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AUCKLAND CASTLE COMPETITION WIN

FEBRUARY 2014

Auckland Castle Competition Win

Niall McLaughlin Architects and Purcell have won the competition to transform Auckland Castle in County Durham into a national museum of religion and religious art. The former historic home of the bishops of Durham, the castle is considered to be the third most historically significant ecclesiastical complex in Europe, after the Vatican and Avignon. Auckland Castle was bought by businessman and philanthropist Jonathan Ruffer who aims to turn it into a major visitor attraction and heritage site in the North East.  The client hopes to receive funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund in support of the project and set up the Auckland Castle Trust to oversee the restoration and development of the castle and grounds. The central attraction will be the rare paintings by Spanish artist Francisco de Zurbarán, considered to be some of the most significant religious treasures in Europe and part of the castle’s history for more than 250 years.

Auckland Castle Website

OLYMPIC HOUSING WINS CREATIVITY IN CONCRETE AWARD

NOVEMBER 2012

Olympic Housing Wins Creativity in Concrete Award

The practice has been awarded the BPCF 2012 Creativity in Concrete Award for their treatment of the facade for the Athletes’ Housing Block N15 within the Olympic Village. The precast cladding panels sample fragments of the Elgin Marbles, which were scanned digitally from the British Museum in London. The scans were used to make fibreboard positives using a 5-axis router, which then became the formwork for the latex moulds from which the panels were cast.