Five new buildings by Allies and Morrison at White City
ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Media Village to play part in regeneration of urban area
Public art programme major part of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Media Village initiative
The ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½'s new Media Village at White City in London will be officially
opened tomorrow evening, Wednesday 12 May, by Jonathan Ross.
Five new buildings by distinguished architects Allies and Morrison
have joined the original ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ White City building to create the new 17-acre
ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Media Village site on Wood Lane, London W12, providing office space
for approximately 6,000 people.
The new buildings have already been awarded an 'excellent' rating under
BREEAM, the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment
Method, which assesses the environmental impact of buildings.
The new buildings are:
the Broadcast Centre (40,491 square metres), which houses the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½'s
state-of-the-art television playout business;
the Media Centre (39,014 square metres), which provides office accommodation
for ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ staff;
the Energy Centre (7,719 square metres), which provides power, heating,
cooling and other services to the entire site;
two perimeter buildings which are available to be sub-let to other media
companies.
The Media Village development will play a central role in the regeneration
of the wider urban area and, as well as the new office buildings, includes
shops, cafes, a post office and a supermarket open to all in White City
- local residents and ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ staff.
John Smith, ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Director of Finance, Property & Business Affairs and
newly-appointed RIBA Fellow, said: "In its television and radio output
the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ has always been a major cultural patron and through a revived
building strategy we are now seeking to express those same high standards
of creativity in our architecture and design.
"We want to create working environments which will inspire our
staff to new broadcasting heights, add to the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½'s heritage and encourage
the local community to come in and see just exactly what goes on inside
their ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½."
A public art programme of both temporary and permanent exhibitions
is a major feature of the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Media Village site.
Japanese artist Yuko Shiraishi has worked with architects Allies and
Morrison on permanent colour schemes built into the internal and external
fabric of the buildings;
Simon Patterson has created a mural for the Broadcast Centre featuring
the names of 'behind the scenes' film and television talent;
and Poet Laureate Andrew Motion and graphic designer John Morgan have
collaborated on a poem on broadcasting inlaid into the surface of the
pedestrian street running through the centre of the development.
Artworks have also been commissioned for the Media Village opening
from new and emerging artists.
These include a huge portcullis by Hew Locke, over 20 feet high and
made of acrylic mirror and rope lights, which will be suspended in one
of the atria of the Media Centre, as well as Chutes by Stuart Mugridge,
a one-off performance for the opening event in which hundreds of tiny
parachutes holding toy soldiers will be launched inside the building.
Chutes is inspired by the history of the White City site which was
used for tent and parachute making during the First and Second World
Wars.
The British Council has also kindly lent art from their collection
for display in the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ White City buildings.
Artworks include pieces by Patrick Caulfield, Sean Scully, Mark Francis
and Michael Craig-Martin.
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