In East London, Poplar Works sees the transformation by Adams & Sutherland Architects of 100 disused garage spaces into vibrant creative studios, workshops, and manufacturing units for local fashion businesses, training, and community makers. The project aims to ‘bring back’ fashion to East London, which once made up a substantial part of its economy and culture.
The refurbished garages accommodate ground-floor units with a new upper storey constructed in cross-laminated timber (CLT), with a weight equivalent to the accumulated soil, trees, and shrubbery removed from the roofs of the original garages.
The main building measures 170 m in length and 5.5. wide, with a cranked plan. The architects selected a black rubber cladding to finish for the highly insulated elevation adjacent to the A12 highway and also for the roof surface. On the other facades, timber cladding, stained in shades of red and orange, is used to give the scheme a warn, legible identity. Sawtooth rooflights with an industrial character are further incorporated to bring in natural light.
In terms of form, the north end of the building rises to form an entrance element. A café and first-floor gallery here overlooks a 9-meter high interior space. Overall, however, circulation is external, by way of the street on the ground floor and an external steel walkway on the first floor.
The ground floor is industrial in its nature, with painted steel structure and existing blockwork walls, with surface-mounted services. On the floor above, CLT panels are left exposed and designed to provide a warm and low-maintenance interior aesthetic. Units are lit by translucent polycarbonate panels to preserve privacy.
