Comments on: Cremorne Riverside Centre by Sarah Wigglesworth Architects

By: asger

asger — Tue, 12 May 2009 21:15:39 +0000

Personally, I don’t think the H&dM building looks anything like this one, I even think the “de young” is clad in copper, not corten steel! I don’t understand why people insist on trying to compare the two?

By: WaterlooSunset

WaterlooSunset — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 16:55:44 +0000

Spoke to Sarah Wigglesworth recently about all this. She swears she has never seen the HdM building others accuse this of being a bad copy of, and she is not someone to fib (her lectures are a model of straight talking). So maybe the obsession that others have with precedent/copying is more their problem than it is for original and inventive architects like Wigglesworth.

By: ad

ad — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 05:13:31 +0000

good criticism is hard to find- if you’re a one liner critic- give up- if this is the extent of criticism-give up the blog

By: fling

fling — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 14:54:28 +0000

Briliant. Dr. Seuss!
Why didn’t i think of that?
Oh yeah – because its completely and utterly irrelevant to any kind of dicussion taking place, maybe that’s why.
Please.

By: Jodi

Jodi — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 14:29:25 +0000

THE ZAX

One day, making tracks
In the prarie of prax
came a north going zax
and a south going zax.

And it happened that both of them came to a place
Where they bumped, where they stood
Foot to foot and face to face

Look here now! the north-going zax said ‘I say!’
You are blocking my path. You are right in my way.
I’m a north-going zax and I always go north
Get out of my way, now, and let me go forth

Who’s in whose way? snapped the south going zax
I always go south making south going tracks
So you’re in MY way! And I ask you to move
And let me go south in my south-going groove

Then the North going zax puffed up his chest with pride
I never, he said, take a step to one side
And I will prove to you that I won’t change my ways
If I have to keep standing here 59 days!

And I’ll prove to YOU, yelled the south-going zax,
That I can stand here in the praire of prax
For 59 years! For I live by a rule
That I learned as a boy back in south going school
Never budge! That’s my rule. Never budge in the least
Not an inch to the west! Not and inch to the east!
I’ll stay here, not budging! I can and I will
If it makes you and me and the whole world stand still!

Well…
Of course the world didn’t stand still. The world grew
In a couple of years, the highway came through
And they built it right over those two stubborn zax
And left them there, standing unbudged in their tracks..

felt the need to lighten the above load… engage individually and honestly, critique with content…

By: Jazza

Jazza — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 14:26:14 +0000

The corten is good and entirely appropriate for the context. The colour of the Thames and the variation in the london light enhances the complexity of the material choice. There is where the joy is, not that it wasn’t just painted yellow/red/green/whatever. Kids are quite sophisticated in their appproeciation of this kind of thing (they have an interest in nature, for instance trees; although naturally coloured, aren’t regarded as ‘bleak’).

And this is a refreshing contrast to most of the design featured in Dezeen (i.e. pointless plastic furniture items, or materially ambiguous speculative renders of design yet to maybe come probably). Dezeen and its comment contributors are probably a little, shall we say, challenged by this, being more used to opining on the latest Useless Ugly Chair Design That Is Going To Change The World As We Know It.

By: tina

tina — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 13:17:02 +0000

by the way, I like the rust.

the building blends perfectly with the surroundings and stands out at the same time.

By: tina

tina — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 13:16:08 +0000

kevin, did you mention the fact that you were sending your comment from an iPhone just because you wanted to apologize or because you wanted to show off?

By: subjection

subjection — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 11:13:29 +0000

Having seen some of the scheme, and some of the comments posted on here! I feel compelled to reply. Firstly, one of the first examples of CoreTen is at the Freie University, in 1967, the building is known as the Rostlaube. Reference’s to the de young seems somewhat tenuous. One being a civic building of international status, and the other being a small community activity centre that serves it’s fundamental purpose of storing canoes, in a deprived inner city area. It seems some people are trying to compare a Bentley with a Mini. The only thing they have in common is the shell is steel. Both designed with different uses and environments.
The building itself does initially seem a little austere and introverted and appears to do little to open itself to the public spaces around it. However when taking into account the wider issues, you can see why: The site is in a run down area of London, where there is little traffic, be it vehicle or human therefore left open to vandalism. Also it’s adjacent to an industrial wasteland and it reflects this quite well, and will always be remeniscent of the hinterland along parts of the river. The form appears well proportioned and creates space that does it’s best not impede vistas of the river and to address it’s access from the road. Lastly, are we not expecting a little too muchg civic obligation from one small canoe store?

Perosnally, I think it’s a good reflection of the one time industrial use of the the river. Whilst providing a great contrast to many the sprawling glass monoliths that now occupy the river bank. Given the site, the constraints, and the intended use; it’s a response that does take into account the reality of its location and its context, which so many designers and buildings do not appear to do that these days.

By: Oxotnic.nl

Oxotnic.nl — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 10:17:48 +0000

Checking back after the weekend I’m really amazed by the discussion that started here. Even though I understand Marcus’ concern about negative comments, I think it would really sad to reside in comment moderation among people that actually are interested in design, enough to visit this site and spend some time to leave a comment.

As a young architect myself, I don’t want to think that only ’some’ people have the right to say their opinion, but every designer and architect who has actually worked in the real world knows what struggling and time taking the development of a product or a building can be, that the challenges are never one-dimensioned and that final decisions are not only a ‘matter of taste’.

(I really sound like a bad designer don’t I?)