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Architects: BuckleyGrayYeoman
- Area: 115000 ft²
- Year: 2017
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Photographs:Peter Landers
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Manufacturers: Crittall, Domus Tiles, Steyson
Text description provided by the architects. Constructed in 1928 as a printworks for the Daily Mirror, Herbal House later became part of the academic campus of Central St Martins College of Art and the London College of Printing. The building sits within the Hatton Garden Conservation Area. BuckleyGrayYeoman’s design is a radical reinvention which has celebrated and breathed new life into an iconic example of London’s industrial architecture. Celebrating the heritage and character of the building, the architects have stripped features back to their original materials, re-introducing the industrial character of the building and bringing the space up to contemporary standards of accommodation.
Features such as the original brickwork and stone detailing have been repaired and refurbished, whilst the original Crittal windows have been replaced with visually-similar modern equivalents. The building has been extended upwards by two storeys with a steel-clad rooftop extension, the extension houses office space, roof terraces, and six duplex apartments with private access via refurbished cores on Back Hill and Herbal Hill. An existing loading bay on Back Hill has been converted to create a dramatic triple-height space, extending upwards from the basement and linking to the upper ground floor.
A new circulation core has been introduced, connecting the new extension and residential space with the office floors below, as well as creating the option to split the office floorplate for multiple occupiers. A new vertical lightwell has also been introduced, welcoming natural light down through the centre of the building right through to the lower levels. Robin Carr, Co-chief Investment Officer at Ærium, said: “Herbal House is located in the heart of London’s best-established hub for digital, design and creative business, and also benefits from excellent public transport links including the forthcoming Elizabeth line, which will launch in 2018. We look forward to welcoming businesses to experience this exclusive and imaginative office space in Clerkenwell.”
