Dezeen School Shows: a reservoir centre reimagined into a retreat to support student wellbeing is among the projects from Regent's University London.
Also featured is another reservoir centre used as a hub for food cultivation and a wellness hotel, designed to give visitors a break from intense city life.
Regent's University London
University: Regent's University London
School: Arts and Culture
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Tutors: Antonis Anagnostidis, Joshua Waterstone, Owain Caruana-Davies, Laoura Englezou, Eddie Chan, Dragan Pavlovic, Joveria Baig and Celeste Williams
School statement:
"Regent's BA (Hons) Interior Design offers a personalised, industry-connected degree that combines creative experimentation, technical development and professional practice, supporting students in developing an individual design voice and distinctive portfolio.
"Based in the heart of London's Regent's Park – on an 11-acre private campus – students benefit from a close creative network while using London as a design laboratory.
"Through live briefs, site-based projects and engagement with practitioners, they respond to interiors, buildings and communities across the city.
"The course explores interior design beyond aesthetics, considering materiality, atmosphere, inhabitation and the ways spaces shape wellbeing, identity and belonging.
"Woodberry Wetlands in Hackney provided the research framework for this year's exploration of urban habitats.
"Extending habitats beyond domesticity, students examined ecological, social and cultural dynamics alongside industrial heritage and transformation.
"The projects reimagined the West Reservoir Centre, a former water-filtration facility, as an adaptable interior environment supporting community, ecology and collective wellbeing.
"Students explored thresholds between interior and landscape, using material reuse, flexible planning and adaptable systems to address changing needs.
"Their proposals positioned interiors as active participants within wider ecosystems – spaces of care, connection and resilience."
Reservoir Place: Where the City Slows Down by Alejandro Olloquiegui Videgain
"The project reimagines the West Reservoir Centre as a wellness retreat and hotel, guided by three principles: nature, air and water.
"The reservoir forms the emotional centre of the proposal, with water understood as a restorative presence that supports wellbeing and encourages a slower rhythm of inhabitation.
"Landscape, natural light and movement shape the spatial experience, while the spaces are conceived as permeable structures through which nature can pass.
"Transitional spaces, open walkways and semi-covered areas soften the boundaries between interior and exterior, creating moments of pause and reinforcing the connection between the architecture, the surrounding landscape and the water."
Student: Alejandro Olloquiegui Videgain
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: cavo.dsg[at]gmail.com
Lacuna House by Carmen Flaaten Lindbaek
"Lacuna House, positioned along the West Reservoir in Hackney, is conceived as a spatial pause within the dense urban fabric.
"Derived from the Latin term for 'void' or 'opening' the project explores absence as a spatial strategy for reflection, artistic production, and social exchange.
"Developed with Bow Arts as the client, the proposal establishes a cultural retreat where stillness, landscape and collective experience converge.
"Framing the reservoir landscape, Lacuna House encourages stillness and openness as primary spatial strategies, positioning itself as a quiet and deliberate intervention that fosters creativity, dialogue and collective experience."
Student: Carmen Flaaten Lindbaek
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: carmen.flaten[at]gmail.com
Urban Retreat House by Clara Xirau Guardans
"This project reimagines the West Reservoir as a seasonal Soho House: an immersive nature-based wellness hub and social space in Hackney.
"Drawing on Soho House's approach to adaptive reuse, the design strengthens connections between interior architecture, landscape and community.
"Hospitality, wellness and recreation are brought together through kayaking, paddleboarding, floating saunas, cold plunges, outdoor dining, live music, yoga and creative workshops.
"The proposal balances exclusivity with inclusivity by opening selected spaces during the day and hosting community events, encouraging local participation while maintaining a distinct members' experience."
Student: Clara Xirau Guardans
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: clara.xiraug[at]gmail.com
Art Hub by Lilia Lankarani
"The project reimagines the West Reservoir Centre as an art hub centred on creativity, community and exchange.
"Through adaptive reuse, the existing interiors are transformed into flexible spaces for artist residences, workshops, studios, exhibitions, classes and social activity.
"Open learning and display areas encourage movement and interaction between artists and visitors, while quieter residential spaces support rest and reflection.
