Condé Nast, the internationally renowned publishing house famous for such titles as Vogue, Tatler and House & Garden, commissioned FCBStudios to design a bespoke teaching environment in the heart of London’s Soho. The Condé Nast College of Fashion and Design now offers diplomas in a range of design-based courses.
The design brief was to create a multi-functional fashion and design school that could be adapted for both teaching and event hire. The scheme had to convey a strong sense of the Condé Nast brand while fitting in sympathetically with the Soho streetscape.
External areas are remodelled with large open spaces on the ground floor. The mixed brickwork is left exposed to express the layered history of the building. Enlargement of the facing windows introduces this texture to the interior.
The entrance to the building is steel plated and opens into a double-height lobby, overlooked by the gallery. A two metre-high feature light in blue crocheted fabric by Naomi Paul and a mirrored wall in the foyer both express the design raison d’être of the college and create instant visual impact.
2014 AJ Retrofit Award: Higher Education Under £5m
Structural Engineer:
Jane Wernick Associates
Main Contractor:
Blenheim House Construction
Cost and CDM Consultant:
Jackson Coles
M+E and Acoustic Engineer:
OR Consulting Engineers
Party Wall Consultant:
Anstey Horne
Lift Engineer:
Dunbar & Boardman Partnership
Fire Engineer:
Jeremy Gardner Associates
Photograpghy:
Nick Rochowski
