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Next Generation Architects and Pipers Award
Next Generation Architects
de Rijke Marsh Morgan 2005 WINNER
Fashion Architecture Taste (FAT) 2006 WINNER
Jamie Fobert Architects 2007 WINNER
Plasma Studio 2008 WINNER
The 2006 Next Generation Award (NGA) has been won by the provocative and independent-minded architectural practice Fashion Architecture Taste (FAT) Ltd, raising the prospect of a dramatic new direction for commercial architecture. The two other finalists were Brisac Gonzales and Urban Salon.
Established by Pipers and The Architecture Foundation and now in its second year, the NGA aims to provide a platform for architects who, given the chance, could make an exceptional contribution to commercial architecture. Selected from entries by the brightest of UK practices, FAT will be flown to Cannes and presented to the international property market at MIPIM (14-17 March 2006). The practice will be also take part in an individual consultation with leading property industry figure Adrian Penfold of British Land.
The NGA is about connecting talent with opportunity, for the benefit
of architects, clients and the public. The UK office market is the biggest
sector in property, currently worth around £6bn and set to grow
to £9bn by 2010. Commercial buildings shape Britain’s urban
landscape more than any other but so often they are bland and boring.
Fresh ideas are starting to be embraced by developers and planners and
yet it is notoriously hard for new architects to break through and make
the transition into the commercial sector.
NGA-winning architects are brought face to face with senior-level decision-makers
from the property industry at MIPIM’s London Stand – from investors
to end-users, local governments to international corporations – encouraging
better understanding from both sides of the demands of successful and
creative commercial design.
Nick McKeogh of Pipers, who welcomes the NGA back to the London Stand at MIPIM, commented, “The London Stand at MIPIM is the one place that brings all of the key decision makers in London property together in front of an international audience each year. Pipers is delighted to use this unique opportunity to once again present the best new architectural talent to the commercial property sector”.
Renowned for provocation and playfulness while remaining consistently inventive and committed, this year’s winner FAT has built a highly original body of work spanning the arts, housing and urban planning, both in the UK and abroad. The practice’s progressive approach to architecture results in buildings of pop-art spectacle that also show a professional regard for the demands of both brief and budget. The NGA jury relished FAT’s distinctive approach bringing a dramatic new aesthetic to commercial building.
Sean Griffiths, Director of FAT, said on winning the NGA, “FAT has always been concerned with Taste: asking what people like and investigating the social and cultural implications of these notions. This abiding fascination gives us a unique platform from which to contribute to commercial architecture”.
Rowan Moore, Director of the Architecture Foundation, said: “The jury loved the idea of future commercial buildings by FAT. Given the practice’s professionalism and seriousness such buildings are also completely feasible.”
The jury was impressed with the overall very high standard of entries, which they felt represented a leap forward from what had been a strong start in the award’s inaugural year, 2005. There was seriousness, energy, variety, commitment and plain, simple talent. The feeling was that many of the entrants could rise to the challenge of moving to larger commercial projects.
The jury noted both Brisac Gonzales and Urban Salon in addition to FAT, for the particularly high standard of their submissions. Brisac Gonzales’ work to date is dominated by public and cultural rather than commercial commissions. The Museum of World Culture in Gothenburg, the practice’s astonishingly mature first work, was won in competition and with a budget of £28m showed an ability to handle projects at a scale beyond that of most small pratices.
Urban Salon as a practice shows ingenuity, adaptability and skill. Its prefabricated modular office building in Waterloo Road showed an ability to make much out of a tricky context, while work for BBH and Marks and Spencer showed a creative understanding of these businesses and their needs.