22 February 2017 – For the fifth year running, AECOM, in collaboration with David Glover, will deliver engineering and technical design services for the Serpentine Pavilion in London, UK. This year, German-trained architect Diébédo Francis Kéré from Burkina Faso, has been commissioned to design the 17th temporary Pavilion for the Serpentine Galleries’ grounds in Kensington Gardens.
Inspired by the tree that serves as a central meeting point for life in his hometown of Gando, Kéré has designed a responsive Pavilion that seeks to connect its visitors to nature – and each other. An expansive roof, supported by a central steel framework, mimics a tree’s canopy, allowing air to circulate freely while offering shelter against London rain and summer heat.
AECOM will deliver structural, civil, fire and electrical engineering services for the Pavilion, as well as specialist lighting design services and planning and regulatory support.
Jon Leach, Director and Technical Practice Group Leader, AECOM, said: “A major part of the Pavilion’s unique success has been in the spontaneity of the design process and the short timescales for delivery, which require a highly collaborative approach. We look forward to working with Kéré and the Serpentine team to help transform their exciting vision into an enjoyable and functional space for the Gallery and for the public.”
Each year, the Serpentine Galleries commissions an international architect to design a temporary pavilion for the gallery grounds. Last year, the Serpentine Galleries expanded its annual architectural programme to include four Summer Houses and AECOM delivered full technical and engineering design services for these structures. In 2015, AECOM provided engineering and technical advisory services for Selgascano’s colourful, translucent, chrysalis-like structure. In 2014 the company helped design and deliver Smiljan Radić’s toroidal shell structure and in 2013 it provided engineering and technical design services for Sou Fujimoto’s cloud-like pavilion.
The Serpentine Pavilion 2017 opens in June and will be used as a community hub and café by day and a forum for learning, debate and entertainment at night.
©Kéré
-ENDS-
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