client: barlows plc and the church

A Grade 2 Listed building on which the façade was retained and Manchester’s first true atrium office building was developed behind.
Using geometry and materials we juxtapose and overlap old and new and in plan, the front facade is at an angle of about 12 degrees to the rest of the building. The stone of the facade is allowed into the lowest level of the atrium, but its detailing is clearly new. A contemporary glass and stainless steel canopy emerges through the face on the geometry of the main building. Echoes of the 12 degree difference occur in the detailed handling of the form.
Using a range of robust materials, we have tried to develop a contemporary language appropriate for 20th Century Manchester.