英国约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所

英国约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所

John McAslan + Partners

简介

英国约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所是一家总部设在伦敦并在爱丁堡和多哈设有办事处的国际建筑公司，公司在全球占有领先地位且多次获奖。该公司曾在英国及其他国家完成了许多获奖项目，包括文化、遗产、基础设施、酒店、商业、住宅、教育、城市建设和景观等设计项目。事务所在伦敦的第二家办事处，位于托特纳姆中心的N17设计工作室，专门从事当地的城市更新项目的开发，为当地年轻人提供实习和工作岗位。

该事务所在其他国家完成的项目包括莫斯科历史悠久的斯坦尼斯拉夫斯基工厂的重建，莫斯科历史悠久的布尔什维克工厂旧址的重建工程中的俄罗斯印象派博物馆项目，英国驻阿尔及尔大使馆和海地太子港铁市的修复项目，以及在卡塔尔多哈的16个项目，其中包括文化广场、中东第一座文华东方酒店（施工中）、最近完成的朱马清真寺、一所学校、四座遗产博物馆和一个规模宏大的住宅区。其他著名的建筑项目包括目前正在设计的加拿大维多利亚的英属哥伦比亚皇家博物馆的总体规划和里约热内卢一家英国学校的重建工程。

约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所在新建工程和历史性建筑的创造性重建方面享有盛誉。其中著名的创造性重建项目包括广受好评的国王十字车站的改造项目（该项目已经获得约30项全国和国际奖项）。到目前为止，事务所已经获得120多个国际奖项，其中包括大约25个英国皇家建筑师学会奖项，而且还多次被评为年度建筑实践奖和年度世界建筑师奖。事务所还三次获得欧罗巴诺特拉奖，一次荣膺欧盟文化遗产奖，最近还获得了著名的女王国际企业奖（国际奖项）。

事务所致力于改善民生建筑工程，通过多年实践形成了既有理性又富有诗意的设计流程。其基本理念是建筑应该有强有力的理念支撑；这种理念应该以智慧合理的态度实现建筑功能并充分表现地方特色；这种理念的力量应体现在外在的建筑形式上。这样，业主得到了所需要的建筑实体，整个社会得到了应得的建筑美学形象。

约翰·麦卡兰认为城市是人类最能给人深刻印象、最珍贵的文化成就之一；城市不仅仅是建筑的集合，城市还在人类联系、运输、通信、公共空间等方面发挥着作用，给人们以生活的喜悦。事务所致力于将建筑工程与其背景紧密结合起来，设计时考虑项目的所处地点、物质性、舒适性、规模和文化背景。

公司没有一成不变的“建筑风格”，但所有的建筑都有一种共同的强烈的“DNA”，这种基因源于过程而不是形式。约翰·麦卡兰和他的团队奉行功能主义。他们重视研究，认为好的建筑是清晰理性的图案的外在展示。

约翰·麦克兰说：“我们谨慎行事，以坚定的信念进行建筑活动；我们直面问题，重视横向思考；我们分解建筑蓝图，认真对待每一个细节，从而充分展现设计理念；我们不轻易说“不”；我们认为建筑的功能远不止建筑物的物理规模；我们认为建筑应该让生活更美好。”

约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所在创造性地解决富有挑战性的设计方面享有盛誉并因此而获得多方面的奖项。

商业项目

建筑事务所进入商业建筑设计领域即一鸣惊人：公司最早的两个项目都是大型商业建筑——马克斯马拉时尚集团位于意大利的总部大楼和土耳其的Yapi Kredi银行。

这两个项目规模宏大：马克斯马拉时装集团总部占地45,000平方米，因为该建筑的“一致性以及明晰地揭示建筑、功能和人之间的关系”而受到该集团主席的称道。公司为的Yapi Kredi运营中心所做的总体规划和设计在位于俯瞰马尔马拉海的一个陡峭斜坡上成功地完成了富有安全感的商业建筑群，在10个相连建筑内建造了运营、培训和会议设施，可供2,500多名员工使用。

通过这些项目，事务所了解了商业建筑的要义，而且在如何平衡独具匠心的设计、商业形象和运营效率之间的关系方面积累了经验。

事务所的商业建筑设计工作室自成立以来还完成了其他高品质的项目，包括获奖的伦敦斯隆广场二级保护建筑彼得·琼斯百货公司的翻新和改造项目，这一项目以精妙的方式证明了时尚的大空间改造工程同样可以为二十一世纪增添一个富有传奇色彩又兼顾多种功能的零售业建筑。

