serpentine summer house: asif khan - stage one
TRANSCRIPT
Serpentine Summer House:Asif Khan
Case Study © Stage One Creative Services Limited www.stageone.co.uk
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The Serpentine Gallery expanded their architectural programme for 2016. In addition to the much anticipated Summer Pavilion, a series of four Summer Houses were commissioned, each designed by a different architect and each taking inspiration from the nearby Queen Caroline’s Temple, an 18th century classical folly designed by William Kent. The architects for the summer houses ranged in age from their thirties to their nineties and presented us with an equally diverse range of exciting structures for manufacture and installation.
The summer house designed by Asif Khan took the form of a white circular, ribbed structure enclosing an aluminium disc shaped shelter and set into a floor of white gravel.
Case Study © Stage One Creative Services Limited www.stageone.co.uk
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The RibsThe structure consisted of 96 upright ribs, all formed from larch timber using our CNC facilities. Each of the 4.2 metre long ribs was gently curved at the base, with support and means of fixing provided by a flitch plate extending 300mm inside.
Our metal workshop manufactured the flitch plates which were then clad with ply by our woodworking team and joined to the larch
rib with a strong yet flexible glue, able to accommodate the movement of the wood as it responded to the elements.
Each rib was then routed to accommodate the lateral ties and prepared for spraying in our sprayshop. Once a base coat of resin sealant had been applied, the ribs were given a two coat spray finish, to match the architect’s specification.
Case Study © Stage One Creative Services Limited www.stageone.co.uk
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InstallationOur experienced Serpentine crew carried out all necessary groundworks, carefully respecting the specific criteria that come with working in a Royal Park. Twenty two solid steel base plates, each 200kg, provided the footprint onto which the ribs were bolted. The ribs were then tied with sections of 12mm steel bar, painted white to match. As a finishing touch, a series of seven variously sized stainless steel stepping stones were set into the white gravel floor.
At the end of the summer the summer houses will be dismantled and the park returned to its natural, green state.
The SeatThe shelter was manufactured in the form of three discs. A buried 20mm steel disc provided the base, onto which two unfinished aluminium discs were attached, the first forming the seat while the second provided a canopy, both developing a patina over time and exposure to the elements.