DESIGN & ARCHITECTURE

ARCHITECTURE MASTERCLASS - VI

Introduced by Edward Nash of Edward Nash Architects on 15 June 1998

Edward Nash’s affection for the City and its architecture were revealed as he presented some of the highlights of his work produced during the 10 years his practice has been established in Bath.
He began by showing views of his own cottage which is located along the Kennet and Avon Canal, trying to anticipate the curiosity often shown by the public about the type of house an architect actually chooses for his own residence. His firm’s offices, illustrated next, are also located along the same canal. The offices were formally the property of the Somerset Coal Company.
Most of his projects have involved adding to or adapting existing buildings to serve different functions. His slides covered a Victorian Rectory where a swimming pool was added, and a Nursing Home developed for the Quakers. A guiding principle used in many projects was how to simplify the designs. For some of the work set in environmentally sensitive settings he referred to the Picturesque Movement for inspiration.
One of his longest-running projects located in the Cotswold area demonstrated the complications of the planning process and the wide range of items which must be considered in developments today - anything from owls, to bats, to badgers and water courses. In this particular example wildlife and highways were both critical in dealing with the environmental issues.
In pursuing competitions, he explained some of the considerations required to be successful. Their recent success in a competition for a project situated near the Severn Bridge involved red brick cottages reminiscent of the industrial revolution. He had a choice of doing what was right or what was safe. In this case, the firm did what it thought right and won.
The speaker then showed some designs associated with its proposed conversion of Walcot Yard. He emphasised the need to build on the current character while making greater utilisation of the site. His plans call for retaining workshops on the ground floor and constructing the upper floors for residential accommodation. Along the river, commercial development is proposed. ‘A key to keeping the Walcot Street character is individual ownership,’ he said.
The Belcombe Estate, near Bradford-on-Avon belongs to Mr Welland, a film producer. To date Mr Nash has designed a logia near the existing swimming pool and other water features, as well as special individual gateposts. Much more is planned and this work at Belcombe House is expected to continue for some time.
During the question session, Mr. Nash was asked about the motivation and aspirations of the Wellands in relation to their garden..
Betty Suchar

As this was the final Architecture Masterclass, Victor Suchar, who planned and organised the series, reviewed how each of the six speakers had brought his individual philosophy and approach to design into his talk, and then through illustrations of recent work had elaborated on how these ideas had been achieved. He stressed that the series had shown, for the first time, the considerable talent and diversity of approach existing among the architects in Bath, and how much we had learned from the discussion of specific projects.