其他值得称道的项目包括伦敦西区新邦街的一栋著名的19世纪建筑的重建工程和伦敦桥碎片大厦内半岛电视台的伦敦媒体总部的创新设计。

目前正在进行的项目包括在国会大厦和泰特美术馆附近的一个保护区内Millbank大厦的重建工程。该项工程将把这座二级保护建筑改造成高档酒店和公寓楼；而事务所为在伦敦最负盛名的购物点之一、位于圣詹姆斯保护区的杰米恩街提出的设计方案既内敛又精妙，恰到好处。

在俄罗斯，约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所的商业项目包括新建项目，也包括有历史或文化意义的大型遗迹重建项目。位于莫斯科的斯坦尼斯拉夫斯基工厂大楼30,000平方米的混合用途改造项目，为这座城市引进了腹地景观空间的理念，并因此获得了诸多国际奖项。事务所目前正在莫斯科历史悠久的布尔什维克工厂旧址上改建新的50,000平方米的商业开发项目。事务所在莫斯科的其他项目包括占地6公顷的奥林匹亚公园商业和运动大楼，该项目吸引了包括宝马在内的许多高端企业租户，事务所还在为MEBE总部设计一座符合LEED黄金节能评级高层大楼。

文化项目

英国约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所多年来一直专注于通过建筑形式重建和增加文化表现手段。建筑师无法精确定义文化的许多物理表现形式，因为文化千变万化——像历史一样，文化总是在发展，其发展有客观的一面，也有主观的一面。建筑师对文化的贡献在于在不破坏有纪念意义的建筑和地方的原始特征的前提下，为人们体验这些建筑和地方的方式增加更多的现代感。可以说文化项目所包含的文化意义是非常敏感的。

建筑师什么时候应该简单地突出已经存在的东西？什么时候又应该采用非常新颖的创新手段进行干预？如何在保留文化建筑的现有建筑特征与将其改造成明显不同的其他东西之间权衡取舍呢？如何能帮助这些富有想象力但耗资不菲的项目顺利实施？

约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所成功地解决了困扰在文化项目中的这些难题，其完成的项目包括考陶尔德学院、泰特美术馆的Millbank庄园和皇家艺术学会。事务所在即将进行的一级保护建筑格拉斯哥的伯勒尔收藏馆的现代化与意义性重建的工程中所面对的可以说是最有趣的现代主义和后现代建筑的英国式融合。

约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所承担的文化项目还包括宗教建筑和博物馆的新建或改造工程。这些包括贵格会设在伦敦的总部友谊之家（Friends House）、卫理公会博物馆、肯尼亚Kericho大教堂和多哈的JumaaDaily清真寺。

在多哈和俄罗斯的其他主要项目为事务所提供了以全新的方式改造这些快速变化的国家的重要文化建筑和遗址地点的机会。事务所在多哈的项目包括文化广场和遗迹群项目。在俄罗斯历史悠久的斯坦尼斯拉夫斯基工厂旧址上改建的莫斯科艺术剧院和在富有象征意义的布尔什维克工厂旧址上设计建造的俄罗斯印象派博物馆是事务所为二十一世纪的俄罗斯文化的发展做出的贡献。而加拿大皇家英属哥伦比亚博物馆的总体开发规划将大大提升这座城市的存在感、公共吸引力、学术吸引力及国际形象。

在英国，事务所独特的、富有历史纪念意义的改造工程包括位于贝克斯希尔的一级保护建筑德拉沃瓦尔馆的修复和扩建工程，这座建筑被许多评论家称为二十世纪30年代英国现代主义建筑的杰出代表。在北安普敦，对Derngate78-82号的精确修复和博物馆扩建工程保证了这座查尔斯·马金托什在1916年设计建造的最后一座建筑的继续存在。

文化建筑工程非常具有挑战性。所涉及的建筑或旧址通常都有重要的历史意义；改造工程很少有明确的改造方案，而且要求不断与业主及其他民用建筑和遗产保护等方面的相关机构进行多次复查。比如，在伦敦，事务所对属于二级保护建筑、俗称圆屋（Roundhouse）的铁路转运站建筑的改造工程不仅为伦敦打造了最成功的的综合性表演场所，而且为当地年轻人提供了设立自己的工作室的空间。有评论家把这项工程的结果称为“我们在文化互动中看到的最激进的实验之一，是一次大胆为多元文化社会创造模板的尝试。”

