Owner: Associated British Foods plc.
Developer: Oakgate (Monks Cross) Ltd
Architects:
Master plan etc.: DLA Architecture
John Lewis Unit: Brooker Flynn Architects
M&S Unit: Benoy
Next Unit: Stanton Williams
A very large and complex development that has no doubt raised difficult questions about the role of out–of-town shopping centres. But we are asked to judge the quality of what has been built rather than the decision-making behind it.
The design team, comprising four different architectural practices, is to be congratulated for making such a large and complex group of buildings so elegant and simple to grasp.
The four major buildings are quite different from each other but are handled in such a way that they work together rather than shouting each other out – as is frequently the case in developments of this sort. The M&S incorporates a delightful green wall; Next is a fine example of an all glass façade; John Lewis uses a complex sculptural form.
When Hentie Louw and I were students, we all read a book called ‘Learning from Las Vegas’ – that made us look with fresh eyes and open minds at the problem of large bill-board frontages to otherwise ordinary commercial buildings. The buildings of the Vangarde centre are a remarkable example of what careful, intelligent design can achieve.
