14 REFURBISHMENT & RESTORATION Bowling Green Lane By Ruth Slavid IN REFURBISHMENT EVERY BUILDING IS DIFFERENT. AND WHILE ONE CAN APPLAUD A SENSITIVE RE-USE OF A BUILDING OF OBVIOUS QUALITY, IT IS EVEN T his is the case with the refurbishment of 33 Bowling Green Lane, by Ben Adams Architects. If you looked at it quickly you would see a pleasant brick structure with crisply detailed windows. When you entered the generous reception area you would be aware of the use of quality materials, and would enjoy the open office spaces and light-filled atrium. This is a good quality project, you would think, but nothing out of the ordinary. MORE IMPRESSIVE WHEN AN INTELLIGENT ARCHITECT TURNS A BUILDING THAT APPEARS TO BE OF LITTLE WORTH INTO A PLEASANT, CONTEMPORARY SPACE. But the real achievement is in the level of transformation that the architect has achieved in this former 1930s print works. And here I must admit to a personal interest. Whereas now the building is occupied by tenants including architect Wilkinson Eyre and charity Action Aid, it housed magazines for many years. With minimal floor to ceiling heights and a deep plan, the building was frequently airless and always depressing. Through a number of intelligent moves, Adams has taken a fundamentally sound building and saved it from the scrapheap where I at least believed that it deserved to be. In fact this was not one building but two, linked around a courtyard, with a bridge at the front. ‘The key was to say that we don’t need the courtyard,’ explained Ben Adams. ‘We put a bridge across the back and this made the floors work well. Every floor gets a glassy open space.’ The courtyard becomes an atrium with a glazed roof, and generous balconies with splashes of colour provide walkways and make it possible to let the floors in halves if necessary. ?