PUBLIC
Delfina Foundation
London, England
2014
This conversion of two Georgian townhouses in London’s Victoria into a base for the Delfina Foundation demanded not only the navigation of a historic structure, but also a brief that mixed both public and private space. The non-profit foundation supports artists by offering residencies, exhibitions and cultural exchange; the refurbished building accommodates all of these.
By cutting a rooflight at the top of the building and slots through the floors below, natural light is introduced into the middle of the plan. Residents have monastic upper floor live/work studios, staff have their offices below, and all are brought together in a ground floor dining space with a strong domestic feel.
The building is a stack of functions, from the extended basement exhibition space, through dining, living, library and office spaces on the ground and first floors, to the upper level residents’ studios.
Physical model. The project demanded surgical care to introduce new uses while keeping the integrity of the original building.
Recognising that the buildings have been adapted many times, we left traces of our interventions, for example using timber parquet where the floor has been replaced rather than matching the existing floorboards.
Others’ interventions have also been preserved, for example the scraps of original wallpaper now protected by glass in the entrance hall.
The terrace doors reuse the original sash windows.
The opening with Baron Vaizey of Didcot and the late Delfina Entrecanales CBE.