Lighting up a Manchester icon
We’re onsite with the final stages of Avro, the Grade II* former Brownsfield Mill in Manchester which we’re transforming into some of the city’s largest homes. They’ve been designed by Manchester architect Roger Stephenson; here he tells us about his work on the building and a special, bespoke design piece that will greet future Avro residents...
I’m particularly fond of Avro and cannot wait to see our designs come to fruition in a few weeks’ time. This building is packed with fascinating Manchester heritage; Lowry was rent collector here and it was home to the AV Roe aviation company – meaning that warplanes were created within these walls before then being expertly lifted out of the canalside windows onto the water and transported away.
It’s the aviation heritage which has most captured my attentions during this project and I’m delighted to see that Urban Splash has worked to celebrate and preserve it – not least with the building name.
I myself have also just completed a project to preserve more of the AV Roe history; this bespoke light fitting will greet residents as they enter the double height entrance lobby when the building completes.
My inspiration? The AV Roe bi-plane; this design is an abstraction of two wings of the plane and I’m so proud to have designed and built it myself.
I hope it will compliment other intricate pieces within Avro - such as the industrial light fittings found in each home – and help us establish a contemporary building which has embraced its fascinating past.
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