Top Architectural Practices: Kohn Pedersen Fox

I am starting a small series of posts on architectural practices that are responsible for the wonderful design of the built environment around us in London and New York with the same format as all my other blog posts , simple, informative and bitesize, starting with New York based architects Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF).

There are not many large scale projects around the world that have not had KPF at least run for the design commission, needless to say the New York headquartered firm are one the best known architects within the arena of large office projects and renovation. The firm was started in July 1976 and is a great example of a business which has grown from the seed of doing the first project well and receiving commissions of the back of that first 'good job done well'. Shortly after A Eugene Kohn, William Pedersen and Sheldon Fox founded the company, the American Broadcasting Corporation chose the partners to redevelop and old armoury building in Manhattan to house offices and a TV studio which led to 11 further commissions in the years following. The expansion to a global service offering was inevitable when New York based investment bank Goldman Sachs had a requirement for it's European headquarters in London which coincided with the time that London's Canary Wharf started to commission large scale office projects.

Nowadays, KPF's portfolio of properties spans the globe in more than 35 countries and London and New York form a very small part of the arena in which the firm operates. Perhaps the best known project in New York is the Museum of Modern Art and in London there are two projects which stand out that are currently under construction - the Bishopsgate Tower which is just appearing at street level and Heron Tower which is closer to completion.

London's Heron Tower courted controversy in 2009 when five project architects broke away from KPF to form their own outfit, PLP Architecture after the refusal of KPF to allow a buyout of their London operation. Despite clauses in contracts which would not normally allow employees of KPF to communicate with clients after their departure from the company, KPF and the new firm have hammered out a formal relationship. KPF are now faced with a seasoned competitor in London which has grown to more than 65 employees and has already been successful in bagging the second phase of Herons Development, Heron Plaza.

Top Architectural Practices: Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners

Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners is headed up by Richard Rogers, an architect who co-founded Team 4 in 1963 along with Su Brumwell, Wendy Cheeseman and Norman Foster who Rogers met at the Yale School of Architecture. Roger's pedigree is second to none within the industry and his early career saw him collaborating with Renzo Piano, the architect behind The Shard, after Team 4 had dissolved. Roger's career was catapulted into the limelight when he won the design competition for the Pompidou Centre in Paris, noted for having many of the building services on the outside of the building to create extra space inside, which is a feature which was later seen on the Lloyds Building in London. The Lloyds building design was the subject of critical acclaim and disdain which made the Richard Rogers Partnership one of the most recognised and distinctive brands in modern architecture, synonymous with cutting edge design.

The market was perhaps standoffish about Rogers bold designs and it is said that he was not awarded any commissions for two years after the Lloyds building design was released. If Rogers needed any reassurance that he is amongst the A list of architects, it lies in the fact that he was commissioned to design one of the towers that will stand on the site of the World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street, a 1240ft (378m) tower that resembles some of Rogers bolder architectural designs with visible trusses but with a softer delivery and the utilities on the inside of the building!

A lot of Rogers commissions are in London as opposed to New York City including the Millenium Dome (02 Arena), the Terminal 5 building at Heathrow Airport which is the largest free standing building in the UK, the new extension to the British museum and Paternoster Square near to St.Paul's Cathedral which was devastated by the blitz in World War 2. Rogers influence on architecture across every industry is recognized by a list of awards which have included the RIBA Gold Medal in 1985, the Thomas Jefferson Medal in 1999,  the Sterling Prize in 2006 and 2009 and the Pritzker Prize in 2007 which is documented in this short videoclip.

20 Fenchurch Street, City of London

Statistics

• Estimated completion 2014
• Height 525ft (160m)
• 36 floors
• 94,000 sqm
• Architect Rafael Vinoly

On 19th October 2010 Land Securities and Canary Wharf Group announced the formation of a partnership to develop 20 Fenchurch Street which had been one of several larger city projects to be shelved due to the economic downturn. The site had already been cleared for construction before the project was halted and subsequently sold to the Partnership for £90.2m

Following the formation of the partnership construction was announced to begin immediately on the substructure to bring the building up to ground floor level by February 2012 and although there is little activity on site at the moment, Land Securities reaffirmed today that progress is on track as per their last press release.

The overall design of the building by New York City based architects Rafael Vinoly has courted controversy with it's top heavy shape which features a sky garden overlooking the River Thames on the top three floors although the publicly accessible observation deck will provide arguably the best views of Canary Wharf, the Shard, the West End and The City from a single 360 degree platform.

On the skyline, 20 Fenchurch Street has been criticised as being somewhat bizarre looking, however the important chords for the design of this building were more about contributing sensitively to the built environment at street level. According to the architect, the building form is drawn back from it's maximum possible footprint to mirror the city street pattern while simultaneously establishing a visual connection to the emerging cluster of high rises, receding from nearby historic buildings and opening views through the site to contribute meaningfully to the immediate public realm.

Architectural models - Freedom Tower

This short video by Fox News illustrates the role that model makers play in the planning and public relations for new projects, specifically here, the Freedom Tower in New York City.