住宅项目

英国约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所完成的住宅项目从建筑类型、人口统计以及国内和国际市场等方面来看非常丰富，而且都是引人瞩目的工程，包括伊斯坦布尔的双塔、属于公司在伦敦Dalston Junction交汇处的重建工程总体规划组成部分的公寓楼和白金汉门附近以印度砂岩外墙为特征、刻有乔治亚·罗素艺术作品的惠灵顿之家（Wellington House）。在莫斯科，公司目前正在开发一个高端项目——博雅卡酒店工程。

高品质的住宅设计提升了重要城市中心位置的价值，也标志了城市中心区域的新志向。约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所对位于保护区内议会大厦和泰特艺术馆附近的Millbank大厦的改造工程将建成一座高端酒店和公寓大楼。这项改造工程中还有一些项目位于城市东郊，包括位于雷丁镇的有184个住宅单元的Chatham Place开发项目和位于景宁镇的有320个住宅单元的Hallsville小区。事务所大部分的住宅项目按照高标准设计（事务所目前正在姆登山开发伦敦最独特的住宅小区，按英国建筑研究所绿色建筑评估体系评级，这里的环境属于“优秀”级），但也有工人骨干、属于国家资助对象的家庭和首次购房者建造的住宅与生活设施。这些住宅项目的物理和社会环境决定了不能按照标准化的“标签”式设计方案建造：项目必须根据具体的位置、客户的商业目的和特定的民用设施需求或文物保护要求等进行设计。

事务所在具有历史意义的人文环境中开发的项目包括位于伍尔维奇镇的19世纪皇家军事学院旧址上开发的以住宅为主的开发项目和在位于莫斯科市中心的具有历史意义的斯坦尼斯拉夫斯基工厂旧址上开发的豪华公寓楼。事务所在多哈的住宅项目包括文华东方酒店集团和在Msheireb新区开发的公寓楼群以及柏悦酒店集团的一家新酒店。这些项目因为其成功融合现代设计风格与卡塔尔原有的建筑而为人称道。

事务所的住宅项目一个不变的特色是针对不同的地点、环境和商业用途具体设计建筑方案。

教育项目

学校建筑设计可以说已经成为建筑业界最具挑战性的领域。在英国，由于学习策略的快速演变、不断提高的考试成绩以及学校与社区的关系等原因，建筑师必须在常规意义上的建筑“框架”之外下功夫。

有些项目因为业主在精英教育业内的学术地位给人印象深刻，如事务所为德威学校和伦敦圣保罗女子学校完成的发展总体规划；但事务所同样以其为公立学校完成的出色设计而骄傲。事务所的设计风格不断丰富，其引以为傲的不仅有里约热内卢的新英国学校非常具有建筑特色的方案，还有为乌干达农村地区的乡村学校设计的非常简约的设计样式。

事务所的学校项目设计方案必须符合相应的教育方式。从蒂普顿的皇家艺术学院、托马斯·塔利斯学校、博尔顿的达尔文谷地高级中学、恩菲尔德的绿洲学院到格林威治的约翰罗恩学校，设计方案中看不到一丝“标签式”设计的痕迹。事务所的所有设计都对各个学校特定的教育理念和物理环境精准把握。

就纯粹的建筑风格而言，这些针对各种不同的学校项目的设计反映的不仅仅是十足的现代主义设计秩序。最近《卫报》有一篇评论这样评价事务所的设计技术：“这正是成本低廉、朴素环保，但确实是风格优雅、设计缜密的建筑——从学校到住宅——应该采用的设计样式。”

同样，在二十一世纪，高等院校的设计对建筑师而言也是最令人兴奋和重要的挑战：大学有更好的建筑，更高的学术和研究水准不仅事关大学的声誉，而且也是蔓延全球的社会、城市和技术变革中至关重要的因素。

迅速发展的教学和学习系统需要事务所的教育建筑设计工作室为英国和世界其他国家设计高品质的建筑。设计内容包括南安普顿大学创造性的EEE大楼这样的中心校区和门户建筑，同时也包括对现有建筑的改造工程和校园布局项目。

