Hepworth Wakefield

Very pleased to hear on LookNorth last night that The Hepworth Wakefield has been nominated, and is currently bookies choice to win, the RIBA Stirling Prize! Once again I am thrilled that one of my favourite buildings is getting the praise I think it deserves, the prior being Broadcasting Place Leeds [I see another blogpost emerging] which is similar in its chunky block forms, both almost a throwback to Brutalism and independent explorations of their materiality.

This building has everything. It occupies its setting perfectly by the way it actively interacts with the waterfront allowing the river to sweep and swirl around its submerged base whilst its strong forms and scale works well with the industrial heritage of the area and urban landscape it neighbours. The external finish is beautifully smooth yet has a visual texture produced by the concrete's casting formwork and a quality that can be admired from afar by the way it adds a roughness more suited to the area whilst providing a measure of scale as you approach and an interesting detail of a sculptural up-close. The crisp finish of the corners and openings accentuates mass and solidity of the series of elements giving them a bunker like aesthetic.

Internally the spaces are finished simply to give prominence to the sculptures [which are also brilliant] yet each block form you enter is a fresh space through the differing geometries and consequential altered treatment of the natural lighting. Each room is a continuation of sharp forms and with the unique sense of space and light being the main constant as you make the transition from one room to the next.

Again I'm not really sure about copyright...images 2 and 3 belong to me whilst 1 can be found on the galleries own site [below], as for 4...well, I'm sure a quick Google would find the owner.

The Website of The Hepworth Gallery has really good images of the construction as well as information on the architecture and an interview with David Chipperfield the Architect. [www.hepworthwakefield.org/about/architecture/]

The RIBA website also has information and images of the building [www.architecture.com/Awards/RIBAAwards/2012/Yorkshire/TheHepworthWakefield/TheHepworthWakefield.aspx]

There will be loads of coverage about the Stirling Prize online in the coming weeks but to start you off with the short-listed buildings [www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-18883208].