The pond club is the new art installation at King’s Cross ongoing redevelopment

Last month, I attended a tour of the Of Soil and Water: King’s Cross Pond Club organised by property developmer Argent ( responsible for the regeneration of King’s Cross) as part of the London festival of architecture. If you are not keen on London’s public lidos or the natural ponds in Hampstead Heath, then perhaps this cool new natural pond will appeal to you. The 40-metre man-made fresh water public pond is the first of its kind in the UK. The chemical-free water is purified through a natural, closed-loop process process using wetland and submerged water plants to filter the water and keep it clear.

The pond is designed by architects Ooze (Eva Pfannes and Sylvain Hartenberg) and artist Marjetica Potrč as part of the King’s Cross public art program RELAY. The installation aims to make the public reconsider their relationship with nature, the urban environment and the undeveloped spaces.

Here is a video about the project:

We were told by the project manager that the project was initially proposed as a permanent installation, but it was rejected by the Camden council due to oppositions from local residents. The project was eventually approved for a trial period of two years, and the developer hopes that its popularity and positive impact will convince the council to extend its lifespan.

Nature in and around the pond

What I love about this pond club is its landscape design, not only it is surrounded by seasonal plants and flowers, it also has plants growing inside the pond. Situated next to Global Generation’s Skip Garden, the theme of ecology and sustainability is discernible.

There are 8 changing rooms, outdoor showers and lockers, accompanied by bold red pictogram. Swimmers can pre-book their sessions/slots online, and it is limited to only 163 a day.

I think this project is highly commendable and I hope that it will turn into a permanent feature after the end of its 2-year period.

Lewis Cubitt Park and the New Horizon temporary Irish pavilion

After the visit to the pond club, I walked over to the Lewis Cubitt Square to see the two temporary pavilions designed collaboratively by four Irish practices: Clancy Moore, TAKA, Steve Larkin and Hall McKnight for London festival of Architecture’s New Horizon_Architecture from Ireland exhibition.

The collaboration was part of ID 2015, the year-long celebration of Irish design. The New Horizon initiative was conceived and curated by Raymund Ryan and Nathalie Weadick, and it explored the theme of the festival, “Work in Progress”, at a city scale.

Red Pavilion by TAKA, Clancy Moore and Steve Larkin

The bright red pavilion was designed by three Dublin practices: TAKA, Clancy Moore and Steve Larkin. Their approach was to emphasise the collective fabric of cities and to doubt arbitrary expression. It acted as a temporary piece of civic infrastructure, drawing people up from the square and enabling them to explore from above.

Yellow Pavilion by Hall McKnight

The Yellow Pavilion designed by Belfast practice Hall McKnight was a homage to brick. The pavilion was manufactured from a kit of pieces cut from boards and assembled in units. Inside it was a collection/installation of bricks that spoke of a city as a work in progress. The architects saw the bricks as a testimony of both the old and new city.