Social Celebration

A Bridge Between Craft and Theatre

Thesis Synthesis

Part 1 ‘The Script’

Cultural Celebration

Public Spaces

Social Celebration (What?)

Social Celebration aims to unite two very different demographics of people, the Bangladeshi Community, and the Young Creative ‘Hipsters’, by celebrating their cultures and creating shared spaces where the two can come together to collaborate and grow as a community.

The ‘Old’ Truman Brewery site has the potential to be a catalyst for this change in the city. Sitting at the heart of brick lane it is crucial that it positively responds to the crisis at hand. The redevelopment of Elys Yard and the transformation of the large Data Centre currently on site will enable the site to work much harder for its community and have a positive impact in the surrounding area.

‘A Bridge Between Craft and Theater’ aims to utilise the skills and interests of both groups to bring them together. Celebrating the rich fabric history of the area and the importance of fashion and craft to both groups.

All Architecture must have one main core driver for all design decision, the people who will experience it!

Social Celebration becomes a space where the creativity and self expression of the local community is brought to light and exhibited for all to enjoy. A true space for all, creating architecture that celebrates cultural richness and history rather than bulldozing it.

Social Connectivity

Public Spaces

Harmonious Living

Public Spaces

Dressed up in carefully calculated marketing terms,you would be forgiven for thinking that ‘regeneration’ is a progressive concept and a force for good: the investment in and improvement of neglected communities and areas. Touted by urban developers as the transformation of socalled rundown housing and public spaces, it would be easy to view this process as one which gives as opposed to takes. It often promises a strengthened local economy through attracting newcomers to the area and creating employment opportunities.

Beneath the shiny surface of luxury apartments is a tragedy of dispossession that stretches far beyond material assets. Not only do those affected often lose their physical homes, they, too, lose a sense of community, belonging, and collective identity. And those who are overwhelmingly burdened by regeneration – or, rather, gentrification –are BAME (Black and Minority Ethnic) and migrant communities.

Since Ruth Glass coined the term gentrification in 1964, it’s become synonymous with the forced displacement and upheaval of those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Yet it’s also become a highly racialised issue; the latest government statistics revealed that Black African (44%) and Black Caribbean (40%) households were most likely to rent social housing out of all ethnic groups in the UK between 20162018. Similarly, The Trust For London found that poverty and deprivation in the capital disproportionately affects those from ethnic minority backgrounds. When areas become gentrified, resources are often steered away from low-income housing – and herein lies the problem.

“We are Ghosts”

The Eight key finding from the ‘Race, Class and Institutional Prejudice’ Report

Finding 1

A set of shared conditions shaped the experience of working-class people across all ages and ethnic groups:

Being held back from fulfilling their potential. Social alienation in institutional spaces.

Feeling discriminated against in the labour market experiencing indignity and neglect when navigating public services shared resentment and loss of community space in the face of gentrification.

Interviewees’ local neighbourhoods were a main point of reference when discussing race and class dynamics:

Ladbroke Grove and the Mangrove, the New Cross fire, and the Brixton uprisings would inform the conversations. Most interviewees displayed a great deal of pride in and commitment to their community, describing local values of solidarity and camaraderie as an integral part of their identity.

Finding 3

Despite this set of shared conditions, ‘class’ was discussed with much ambivalence and confusion by interviewees.

The question: ‘Would you call yourself working class?’ was a source of contention and debate. Older, male and white interviewees were usually the most confident in asserting their workingclass identity, while other interviewees were more likely to be indifferent towards the term, to perceive it as only applying to white British people, or to reject it as a stigmatizing caricature.

Finding 4

Rather than a strong sense of ‘working-class’ identity, what came out more concretely through focus groups was when and where interviewees’ backgrounds were experienced as resulting in a lack of ‘safety net’, particularly in times of transition, ill health and crisis.

It was in those moments that working-class people were most vulnerable, as they lacked financial safety, institutional support and networks in comparison with more privileged peers. This was accentuated by general housing precariousness: without medium- to long- term stability of housing, interviewees found it more difficult to access local services effectively.

