A Day At... The Switch House by DixonK

A DAY AT... THE SWITCH HOUSE

KATHERINE DIXON IA STUDENT

In order to create a connection with Tate Modern, industrial and brutalist architectural styles were used. Herzog & de Meuron incorporated modern dynamic shapes which can be seen in their previous works, for example the de Young Museum in San Francisco as shown in figure one. After 12 years of briefing, planning, refurbishing and constructing and investing £260 million, the switch house was completed and opened to the public on the 17th of June 2016.

This essay is an exploration and analysis of three key spaces within The Switch House. The spaces which will be focused on are the Tanks, the Viewing Platform and the Staircase. In order to form this essay site visits took place where primary evidence, such as site writing, photography and sketches, were collected.

Tate Modern opened in Southwark in May 2000, it quickly became the world’s most popular museum in modern and contemporary art, reaching over 5 million visitors a year. Due to the popularity and growing art collection, Tate commissioned architects Herzog & de Meuron (who were responsible for the refurbishment of the power station to Tate Modern)and employed them to design The Switch House, which would create 60% more exhibition space for the gallery. The development was only possible as the neighbouring electricity substation closed down in 2007.

Figure One: Herzog & de Meuron, de Young Museum, San Francisco, 2015. Photographed by Speck L[available at https://larryspeck.com/ photography/de-young-museum/]

The Tanks

were the first part of Tate Modern to be refurbished since they opened. They were the start of a big development of the gallery, which eventually ended up in the creation of the Switch House. Work on the oil tanks began in December 2009, where the work began on opening and demolishing the lids; this can be seen in figure two which has been taken from Tate Modern Building a Museum for the 21st Century. Work on the Tanks was complete in May 2012, they were opened to the public a few months later re-purposed as performance and exhibition spaces.

Due to the Tanks being opened before the Switch House there is often some confusion as to whether or not they are part of the same structure; however, since the oil tanks form the foundations of the Switch House and they were both part of the same refurbishment project the Tanks are considered as part of the Switch House.

Figure Two: Opening up and demolition of oil tank lids, 2010. Photographed by Leith M, 2010. [Taken from: Tate modern Building a Museum for the 21st Century, Dercon, C. and Serota, N. 2016 P.231]

During my visit to the Tanks, one small gallery space, known as the Gaonkar / Harrmann Gallery particularly stood out to me, due to it having the appearance of an uncovered hidden space as seen in figure three. Here I took a site writing (see figure four). Site writing is an exercise which explores as many senses as possible in the space. Whilst I was inside the tall cylinder room, I noticed that all the walls were covered in dark metal blocks, which had the name ‘Bankside HW&Co’ on each one, this must have been the name of the company which previously occupied the power station.

Figure Four: Dixon K, Gaonkar/ Harrmann Gallery Site Writing, 2019 Scanned by CamScanner

The space also had an odd smell, which was oil-like, this could have been part of the exhibition which was in the gallery or it could have indicated the former use. The exhibition in the space was an autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) style sound recording named ‘dreaming underwater’ by artist Rebecca Horn. The sounds included of bubbling and running liquids and dripping sounds. This added an eerie atmosphere to the gallery due to the compactness and darkness of the room. Figure Three: Gaonkar/Harrmann Gallery, Switch House 2012. Photographed by Dixon K, 2019

Parts of the Tanks are very empty which emphasises the brutalist architecture of the space. Original features, such as staircases and lettering have been preserved and these can be seen in figure five. The emptiness of the space allows them to be noticed, expressing the history of the power station and the impact on Southwark from both the station and gallery.

The lighting in these areas is all artificial, due to the tanks being underground. The strip lights are suspended across a large, black coated, metal pole, which stretch across the concrete architectural features. No glare is caused by the lighting, this combined with the vast amount of space and limited colour, makes walking through the tanks a very relaxing journey.

Figure Five: Herzog & de Meuron, The Tanks, 2012. Photographed by Dixon K, 2019

Located in the vast space a curving Staircase begins. As visible in figure six, the light coming from the floor above, shines onto the staircase, encouraging you to walk up into the light. The staircase from the basement sweeps up to level one, where is flows out, as if the level is created from the staircase spilling out. From here the staircase moves position, and the curved shape continues up to floors two and three. The curving shape helps with the circulation through the Switch house, it heads towards and from entrances to and from galleries.

Figure Six: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House staircase, 2016. Photographed by Dixon K,2019

Seating is integrated within the curve on the break of the stairs between floors one and two, and three and four. These intimate nooks consist of a singular bench which takes the circular shape of the cast concrete. Plywood was used to create the curved bench to reference the mould in which the concrete was cast, also to make the space more inviting with a warm look. Figure seven shows the materiality and shape of the seating area.

