The Hackney Onion
The Hackney Onion was a shortlisted finalist for the inaugural Antepavilion competition, organised by the Architecture Foundation for the Arts House Foundation in Hackney, London.
Devised as an eye catching rooftop almshouse with 5 rooms, a bathroom and upper floor kitchen and living space, the project sought to colourfully display the issue of homelessness in the city.
The medium for doing this was an experimental repurposing of a traditional onion dome form, which are more usually seen adorning buildings for aesthetic purposes, without function and often as symbols conveying other meanings.
The design features a circular plan arranged around a central spiral staircase and room segments offering minimal storage, natural light, access to sanitary facilities, a safe place away from the street and protection from the elements.
The temporary structure was planned to be constructed of CNC cut plywood ‘ribs’, clad with fiber cement panels supplied by material sponsor Equitone and roofed with colourful recycled plastic onion-shaped tiles.
During the second stage of the competition after shortlisting, a number of prototype plastic tiles were created. Plastic was sourced from nearby Ridley Road market and cleaned, shredded and reformed in timber moulds.