Finding 5

The changing face of contemporary work was a factor in blurring the lines of working- class affiliation. Traditionally, work has been the anchor for working-class identity. However, with the growth of the gig economy, work has become more precarious and atomized. As new forms of low-income work do not provide the same sense of identity and common cause for mobilization, ‘working class’ as a badge of honour seems to have lost its resonance for many people.

Finding 6

The lived reality of being working class in London was typified by a shared experience of indifference and neglect from the state and public authorities. Interactions with local councils were often experienced as discriminatory, or complacent about residents’ needs and difficulties. Some participants talked about slow-burn neglect and abandonment (‘we are ghosts’), others about a ‘ruthless’ council (‘let’s see what we can get away with’), As a result, people were deterred from trusting and seeking to access statutory services, and relied instead on local networks and friends – as a lifeline or first port of call when facing injustice and hardship. Despite the proven benefits of strong communities, many interviewees expressed frustration at the lack of recognition for their efforts.

Finding 7

Most interviewees reported experiencing daily encounters with public services as punitive and disempowering – whether this was with the police, job centres, social services, housing offices – to the extent that many discerned an active conflict of interest between services’ targets on the one hand and the wellbeing of working-class families on the other.

Finding 8

A shared impression that local services and support have been designed to be out of reach further entrenches poor esteem of and confidence in services. The current experience of local services cements the belief that the levers of justice are not working for working-class people, and that their rights are ultimately unenforceable. As a result, people step away from support, often out of exhaustion and disillusionment with the support on offer and the way in which it is – or is not – provided. Services become another obstacle to navigate on top of other life stresses.

“The Tragedy of Dispossession” (Why?)

Finding 2

Making the Invisible, Visible

There are currently more than 150,000 Bangladeshi’s living in London. More than 65,000 call Tower Hamlets home. In the last 2 years there have been 6000 new Bengali Italian families move into the East London area.

So why is Banglatown being allowed to die?

Working together with local community groups, Nijjormanush, Save Brick lane and House of Annetta The New Truman Brewery will focus on the reinstating of the lost communities and provide spaces for those communities to re enter the Brick Lane culture.

A Home Away from Home

For generations the Bengali community have considered Brick Lane a home away from home. Over the years they transformed the area and made it their own. Opened shops, bought houses, created traditions, and shared their culture with the city.

Post-war, Bengali men came to work in the garment trade and they opened curry houses on Brick Lane to feed themselves. In 1971, during Bangladesh’s War of Independence, many brought their families to join them.

At this time, the Truman Brewery signified a cultural barrier between the immigrant community in Spitalfields and the racists who sold National Front newspapers and held rallies to the north. After the murder of Altab Ali in 1978, Brick Lane became the location for anti-fascist marches and protests.

Bengali Culture

Bangladesh has a rich, diverse culture. Its deeply rooted heritage is thoroughly reflected in its architecture, dance, literature, music, painting and clothing. The three primary religions of Bangladesh (Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam) have had a great influence on its culture and history.

Tribal dances are very popular among the Bangalees. The countryside girls are in the habit of dancing to popular folk music. Their dances require no regulations as such, just a small amount of courage and a big amount of rhythm. Popular songs like Shari and Jari are presented with the accompanying dance of both male and female performers.

Another important aspect of the culture of Bangladesh is clothing. Bangladeshi woman usually wear Saris, made of the world famous and expensive, finely embroidered quilted patchwork cloth produced by the village woman. Woman will traditionally wear their hair in a twisted bun, which is called the “Beni style”

Drama and theatre is an old tradition that is very popular in Bangladesh. More than a dozen theater groups in Dhaka City have been regularly staging locally written plays for hundreds of years. Many have also started adopted some plays from European writers..

Part 2 ‘The Play’

A Bridge Between Craft and Theatre

The Architectural response to the Social Celebration brief which looks to tackle the issue of Social Cleansing and sits as a direct contrast to that issue, is based on how the same things that make us different are the things which unite us.

The proposal is to focus on the shared interests of both community groups to create a space that weaves the community into one and allows for collaboration, gives a voice to the once voiceless and evolves with the people.

A Place to Gather

A Place to Create

A Place to Perform

A Place to Protest

A Place to Live

A Place for All

The Site

The Old Truman Brewery and the surrounding area of Brick Lane is rich to a large variety of communities from all walks of life. One of the largest is known as ‘Banglatown’, born from the rise of unemployment, the Bangladeshi families began opening their own restaurants in what was at the time one of the poorest areas in London. Due to this, many immigrants were able to bring their family members from Bangladesh to settle with them in the Brick Lane and Spitalfields area.

