TOWERING ACHIEVEMENT: MONOCHROMATIC MASONRY ARTICULATES A REDEVELOPED FORMER OFFICE BUILDING

55 Victoria Street is a mixed-use, residential-led development in central London by Stiff & Trevillion Architects. Converted from a 1980s office building, the £30m development comprises 57 apartments, together with retail spaces on the ground floor. The existing building was stripped back to its structural frame and extended to form a striking volumetric composition with a 12-storey tower on the north-west corner. Two types of monochrome brick have been used on the facade, with a combination of raked and flush lime mortar joints. Dark coloured glazed bricks articulate the base of the building, adding sparkle and depth to the plinth. Intended to mediate between the commercial steel and glass structures opposite and the yellow-grey brick of the Peabody housing behind, a distinctive grey brick is used on the upper floors. Bronze finish windows, balustrades and balconies complement the masonry facades. The double-height entrance lobby is lined in matching brick, blurring the distinction between inside and out.