事务所一项正在进行的重要项目是牛津大学全球著名的赛德商学院新的住宅、行政和管理大楼，该项目的设计工作涉及对原先的维多利亚工业时代建筑的意义性改造。同时事务所为牛津大学新的音乐练习室的设计计划也已获得规划批准。在爱丁堡大学，事务所设计的20,000平方米的地球科学大楼将从视觉上为学生、研究人员和实验室创造一种富有吸引力的联系。

基础设施

在二十一世纪，我们已经无法肯定地确定市区、郊区和农村地区的界限。世界上超过一半的人口住在城镇，而且城镇人口还将持续大量增加。在中国、印度、巴西和非洲部分地区城市化速度往往令人瞠目。公共空间、私人空间和商业或工业空间之间的距离将越来越小，对交通和商业设施提出了更高的要求。

电力输配也与公路、铁路和其他基础设施同步发展：事务所为伦敦2012年奥运场馆能源中心的获奖设计就是一个典型例子，该项目为功能性建筑增加了别具一格的特色。的确，基础设施工程的设计必须尽量富有创新性和前瞻性。事务所设计高端基础设施的能力在景宁镇Jubilee Line地铁站的多种交通模式换乘站项目的设计中首次得以展示。事务所目前正在设计的最重要的项目之一是伦敦邦德街CROSS RAIL车站及其公共空间设施的设计，从2018年开始该车站的日运输量将达到230,000人次。此外，事务所的CROSS RAIL市区整合研究明确了位于伦敦最重要的商业热点的新车站和原有车站之间的关系以及车辆交通与步行方式之间的关系。

事务所最受赞誉的基础设施项目是伦敦一级保护建筑国王十字火车站和多式联运枢纽，该项目耗资5.47亿英镑，在2012年伦敦奥运会开始之前及时交付，其设计曾屡获殊荣。这座新的枢纽大厅被称为自二十世纪90年代初斯坦斯特德机场和滑铁卢国际航站楼建成以来最具创新性的交通建筑实例，并被公认为通往伦敦的门户通道。在贝尔法斯特，约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所设计的交通枢纽将在市中心边缘一个占地10公顷的区域内建造完全整合的公共汽车和火车站——这将是进一步实现城市内部再生的主要激励因素。

创造性设计

所有的建筑师都在努力创新，发现在具体建筑环境中的象征意义，努力实现设计功能。他们推敲设计方案，考察建筑地点和相关历史，咨询民用工程和技术专家。但如果没有这样的设计方案，该怎么办？如果采用正常的设计程序无法做到创新，无法发现在具体建筑环境中的象征意义，也无法实现设计功能，该怎么办？如果经验丰富的设计公司、经验丰富的建筑师发现其能力和知识受到严峻的考验，又该怎么办？

这些是确定、开发和支持能够改善民生的研究与社区工程项目的约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所的创造性设计团队无法避免的问题。许多此类对策针对的规模较小，属于实验性质；其中个别项目会进入国内或国际公众的视野，但可以说公司的大多数努力不为人知。

相关的建筑师和学生通常都要面对这样的质问。他们在往往完全陌生的环境中面对设计方面的挑战时，只能回到基本设计的框架。更为重要的是，他们必须了解完全陌生的社区、建筑地点和需求。

通常大部分的创造性设计工程都在海外，但有一个值得一提的例外，就是事务所在托特纳姆的新设计工作室。这项工程展示了公司的基本理念，就是建筑能够改变民生。为了应对2011年暴乱后夏灵基地方政府所面临的城市再生问题的挑战，该工作室于2014年启动，为当地年轻人提供学徒和工作岗位，为他们提供了解设计工作室的运作方式的机会，并希望能够鼓励他们努力从事这一行业。

支撑所有的设计项目的理念是好的设计的确能够起到不同凡响的作用。事务所为这一非常缺乏建筑材料的、社区学校数量众多但差异甚大的马拉维设计了一套设计模板。同样，事务所还为杰出的印度记者Raghu Rai拍摄一系列有关在德里又脏又乱的加兹布尔垃圾填埋场工作和生活的Kabari拾荒者的照片提供了赞助。他们后来拍卖了这些照片，拍卖所得用来为丹敦环境研究和行动小组筹集资金，支持他们在该垃圾填埋场进行的教育活动。