Brick Lane finds itself on the verge of losing everything that makes it so special. The destructive local authorities of Tower Hamlets continue to hammer through the many special areas of the borough and The Truman Brewery is the next target.

The local community need action, they require a masterplan approach to the whole site which focuses on enriching the locality and in turn will help preserve the authenticity of Brick Lane.

In 2014 there were 35 curry restaurants on Brick Lane (excluding Osborn Street), all clustered south of Truman Brewery. By 2019 this had dropped to 20.

The continuing uniformity and takeover of white owned business’ are rapidly moving southward along brick lane. This North/ South will slowly see the Banglatown exterminated and one of the most important Asian communities outside of Asia could cease to exist.

There are currently more than 150,000 Bangladeshi’s living in London. More than 65,000 call Tower Hamlets home. In the last 2 years there have been 6000 new Bengali Italian families move into the East London area. So why is Banglatown being allowed to die?

Working together with local community groups, Nijjormanush, Save Brick lane and House of Annetta The New Truman Brewery will focus on the reinstating of the lost communities and provide spaces for those communities to re enter the Brick Lane culture.

Social Celebration Site

Truman Brewery Site

Brick Lane

Spitafields Market

Shoreditch High Street

Existing Urban Fabric

Today the area caters more for the hipster young creative community than those who live there. Understanding the existing functions of the site, its failures and its success are clear. The Truman Brewery has become a Hub for creativity and expression of every dimension.

What once was a place of Bengali life and cultural celebration now feels neglected, only seen in the surviving curry houses and a few grocery stores. The Truman Brewery site fails to cater to the Bengali community entirely and must work harder to embrace and unite the two demographics.

Working with the existing buildings is key to fight the climate crisis and work towards a circular architecture. The Truman Brewery’s ecosystem will be rebalanced to include the Bangladeshi community, maintain the existing young creative community and bring the two together.

17 Hanbury Street

Elys Yard

Drays Walk

Brick Lane

A Building Crafted by the Local Community

A facade stitched to the existing building, like a dress hand crafted by a Bengali elder. A roof and bridge dropped into position, like props on a stage. A plaza woven together, like the beautiful shatil pati rugs seen throughout Bangladesh. A new theatre designed through the cut of a pair of scissors, like a large roll of fabric.

Social Celebration aims to show the communities identity through every aspect of the built design,

Taking Inspiration from Weaving

The image on the left is a painting on fabric exploring the potential flow and rhythm of the building in both elevation and plan. The painting was produced at 1:200 scale and helped define what parts of the existing buildings would be covered, what would remain and how would that elevation feel.

The green patches symbolise potential plant growth locations and the red patches symbolise moments where the fabrics are visible through the timber elevation.

The work of Anni Albers below was a key inspiration for this conceptual exploration.

Finding the Rhythm

Upon exploring the work of Anni Albers and other masters of weaving and tapestry it was clear that my elevations and floor plans should have the same rhythm and motion which she was able to translate through her drawings.

It was important that the building elevations all shared this relationship with theatre and carftsmanship through creating the sensation of movement and pattern.

The roof floor plan shares a similar principle, with the flooring and the planting following eachother in the x and y axis to form this woven feel to the plan.

Ground Floor Plan

1. Community Exhibition Space

2. Screen Printing Studio

3. Cafe

4. 17 Hanbury Reception

5. Hanbury Gallery

6. Elys Plaza

7. Fabric Dying Pools/ Public Stages

8. Truman Theatre Entrance

9. Theatre Reception

10. Lounge Areas

11. Bar/ Kitchen

12. Theatre BOH

1. Informal Creative Space

2. Hand Weaving Studio

3. Classroom

4. Computer Lab 5. The Bridge 6. Flexible Atellier Space

7. Access to Roof Terrace 8. Access to Elys Plaza

Stage Curtain Drop Zone

Prop Storage

Fabric Storage

Theatre BOH

Second Floor Plan

What was before a inactivated blank brick building is now transformed with a gallery route through to the Elys Plaza with draping curtains almost touching your head as you walk through. The building is now welcoming and allows for the local community to pass through it and explore it as they wish.

