Glyndebourne Opera Croquet Pavilion/

Project description as provided by the Architects.

Architects BakerBrown Studio have received Planning Approval for a new event space for the world-famous Glyndebourne Opera in East Sussex. The single-story pavilion will nestle within existing yew hedges and frames stunning views out over an existing croquet lawn towards the South Downs.

This tranquil image is enhanced further when you hear about the brief BakerBrown accepted for this commission. Their clients, who previously installed a 67m high wind turbine on site eight years ago that creates more electricity than the busy site requires, were keen to make this building as low carbon and sustainable as possible; following closed-loop and circular economy principles. Therefore, this building has been designed as a ‘material bank’ and ‘designed for de-construction’ so that one day it will be a material resource for future buildings. In addition, materials are to be sourced either from the site itself, or from the nearby Sussex Weald, and many of these are materials more normally described as waste.

Gus Christie, Executive Chairman of Glyndebourne says “We are extremely excited that such an innovative building has achieved Planning Approval in the South Downs National Park. It picks up and runs with our ambitions to prove that humans can work with the natural world rather than against it.”

The pavilion is due to start on site in September 2021, following this season’s opera festival, throughout which waste material for the pavilion will be collected on site. 

Sarah Hopwood, Managing Director of Glyndebourne adds “We are delighted to announce that this project has been sponsored by a generous benefactor of Glyndebourne – The Charles Holloway Charitable Trust and therefore the pavilion will be delivered in time for the 2022 Festival”.

The design team includes structural engineers Elliott Wood who have digitally mapped the ‘embodied carbon’ to ensure this remains as low as possible. Additionally, material specialists Local Works Studio have helped the team develop a palette of building components made of waste and material flows from the Glyndebourne Estate itself. These include Ash dieback for the timber frame, windows & doors, and chalk from previous excavations to make lime mortar for brick work and plaster for the interior walls. Food waste (oyster and lobster shells) will be collected and processed into beautiful external wall tiles. Corks will be collected on site and bound with mycelium to create bricks for interior walls. Furthermore, underfired bricks from a local brickyard will be used for the interior floor finish.

But perhaps the most unusual element will be the buildings insulation. A mycelium mix provided by Biohm will use the sites grass clippings to grow insulation panels that will perform as well as the best petrochemical products on the market, whilst having its own end of life strategy; it will become compost and not a non-degradable health hazard that is taken to landfill.

The new pavilion will be an event space for people attending some of the best opera productions available. However, it will also provide the company with a teaching and learning facility for local community groups interested in the site and how to become involved in opera… and perhaps, if we are lucky, they might also want to learn about the creation of beautiful low carbon, healthy buildings made from material that is more commonly known as waste.

[Design Team]

Architect: BakerBrown Studio

Structural Engineer: Elliott Wood Partnership

Quantity Surveyor: F.T.Allen

Environmental Engineer: MESH Energy 

[Specialist Suppliers]

Biohm

Braden Timber Structures

Local Works Studio