hedgehog building by Moxon Architects

The appearance of the building changes quite dramatically depending on the position of the viewer. The three-dimensional cladding creates an animation for the passersby. As the appearance of the building shifts from solid to transparent, the interior is revealed.

Hedgehog building
Design Team: Moxon Architects
Location: Preston, Lancashire, North West of England
When to visit: Granted Detailed Planning Permission

The Hedgehog building or ‘163 PRS / Olivers Place’ by Moxon is a 40,000 square foot office building located in the north west of England. The building is perhaps most striking for its unusual façade. While the main exterior is clad in glass, a superstructure sits on top of it featuring an array of aluminium fins on all four facades of the building.

The aluminium fins, or Reeds, are all oriented in the same direction. On the SW facade they act as a large scale brise soleil and rain screen, but appear more visually permeable on the SE facade. Early morning and winter sunlight is able to enter the building while high summer sun is excluded and so does not adversely alter the environmental conditions within the building. The Reeds also appear as a thicket of material that gives the building a striking appearance that changes dramatically depending on the position of the viewer.




The roundabout and the 3 dimensional nature of the cladding system combine to create animation as one moves towards the building obliquely along the approach roads. By turns the building appears solid and then transparent depending on the viewers position: it reveals the interior as one moves around it.The fins are definitely an aesthetic choice, but they also serve as sun and rain protection.




via moxonarchitects | Eikongraphia