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[op]era are proud to announce that our project, ‘Stone Bench’ has been unveiled in London. The large installation/bench was a winning design entry in a national competition, we have been working hard alongside stone masons to construct this installation and it is now complete, sitting in its new home across the road from Jean Nouvel’s One New Change, and Sir Christopher Wren’s St Paul’s Cathedral.
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[op]era have been working closely with CWO Stone Masons of Chichester to deliver their Stone Bench project. Here are a few images of a visit down to the stone masonry workshop. Things are taking shape…
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[op]era’s Chris Dove and Craig Mitchell made today’s front page of BD Online for the Stone Bench project.
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[op]era sketches for the Stone Bench project.
Liverpool John Moores graduates Chris Dove and Craig Mitchell have won a commission to design and build their project, ‘Stone Bench’ which will create new architectural conditions and with it a new public space on Cheapside, near St Paul’s Cathedral, Central London.
The pair founded their studio; [op]era in 2010, and take part in architectural competitions of vastly varying scale. “We have always been inspired by the playfulness of making, and working in 3D. As a studio we take inspiration from these experiments and qualities on a small scale, and apply them to architectural conditions.”
“We are really excited to have won this national competition. Designing ‘Stone Bench’ is something we are both extremely passionate about, and the idea to create an object that will form a new public gathering point in London is something we are incredibly proud of.”
“We also feel the chance to work with such an exciting material, Portland Stone, is something that we as young designers always aim to do, working on with quality building materials that can have a positive effect on the context in which the intervention will sit.”
Stone Bench will sit on an enlarged public highway on Cheapside, opposite St Paul’s Cathedral and Jean Nouvel’s One New Change, and will be constructed over summer 2012, being officially unveiled by the Lord Mayor of London in October.
For more information on [op]era’s work, and to follow the process of ‘Stone Bench’ from its conceptual stages through to construction:
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Here at [op]era, we were interested in producing imagery and renderings depicting the Stone Bench in other, unconsidered situations; in times when the bench may not act as seating, but as an object in space. Here we have represented how the bench may look in times of bad weather, and at night.
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[op]era presents their final proposal for the Stone Bench competition. Featured as part of the final presentation in The City of London’s Council offices, on 27/06/2012.
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Site studies and modelling have been an engaging process in the Stone Bench project, in particular in a digital format, to study light, shadow and massing. Here is a visual from the model, showing its prestigious location overlooked by Sir Christopher Wren’s St Paul’s Cathedral, and ‘One New Change’ by Jean Nouvel.
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[op]era have been developing their idea for their shortlisted proposal for the Stone Bench. Here is a sneak preview of a couple of the renderings we have been working with.
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[op]era have a great passion for working and experimenting in 3D. Here are a few photographs of the model produced for the final presentation of the Stone Bench project.
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[op]era were invited by the City of London Council, and CWO to take part in a series of studies and workshops in Portland, Weymouth and Chichester, England.
The aim of the workshops was to further their understanding of the processes of stone masonry, and the quality and capabilities of the stone.
Here, he you can see a handful of [op]era’s photographs of a study of the mining underground, and a workshop [op]era took part in, collaborating with CWO stonemasons.
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Basin is a project using and changing the idea of a water tank or basin on the roof of an office building in central London.
The idea was to use the existing structure of a derelict water basin.and to treat and strip down the metal to its core. the skin was then perforated and is used and lit at night, allowing for an experimental space for photography and installations creating a new program for the rooftop and the idea of a derelict temporary structure.
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Stone Bench: [op]era have taken part in an architectural competition/commision to design and build a bench on Cheapside, Central London.
“Never delegate understanding”
-Charles Eames
+ [op]era began under the name STUDIO64. In their primary project, ‘Memories Amid The Rubble’, they proudly became national finalists at the Deutshe Bank prize 2010 with this opening introduction.
[op]era is a small, student, design studio established in 2010, by graduates of architecture, Chris Dove and Craig Mitchell.
[op]era is a studio that has a great passion for craft and making on a small scale, applying these ideas to architectural conditions.
Chris Dove graduated from Liverpool John Moores University with honours in Architecture and is continuing his architectural studies in The Mackintosh School of Architecture, Glasgow School of Art.
Craig Mitchell studied Architecture at Liverpool John Moores University and graduated with honours, before continuing his architectural education at Kingston University Of London.
The pair take great interest in exploring and experimenting in architectural ideas through 3D model making, hand drawing, digital modelling, rendering and graphic manipulation.
[op]era finished as official runners up for the Deutsche bank Award for Architecture in 2011, for their proposal of temporary storage/housing in post tsunami Japan.
[op]era was shortlisted, and went on to win a commission to design and build their project, 'Stone Bench', an idea to create a new public space on Cheapside near St Pauls Cathedral in Central London, with the addition of a single stone bench.
Stone Bench is being constructed in Summer 2012, and is due for completion and officially unveiled in October.
Contact us with your queries and comments:
cdove.opera@gmail.com
cmitchell.opera@gmail.com
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