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Bishop Edward King Chapel takes the Wood Awards 2013 Gold Award

 

Bishop Edward King Chapel by Niall McLaughlin Architects has taken the Gold Award in this year’s Wood Awards 2013 competition - the flagship for wood in the best of British architecture, furniture and design. Announced at the Wood Awards winners’ ceremony held on the 19^th November hosted by the Worshipful Company of Carpenters in the City of London, Bishop Edward King Chapel, Ripon College, Oxford took the Structural category prize before being crowned the winner of winners in front of more than 200 leading industry and architectural figures.

Bishop Edward King Chapel by Niall McLaughlin Architects, Gold Award

 

Chairman of the judges, Michael Morrison of Purcell UK said, “Niall McLaughlin’s Bishop Edward King Chapel is a stunning and worthy Gold Award winner. It embodies the Wood Awards celebration of excellence in design and craftsmanship in wood, and even exceeds the hope that the building might be ‘a work of art which would touch the spirit’.” The independent judging panel, which includes previous Wood Awards winners Adam Khan and last year’s Gold Award winner David Morley, Hopkins Architect’s Jim Greaves and Andrew Lawrence from Arup, praised the team for its attention to detail, careful use of materials and elegant curved glulam columns and beams which create the light and soaring internal timber structure.

The Wood Awards category winners included The Colyer-Fergusson Building in Kent by Tim Ronalds Architects for the Commercial & Public Access Award; Church Walk in London by David Mikhail Architects for the Private Award – the second year in a row this practice has won the Private category; Magheralin Parish Church in Northern Ireland by Waddington-McClure Architects for the Repair & Adaptive Reuse Award, and the undulating RoominaRoom in London by Atmos Studio for the Small Project Award.

 

The Colyer-Fergusson Building by Tim Ronalds Architects, Commercial & Public Access Award

 

Church Walk by David Mikhail Architects, Private Award

 

Magheralin Parish Church by Waddington-McClure Architects, Repair & Adaptive Reuse Award

 

RoominaRoom by Atmos Studio, Small Project Award

 

In the Wood Awards furniture categories, the Production Made Furniture Award was won by Pengelly Design’s ‘Theo Chair’, and EJ Bespoke Furniture’s chest of drawers ‘Ripples’ in 3D veneer European ash took the Bespoke Furniture Award. ‘Worldscape’, a second Atmos Studio project comprising 16 metres of continuous integrated furniture as a map of the world in Latvian birch plywood with seating for 80 people, was given the Wood Awards Judges’ Special Award.

 

 ‘Theo Chair’ by Pengelly Design's, Production Made Furniture Award

 

‘Ripples’ chest of drawers by EJ Bespoke Furniture, Bespoke Furniture Award

 

‘Worldscape’, by Atmos Studio, Judges’ Special Award

 

Chair of the Wood Awards furniture judges, Sean Sutcliffe of Benchmark Furniture, said, “Pengelly Design’s Theo chair is a remarkable piece of design and manufacturing. Ripples by Edward Johnson beautifully exploits this relatively new material of 3D veneer and is an excellent combination of restraint and flamboyance, and the extraordinary translation of a huge idea into a functional product that is Alex Haw’s Worldscape is deliciously mad and completely refreshing.” The furniture judging panel includes Katie Walker of Katie Walker Furniture and previous Wood Awards winner, Rod Wales of Wales & Wales and renowned furniture designer John Makepeace.

For the first time this year, a surfboard maker was highly commended for their work in wood. Otter Surfboards from Cornwall was praised by the judges for their creativity and exceptional woodworking as well as their work with the National Trust, and “using wood’s best properties – naturally beautiful, strong and light”.

 

Otter Surfboards were praised by the judges for their creativity and exceptional woodworking

 

This year, the Wood Awards was launched at Ecobuild in March, the shortlisted Furniture categories pieces were exhibited in person at 100% Design - the biggest event during the London Design Festival, and the full shortlist was showcased at Timber Expo in Birmingham, along with a series of talks from selected shortlisted projects. Chair of the judges, Michael Morrison said, “All the projects we inspected were showcasing both the versatility of timber as a building material as well as the great pool of talent in the design and construction industries.  Two things were particularly pleasing – the high standards of craftsmanship that we saw and, perhaps more importantly, that we were able to give awards this year to some modest schemes where the selection of timber, the design and the workmanship have produced a splendid result on a tight budget.  This must surely be the message that these awards are design to spread – that wood is a beautiful and economical material that can be used to great advantage in any building project.”

As the flagship for wood in the best of British architecture, furniture and design, the Wood Awards is made possible by the major sponsorship of the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), Canada Wood, the Carpenters’ Company, TRADA and Wood for Good. Other sponsors include American Softwoods, BRE and the Forestry Commission.

 

Click here for The Wood Awards winners chart.

For full project information on the shortlist and winners, visit www.woodawards.com.