Werk Studio's TREE|HUB: Conversing with designers inside a tree house

The TREE|HUB is a timber tree house built 3 meters off the ground in a backyard in Peckham, London. Werk Studio—a collaborative team of design students from Goldsmiths-University of London—initiated the non-profit project for the London Design Festival as a pavilion for hosting a conversation series with featured designers until Sept. 22.

With its relaxed atmosphere and intimate size, the project fits with Werk Studio's mission of "bridging the gap between academic environment and professional practice." During each conversation, a featured designer and a small group of visitors can exchange opinions, sketch ideas, and simply chat in a space that's cozier and less commercial unlike an auditorium. And although the tree house is small, the clear roof creates a sense of openness.

In essence, tree houses can be for adults too!

Keep reading to learn more about the project right below.

"Elevated conversations with designers inside TREE|HUB at Peckham for London Design Festival

TREE|HUB designed by Werk Studio is a tree house that hosts a series of conversations with designers. Rising 3 meters off the ground, this unique clear-roofed timber pavilion is in fact the first London Design Festival installation in Peckham. It extends the boundaries of the festival fitting perfectly into its tagline 'Design is everywhere'.

Until the 22nd September, TREE|HUB breaks the interaction of knowledge exchange of the auditorium, providing an intimate space for conversations without commercial purpose. The project manager of TREE|HUB, Belen Palacios says "We often see renowned designers having conversations and an audience looking at them, whereas a wider interaction with the audience would make the conversation more interesting. TREE|HUB asks a designer to have a chat with strangers on a tree house. The pavilion lives in a backyard at Peckham, in the most mundane space of London because this is where magical things happen.

James Bridle, Daniel Charny, Dominic Wilcox, Tuur van Balen, PAN studio and Judith Carr hosted conversations last week. The participants ascended the ladder with smiles on their faces before proceeding with their conversations. TREE|HUB creates a space where adults disinhibit themselves and become more playful. The egalitarian space unifies the participants in the conversations, breaking with the traditional format of an auditorium talk.

This week Tobie Kerridge, Des Freedman, Gregory Epps (Robofold), Sarat Babu (Betatype), Stuart Bannocks, Clara Gaggero (Vitamins), Rachel Falconer and Lawrence Lek (Hardcore Software) will host free conversations with limited seats from Thursday to Saturday

The timber pavilion is Grown in Britain and uses locally reclaimed materials. It has a clear roof and open windows that provide a spectacular view of the sunset in the evenings. TREE|HUB is open until late alongside pop-up bar LOT.9, so it's an ideal space to finish your visit to the festival. Prebook one of the 10 tickets at treehub.co.uk

TREE|HUB is accessible for free to the general public.

Project credits:

"Design team: Birute Bikelyte, Charles Duffy, Mariana Fabris, Lorenzo Iandelli, Belen Palacios & Katinka Schaaf

TREE|HUB has become a reality due to collaboration. ISA Professional Development Award has provided mentoring and funding. It has been created and built at Goldsmiths, University of London with the advice of its experienced staff. TRADA and Grown in Britain have partnered with TREE|HUB to produce a sustainable structure with locally sourced timber. The wood has been sponsored by English Woodlands Timber and Norbord. The reclaimed timber and acrylic was provided by The Building Centre, Economic Skips and Gregory Signs."

All images courtesy of TREE|HUB.

Click here to learn more. You can also visit TREE|HUB on Facebook, Twitter, or read their blog.

 

Lastly, check out the thumbnail gallery for more images.