Rafael Viñoly – 뉴욕을 거점으로 하고 있는 우르과이 출신 건축가인 Rafael Viñoly은 스카이 가든을 공용 공원으로 인식하고 160 미터에 달하는 20 Fenchurch Street을 건축했다. 이러한 경력이 런던 외곽에 위치함에도 불구하고 런던의 대표적 고층 빌딩이 된 이번 설계를 할 수 있었던 기반이 되었다.
35층에서부터 시작하는 3층 규모의 이 공간은 그 구조가 최상층부 외곽에서 도드라질 수 있도록 설계된 여러가 이유 중 하나가 되는데, 이는 또한 건물의 가장 넓은 규모의 사무 층들에서 도시의 스카이라인을 가장 잘 볼 수 있다는 점을 의미한다.
가든의 디자인은 Gillespies에서 담당하였는데 "마치 산의 경사로 중반을 오르는 것과 같은" 느낌을 받을 수 있도록 설계하였는데, 전체적으로 보면 테라스는 3개가 있고, 가장 상부에 있는 테라스는 음영을 드리운 숲을 닮도록 설계되었다.
최상위 2개 층은 전통적인 영국 레스토랑과 해산물 레스토랑이 차지하고 있고, 또한 바도 존재한다. 총 400명의 손님을 수용할 만한 공간에 추가적으로 미리 예약한다면 200명의 대중을 입장시킬 수도 있을 만큼 넓다.
하지만, 워키토키 프로젝트는, 빌딩에서 반사된 빛이 자동차를 녹일만큼 강렬하다는 비난을 받으며 지난 2013년 여름의 헤드라인을 뜨겁게 장식했다. 개발업체인 Land Securities and Canary Wharf Group은 이러한 문제를 해결하기 위해 일련의 수평 핀들을 설치했지만 Rafael Viñoly이 일명 '많은 실수"라고 칭하는 것들에 대한 사과는 불가피한 것으로 보인다.
reviewed by ZHLEE
News: the viewing terraces opened today at the top of Rafael Viñoly's so-called Walkie Talkie skyscraper in London, pictured in these exclusive images by photographer Edmund Sumner.
Rafael Viñoly – a Uruguayan architect based in New York – conceived the Sky Garden as a public park, crowning his 160-metre 20 Fenchurch Street tower. This feature helped the project win planning permission, despite being outside the City of London's main skyscraper cluster.
All photography is by Edmund Sumner.
Starting at the 35th floor, the three-storey space is one of the reasons the structure was designed to swell outwards at the top. This also means that the building's biggest office floors boast the best views of the city skyline.
Landscape studio Gillespies was responsible for the garden design, which is supposed to look "as if you're coming across a mountain slope".
There are three terraces in total. The top one was planned to resemble a shady forest filled with fig trees and ferns, while the middle one offers a display of cycads.
The bottom level is filled with colourful sun-loving plant species, including African Lily, Red Hot Poker and Bird of Paradise, as well as fragrant herbs such as French Lavender and Rosemary.
A series of bars and dining spaces are dotted around the space. A seafood grill and a traditional British restaurant occupy the two upper levels. The bottom level houses the Sky Pod Bar, which is naturally ventilated to match the temperature outside.
In total, there is room for 400 diners at a time, plus an additional 200 members of the public who have to pre-book to gain entry.
The Sky Garden has a dedicated entrance on Philpot Lane, at the south-west corner of the building. From here, visitors make their way through airport-style security, before being directed towards two express lifts.
The restaurants opened to the public on 5 January, while the public viewing terraces welcomed their first visitors today.
Guardian critic Oliver Wainwright, who visited on the restaurants' opening day, has described the experience as "like being in an airport terminal" where "the more you pay, the worse your view becomes".
"Wherever you are in the sky garden, the views feel frustratingly distant," he said, before adding: "It is not the public park that was promised, but another private party space, available by appointment."
The controversial Walkie Talkie project hit headlines in the summer of 2013, after reports surfaced claiming that the building's curved facade was reflecting a beam of light intense enough to melt cars.
Developers Land Securities and Canary Wharf Group installed a series of vertical fins onto the facade in an effort to solve the problem, while Viñoly was forced to apologise for what he called "a lot of mistakes".
from dezeen