Communication and interaction with others is encouraged here due to the enclosed surrounding concrete creates. These seating areas become quite busy during the day, so they appeal more to extroverts, however, nearer the end of the day they are often empty with only one person sitting within the concrete shell. When the seating areas are quiet, they are perceived as spaces which keep you protected and not so exposed, compared to being sat on a bench in the large corridor.

Figure Seven: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House staircase, 2016. Photographed by Baan I, 2016 [available at https://www.dezeen. com/2016/05/25/switch-house-tate-modernherzog-de-meuron-iwan-baan-images-london-uk/]

From the fourth floor the shape of the staircase begins to change. The shape of the staircase begins to alter into a more jagged and geometric space, it also becomes more enclosed only allowing space for two people to be next to one another at one time (see figure eight). The staircase develops like this to exaggerate the fact that you are climbing up, ascending becomes faster. As you reach the end, you are faced with sky, as you find yourself inside a glass box looking at the London skyline.

Figure Eight: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House staircase, 2016. Photographed by Dixon K,2019

Situated on the 10th floor, is the Viewing Platform. Here you find panoramic views of London, showcasing key architecture and landmarks within the area, for example St. Paul’s Cathedral and the Shard. The Viewing Platform is open to the elements, it can get very windy due to the space trapping wind in the corridors. Each façade is separated by concrete pillars, these along with the railing and brick cladding appear to act as a frame, portraying London as living, ever-changing art. This was explored in my site writing which can be seen in figure nine and the photography in figure ten.

Figure Ten: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House Viewing Platform, 2016. Photographed by Dixon K,2019

Out of the three spaces I have discussed, the Viewing Platform was the most popular, everywhere you went there were large groups of people and tourists enjoying the 360° views. In order to escape the crowds, there are points along the viewing platform which only have space for one or two people, these are located in the folds of the Switch House.

Figure Nine: Dixon K, the Viewing Platform Site Writing, 2019 Scanned by CamScanner

The Viewing Platform has been in the news often in the past few years, regarding owners of the high-rise apartments (shown in figure eleven) complaining about privacy, and a young boy being pushed over the railing. Since these events, Tate have made a few amendments to the platform, including signs reading ‘please respect our neighbours’ privacy’ and a netting preventing people from standing on the railings. Although necessary these additions do distract from the design of the space. Overall, the key points collected from this essay were related to connections between space, artwork, the visitors and the local community. This discovery started with the Tanks being the foundation of the building, with its roots of history combined with the modern touches through the artwork and exhibitions, such as Rebecca Horn’s. Then as we moved up to the Staircase, the large curving shapes which gradually became more narrow and straight, encouraging interaction through the hidden seating areas and closer proximity to those passing in the opposite direction.

Figure Eleven: Graham Stirk, Neo Bankside apartments, 2013. Photographed by Sen H, 2018 [avaliable at https://twitter.com/ hopisen/status/1034102134160195584]

This then led us to the final key space, the Viewing Platform which portrays London as a living work of art, which changes every day before our eyes. All of which form key parts of the building found in London’s heart; The Switch House.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Cover Image: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House staircase, 2016. Photographed by Dixon, K. 2019 . . . . . . . . .P.1 Figure One: Herzog & de Meuron, de Young Museum, San Francisco, 2015. Photographed by Speck L [Available at https://larryspeck.com/photography/de-young-museum/] .P.3 Figure Two: Opening up and demolition of oil tank lids, 2010. Photographed by Leith M, 2010. [Taken from: Tate modern Building a Museum for the 21st Century, Dercon, C. and Serota, N. 2016 P.231] Figure Three: Gaonkar/Harrmann Gallery, Switch House 2012. Photographed by Dixon, K. 2019 . . . . . . . .P.5 Figure Four: Dixon, K. Gaonkar/Harrmann Gallery Site Writing, 2019 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .P.5 Figure Five: Herzog & de Meuron, The Tanks, 2012. Photographed by Dixon, K. 2019 . . . . . . . . . . . .P.6 Figure Six: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House staircase, 2016. Photographed by Dixon, K. 2019 . . . . . . . . .P.7 Figure Seven: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House staircase, 2016. Photographed by Baan I, 2016 [Available at https:// www.dezeen.com/2016/05/25/switch-house-tate-modernherzog-de-meuron-iwan-baan-images-london-uk/] . . . .P.8 Figure Eight: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House staircase, 2016. Photographed by Dixon, K. 2019 . . . . . . . . .P.9 Figure Nine: Dixon, K. the Viewing Platform Site Writing, 2019 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .P.10 Figure Ten: Herzog & de Meuron, Switch House Viewing Platform, 2016. Photographed by Dixon, K. 2019 . . .P.10 Figure Eleven: Graham Stirk, Neo Bankside apartments, 2013. Photographed by Sen H, 2018 [Avaliable at https:// twitter.com/hopisen/status/1034102134160195584] . . .P.11

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