BFI London Imax
Client: British Film Institute
Cost: £12m (Arts Council of England Lottery Funded)
Status: Completed May 1999
This 500-seat large screen IMAX cinema was built for the British Film Institute (BFI) and opened in May 1999. It is by far the largest screen in Britain.
This area of the South Bank had long been notorious for crime and rough sleeping but through the support of the local Council, MPs and community groups, it has been transformed into a lively landscaped pedestrian oasis with new public artworks and cafe.
The sophistication of the projection system is matched by the construction technology. The site is surrounded by traffic and with the Waterloo and City tube line just 4 metres below the surface, the entire upper superstructure sits on anti-vibration bearings to prevent the transfer of noise.
The form of the building responds to the hostile acoustic environment too. The site is a sunken traffic island on one of the main routes into London and is completely surrounded by traffic. The full height glazed gallery not only provides an added zone of acoustic separation but also expresses externally the character of the activities within.
The gallery was intended also to provide an opportunity for holding a new annual art event in London - an open competition for the design of the gallery artwork, the first commission being an extraordinary mural by distinguished British artist Howard Hodgkin.
The public spaces around the base of the building were no less important. The aim was to counterpoint the bleak concrete fastnesses of the South Bank with a new garden 'oasis', like Xanadu, a fabulously planted space at the end of the labyrinth of tunnels.
A copy of the Architectural Review article can be downloaded in PDF format from the ARplus website.
Peter Davey, Editor, Architectural Review, July 1999.
"A magnificent contribution from Bryan Avery... this project and building is a huge success."
Pru Skeene, Chair of the Arts Council.
"The IMAX will be a landmark for the new millennium... it is part of the continuing development of the South Bank and a further fine example of the work of British Architects."
Chris Smith MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport.
