Pews and Perches provides playful seating to London's Royal Docks

A round seat constituted of deadstock bricks and an s-shaped bench are among the many inventive seating designs which have been put in all through the Royal Docks as a part of this yr’s London Competition of Structure.

A collaboration between the London Competition of Structure (LFA) and the Royal Docks Staff (RDT), the Pews and Perches competitors, now in its fourth yr, calls upon rising architects and designers to create playful seating for public areas inside London’s industrial Royal Docks district.

This yr’s 4 successful benches responded to the LFA 2023 theme of “in frequent”, which poses questions on how we create and form shared areas.

Float was made by slicing and layering deadstock bricks

“We had been delighted by the superb, revolutionary and bold proposals put ahead by 40 candidates,” mentioned Daniel Bridge, Programme Director of the RDT.

“They had been exhausting to slender down, however we’ve got chosen 4 unbelievable designs that champion variety – each by way of the designers and the designs themselves,” he added.

“The judges had been desirous about designs that challenged the conventions of each building and the supplies used. Fittingly, we ended up with benches constituted of three of essentially the most plentiful supplies within the docks: wooden, brick and metallic. Every with its personal putting visible influence.”

Pews and Perches — The bench attracts on the economic brick buildings of Royal Albert Wharf

Float, by London-based structure and design duo Akasaki Vanhuyse, takes cues from maritime objects and the curved type of the close by Royal Albert Wharf.

The spherical, faceted bench was made by slicing and layering deadstock bricks in a bid to pay tribute to the economic buildings of its setting, whereas subverting the conventions of the fabric with its softened form.

The benches will keep put in for a yr following LFA, so the designers largely opted for heavier-duty supplies able to withstanding the British climate.

Together We Hold by Akmaral Khassen — Collectively We Maintain seems to hold the burden of the sitter

Knowledgeable by occasions starting from the Mahsa Amini-protests in Iran to the Ukrainian struggle and its influence on ladies, Akmaral Khassen’s Collectively We Maintain bench goals to be a celebration of ladies standing collectively and creating shared secure areas.

Positioned in Lyle Park, the colorful plywood-clad metal bench was designed to look as if 4 ladies are carrying the burden of the sitter.

The Round The Neighbourhood bench was a winner of this year's Pews and Perches — Spherical The Neighbourhood reuses supplies from one among final yr’s successful designs

Additionally amongst this yr’s successful designs is Spherical The Neighbourhood, a seating association that pulls on round design rules by reusing supplies from Andre Kong’s A Cautionary Bench/Mark, which was amongst final yr’s winners.

Conceived by London Design and Engineering College Technical Faculty college students Nicolos Makatsaria and Jericho Cabalan for the school’s campus, the seating association is designed round a central revolving seat that’s surrounded by others of various heights, sizes and colors.

The bench goals to convey folks collectively to share tales and trade cultures.

Equally hoping to spark dialog between members of the general public is London-based Studio Groove’s Chit Chat Chair, situated inside the Royal Victoria Dock’s Floating Gardens.

Crafted from 100 timber batons held along with metal braces, the s-shaped bench goals to supply a extra social various to the everyday linear park bench by inserting sitters in an unusually intimate composition.

Chit Chat Chair by Studio Groove — Chit Chat Chair is constituted of 100 timber batons

Pews and Perches types a part of the Royal Docks’ official programme throughout LFA 2023, which is happening throughout town all through this month. It’s also a part of On the Docks, a brand new arts, tradition and occasions sequence operating within the district till September 2023.

Final yr’s successful Pews and Perches designs included tactile papercrete stools and a bench constituted of high-density polyethylene plastic sourced from group waste.

Different benches featured on Dezeen embody a sequence of textured, animal-shaped benches by Ukrainian designer Victoria Yakusha that had been designed in direct response to Russia’s invasion.

The pictures is by Luke O’Donovan.

London Competition of Structure takes place from 1 to 30 June 2023 at numerous places throughout London, UK. See Dezeen Occasions Information for an up-to-date listing of structure and design occasions happening all over the world.