About Freemantle Pavillion
A Community Resource
The Freemantle Pavilion is a unique structure designed to fulfil the needs of the local community. It is located in an urban park not far from the city centre of Southampton. Uniquely for a piece of architecture, it was commissioned as a work of art by the Public Arts Officer Liz Smith from the artist Pete Codling. It was instigated by the Freemantle Youth Forum as a means to replace a vandalised youth shelter but the final result has reached out to a much broader audience as a community resource that has revitalised its environment.
Community and Local Government in Partnership
The energy and enthusiasm of the Public Art Officer also attracted further funding, public and private, for new pathways and play equipment for the park. This brought in different local authority departments in a refreshingly collaborative approach to the built environment and the result is a significant increase in the use of the park and sense of ownership by the local community.
Environmental Considerations
Historically the park was a private mansion garden with an ornamental lake and a superb collection of large specimen trees. The original garden was divided up and the park is now over looked by terraced houses and residential accommodation. The man made lake was land filled in the sixties and it has remained a municipal park, in every sense, ever since. A large area of the park remains heavily water logged for most of the year and this influenced the location of the new build.
The site of the Pavilion was carefully chosen to minimise its impact but maximise its role within the park. The location on an embankment at the far end of the park over looks the new play equipment but avoids direct sight lines of the surrounding properties. It sits carefully between four mature specimen trees that provide an aesthetic and practical role in absorbing some of the acoustics that will be generated in the Pavilion.
Considering the Community
The park sits in a valley and loud voices travel beyond into the residential areas and have caused concern for the elderly residents. The shape and location of the Pavilion helps to focus the sound back over the playground into a bank of trees. The size and number of seats in the Pavilion also encourages different groups of youngsters to congregate in one place rather than around benches and under street lamps that are spread around the park.
The Design Process
The structure was designed by the artist through workshops and discussions with the Youth Forum, a dedicated team of Youth Workers, the Public Arts Officer and the composite engineering consultancy CETEC Ltd. The original shapes and models lent themselves perfectly to the use of composite materials (GRP). The counter levered roof, sky light, and circular structure demanded a high degree of engineering and production skill. The Pavilion was built and installed by Blondecell Ltd – specialists in the construction of high spec yachts and fittings but with the knowledge and expertise of composite materials with high spec finishes suitable for this architecture.
Project Management
The location, time scale and installation issues also influenced the construction method which essentially involved assembling approximately ten prefabricated components built off a concrete foundation. The seating and floor finishes came in last with the actual time on site being reduced to a number of weeks as apposed to a tradition brick and mortar site build of months. Avoiding this building method also allowed the adventurous card models to be scaled up and translated more closely than tradition building materials.
The design of the composite structure fulfils the necessary fire regulations with high spec surface finishes and robust design detailing. The fitted seating is made from stainless steel and iroko wood with an inlay of resin bound aggregate. The interior floor is also a buff colour resin bound aggregate.
Unique Camouflage Effect
A unique, patented, surface finish - never used on this scale before, provides an almost holographic camouflage effect that changes colour as you move past it. The two main walls and the front seat panel can change from a deep green to golden brown and deep rusty colour depending on the reflection and ambient light (see photos). The surfaces are also finished with a clear sacrificial anti graffiti product. The back panel of the Pavilion is dedicated for a program of graffiti artworks by the Youth Forum and the first artwork to be created for the wall was designed with a local artist Roy Brown, this is visible in some of the photographs.
Safety and Aesthetics
Lighting is an essential part of the Pavilion as the original client the ‘Youth Forum’ use the park for recreation in the evening. The structure is architecturally lit with out being too bright and provides a sense of sophistication and safety. Visibility in the park and being able to identify the occupants from a distance as you approach the pavilion was considered very important. These lights go on and off with the street lamps. The Youth Forum (predominately female) had a lot of input to designing in a sense of security and safety through visibility in the pavilion and this in turn reflects back into the park for other users.
Consultation and Planning Application
The nature of the structure also offered the opportunity to avoid the full planning application and building control process. However the design team and Youth Forum felt that the democratic process of a planning application would also give the opportunity to air the tensions that had arisen from some local residents and promote the reasoning behind the project and its the benefits to wider community.
Award Winning Model for Best Practice
The Pavilion project and the process of involvement with the Youth Forum and local community has since gone on to be given an award from the Home Office - ‘Taking A Stand’ campaign, for a community safety initiative. It has also been taken up by The Commission for the Built Environment (CABE) as a model of best practice for working with young people in the design of their built environment.
Note:
If you require any photographic images of this Pavilion for use in presentations or publications please request a Username and password from me through my contacts page. This will allow you to download high resolution images from a restricted area on the web site.
These images are copyright and must be credited to the artist and the photographer.
Architectural Photographs: Joe Lowe