The new within the old at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange

Posted on April 2, 2019April 2, 2019 by carlotta

The new within the old at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange

I have been photographing the huge beautiful windows of the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange for nearly two years now. I love that they never look quite the same depending on the time of day, the quality of light, the stage of renovation, with panes of glass and without, and sometimes covered by large sheets of semi-opaque plastic.

The amount of work that has gone into their refurbishment is enormous. The size and shape varies for every pane of glass, meaning that each one has to be individually fitted into its specific place. I counted 185 panes in just one of the 11 large windows of the main hall. In all, this has been a monumental task.

It was very exciting, therefore, to see the finished result this week. Several fully renovated windows were freshly painted and pointed and sporting all new glass. Within these shiny panes you can see the reflection of the new modern extension. This white steel and glass box creates a dazzling light-filled space where the exterior becomes the interior and the beautiful old windows are in pride of place.

More photographs of the refurbishment of the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange can be found here.

Please get in touch if you would like to discuss how we can work together. I deliver photographs that delve deeper than showing just the surface of things.

A magnificent window

Posted on September 27, 2018October 2, 2018 by carlotta

Brighton Corn Exchange window

Isn’t this beautiful? It is one of the windows at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange after refurbishment but still awaiting its many of panes of glass (I just counted space for 185 of them). I have repeatedly been drawn to photographing these huge windows while documenting the redevelopment of this beautiful 200-year-old building. They are magnificent in all their guises, even with broken panes and peeling paint, but to finally start to see them renewed is very pleasing indeed.

Cataloguing with my camera the changes that a building like this undergoes during renovation has many satisfying moments. I find a beauty in all stages of the process, the early messy broken phases through to the clean and ordered final stretch. This build still has a long way to go to completion, but it is offering up glimpses of how spectacular the finished product will be. More photographs of the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange can be found here.

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Dappled light of the Stephen Lawrence Trust Centre

Posted on May 8, 2018June 20, 2018 by carlotta

Dappled light of the Stephen Lawrence Trust Centre

The construction work at the Stephen Lawrence Trust Centre is complete, so my part in the project is finished and the blossoming of the Centre into a co-working hub for up-and-coming architects has now begun. It has been a joy to photograph this building and to watch it spring to life. I come away feeling grateful that my skills could have a very practical application in helping a charity that I believe in deeply. What more can one ask for.

For my final shoot, I needed a particular light to capture the sense of welcome of the building. When the sun comes into the foyer in the early evening there is a

transformation of the space. The shadows cast by the Chris Ofili window screen onto the white walls are reminiscent of sun filtering through a forest canopy. This dappled light also helps to define the volume of the space, increasing an awareness of the unusual triangular shape and high ceiling of the room. The new orange corridor that welcomes you through to the back of the building is even more vibrant in this light. The combination of great architecture (David Adjaye), great art (Chris Ofili) and great design (Gensler’s interior design team) have coalesced to create magic. You can see more photographs of this project, and how far it has come in the past year, by using this link.

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Chris Ofili’s design looks like snow

Posted on February 9, 2018June 1, 2018 by photograph

Chris Ofili’s design looks like snow

The Stephen Lawrence Trust is transforming into a co-working hub for architects, designers and creatives and I have been documenting this building process.

As you have no doubt seen from my previous photos of the week, the introduction of orange is very significant to the new design for the Centre. On my most recent

visit, the strip of lights under the balcony edge were on, turning this little corner so warm and vibrant it made Chris Ofili’s beautiful window screen look like snow in the background.

You can find out more about all the great things that the Stephen Lawrence Trust does here, a link to the new co-working hub website here and more of my photographs from this site here.

New oranges and yellows

Posted on January 26, 2018June 1, 2018 by photograph

New oranges and yellows

I was back at the Stephen Lawrence Trust again this week where things are getting very colourful indeed. The yellow that was being refreshed is the original colour of the stairwell. The orange is new and is now filling the corridors that link the front of the building with the back, bringing a shaft of light and life through the heart of the

Centre. This is part of a larger plan of creating a beautiful new co-working hub for start-up businesses working in the built environment. You can find out more about all the great things that the Stephen Lawrence Trust does here, and more of my photographs from this site here.

Brighton Corn Exchange window

Posted on January 12, 2018June 1, 2018 by photograph

Brighton Corn Exchange window

I wanted to start the year off right with a photograph of the glorious Brighton Corn Exchange. I am documenting the redevelopment of this iconic building, a process that is adding new visitor facilities and restoring long-lost heritage features to this historic performance space. The Corn Exchange has the most beautiful

windows that I come back to over and over again, trying to capture their grace and elegance in photographs. On my most recent visit, this window was misted over, giving solidity and definition to its shape. The sunlight on the buildings across the courtyard reflected a warm glow onto the grid of glass panes.

Tag: documentary photography