The building form is conceived as an inversion of one of the vesica shaped spiralling landscape mounds adjacent the building, together combining to create a trilogy of interconnected forms. The walls of the building angle away from the vertical by 10º and wrap around to form a rising spiral shape that can be read from both inside and outside the building.

The external envelope is clad predominantly in pre-patinated copper panels, wrapping around the spiral in rising ‘bands’, responding to and emphasing the spiralling shape and echoing the stepped form seen on the paths of the landscape mounds. The copper cladding is brought inside the building to blur the perceived boundaries between inside and outside whilst clearly identifying the basic spiral form.

The pre-patinated copper bands rise from a plinth base, also clad in copper, but in this case with an ‘oxid’ finish, contrasting with the pre-patinated above.

The ‘oxid’ copper finish is also seen on the roof, where a patented ventilated standing seam system has been utilised in a radiating pattern responding to the gently twisting profile of the roof form.

The detail of the wall and roof cladding was developed through a close collaboration between the architect and the specialist cladding contractor – W.B. Watson Ltd.