Virtual Building Tour – 1 Finsbury Avenue

Following on from the successful launch of its “Virtual Building Tours” in July 2020, which replace live building tours currently curtailed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the AIA UK Chapter held the second in its series on 13 Aug 2020. Paul Monaghan, a founding director of the RIBA Stirling Prize winning architecture practice Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM), led an informative and stimulating virtual tour of the recently completed 1 Finsbury Avenue, a Grade II listed building by Arup Associates (Peter Foggo, 1984). Paul was joined by Tom Wells, Senior Architect at AHMM and Morag Myerscough of STUDIO MYERSCOUGH, an artist and designer who was part of the overall design team.

The Arup Associates’ designed office block was built from 1982 to 1984 and is one of the 14 post-war office buildings to be given Grade II listed status by Historic England earlier this year.  Paul Monaghan credited Arup Associates and 1 Finsbury Avenue as “having set the exemplar for future commercial architecture in the UK, introducing major innovations in construction methods and materials from the US and adopting a whole new approach to the design and planning of an office block.”  The tour highlighted how AHMM’s signature retrofit of adapting a high-tech, high-finance icon to attract a younger, less corporate tenant mix.  The refurbishment and restoration project highlighted an elegant transformation of a “corporate,” office environment into physical and virtual shared spaces and office services for entrepreneurs and companies.

1 Finsbury Avenue may be one of the most highly regarded office buildings within the City of London creating a new destination with an exciting mix of flexible workspaces, cinema, retail and restaurants.  The refurbishment is part of the on-going reinvention of British Land’s Broadgate estate that will also include AHMM’s 1 Broadgate. British Land’s Broadgate development re-establishes the public route through 1 Finsbury Avenue as an important element in activating its ground floor and connecting the building with Finsbury Avenue Square and the broader Broadgate campus. 

Delivering ‘Atoll’ - a new 7.5m tall mosaic tiled installation designed in collaboration with artist Morag Myerscough –  to the centre of the lower atrium played an important part in the project’s place making. The installation is an inspiration, offering insight on how this architecturally important and flexible office building has been reimagined.  No 1 Finsbury Avenue is setting a new aesthetic standard for a modern breed of speculative office buildings. Its repurposed, open, well-lit atrium is a rare element, providing the building with a series of internal facades and bringing life to its reinvented internal street.

The AIA UK Chapter will continue to host virtual buildings tours throughout the year offering architects the opportunity to visit notable buildings that have particular design interests in the UK and abroad.

Written by Gregory Fonseca, AIA