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Relax and contemplate your surroundings in Reflective Room

07 Jul 2010

In The Manchester Museum's courtyard until October

Reflective Room

Until October 2010
Free entry
Courtyard outside Museum entrance
Designs displayed in Animal Life 1 gallery

An exciting new temporary structure called Reflective Room has been constructed in our courtyard, enabling you to sit and relax whilst reflecting on your surroundings. It was chosen as the winning design in a competition between 5th year Architecture students from the Prototype and Re_Map studio units at the Manchester School of Architecture (msa).

The Courtyard Project invited the students to design an environment within the Courtyard space outside The Manchester Museum's entrance to align with the summer programme and exhibitions and to form part of the preparations for the major redevelopment of the Museum's Animal Life 1 (mammals) gallery, closing in September 2010 and reopening in 2011. A shortlist of five proposals were selected and developed further, a summary of which you can see on display at the Museum.

Inspired by the changes that unfold in the Courtyard over the course of the day, the Reflective Room team designed a new environment in which people can reflect and re-engage with their surroundings. Using everyday materials, including plywood and black glazed ceramic tiles, its design is both subtle and delicate and creates an experiential space. The aim is to utilise the ordinary to create the sublime.

Fabricating a room within the Courtyard space will enable people to sit and relax whilst reviving their awareness of the environment. Enclosing this space will enable the courtyard to be revealed in a less direct way, reducing it to a more accessible human size. Edges, materials, weather and the surrounding environment will become more apparent through subtle reflections.

The Reflective Room was fabricated in the Art and Design Workshops at MMU and assembled by all students involved in the project. It will stand in the Courtyard from July-October 2010

The Prototype studio unit takes material as a primary resource from which to develop the possibilities of tectonic assembly and the exploration of architectural space. Experimental workshop processes are utilised to investigate ways in which 'analogue' hands-on making can inform the use of 'digital' contemporary technologies. The unit aim is to develop a material practice that connects thinking and making. The reductive deployment of resources, materials and fabrication methodologies are regarded as opportunities in relation to a sustainable culture. The unit is led by Ming Chung and Nick Tyson of Chung Tyson Architects and The Design Team from the Prototype unit is led by Matthew Mills and includes Adam Atrakzi, Mark Bonshek, Spencer Fretwell, David Kent and Anna Parker.

Reflective Room has been generously supported by:

  • msa: The Manchester School of Architecture was formed in 1996, as an innovative collaboration between Manchester Metropolitan University and The University of Manchester.
  • MIRIAD: MIRIAD is the Manchester Institute for Research and Innovation in Art and Design based at Manchester Metropolitan University.
  • Pilkington's Tiles plc: Pilkington's was established in 1891 and is the UK's largest manufacturer of ceramic tiles. The tiles, which have been donated for the project, are manufactured at the factory and UK Head Office, in Manchester.
  • Atelier One: Atelier One is an Engineering consultancy committed to creating innovative solutions which are appropriate for and contribute to building design through the close collaboration with the design team.

To find out more: