SAVILL GARDENS

Location: Savill Gardens, London
Client: Crown Estates
Year: 2002

The Visitor Centre is conceived as a magical collection of sculptural and evocative structures- the Entry/Orientation/Shop, the Education/Conference Centre, the Plant Centre and the Café/Restaurant - which extend the enchantment of the existing Obelisk clearing within Windsor Great Park along a meandering woodland pathway.

The pathway between these structures, illuminated by the play of light through the tree canopy gives glimpses of the landscape beyond. The sweeping panorama of the garden across the lake is revealed when the visitor reaches the café terrace. The structures are created from a family of timber forms at different scales and with a strong vertical emphasis. These structures are assembled from smaller elements that are combined to allow a flexible response to the terrain, to the positions of trees, to orientation and vistas. This approach provides a flexible model that is responsive to changes and refinements to the brief during the design development stage. It also ensures a Visitors Centre that will be adaptable in use in the future.