在大型项目方面，事务所的创新设计团队重建了位于海地首都最重要的公众聚集地太子港、最早全球唯一形成于十九世纪的铁市。这项工程时间紧迫要求整个团队迅速行动，全力投入设计与项目管理——英国约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所是2010年发生灾难性地震后第一家活跃在海地的英国公司。

这座1891年由法国人建造的铁市两翼中的其中一翼已经倒塌，而另一翼和中央大楼也已经严重损坏。在事务所领导下，项目团队与包括克林顿全球行动组织在内的跨行业国际团队一道在地震发生后刚满一年的时间就完全修复了这一铁市并恢复了其全部功能。主持开幕式的克林顿总统强调了该项目对民用建筑行业的重要性：“铁市的恢复意义非凡，标志着海地踏上复苏之路上而且已经取得了卓有成效的进展。”

英国约翰·麦卡兰建筑事务所这些创新项目的多样性的基础是他们为建筑提供了重新思考人、建筑地点、周边社区以及以直接简单的方式寻找到为努力充分利用现有条件的人们改善生活的机会。

lntroduction

John McAslan + Partners is a leading, award-winning international architectural practice based in London, with further ofces in Edinburgh and Doha. An extensive portfolio of award-winning projects in the UK and overseas includes cultural, heritage, infrastructure, hospitality, commercial, residential, education, urban design and landscape sectors. The practice’s second London ofce, the N17 Design Studio, in the heart of Tottenham, explores local urban regeneration projects and ofers local young people apprenticeships and work placements.

The international portfolio includes the redevelopment of the historic Stanislavsky Factory in Moscow, the Museum of Russian Impressionism within the wider redevelopment of the historic Bolshevik Factory site in Moscow, the British Embassy in Algiers and the restoration of the Iron Market in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, as well as 16 projects in Doha, Qatar, such as a Cultural Forum, the frst Mandarin Oriental Hotel to be constructed in the Middle East, the newly completed Jumaa Mosque, a school, four Heritage Museums and a signifcant residential complex. Other notable international projects include a current masterplan for the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria, Canada, and the redevelopment of the British School in Rio de Janeiro.

The practice has an established reputation both for new build projects and for the imaginative regeneration of historic buildings. Notable examples of the latter include the acclaimed transformation of King’s Cross Station (which has won some 30 national and international awards). John McAslan + Partners has won in excess of 120 international awards, including some 25 RIBA Awards, and has been named Architectural Practice of the Year and World Architect of the Year on a number of occasions. The practice has won three Europa Nostra Awards, the EU’s Prize for Cultural Heritage, and is also a recent recipient of the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise (International Trade).

The practice creates architecture which improves people’s lives, and over the years has developed a design approach which is both rational and poetic. The underlying ethos is that buildings should be underpinned by a powerful idea; that the idea should be an intelligent and logical response to functionality and a sense of place; and the power of that idea should be embedded in the built form. That way, clients get the buildings they need and society gets the architecture it deserves.

John McAslan believes that the city is one of humanity’s most impressive and precious cultural achievements, that cities are more than a collection of buildings - cities are about connections, transport, communications, public spaces and joy. The practice is committed to locating its projects frmly within their contexts as a considered response to site, materiality, amenity, scale and culture.

The practice has no ‘house style’ as such - but there is a strong collective ‘DNA’which is rooted in process, not form. John McAslan and his team are functionalists. They believe in the value of research and that a good building is an expression of a clear and rational diagram.

As John McAslan observes: “we tread carefully and build with conviction; we tackle problems head on and think laterally; we deconstruct the brief and let a design emerge from a close examination of the pieces; we don’t necessarily take ‘no’ for an answer; we believe the power of architecture extends much further than the dimensions of individual buildings; we believe architecture is about making life better.”

John McAslan + Partners has an established reputation for identifying fresh solutions to challenging briefs - the result is a diverse and award-winning portfolio.

Commercial projects

The practice’s original entry into the commercial design sector was auspicious: two of the practice’s early projects were signifcant commercial buildings - headquarters for the Max Mara fashion conglomerate in Italy, and the Yapi Kredi Bank in Turkey.

These projects are on a massive scale: the Max Mara campus is 45,000 sqm, and has been praised by its chairman for “its coherence, and the clear vision of the relationship between buildings, functions, and people.” The practice’s masterplan and design of the Yapi Kredi operations centre, on a steep site overlooking the Sea of Marmara, produced a highly secure business campus with operational, training and conference facilities in 10 linked buildings which accommodates more than 2,500 staf.