Approaching 17 Hanbury Street

Entering Drays Walk

As you come around the corner what was once a old service route for delivery drivers is now a bustling street which connects the existing markets and stores to the score. Open at all times of day and night Truman Brewery is now fully accessible to all at all times.

A Facade That Reflects Its Users

Like those graffiti walls scattered all around Brick Lane, the buildings facade becomes a work of art, where those creating inside have the freedom to exhibit their work to visitors to the area. An ever evolving open air art gallery created by the local community.

A Raised Street Stage

Where the bridge meets the theatre outdoor stages with large draping curtains hide the stair cores that connect the plaza to the bridge above, free to use by all it becomes a truly unique outdoor stage with the woven backdrops crafted in the centre on display.

The Craft Centre

17 Hanbury Street now houses a variety of craft workspaces with a gallery passage cutting through them connecting the main street to the plaza.

On the first floor is the heavy wooden workshop where the stage props for the theatre are created and for the Bengali community to explore their cultural traditions of bamboo craft and others forms of making.

On the second floor is the weaving workshop with smaller modern day looms for beginners to experience the craft but also some more traditional looms for the elders and professionals to weave on.

On the roof is the preparation room for the fabrics which are going to be dyed.

Elys Bridge

Spanning between both existing buildings, Elys Bridge connects the two both physically and metaphorically. The centre of the bridge is open to the elements allowing rainfall to penetrate the mass and enter the plaza.

The relationship between bridge and plaza was crucial, both physically and visually, therefore these voids are pierced through the mass to allow for this multi storey relationship between the two. Allowing the bridge to serve as a viewing platform when shows or events are being hosted at the plaza

The two sides are connected through smaller spanning bridges which form moments of interaction and other activities.

Truman Theatre

The old data centre building is transformed into a new performance theatre at the heart of Brick Lane. The core structural elements and levels are maintained and celebrated while this stepped amphitheatre is slotted into the mass.

The procession from plaza to theatre is one of tension and release, as you enter through the slight slopping ramp you are met by the low ceilings. As you pass the ticket office the theatre seating slope provides this moment of release telling the visitors where to head through the building and into the performance space.

The Plaza is a Stage Where Life is Performed

The Workshops

The draping dyed fabrics glimmer in the sunlight as wind blows them dry.

The building is a circular motion of formulating of ideas, creation, exhibition and use.

It is a celebration of Bangladeshi and Brick Lanes relationship with the textile industry dating back many generations of migrants who made it their home and brought their expertise to the United Kingdom.

A Woven Plaza

The plaza aims to weave together all different types of people, visitors, and residents, young and old, Bengali and hipsters. Therefore it takes inspiration from the process of weaving.

Weaving local community together is at the heart of Social Celebration.

I was part of a three hour long weaving workshop for two weekends where we were taught some of the history of it and then how to produce our very own rugs.

Weaving Workshop Final Woven Rug

Elys Plaza

A Place for Celebration

Elys Plaza is a place for celebration, protest and partying. Here we see the local Bangladeshi community celebrating the ‘Pohela Boishakh’ which is the Bengali New Year, a celebration for all regardless of religious faith. The Bridge provides a shelter for people to come together and ultimately celebrate life.

A Place for Ritual Acts

Elys Plaza has two new pools of water serving as a reconnection for the Bengali community to water, something so important in their culture. When the water is drained it serves as an outdoor amphitheatre for performances and general gathering.

Dying Day

Every now and then the pools become natural fabric dyeing pools. Workers enter the water and begin the process of turning non coloured fabric into all types of natural tones reflecting the season through what plants can be grown.

Because all the dyes are naturally made from plants it isn’t harmful to the workers or to the environment. The residue water is then used to water the same plants the produce the fabric dye.

The Floor plan is made of two long studios divided only by sliding curtains that can be adjusted depending on the demanding usage of the space.

Elys Bridge Floorplan

The balcony style hallways of Elys Bridge becomes a hub for self expressions. Visitors are invited to make the space their own, hang paintings, paint the floors, make furniture for the space etc. A place where women feel safe to create and come together.

