Matthew Lloyd Architects was appointed by the PCC of St Paul with St Mark Old Ford to be architects for its ‘New Heart for Bow’ community project, revitilising a derelict Victorian church, enabling it to contribute to and thrive within the diverse community it serves. The finished design is a model of multi-tasking, delivering a mixed-use building which includes an art gallery and project room, gym, physical therapy and counselling rooms, a small community hall, a crèche, a café, an office, and even a sauna. The central feature is the art gallery, in the shape of a boat, or ark, built of tulipwood supported on curving steel columns:
“the star turn, an architectural intervention that is satisfying in terms of its form and in its occasionally delightful details. It has real presence, yet somehow doesn’t shatter the dynamics of the remaining portion of nave; the curving, six-bayed wall behind the altar still retains its own atmosphere. The architects take every opportunity to deliver the kind of details that make the difference between interesting architecture and the kind that engrosses.” (Jay Merrick in The Independent, 13/05/04)
Client
St. Paul’s Old Ford PCC
Status
Completed 2004
Location
London E3
Cost
£3.5m
Awards
RICS Community Benefit Award: 2005