Originally published in The Architect’s Journal in January 2019 and online at Architectsjournal.co.uk
Groupwork + Amin Taha’s retail and residential building for Aria replaces a demolished section of an Islington terrace with a deliberately misremembered concrete reconstruction.
You would be forgiven for thinking that 168 Upper Street was the cause of Amin Taha’s scuffles with Islington Council’s planning department, standing as it does in such direct proximity to ECP Monson’s Neoclassical Islington Town Hall. On the contrary, the mixed-use project for furniture boutique Aria received a standing ovation at planning committee. The 545m² scheme combines ground-floor retail with three apartments on the plot of a longtime bombsite at the northern end of a Victorian terrace. More than that, it manages to weave a commentary on monuments, memory and architectural aesthetics across its concrete façade…
Originally published in The Architect’s Journal in January 2019 and online at Architectsjournal.co.uk
