Text 4 Assembly by Rogers

1. Despite the breathtaking views over Cardiff Bay toward Penarth Marina, visitors to the new National Assembly for Wales, standing on the grand, slate-clad terraces, will find it is impossible to stop looking inland. Designed by Richard Rogers, known for his iconic buildings such as Lloyds of London, Centre Pompidou, and the Madrid Airport, the National Assembly building opened in March 2006 after years of political wrangling (Fig. 3.11).

 

Figure 3.11 – The new National Assembly for Wales

 

A striking red-cedar soffit undulates through the building and out toward the harbor. The use of natural materials such as wood and local slate is just one reason the building is being heralded as a pioneering example of sustainability. It may also be one of the most important and controversial projects of Roger's career.

The Welsh National Assembly was founded in 1987 following a referendum, and allows the Senedd (parliament or senate) the sought-after powers of home rule. This important organization needed a world-class building to portray its identity and to encourage local pride and interest in politics.

The world renowned, London-based Richard Rogers Partnership (RRP) won the international design competition for the Assembly building in 1998, but the politics surrounding the building led to considerable delays, with the opening more than six years behind schedule.

At the opening ceremony in March, the Queen said she hoped the building would become as important a symbol as the Houses of Parliament were. She praised the "skill and imagination of those who've designed and constructed this remarkable example of modern architecture."

2. The result may well have been worth the wait. RRP's vision for the project was to create an open, glazed facade facing the water. This later became a steel and glass wall due to security concerns following the attacks of September 11, 2001.

Sheltering the facade is a dramatic sweeping roof, expressing the resolve of the clients to create a transparent, democratic building that encourages people to engage with local politics. The strategy is enormously successful as both an urban gesture and a design element.

The main entry space feels airy and open, flooded with daylight and ample natural ventilation. Framing views to the waterfront, the pavilion-like building sits sympathetically on the site. Inside, the canopy is even more dramatic as the roof form is pulled through to the lower floor to form a funnel-like enclosure for the debating chamber below. The rounded, organic form, with engineering by Arup, looks a bit like a mushroom with a wood-clad stalk (Fig. 3.12).

 

Figure 3.12 - The roof pulls down to the debating chamber

 

Rather than entering from the glazed facade facing the water, visitors enter at a security point at the side of the building, through a less grand but more expedient and secure entry. The public is welcomed inside the ground-floor lobby with its slate floors and a grand staircase up to the mezzanine. Visitors can come for a coffee, to admire the views toward the water, or to look down into the debating chamber, the circular room below the center of the space (Fig.3.13).

 

Figure 3.13 - View to the debating chamber below

 

The spatially complex interior encourages views and daylight, but not direct access to the debating chamber, and allows for certain areas to remain visible yet private. Around the chamber's perimeter are various committee rooms, administration rooms, and offices for the Senedd's 60 elected members.

3. The building challenges expectations about designing for public institutions. While cost was certainly a guiding concern, RRP did not let this stop them from making the building a showcase for accessibility or sustainability. It does not look stereotypically "green," and its theatrical, lightweight roof that twists surprisingly into the interior space makes it an automatic landmark.

It is important to note that the building does more than just look good; it also performs well. The mushroom top of the debating chamber moves up and down, pumping in fresh air for ventilation, and the thermal mass of the slate plinth regulates interior temperatures.

Water is collected on the roofs to further regulate the temperature and to provide for toilets and window cleaning. The building is designed for a minimum 100-year life span, a challenge given the stormy harbor location.

Construction used more than 1100 tons (1000 metric tons) of Welsh slate for the floors and exterior walls. Four local artists were commissioned to provide public art. Near the main entry, local sculptor Richard Harris designed "The Meeting Place," an outdoor installation of 44 machine-cut slate slabs, each weighing 3.3 tons (3 metric tons).

"I wanted to create a space that was to the side of the building, that related closely to the building but was very inviting for people to use, somewhere quieter that people could sit and spend some time," Harris says of the work.

In June 2006, the National Assembly for Wales was awarded a prestigious Royal Institute of British Architects Design Award, which places it on the long list for the coveted Stirling Prize, the "Oscar" of architecture.