Buildings open doors to all for the Open House London (OHL) Festival

BY CALUM FRASER
calum@slpmedia.co.uk

More than 800 buildings of all kinds will open their doors across London this weekend for the Open House London (OHL) festival.

Alongside the open houses there will be a selection of tours and talks across the capital.

According to OHL: “This year’s programme explores how the new London that has been emerging in the past 20 years is finally coming to fruition.

“New buildings, new kinds of buildings, new districts, new approaches to regeneration, women taking a leading role in making London, engineering excellence underpinning the capital’s reinvention.”

We have picked a selection of South London gems for you.

Forest Mews – Robert and Jessica Barker Three bespoke houses, each with a studio and courtyard, set around a communal courtyard. Inspired by views of ivy growing over trees in wintertime – all three houses are clad with striking green walls, trained to a geometric pattern. (Main picture).

Arches next to 899 Old Kent Road
Responding to the form of the brick railway viaduct, this timber, steel and polycarbonate canopy extends from two arches to form a versatile and adaptable event space, built using modular structural components.

Blackheath Quaker Meeting House – Lawn Terrace, Blackheath, SE3 9LL
A calm space for Quakers and others in an octagonal meeting room lit naturally from a high central roof lantern and side turrets. It won the Civic Trust Award in 1973 and the Concrete Society Commendation in 1974

Blackheath Cator Estate
Early and mid-Victorian to 1930s suburban to post-war municipal and ultra modern.

Devonport Mausoleum
A handsome mausoleum in a former Royal Navy cemetery, restored in 1999 by the University of Greenwich. There are many interesting plaques to see.

David & Elena’s House
Side extension to a Victorian house to create a new kitchen, dining room and courtyard garden. The extension is clad in black timber, a striking modern addition to the London stock brickwork of the house.

Emirates Air Line Tour
A tour exploring the civil engineering achievements of the construction of the cable car. Led by the Emirates Air Line engineers and front-of-house team.

5b Herne Hill Road, SE24 0AU
Renovation of flat in Victorian terrace house, creating new living area within restructured roof space using unusual and reclaimed materials and retrofit of substantial insulation.

Battersea Arts Centre
Designed and built as Battersea’s town hall. Home to Battersea Arts Centre since 1984. Striking features include historic mosaic floors, marble staircase, stained glass dome and refurbished Grand Hall with contemporary lattice ceiling.

Brixton Windmill
One of very few windmills in London. Built 1816 when Brixton Hill was open fields, and a working mill until 1934. Restored to working order 2011.

Canada Water Library
A civic centrepiece for the regeneration of the area around Canada Water. Its inverted pyramid form is an innovative response to providing an efficient single large library floor on a smaller footprint site.

Southwark Integrated Waste Management Facility
This is one of Europe’s most advanced recycling facilities, comprising many sustainable features including grey water, solar panels and a green roof. It was designed for the purpose of turning waste into a resource. There will be regular tours every 30 minutes from 10am-3.30pm.

Wandsworth Prison Museum
This building is a Victorian grand design with radial pattern of wings and landings from central point and an impressive gatehouse where the Governor and the Chaplain resided, sometimes viewing arrival of prisoners passing through gate. A new museum has opened with more than 400 items.