for our remodelling and refurbishment of Norwich Cinema City.  The award was created in memory of Sir Bernard Fielden, one of the world’s leading authorities on the conservation of historic buildings.  The award, a model of one of the Assyrian lions outside Norwich City Hall,  sculptured by Do Philips and cast by John Hardy, will be passed to the next recipient of the bi-annual award this autumn.

Norwich Cinema City was converted from a single-screen to a three-screen, digitally equipped, venue to secure its future.  The cinema occupies a converted medieval hall house, Listed Grade I, that was extended in the 1920’s by Boardman, a notable local architect, to create an assembly hall on the footprint of the garden to the house.  Excavation of the area occupied by the twentieth century hall created space for the additional screens below a main screen similar in size and capacity to the previous single screen. 

The front-of-house facilities are housed in the medieval parts of the building, with the main hall providing a café bar restaurant, ‘The Bar and Dining Rooms’.  Additional seating for drinkers and diners is provided in the covered medieval courtyard to the rear and a terrace to the front of the building, all of which combines to provide an oasis of calm in the city centre.

Visit the Cinema City website

Restaurants open at Castle Quay, Bedford

The Riverside Grill has opened at Castle Quay in Bedford.  This new restaurant offers diners a stylish and artistic environment to enjoy a combination of food and art, showcasing the talent of staff and students of Bedford College.  This is the first to open of the three restaurants units on the development, all with  a south facing terrace overlooking the River Ouse and the Castle Bailey Gardens archaeological site.

Castle Quay, a Burrell Foley Fischer designed multi-use development, comprises in addition to the restaurants, 108 flats, eight speciality shops and an archaeological park. The project is built on the site of the inner and outer bailey of Bedford Castle and within the curtiledge of a Scheduled Ancient Monument, with six months of archeology preceding the construction works.

Visit the Bedford Riverside Grill Website

New Forum for the Royal Academy of Engineering starts on site

Work has begun to remodel and refurbish Nos 3 and 4 Carlton House Terrace, London, (Listed Grade I) to form the new Forum for the Royal Academy of Engineering, designed by Burrell Foley Fischer LLP.

The forum will create an invigorating venue, bringing world-class engineers together from round the world and fostering the exchange of ideas and expertise.  The venue will include new lecture and conference facilities, exhibition areas and upgraded accommodation for Fellows, visitors and staff.  The new forum will open in April 2012.

Visit the Royal Academy of Engineering Website

Planning Permission received for another Homes for Islington Scheme

A Burrell Foley Fischer scheme for two new build dwellings and the creation of a new mews and landscaped square utilising existing redundant garages for Homes for Islington, has been approved by the Local Planning Authority.

The affordable housing for rent at Vulcan Way on the Westbourne Estate includes 15 new single bedroom flats accessed from ground level and 2 three bedroom family houses with outside garden space at ground level.  The houses have access to gardens and adjacent disabled persons parking and are suitable as mobility standard dwellings.

This comprehensively considered scheme creates a new landscaped mews with trees with the vacant garages converted to dwellings. This will inject new life, activity and security at ground level.  There is a new railed off public garden as part of the scheme. Currently the site has 100% coverage in tarmac with no planting whatsoever.  Modified upper walkway balustrading will also bring more light and passive surveillance to the new mews.

Cambridge Arts Theatre reveals "Act 2" proposals

The Cambridge Arts Theatre has revealed details of their redevelopment plans to an invited audience at Kings College Chapel.  The new building project, termed "Act 2" is their vision to secure the Theatre's future through the creation of new foyer and performing spaces.  The Burrell Foley Fischer designed scheme includes a new Studio Theatre to facilitate the staging of new and experimental work.

Building on both John Maynard Keynes' founding vision and the legacy of their early nineties refurbishment their stated intention is ensure the sustainability of this wonderful theatrical institution for the long term benefit of the Cambridge community.

Read press coverage of the launch here

Park Studios at Tring Park School for the Performing Arts officially opened

Park Studios, five new dance studios designed by Burrell Foley Fischer, were officially opened today by The Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, the Countess of Verulam.

Crucible Theatre wins Design Award on eve of 2011 Snooker World Championships

As it prepares to host the 2011 World Snooker Championships, the Crucible Theatre has been recognised in the LABC South Yorkshire and Humber Building Excellence Awards 2011.  The Burrell Foley Fischer designed refurbishment and remodelling was awarded Best Restoration and Conversion.

The refurbishment and remodelling has revived and restored this Grade II Listed building. The front of house areas have been extended providing a new and welcoming frontage onto Tudor Square, new function rooms and allowing the box office to be moved from the bowels of the building closer to the main entrance.  The integrity of the original design has been reinstated and extended and the auditoria and back of house areas have been refurbished. High quality finishes have been achieved by using contemporary materials that respect the original design intent.

The works were carefully phased and had to be completed on time to allow the venue to reopen each year for the televised World Snooker Championships.  This years tournament begins tomorrow.

New images of the Dance Studios at Tring Park School for the Performing Arts

The new Dance Studios, designed by Burrell Foley Fischer LLP have been photographed by Gentle Visions Photography.

Dance as a discipline demands a considerable amount of space and the consequent footprint (918 sq m) of the five new studios to be accommodated within the historic grounds presented a significant challenge, especially on a low budget. Ballet technique, in particular, is based on a lightness of expression, defying the pull of gravity and so vertical space, height and light to enhance the sculptural form of the dancers’ bodies are important ingredients of the physical space.

Because of the new building’s potential bulk, a decision was made to relate it to the wooded setting, taking a soft approach to its architectural form, which would sit comfortably in a green corner of the site. The new studios are broken into two blocks, with the first part comprising two studios aligning with the orthogonal layout of existing buildings and the second block of three studios fronting the exit from the grotto tunnel and aligning with the former tennis court and adjacent Park Street just beyond the school boundary. A low, flat roofed zone forming a social foyer space and informal teaching area links the two taller parts of the building housing the studio spaces.

The internal heights of the dance studios reach 6.0 m at their curved apex and reduce to 4.0 m towards the eaves. Externally, the eaves are kept intentionally low to reduce the profile of the building while the curved apex and wild flower meadow roof soften the building into the landscape. Randomly spaced red cedar posts along the extended elevations echo the vertical tree trunks on the site, while new trees were planted to layer the building into its setting. The diffused quality of natural light, the essential medium through which dancers move, and the well tempered acoustic, provides an uplifting environment for dance.

The Princess Royal officially opens the Headquarters of the Academy of Medical Sciences

The Princess Royal today officially opened the first headquarters of the Academy of Medical Sciences at 41 Portland Place.  Burrell Foley Fischer's refurbishment of the John Adams townhouse provides a platform for Academy activities and includes Academy workspace, meeting rooms, a dedicated room for Fellows, space for small public exhibitions and functions rooms with capacity to host outreach events, receptions, dinners and public engagement activities.

See more photos of 41 Portland Place in our previous post