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FRIDAY JUNE 24 2011 WWW.BDONLINE.C14

TECHNICAL: TIMBER STRUCTURES

By Amanda Birch

Peeping through the gaps in thehoardings, designed to give only oblique views of the 11th Serpen-ine Pavilion as it rapidly takeshape, the first impression is anntense smell of wood. The black pavili on i s en tirely

onstructed from timber a sim-

ple prefabricated system clad inheets of plywood.

But once the pavilion opens tohe public on July 1, this aroma will

no doubt be replaced by an intox-cating scent of flowers wafting rom a sunken internal garden he main focus of the temporary tructure. This year s p avili on h as been

designed by Swiss architect PeterZumthor and is the first in theeries to incorporate a garden. Thedea sprang from Zumthors con-ept of the hortus conclusus ornclosed garden a place of sanc-uary and contemplation. The 5 .3m-t all p avili on is 12m

wide x 33 m long . A pa ssage way esembling a cloister will encirclehe garden, separating the exter-

nal wall from the inner wall. Stag-gered doorways on the long sidesof the structure provide access tohe garden, with the move from

one to the other designed to createa dramatic contrast as visitorsemerge from an intensely black interior into a colourful, light-filled space.

The building acts as a stage, a backdrop for the interior garden of flowers and light, says Zumthor.Through blackness and shadow one enters the building from thelawn and begins the transition intothe garden, a place abstracted fromthe world of noise and traffic andthe smells ofLondon an interiorspace within which to sit, to walk,to observe the flowers. This expe-rience will be intense and memo-rable, as will the materialsthemselves full of memory andtime.

Zumthor has collaborated withDutch garden designer Piet

Oudolf on the design of the252sq m garden. This will bedensely planted with over 30 vari-eties of shrubs, flowers andgrasses, each chosen for its form,texture and colour to emphasisethe plants natural architectureand to evolve as the seasonchanges.

The pavilion will be Zumthorsfirst completed building in theUK. His other British project, a

holiday home in Devon for Alainde Bottons Living Architectureinitiative, is set to complete at theend of next year.

Project

Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2011

ArchitectAtelier Peter Zumthor& PartnersLocationKensington Gardens,London WC2Completion dateJune 27, 2011

TIMBER STRUCTURE

Peter [Zumthor] chosetimber because he wanted asimple, honest material thatreflected the temporality ofthe pavilions, says projectarchitect Anna Page. Hewanted somethingappropriate to the site andprogramme that would stillhold a poetic resonance, andtimber did all this.

The result is a simpleprefabricated structuralsystem, made of pine and

standard 8ft x 4ft (2.4 x 1.2m)panels of spruce plywood forthe skin, which is cheap andeasy to erect on site.

The building actsas a stage, abackdrop for theinterior garden offlowers and light

Cross section of hortus conclusus

Pavilion early on in construction process, showing simple pine structural system.mage of the hortus conclusus in the centre of the pavilion

Positive cornersformed with 80mmdiameter nosing

Negative cornerscurved with negativenosing

Wall mountingoutside:100mm structuraltimber stud18mm plywood panelnailed to stud at2400mm intervalsScrim coatingIdenden paint

Wall mounting inside:25mm structuraltimber stud18mm plywood panelnailed to stud at2400mm intervalsScrim coatingIdenden paint

Door frames andthresholds formedwith 30mm diameternosing

Viabizzuno lamp inzinc-coated steel

Bench:400 x 60mm timberwith rounded edgesof 80mm diameter

200mmstructuraltimber joist

Tarmac withsand topping

Steel edgingscrewed totimber stakes

Sole platebolted toconcretefooting

Plywood sheetused asconnection plate

Concretefooting

eter Zumthor watercolours showing the long section and plan.

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WWW.BDONLINE.CO.UK FRIDAY JUNE 24 2011

PROJECT TEAM Architect Peter Zumthor & Partners, Client Serpentine Gallery, Garden designer PiOudolf,Structural engineer Arup, Main contractor Stage One, Project and construction managerLandscape The Landscape Group, Town planning consultant DP9

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TIMBER TREATMENT

Zumthor desired a depth ofblackness to the timber thatcould not have been achievedsimply by painting it.

Peter wanted somethingreally black, with a depth andshadow to it, rather than the

flat black that paint wouldachieve, says project architectAnna Page. He also wanted afinish with a memory to it sothat when people looked at it, itwould be familiar in someway.

Finding the right solutiontook time. The first seriouscontender was black roofingfelt, but this wasnt durableenough to be used as a flooringmaterial, nor sufficiently fire-proof to be an internal wall

lining. Other solutionsconsidered were charring thetimber and using black rubber,but these too failed to achievethe depth of black thatZumthor wanted.

In the end, a combination ofblack Idenden a polymeremulsion often used as avapour barrier coating for

pipework and rolls ofhessian scrim have been usedfor the entire pavilion apartfrom the bench.

First a layer of Idenden ispainted over the timber, then alayer of the hessian scrim isstuck over it, starting from thepavilions base, and rolled overthe roof and under the

overhang. This is followed byseveral more layers ofIdenden until the dark black isachieved.

In contrast to the blacknessof the pavilion, the timberbench which encircles the

garden will be stained a richPrussian blue.

The top of the bench will befitted with solid 400mm x60mm pieces of pine finishedwith rounded edges. Thetimber will be securedunderneath with hiddenmechanical fixings and willproject forward 100mm. It isthen finished with two stainswhich react on the Swiss Pineto create a luminous Prussianblue.

Hessianscrim withouta coating ofIdenden (left)and with alayer ofIdenden

applied(right).

The primary structure andrame use a prefabricated roofruss construction nailedogether with the framesositioned at 600mm centres.

The 18mm-thick plywood skins then nailed to the frame onite. The timber structure restsn a concrete foundation ofwo simple strip footings,

which run continuously aroundhe buildings perimeter.

Zumthor wanted the paviliono create a space with anverhanging roof above aimber bench that wouldncircle the garden.

This roof overhang andesulting frame geometryresented a technicalhallenge to the engineers, as

it makes an unstable structurethat wants to fall forwardstowards the garden.

To overcome this, TedFeatonby, project managerwith contractor Stage One,devised a 600mm x 600mmtimber plate, which forms astiff connection between thefloor and the primary timberupright, making an inverted Tshape. This Featonby plateboth stabilises the buildingand forms the profile for thebench.

Both inside and out thecorners have a curved profile

an effect which is achievedexternally by routing andinternally through theapplication of timber beads.

150mmgravel strip

Growingmedium

Geotextiledrainagemembrane

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