Funky Hair Salon
Project: Hair Salon
Location: Lisburn Road, Belfast
Architect: Jamison Architects
Brickwork Contractor: MPS Construction
Brick: Ibstock: Birtley Olde English
As a young successful couple celebrated within their profession, an extension to their working strategy was necessary to develop their ambitions. An initial briefing meeting developed the desired schedule of accommodation and confirmed their aspirations for the recently purchased property at 671 Lisburn Road. During the initial site visits the challenges presented themselves - that is to create a successful working environment within a tight mid-terrace property with existing double height glass frontage to street. As the clients owned this property, it was required to create a place of permanence and an architecture to sustain future uses without further remodelling of building fabric.
Proposition
Detailed analysis and studies of behavioural practices and habits, and future applied discourses were examined and concept models developed to confirm idea and direction. Context and the ever-changing cultural and urban fabric extended our influence towards social and political notions. The creation of an architectural brief with schedule of accommodation; a comprehensive study of the urban context at both ‘macro’ and ‘micro’ levels; a detailed awareness of climatic conditions; research on site history and that of its location; the mapping of environmental conditions; a full appreciation of the existing Victorian terrace vernacular; and the construction of physical site models were realised prior to concept development.
Conceptual physical models were constructed to reinforce the point of departure, whilst characteristics of internal volumes and their relationships between, with adjacencies, and external site, were understood through further three-dimensional modelling.
Conceptually the existing Victorian terrace and the Victorian principles of spatial planning was acknowledged and reconsidered with individual rooms offering individual functions. Rooms and functions were separated, analysed, appreciated and understood; reconsidered volumetrically and spatially; relationships and adjacencies reordered and reorganised; and repositioned addressing orientation, functional programme and building context. Essentially Jamison Architects were proposing the separation and reassembly of classical volumes and; creating classically proportions rooms and timeless spaces for occupation. Individual rooms address each aspect of the creative process, heightening visitors’ awareness of the procedures incurred.
Materiality
The new frontage addresses the immediate context, successfully connecting the ubiquitous Victorian bay window profile of the adjacent building to the south with the modern planar stainless steel and glass frontage to the north. This proposal bridges these extremes employing a hand made brick complementing the ubiquitous Belfast Victorian red. The forty give degree construction angle to projecting contemporary bay is employed and informs the construction of principle frontage, creating a rhythmic textured composition, once again unifying the terrace while creating visual calm to an otherwise distracting and disjointed streetscape.
This project was awarded the Innovative Use of Brick and Clay products at the 2008 Brick Awards. The Judges considered this project an excellent demonstration of the adage that if the designer makes the effort to exploit brickwork it is possible to produce innovative and striking results without breaking the bank.