These projects gave the practice early insights into commercial imperatives, and the balanced relationships between ambitious design, commercial image, and operational efciency.

The practice’s Commercial Studio has since delivered other high-profile projects such as the award-winning renovation and remodelling of the Grade II* Peter Jones department store in Sloane Square, London, an excellent example of how stylish programmatic and spatial adaptations can carry a legendary, but functionally clogged, retail icon into the 21st century.

Other notable projects include the redevelopment of a prestigious 19th-century building on New Bond Street in London’s West End, and the innovative design for Al Jazeera’s London media headquarters within The Shard at London Bridge.

Ongoing projects include the redevelopment of the Millbank Tower, in a Conservation Area near the Houses of Parliament and Tate Britain. This scheme will turn the Grade II listed building, into a high-end hotel and apartments complex; and in London’s Jermyn Street, one of the city’s most prestigious shopping addresses, JMP’s design proposal for the mixed-use redevelopment of a corner site in the St James’s Conservation Area is suitably restrained and elegant.

In Russia, the practice’s commercial projects feature a mixture of new build and the sensitive redevelopment of large sites of historic or cultural signifcance. The 30,000 sqm mixed-use transformation of the redundant Stanislavsky Factory complex in Moscow introduced the idea of landscaped backland space to the city and won numerous international awards. The practice is currently reconfguring the historic Bolshevik Factory in Moscow as a new 50,000 sqm commercial development. Other Moscow projects include the 6ha Olympia Park business and sports complex, which has attracted high-profle corporate tenants, including BMW, and the high-rise MEBE headquarters scheme, which has a LEED Gold energy conservation rating.

Cultural projects

Over the years John McAslan + Partners has demonstrated great interest in reconstructing, and adding to, the expression of culture through architectural form.

Architects cannot defne culture’s many physical manifestations precisely, because it is protean - like history, it is perpetually evolving, objectively and subjectively. Architects serve culture by adding greater contemporary relevance to the way signifcant buildings and places are experienced, but without damaging the spirit of their original character. The culture of cultural projects, so to speak, is uniquely sensitive.

When should architects simply accentuate what already exists? And when should they intervene with a strikingly innovative intervention? How does one weigh the existing architectural character of a cultural building against the possibility of its transformation into something signifcantly diferent? And how can the architect contribute to the delivery of these visionary, but often fnancially fraught projects?

John McAslan + Partners has addressed these challenges in cultural projects of every type and scale, from the Courtauld Institute and Tate Britain’s Millbank estate to the Royal Society of Arts. The practice’s central role in the forthcoming modernisation and sensitive reconfguration of the Grade A listed Burrell Collection in Glasgow involves a building which is arguably the most intriguing British fusion of Modernist and Postmodern architecture.

JMP’s cultural portfolio also includes new or transformed religious buildings and museums. These have included Friends House, the Quaker headquarters in London; the Museum of Methodism; Kericho Cathedral in Kenya; and the JumaaDaily Mosque in Doha.

Other major projects in Doha and Russia have provided opportunities to bring new approaches to the forms and programmes of key cultural buildings and sites in these fast-changing countries. In Doha, the practice’s projects include the CulturalForum and Heritage Quarter. In Russia, the renovation of the Moscow Arts Theatre on the historic Stanislavsky Factory site, and the design of a Museum of Russian Impressionism at the symbolic Bolshevik Factory site, have allowed the practice to contribute directly to 21st-century Russian cultural development. And in Canada, the development masterplan for the Royal BC Museum will greatly strengthen its urban presence, its public and academic appeal and its international image.

In Britain, the practice’s historically sensitive transformations of unique architectural masterpieces include the renovation and extension of the Grade I listed De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill, considered by many critics to be the key example of 1930s modernist architecture in Britain. In Northampton, the forensically precise restoration and museum extension of 78-82 Derngate has ensured the survival of Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s fnal architectural work from 1916.

Cultural projects are uniquely challenging. The buildings or sites involved are usually of historic importance; the briefs that drive their proposed transformations are rarely clear-cut, and they require a great deal of re-examination with clients, and civic and heritage stakeholders. In London, for example, the practice’s transformation of the Grade II* listed ex-railway turntable building known as the Roundhouse not only created the capital’s most successful mixed performance venue, but also provided studio spaces specifcally for local youngsters. One critic described the outcome as“one of the most radical experiments we have yet seen in cultural interaction, a venture that aims to set a model for a multicultural society.”

