WeHeartTheSuburbs
Cluny Square Summer Pavilion, conceived and designed by Melanie Bax and Sarah Considine, is a timber structure in Southend-on-Sea. Both of an architecture and design background, Melanie and Sarah’s project seeks to celebrate the suburbs in the face of relative political and planning neglect. They believe the full potential of suburbia is achievable through design, and they’ve been working since 2009 on a project to make this a salient point.
In April 2010 the project beat 39 competing entries to win the RIBA ICE Bursary, as well as securing additional funding from the Knowledge Transfer Grant (University of Sheffield) UnLtd and Awards for All (the Big Lottery). Final design was completed in July of this year with construction begun on the 8th August, and completed in just 5 days!
For full details about the Pavilion itself, its design development and the broader ongoing WeHeartTheSuburbs project visit the blog.
From my perspective, it was great to be asked to photograph the pavilion. As a charity, community project it speaks to a sense of urban sentimentalism, as well as one of craft, and not least excitement. Besides having been given instructions on how to get to the site from the nearest station (Prittlewell) I was still accompanied by a sense of discovery and anticipation.
The pavilion is to the far east end of a large common. It is humble in proportions but ambitious and delicate in form, and despite being surrounded by rusty metal goal posts and the usual quota of garishly painted playground equipment cemented into tarmac plains, it is the centre of attention. Local children have shunned the aforementioned gated parks in favour of an elaborate appropriation of the pavilion’s ‘post and plane’ construction. Perhaps unknowingly the pavilion is shelter, stage, park bench, monkey bars, climbing frame and cafe all in one neat package.
While it’s opacity from some angles provides privacy and retreat for its users, its transparency in others ensures it is secure and surveyable by the public.
I set off from Liverpool Street station early Saturday morning and was extremely lucky with the weather since the afternoon saw heavy rain. I was also fortunate to catch the pavilion in pure architectural magazine shimmer, as well as in full use by the local children who provided a continuous demonstration of the various ways they had found to climb, swing and dance on the structure.
Originally intended to be up for 3 weeks, Sarah and Melanie are working on the possibility of it being a permanent fixture.
Fingers crossed.