"A mandala-inspired central core organises circulation and creates visual connections between different programmes, bringing the interior together as an adaptable environment for making, learning and collective creative experience."
Student: Lilia Lankarani
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: lankaranililia[at]yahoo.com
The Sund Continuum by Norah Carlman
"The Sund Continuum explores the role of ritual in renewing everyday urban life.
"Influenced by Scandinavian wellness traditions, the project reconnects the wider community with nature, balance and restorative practices.
"Wellbeing is approached as a continuous sensory journey rather than a momentary experience, capable of shaping daily routines.
"Cycles of temperature and light create changing spatial conditions that support physical and psychological health.
"Through an accessible and holistic approach, the project examines how interior design can encourage lasting habits of care, connection and sustainable wellbeing."
Student: Norah Carlman
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
LinkedIn: Norah Carlman
Temporal Currents by Shylendra Chawira
"Set in 2040, Temporal Currents imagines a society disconnected from natural rhythms and increasingly governed by the pace of digital life.
"The project reimagines the reservoir as a place where time, water and nature become architectural materials.
"Rather than functioning as static forms, the interiors act as an instrument through which visitors can sense time physically and reconnect with natural cycles.
"Spaces for stillness, community and renewal encourage visitors to step away from habitual routines, slow down and rebuild connections with one another, the landscape and the changing conditions of the reservoir."
Student: Shylendra Chawira
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: studio[at]avenordesigns.com
Bound to Earth by Sofia Samm
"Bound to Earth reimagines the West Reservoir Centre as a hub for food cultivation, education and community, grounded in relationships between landscape, material and gastronomy.
"Through adaptive reuse and selective reconstruction, the project restores the spatial logic of the historic infrastructure while introducing interventions that respond to its industrial heritage and ecological future.
"Organised around cycles of growing, preparing, exchanging and consuming food, the interiors create an immersive journey connecting visitors with the origins of what they eat.
"Food, landscape and heritage are brought together as one interconnected community system."
Student: Sofia Samm
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: sofiamgsamm[at]gmail.com
Shanti: Urban Healing and Wellness by Srija Khatiwada
"This project reimagines the West Reservoir Centre as an Urban Eco Wellness Hotel, creating a contemporary retreat from the intensity of city life.
"The interior strategy strengthens connections with nature through low-tech design principles, natural materials and spatial simplicity.
"Light, texture and openness shape calm, restorative environments that encourage stillness, reflection and more mindful patterns of inhabitation.
"Carefully composed thresholds and views connect the interiors with the surrounding landscape, allowing visitors to experience a gradual transition from urban pressure towards balance and wellbeing."
Student: Srija Khatiwada
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: skhatiwada.design[at]gmail.com
The Reservoir Collective by Tova Juhlin
"The Reservoir Collective reimagines the site as a sustainability-focused hub combining learning, communal activity and living.
"An auditorium, library, lounge and study spaces support education around sustainability and circular food systems.
"A restaurant with an open kitchen serves seasonal produce grown in the orangery, while a glasshouse extension strengthens connections between the interiors and the surrounding landscape.
"Six energy-efficient tiny homes provide accommodation for chef apprentices and sustainability learners, alongside shared kitchens, gardens and rooftop growing spaces.
"Together, these environments support hands-on learning, collective living and community exchange."
Student: Tova Juhlin
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: tfr.juhlin[at]gmail.com
Haven on the Horizon by Manaal Mirza
"This project reimagines the West Reservoir Centre as a restorative retreat for students, supporting mental wellbeing and meaningful social connection.
"Responding to the academic and social pressures shaping student life, the proposal offers an inclusive sanctuary away from the pace of the city.
"Biophilic design and circular economy principles reduce environmental impact while strengthening connections with nature.
"Short-stay accommodation is combined with communal spaces for studying, meditation and shared activity, creating an environment where landscape, community and design work together to foster wellbeing, belonging and long-term resilience."
Student: Manaal Mirza
Course: BA (Hons) Interior Design
Email: manaalmirza.design[at]gmail.com
Partnership content
This school show is a partnership between Dezeen and Regent's University London. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.