Residential Projects

John McAslan + Partners’ residential portfolio is unusually diverse and outward looking in terms of building types, demographics, and national and international markets. The schemes range from the twin towers in Istanbul; apartment blocks as part of the practice’s masterplan for the regeneration of the Dalston Junction Interchange area in London; and Wellington House, near Buckingham Gate, featuring an Indian sandstone façade etched with artwork by Georgia Russell. In Moscow, the practice’s high-end Polyanka development is currently on site.

High quality residential design adds value to important city centre sites, and signals new aspirations in inner-city areas. JMP’s transformation of the Millbank Tower, near the Houses of Parliament and Tate Britain, and within a Conservation Area, will create a high-end hotel and apartment complex. The practice also has projects further east, such as the 184-unit Chatham Place development in Reading, and the 320-unit scheme in Canning Town’s Hallsville Quarter. Most of the practice’s residential schemes are designed to high specifications (in Campden Hill, for example, the practice is delivering some of London’s most exclusive living accommodation, enhanced by a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ environmental rating), but they also include housing and accommodation for key workers, state-supported families, and first-time buyers. The physical and social contexts of these residential projects precludes any possibility of standardised “trademark” design: the architectural responses is specifc to each site, the commercial aims of the clients, and specifc civic or heritage issues.

Projects in historic settings have included the creation of a residential-led development at the former 19th century Royal Military Academy in Woolwich, and a tableau of luxury apartment blocks on the iconic Stanislavsky Factory site in central Moscow. In Doha the practice’s residential schemes range from the Mandarin Oriental hotel and apartment complex in the new Msheireb quarter, and a new hotel for the Park Hyatt Group. These projects are remarkable for the way in which they have succeeded in fusing contemporary design with Qatari architectural precedents.

A specific design response to place, site, and commercial intention is a unifying characteristic of the practice’s residential architecture.

Education

School design has become, arguably, the most testing feld of architecture. In Britain, rapid changes in strategies for learning, improved exam outcomes, and the relationship of schools with their communities have forced architects to think well outside the usual architectural ‘box’.

Some projects are impressive in terms of their elite academic status, such as the practice’s development masterplans for Dulwich College and St Paul’s Girls’ School in London, but the practice is equally proud of outstanding designs for schools in the state sector. The practice has relished this design range, and is as proud of the ultra-simple design template for village schools in rural Uganda as of its more architecturally striking proposals for the new British School in Rio de Janeiro.

The practice’s school projects respond, inevitably to competing educational methodologies. There is no sense of “trademark” design linking the Royal Society of Arts Academy in Tipton, the Thomas Tallis School, the Darwen Vale High School, Bolton, the Oasis Academy in Enfeld or the John Roan School in Greenwich. In each case, the practice’s architectural response derives from forensic examination of each school’s particular educational ethos and physical context.

In purely architectural terms, these design responses to a range of schools projects reveal something more than a thoroughgoing modernist order in design. A recent review in ‘The Guardian’ commended the practice’s skill: “This is what low-cost, unpretentious, environmentally sound, yet elegant and thoughtful new buildings - from schools to housing - should be like.”

Equally, designing in the Higher Education sector presents one of the most stimulating and important challenge for architects in the 21st century: better standards of learning and research, in better buildings at colleges and universities, are not only key to the reputations of these institutions, but are also vital ingredients in the social, urban and technical changes that are sweeping the world.

Rapidly evolving systems of teaching and learning have allowed the practice’s Education Studio to design a wide range of high quality buildings, in Britain and overseas. These range from campus hubs, to gateway buildings, such as the innovative EEE Building at the University of Southampton, transformations of existing buildings and campus layouts.

A key ongoing project is the design of the internationally prestigious Saïd Busi-ness School’s new Residential Executive and Leadership Facility in Oxford, which involves the sensitive transformation and extension of large Victorian industrial buildings. In the meantime, JMP’s scheme for new Music Practice Rooms for the University of Oxford has gained planning approval. At the University of Edinburgh, the practice’s 20,000sqm Geosciences Building will create stimulating visual links between students, researchers, and laboratories.

lnfrastructure

In the twenty-frst century we can no longer think with certainty about orderly divisions between categories such as urban, suburban, and rural. More than half the world’s people live in towns and cities, and that will increase signifcantly, year by year. The rate of urban growth in countries such as China, India, Brazil, and parts of Africa, is often astonishing. The “pinch” between public, private, and commercial or industrial space will become more constrained and challenging in terms of movement and economic development.

