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16/07/2010
Cartwright Pickard Architects were one of 6 practices to be shortlisted from almost 100 entries for the 36 The Calls architecture competition to design a 21st century icon that will sit along the River Aire in Leeds for developers Citu.
The competition brief required an iconic riverside building that contributes to the urban and historic environment that would create a truly sustainable and economically viable mixed-use building.
Our design solution looked to employ an innovative environmental solution whilst ensuring the development would have a positive contribution on the urban environment, through stitching the existing urban grain back together and promoting links to the riverside.
The design reflects the serendipitous and ad-hoc nature of the surrounding industrial warehouse forms, both breaking down the building’s massing and enhancing the skyline. The materials were inspired by the immediate surrounding context – a simple palette of brick, timber and slate create a contemporary interpretation of an industrial materiality.
The environmental strategy takes a holistic approach so that structural, environmental and architectural elements are integral and contribute to providing a low energy solution. Central to the passive design approach is the innovative use of the river water to help cool the building floor slabs.
The panel of judges for the competition, which included CABE chair Paul Finch, Citu’s Chris Thompson, Leeds’ civic architect John Thorp, interior designer Paul Logan, investor Charles Nickerson, Jonathan Morgan of Morgans City Living and AJ news editor Richard Waite, noted that our design had ‘an extremely attractive waterfront elevation and a very comfortable fit with other buildings in the area’.
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