New Design for Old Buildings

Chapter 2

Starting Points

Figure 2.00 The World Conservation and Exhibitions Centre extension to the British Museum, London, completed in 2014

Any process to adapt or extend an old building should start by establishing the real need for change and ensuring this is set out in the brief. Fierce aesthetic and philosophical debate may be sparked and, for good new design to emerge, a creative and open relationship must be forged between all parties.

Buildings echo the evolutionary process that leads people and societies to adjust and diversify, with changing times reflected in buildings through modernisation, adaptation and everyday use. Simply ...