With an artist such as Anish Kapoor, who is renowned for his large-scale sculptural works (so large in fact that Marsyas (2002) was commissioned for the Turbine Hall as part of the Tate Modern’s Unilever Series), a certain type of space is required; extremely large, and by that I mean larger than his quasi-architectural works. This was no mean feat for London-based Caseyfierro Architects, but previous experience for co-founders Michael Casey and Victoria Fierro at Herzog & de Meuron, and especially on the execution of the Tate Modern, provided the skills to do so. They have very successfully transformed a redundant building into a large, bright studio and archive space. An area of the existing first floor was removed and the roof remodelled to create a protruding volume with a translucent clerestory window, providing the perfect artist’s north light. The interior rooms provide varying spaces for different functions, from presentation and workshop space to upper levels for painting. Akin to an art gallery, the spaces offer blank, white walls and high windows to prevent external distraction and to bring the eye into the work at hand.
Images: Caseyfierro Architects
