Chu Guo

This Thesis Design Project is concerned with the creation of accommodation and studio for two artists in residence as part of a notional University of the Arts program, bringing together practitioners from international partner institutions for an annual nine-month residency that culminates with a summer exhibition within the space.

The project is dedicated to two kinds of spaces; the private residential space for each artist, which is undisturbed by visitors, and the communal studio space. The studio is distributing on the ground and the top floor as two communal spaces, where both artists are able to work, teach and hold exhibition.

The open volume of the Victorian Waterpoint building suggested an approach where the section was key to the organization of spaces. Research into ‘houses in section’ informed this work and a series of interconnecting ‘L- shaped’ elements create overlapping volumes that are connected together by a central vertical element – the spiral staircase. Gaps between the elements and the existing structure allow light to enter the building whilst establishing connections between interior and exterior.

Key aspects of the scheme include; an aspiration to create simple functional artists spaces, a robust palette of simple materials (including plywood, white painted steel and corrugated metal), a series of ‘L-shaped’ elements used to define the spaces, and an approach to detailing that utilizes a set of components.