Foster + Partners has scooped two awards at ceremonies held during the Architecture Biennale last week.
The National Police Memorial Trust, designed by Foster + Partners with Per Arnoldi as artistic consultant, received a RIBA London Region Award on 23 June and will join 62 other RIBA Award winners to form the longlist for the prestigious RIBA Stirling Prize.
The memorial, sited at the end of the Mall at Horse Guards Road, takes the form of a black granite clad tablet with a glass chamber set into its face containing a book listing the names of every British policeman and policewoman killed in the course of duty. Alongside, a tall slender pillar of glass emerges from a reflecting pool, lit at night to echo the blue lamp that once burned outside every police station. The memorial, praised by the judges for achieving a sense of calm introspection, was said to be successful as a memorial for evoking a sense of past and future, sadness and pride.
Foster + Partners collaborated with Danish Graphic Artist Per Arnoldi on the memorial along with Waterman Partnership, Waterman Gore, Arup Facades, Davis Langdon, Spiers and Major and Charles Funcke.
From the RIBA Awards are selected shortlists, which are judged for further awards, including the RIBA Stirling Prize.
On 22 June, The McLaren Technology Centre - a headquarters for The McLaren Technology Group, including design studios, laboratories and testing and production facilities for Formula 1 and road cars - was awarded a Structural Steel Design Award.
The judges commented that: This temple to engineering excellence is the result of a clear synergy between a strong client and an equally strong architect. Both have been fascinated by, and demanded, perfection in this joint endeavour...the judges were almost stunned into silence by the calm environment and the quality of the construction. This building is destined to become a timeless classic.
