SEPTEMBER 2009

THE BOTANIC INSTITUTE IN CAMBRIDGE

Luke Hughes and Company has just been appointed to design and procure all the purpose-made furniture for the new Botanic Institute in Cambridge. The new building, designed by Stanton Williams , is being built in the Botanic Gardens of Cambridge University and is being funded by the Gatsby Charitable Foundation. The building is fine example of the one of the principal tenets Luke Hughes and Company's design philosophy, that in any good building, the connection between the architecture and the furniture should be seamless, creating a sense of 'rightness', functionally and aesthetically. Most buildings have neither function nor purpose without furniture: inappropriate pieces grossly undermine great architecture. The skill lies in matching the two: a building should be embellished by use, not embarrassed by it. Completion is expected in late 2010. Project Managers are Hannah Reed and Associates Upon completion at the end of 2010, the Sainsbury Laboratory, funded by the Gatsby Charitable Foundation, will become home to 120 scientists and 30 support staff all dedicated to answering this question - to discovering and understanding just how plant diversity arises and evolves.

Images:
1. Tom Molyneux, Luke Hughes and Company designer discusses the project with Gavin Henderson and Henry Willams at Stanton Williams architects.
2. The Botanic Institute takes shape.


© Luke Hughes & Company September 2009

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