Elys Bridge

The Building is Your Canvas

Here we see someone painting an Alpona on the floor of the bridge. Alpona is a South Asian folk art style, traditionally practiced by women, and consisting of coloured motifs, patterns, and symbols that are painted on floors and walls with paints made from rice flour.

The designs of Alpona have a magical power and are used as welcome signs of wealth and prosperity at the entrance of any home in Bangladesh.

Alpona painting also has an ecological importance, The rice flour used served as bhutayajna, an offering to tiny creatures like ants and other insects.

Alpona Village in Bangladesh

A Space that Inspires

The beautiful backdrop created by the plants and the hanging drying fabrics from above will inspire those visiting the bridge to create. The bridge inspires all senses, you can feel the wind brushing through the building, the sounds and smells of food rising from the food vendors at the plaza below and the sight and feel of every carefully crafted material used in the project.

Bengali London Fashion Week

Now more than ever fashion is about an experience as much as the clothes designed and the bridge will be the hub of Bengali London fashion week. The workshops become the fitting rooms and studios for any last minute adjustments and the circulation routes become the runway.

Craft, Create and Collaborate

The studio feels hand crafted, the sliding curtains, the cranking louvre system, the hand built wooden desks, everything made to inspire those hands on kind of people to keep creating.

A Place Home for Future Craftspeople

Elys Bridge will work collaboratively with local primary and secondary schools to provide workshops on all types of crafts for marginalized children who wouldn’t otherwise get to experience and explore this side of themselves. Giving minorities a boost in pursuing their creative dreams.

Olson Kundig’s Chicken Point Cabin

Chicken Point Cabin is a classic example of groundbreaking contemporary architecture — showcases the exception to the rule of door-making. Most architecture firms don’t create bespoke details like mechanically diverse entryways, but the team at Olson Kundig thrives on experimentation and never-before-seen design solutions. This lakeside property has been highly praised for years thanks to its ability to convey a sense of both modern humility and power in its structural advancement. It is the epitome of Olson Kundig’s utter mastery of heavy-duty industrial-style architecture in domestic settings.

The door was called to creation after the client expressed interest in maximizing the cabin’s relationship with its picturesque outdoor setting. They wanted to get rid of the fa°ade, while maintaining protection against the elements when needed. The window wall was Olson Kundig’s answer to bridging this gap between the inside and outside world.

While Chicken Point’s huge, moving fa°ade is primarily functional, the mechanism itself is one of the most beautiful components ever concocted for a remote residence. The work of Olson Kundig reminds us that a single architectural detail can form the the standout feature of a building, pivoting away from the norm and into the realm of extraordinary architecture.

CLT Roof Assembly: exterior > interior

50mm roof flooring on timber battens

Damp proof membrane

15mm OSB sheeting

100mm cavity, dense- pack cellulose insulation

100mm stud wall w/dense- pack cellulose insulation

150mm 3-ply CLT wall panel

150mm x 300mm glulam beam

50mm exterior timber finish

20mm air gap

15mm exterior gypsum sheathing

50mm wood fibre board

150mm 3-ply CLT wall panel

70mm cavity, dense- pack cellulose insulation

70mm stud wall w/dense- pack cellulose insulation

15mm interior wall finish

Truman Theatre Ground Floorplan

Truman Theatre Third Floorplan

The final destination for the craft created at the centre and along the bridge is the theatre. Backdrops are hung, curtains are draped and sets are designed with the props made. An ever changing community theatre space suitable for all types of performance.

The Truman Theatre

The Home of Bengali Theatre

The City as the Backdrop

The final backdrop is a large glass window which reveals the plaza behind. This is a celebration of Bangladeshi tradition of street theatre and spontaneous theatre brought into a more formal setting but with the same feel of the hustle and bustle of the street and the city.

Those utilising the vertical circulation to the bridge can see into the theatre and too experience performances from outside the theatre.

Showtime

On a normal day the theatre acts as exactly that, a theatre. The amphitheatre seating has two disabled accessible rows. The informal seating arrangements allows it to feel more adaptable and creates moments where groups gather, and other can find comfort however they please.

Local Art Exhibition on Show

At other times it becomes an art exhibition space. The high ceilings and the theatre truss system means art can be hung or shown down the amphitheatre and on the stage.