Michaelhouse is a great example of the sensitive introduction of modern use and life into an ancient building. The conversion, by Shona Mackay of Archimage, uses modern materials – a modern spiral stair to a modern balcony – and traditional materials – oak, stone – in a modern way. No hint here of pastiche, or “Churchwarden’s Gothic”. There is therefore an elegance and clarity to the building – it is clear what is old and what is not, and the enjoyment of this contrast creates a lyrical space with a firm sense of its history. The conversion created a cafe in the nave, which also hosts exhibitions, while the chancel retains its collegiate seating and is used for services, concerts etc; a glazed screen in the chancel arch creates a degree of separation between the two spaces.

The staging of the play makes use of both of these main spaces – the cafe for the first part (Galilee) and the chancel for the second part, where the action moves to Jerusalem. The two spaces have sharply contrasting characters, and this is used in the production to good effect. The cafe balcony, for example is used for the temptation scene, and the stair up it for the naming of the disciples, the beatitudes etc. Many of the key scenes of the second part are staged in the central aisle between the pews, which brings the audience very close to the action – the triumphal entry, Gethsemane, Peter’s denial, Emmaus etc.

Theologically the writing is (in my humble opinion) fantastic. We have the added advantage that the playwright is also in the cast, playing Pilate, allowing for detailed comments on the script. Nick has said that part of the original vision for the radio play, which was the precursor of the stage version, was that the casual listener who happened upon it would be drawn into the flow of the story, without the obstruction of overtly religious language. The ordinariness of the group around Jesus, including a number of women (as named by Luke), stands in powerful contrast to the import of the story.

Seating at Michaelhouse is limited to 70, which is the capacity of the chancel once space is set aside for musicians and lighting rig; so the show has been sold out for some weeks.

Beneath the choice of who to choose to advise on sustainability is a central question:

‘What sort of sustainability do you want?’

Do you want bolt on measures that are added as an afterthought – for example the small wind turbine mounted on a building in a built-up area? Or would you prefer solutions that are fully integrated into the building? These are often better technologies, affecting the basic fabric of the building. It is in the basic design of the building that the biggest sustainability benefits can be achieved.

For this reason, Archangel firmly believes that architects should be driving forward the sustainability agenda, and so we have developed our expertise in this area. Our aim is, as it always has been, to create ‘Good Buildings’ – not only in being attractive and meeting the function needs of accommodation, but resource-efficient buildings that wear their eco credentials lightly, that don’t preach at you.

We can call this eco-minimalism. This approach is particularly relevant for conservation situations, where the inappropriate use of technology can have a potentially disastrous conservation impact. To achieve eco-minimalist design, however, demands an architect who is fully in command of the sustainability agenda, and of tools that enable him to fine-tune a design for its sustainability impact.

Energy Balance Evaluation example

Archangel offers 3 levels of sustainability input:
1. An audit of existing accommodation from both the construction and the services points of view
2. In the context of a building project – whether new build, extension or refurbishment – we would model the existing arrangement and the proposals, and provide comparative data on the energy usage and carbon footprint of both existing and proposed. This is included within our normal architectural service at no extra cost; a sample report is shown here:
3. Where the project justifies more extensive sustainability design, we can provide more detailed modeling and energy analysis, including producing draft Energy Performance Certificates etc; we can then demonstrate the carbon impact of changes to the specification as the design is developed. This is an additional service that is charged for separately.

Belsay Hall is North West of Newcastle upon Tyne and from May to September hosted Extraordinary Measures, an exhibition of various artists including Slinkachu and (in thehouse itself) Ron Mueck. These extraordinarily lifelike figures, somewhat distended,played very well against the austerity of the disrobed condition of the building.

Best of all though was the north side of the house, originally the service spaces, where triple height spaces had been created with the removal of floors – something gloriously surreal about fireplaces high up on a wall.

And yet our physical environment in part forms who we are, and certainly helps set our expectations. The philosopher Hans-Georg Gadamer describes this as the Relevance of the Beautiful.

I had the pleasure of meeting Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, yesterday at the opening of one of our buildings, the new Cambridge Advice Hub. The Hub, created from an old industrial building, houses the Cambridge Citizens Advice Bureau, with office accommodation for other third sector organisations, and bookable training rooms. In his speech to open the new building Mervyn King praised the CAB for its crucial role in providing advice for everyone, and the building for the quality of the environment it creates – and specifically that it challenged the assumption that buildings of this sort would necessarily be down at heel.

[Photo: Cambridge Evening News]