August 23, 2016 – Archy Naija

British preservation group Twentieth Century Society has publicly denounced plans by David Chipperfield Architects to convert the Eero Saarinen-designed, soon-to-be former US Embassy nearLondon’s Grosvenor Square into a “world-class” 137-room hotel. Central to Chipperfield’s plan is an enlargement of the sixth floor to make room for a double-height event space, a move Twenieth Century Society believes will “cause significant and substantial harm to the character of the building.”

Set to be vacated upon the completion of a new embassy building designed by Kieran Timberlake next year, the Grade-II listed design by Eero Saarinen was purchased in 2009 by developer Qatari Diar, who announced plans to transform the building into a luxury hotel containing five restaurants, six shops, a spa and a ballroom with space for 1,000 people and other event space.

This past April, the developer staged a competition for the building renovation, inviting top architects including Foster + Partners and KPF to submit proposal for transforming the historic structure. Ultimately,David Chipperfield Architects were selected for their design, which paid special attention to respecting the original architecture.

But for the Twentieth Century Society, the proposed changes still go too far. In a letter to the Westminster council, the nonprofit group outlines areas of the plan which they believe will cause irreversible harm to the Modernist embassy, including the removal of the original staircases, the demolition of the majority of the internal spaces, and the sixth-floor expansion.

“The proposed double-height sixth floor will damage the present proportions of the listed building: the rhythm of the front façade will be fundamentally changed,” stated the letter.

“We are disappointed that the applicant has persisted with this damaging scheme notwithstanding the society’s suggestions at pre-application stage as to how the effect may be ameliorated.”

Image via wikimedia.org

The Palace of Culture and Science, a 237 meter tall socialist realist high-rise, towers over the city of Warsaw, Poland. Given as a “gift” to the Polish people by the Soviet Union, the building was originally called the Joseph Stalin Palace of Culture and Science. It was built between 1952 and 1955 and, for many Varsovians, is an ugly reminder of the Stalinist era.

Now, it’s about to reinvest in its eponymous program with an international art fair. Hosting some 20 art galleries from Warsaw as well as other European cities, the “Not Fair” is schedule to open on September 22, 2016. Each gallery will present a solo show by one of their represented artist, which must take into account the “special character” of the Palace.

According to the founder of Not Fair, Michal Wolinski, the event is intended to “merge the mood and quality of an art exhibition with the opportunities that art fairs provide for cutting-edge galleries and young artists”.