UK House lobby architecture elevated by Christ & Gantenbein
UK House’s new lobby architecture transforms the London mixed-use scheme, courtesy of Swiss architecture studio Christ & Gantenbein
![hero interior of UK House by Christ & Gantenbein](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/LQgjDtsRnWoBtRXqq4GMxX-415-80.jpg)
UK House is a Grade II-listed building on London's Oxford Street, built in 1906 and reworked in the 1970s to blend baroque-inspired forms with Edwardian elements and 20th-century architecture in a handsome whole. The mixed-use scheme houses mostly offices, and now, thanks to Swiss-based architecture practice Christ & Gantenbein, it has some new lobby architecture to show off too – alongside a refreshed basement level decked in chic monochrome and minimalist architecture with a playful, highly individual twist.
UK House by Christ & Gantenbein
The historic building effortlessly mixes contemporary design with heritage features, and the team at Christ & Gantenbein drew on this to create their spaces. While large windows clad in bronzed metal feel at home with existing the surrounding retail façades on Oxford Street, once visitors step inside, they are welcomed by a dramatic, theatrical experience uniting art, architecture and an extreme attention to detail that is a signature of the Basel based practice's work.
The lobby features black and white decor, matched by mirror-clad columns and an artwork by Wolfgang Tillmans on the right wall. Polished chrome details, white and black stone and a checkered marble flooring compose an interior that exudes elegance and luxury – infused with a quiet sense of drama. The ground floor lobby architecture includes a front desk, a separate space for meetings, and an adjacent coffee point.
Guided through stairs and elevators, guests can climb down to the lower ground level, where epoxy floors with a black and white pattern mark out the cycle route and lead to the bike storage. There are changing rooms alongside showers and lockers, for cyclists and exercise fans.
An array of bespoke furniture, conceived by Christ & Gantenbein specifically for this commission, can be found throughout, next to contemporary design classics. The Christ & Gantenbein pieces include the lobby desk, its bench, and various multi-functional geometric objects that can act as stools, low tables or perching points, as needed. These, vividly coloured and gently tongue-in-cheek, add a touch of brightness and fun to the overall architectural approach, making for a functional, yet cheerful and welcoming interior that instantly draws you in.
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
‘Hedonistic and avant-garde’: Rabanne’s Julian Dossena on the legacy of the chainmail 1969 bag
Paco Rabanne’s 1969 chainmail handbag encapsulates the late designer’s futuristic, space-age style. Current creative director Julien Dossena tells Wallpaper* about the bag’s particular pleasures
By Jack Moss Published
-
Postcard from Paris: Olympic fever takes over the streets
On the eve of the opening ceremony of Paris 2024, our correspondent shares her views from the streets of the capital about how the event is impacting the urban landscape.
By Minako Norimatsu Published
-
The Mercury Prize nominees for 2024 have been revealed
Charli XCX, The Last Dinner Party and Beth Gibbons are amongst this year's nominees
By Charlotte Gunn Published
-
Tour the Natural History Museum’s new gardens, a Jurassic lark in London
The Natural History Museum in London has unveiled two new gardens, with resident dinosaurs, after a transformation led by architects Feilden Fowles
By Bridget Downing Published
-
Drama Republic moves into a colourful, handcrafted workspace in London
For the new creative HQ of production company Drama Republic, Emil Eve Architects remodels a warehouse into office space in London’s Holborn
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
Hideaway House in London features timber panelling inspired by the New York hospitality scene
The elegantly refurbished Hideaway House by Studio McW in London features timber panelling inspired by Philip Johnson’s The Four Seasons Restaurant
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
‘Modern Buildings’ tours south-east London through a guide to post-war Blackheath and Greenwich
‘Modern Buildings: Blackheath and Greenwich’ is a detailed survey of a London borough’s rich trove of new modernist architecture
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Triangle House invites you to its inner world of colourful surprises
Triangle House by Artefact is a private home in Epsom, outside London, combining Caribbean style, colour and functionality
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Tour the refreshed Saint Andrew Holborn: an icon reveals its crisp new interior in London
DaeWha Kang reimagines Saint Andrew Holborn church through a sensitive architectural solution that blends tradition and modernity in London
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
A Suffolk house by Studio Bark pairs a fresh visual language with low-energy design
Suffolk house Water Farm is off-the-grid but defiantly on the map, a bold new object in the landscape with a strong visual impact and minimal carbon footprint
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Westminster Coroner's Court renovation delicately blends moments of softness and austerity
Westminster Coroner's Court gets a refresh and addition, courtesy of Lynch Architects and artist Brian Clarke
By Ellie Stathaki Published