The distribution of power also goes hand in hand with road, rail, and other kinds of infrastructure developments: the practice’s Energy Centres on London’s 2012 Olympic site are an award-winning example of good design that add distinctive character to functional buildings. Indeed, the design of infrastructure projects must be as innovative and future-proof as possible. The practice’s ability to design major highprofle infrastructure projects began with the multi-modal interchange at Canning Town Jubilee Line Underground station. One of the practice’s most important current projects is the new Crossrail Bond Street station in London, and its public realm thresholds, which will handle 230,000 passengers a day from 2018. In addition, the practice’s Crossrail Urban Integration Study clarifes the relationship between the new station and heritage, trafc and pedestrian connectivity in London’s most important retail hotspot.

The practice’s most acclaimed infrastructure project is the award-winning £547m modernisation, renovation, and extension of London’s Grade I listed King’s Cross rail terminal and multi-modal transport hub - delivered in time for the start of the 2012 London Olympics. The new concourse has rightly been described as the most innovative example of transport architecture since Stansted Airport and the Waterloo International Terminal in the early 1990s and is acknowledged as a gateway to London. While in Belfast, JMP’s Transport Hub will create a fully integrated bus and railway station on a 10ha site on the edge of the city centre - a key stimulus to further inner city regeneration.

lnitiatives

Every architect searches for innovation, contextual meaning, functional success. They question briefs, examine locales and history and consult civil and technical specialists. But what if there isn’t a brief, as such? What if innovation, contextual meaning, and functional success cannot be developed using normal design processes? What if the experienced practice, and its experienced architects, fnd their skills and knowledge tested in the bluntest ways?

These questions are a given for John McAslan + Partners’ Initiatives team, which identifes, develops and supports research and community-based projects that can improve lives. Many of these initiatives are at small, experimental scales; one or two have attracted considerable public attention, nationally and internationally; but most have proceeded below the radar, so to speak.

The architects and students involved are, typically, ushered into situations of raw enquiry. Facing design challenges in often wholly unfamiliar contexts, they have to go back to basics. Even more signifcantly, they have to learn about communities, places, and needs that are not always familiar.

Typically, the majority of the Initiative projects are overseas, but a notable exception is the practice’s new studio in Tottenham. This project is a clear demonstration of the practice’s fundamental belief that architecture can help change people’s lives. Responding to the urban regeneration challenges facing Haringey Council following the 2011 riots, the studio, which opened in Spring 2014, ofers local young people apprenticeships and work placements, providing an insight into the way a design studio operates and, hopefully, encouraging them to explore career opportunities in the sector.

The conviction that good design can make a real diference underpins all projects. The practice has developed a design template for robust but versatile community schools in rural Malawi, where building materials are very limited. Similarly, the practice sponsored the illustrious Indian photo-journalist, Raghu Rai, to capture a series of images of the Kabari waste-pickers who work and live on the squalid Ghazipur landfll site in Delhi. The photographs were auctioned to raise funds for the Chintan environmental research and action group to support their educational programs on the site.

At the largest scale, in terms of physical size and international significance, the Initiatives team resurrected the unique 19th-century Iron Market in Port-au-Prince, the most important public gathering place in Haiti’s capital. This was a compelling exercise in rapid reaction and total commitment to design and project management - John McAslan + Partners was the frst British practice active in Haiti after the devastating 2010 earthquake.

One of the two wings of the 1891 French-built Iron Market had collapsed, and there was signifcant damage to the other wing and central tower. Led by the practice, the project team worked with a multi-disciplinary international team, including the Clinton Global Initiative, to deliver the fully repaired and functional Iron Market exactly one year after the earthquake. President Bill Clinton, who ofciated at the opening ceremony, highlighted the project’s civic importance: “The restored Iron Market is a valuable mark of Haiti’s progress on the road to recovery.”

Fundamental to the diversity of these JMP Initiatives projects is the opportunity they have given to think afresh about people, places, communities, and fnd ways - directly and simply - for architecture to improve the lives of people struggling to make the best of what they have.

朱马清真寺 Jumaa Mosque, Doha Qatar

彼得·琼斯 Peter Jones