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ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN - HIGHLY
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URBIS, MANCHESTER Architect: Ian Simpson Copper Contractor: Varla (UK) Main Contractor: Laing O'Rourke Group Client: Manchester City Council |
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As Manchester's
Millennium Project, Urbis is a landmark building providing space for exhibitions and other
cultural activities. Its design responds to the island site, following the street edge and
turning back on itself to define the entrance and form a sheltering backdrop to a new
landscaped public space. The strong sculptural form is determined by a seamless skin of
sandblasted glass of varying transparency. The dominant roof, clad in pre-patinated copper
to blend with the green hue of the glass, slopes and cants towards the city. A copper
rooflight forms an emphatic spine to the building, which extends outwards as a
'contemporary finial'. From the ground level foyer, the view up the building reveals its
section and is emphasised by a funicular lift structure.
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