e: studio@glowacka-rennie.com
f: +44 (0) 870 912 1215
t: +44 (0) 207 739 3050
148 - 150 Curtain Road
Back Building
London EC2A 3AT

 

© Glowacka Rennie Ltd  

We decided to enter the Kielder Observatory Competition because we saw it as an opportunity to explore what an observatory could be like from first principles, to challenge both programmatic and aesthetic convention of observatory design. We were fascinated by the complexity and precision of the instrument contrasted with the basic requirements of human shelter, and the idea of the precious and celestial meeting practical and earthly. We also wanted to design with nature, to take advantage of the creative friction between the wild and raw context of Kielder forest and man-made object, and to make something both artificial, and yet somehow settled into this rugged landscape.

The brief asked for each telescope housing to offer some shelter from the wind and weather when in use, and to be completely secure and waterproof when not in use. We wanted to move away from the conventional dome shaped telescope housing, and think about the actual basic needs as stated in the brief, to pair down to what is absolutely necessary. Housing closed – security and weather tightness. Housing open – flexible shelter where needed. This prompted us to explore the idea of ‘unpacking’ the housing to create the observatory and provide shelter for the astronomers. The housing, an origami type structure, pentagonal in plan when closed, unfolds using conventional hinges and castors to create a winged shelter which revolves around a circular concrete plinth, on which the telescope sits. This provides a rotating enclosure for the telescope operator who deploys and operates the mechanism single-handedly.

Unlike a conventional observatory, where the astronomer is inside a building with only a slither of sky visible, our design does not distance the observer from the sky. All those inside the observatory become instruments for observing the stars. The perfect conditions at Kielder turn human eyes into telescopes.


KIELDER OBSERVATORY,
NORTHUMBERLAND, UK

Client: The Kielder Partnership

Lead Designer: Glowacka Rennie

Strucural Engineer: Expedition
Engineering

Project Stage: Competition