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Borough Cookery School

Part 2 Project 2004
Tomi Godina
Gosia Malus
Kingston University Kingston | UK
The project is situated by the Winchester Palace ruins in Southwark, London. It is developed through three main strategies which arise from and relate back to the site:

Firstly, the idea of the insular community of medieval Winchester Palace and its highly controlled relationship to the city, transforming into a residential cookery school with a much more public character, while preserving the themes of east and festival. The School revolves around a ceremonial Banqueting hall, as well as an everyday bakery, with Borough Market becoming the larder for the School.

Secondly, the idea of procession: In the middle ages, the Bishop of Winchester travelled
to Westminster Palace by way of a procession via the river Thames. This processional movement develops into a route away from the river and upward through the building, around which the programme is organised, culminating at the highest point, where the river can be seen again.

The final strategy is about the unique relationship between the two 'archaeologies' of the site, the ancient ruins and the brutalist modern building
built up against it. The concrete frame of the warehouse is treated as a piece of archaeology in equivalence to the ruins. The two are connected with a cut through the ruins, and the tectonics of the project in the frame become a series of linings which get anchored in the solid blocks behind the frame, relating to the solid ruins of the palace.

Tomi Godina
Gosia Malus


Tomi Godina’s Cookery School is an exquisite example of architectural invention carefully informed by the richness of the site (conceptual, material, topographical) and a deft handling of tectonics. This project operates as a bridge between a series of intriguing opposites – ancient/modern, visceral/intellectual, mundane/festive – which make up the complex tapestry of London city life. The translation of ideas into structure across scales – from siting to detailing – is executed beautifully, revealing a project that is innovative while remaining deeply situated and relevant.

Tutor(s)

2004
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