The contemporary office building CARGO Work at Wapping Wharf has won a prestigious Civic Society Design Award for design excellence.
It was one of only three awards given this year, with a special plaque presented to Umberslade’s managing director Stuart Hatton.
Tucked behind the former Bristol Gaol walls, the building’s unique design features cut-down shipping containers to reflect its dockside heritage.
The Awards Panel was impressed by the unique and “fun” architectural design with the physical interaction with the historic wall limited to a hole punched in the historic wall. According to the Civic Society, the project has “maximum visual impact” when travelling from Bathurst Basin when the clearly modern containers are seen perched above the much older wall.
This is the second Civic Society Award for the much-lauded Wapping Wharf development, the initial award going to the first phase of development in 2017, which was praised for respecting the historic vernacular whilst being “modern and exciting”. Judges admired the creation of Gaol Ferry Steps, the pedestrian link connecting Southville to Bristol’s harbourside and “the imaginative use of relatively low-cost shipping containers, allowing new businesses to flourish and innovate.”
Stuart Hatton, managing director of Umberslade, owners and developers of Wapping Wharf says: “It’s fantastic to see the care and attention we’ve put into designing our new neighbourhood recognised by the Civic Society for the second time. We’ve always been determined that Wapping Wharf should respect its dockside heritage whilst bringing high quality contemporary design to this special location, and we’re delighted by the way the place has been embraced by the city.”
Both phase one of Wapping Wharf and CARGO Work were designed by Alec French Architects.