London, 2016-Jul-22 — /EPR Retail News/ — British Land has today announced that it will be supporting the UK entry at the inaugural London Design Biennale, which will be designed by internationally renowned design studio, Barber & Osgerby. The event, taking place at Somerset House from 7th-27th September, will bring together over 30 countries who are presenting new works that explore the theme of Utopia by Design, to mark the 500th anniversary of Sir Thomas More’s influential book.
This follows the recent announcement of British Land as the Headline Partner at the London Design Festival. British Land acknowledges the important role design plays in creating a sense of place. The company also has a long history of working with leaders in architecture, art and design, to create distinctive landmarks and public art installations. Its continued commitment to innovative and inspired design to create Places People Prefer forms an integral part of British Land’s approach to placemaking, creating places where people want to work, shop and live.
The UK entry, entitled Forecast, is being designed by award winning London design studio, Barber & Osgerby, and is curated by the Victoria & Albert Museum. The wind-powered installation will be located in the courtyard at Somerset House, and is inspired by weather measuring instruments to reflect the UK’s development in sustainable energy. Barber & Osgerby, who were behind the London 2012 Olympic Torch, won the Design Medal at the British Land Celebration of Design in 2015, which awards outstanding contribution to the design industry.
To continue the legacy of the first ever London Design Biennale, British Land will donate the installation to a new location in the UK to ensure it can be viewed and enjoyed by a wider community.
British Land CEO, Chris Grigg, comments: “Design is key to our ambition to create Places People Prefer; places where people want to work, shop and live. Our partnership with the V&A and the London Design Biennale, to deliver the UK’s stunning installation by Barber & Osgerby, demonstrates our commitment to innovative and engaging design which has a positive impact on local communities.”
Edward Barber & Jay Osgerby comment: “We are honoured to be designing the UK pavilion in London’s first ever design biennale and so pleased for it to be supported by British Land. British Land’s commitment to furthering design and innovation is significant and we feel fortunate to have had this platform to represent the UK.”
Notes to Editors
About British Land
We are one of Europe’s largest publicly listed real estate companies. We own, manage, develop and finance a portfolio of high quality commercial property, focused on retail locations around the UK and London offices. We have total assets in the UK, owned or managed of £19.7 billion (of which British Land share is £14.4 billion), as valued at 30 September 2015. Our properties are home to over 1,200 different organisations ranging from international brands to local start-ups. Our objective is to deliver long-term and sustainable total returns to our shareholders and we do this by focusing on Places People Prefer. People have a choice where they work, shop and live and we aim to create outstanding places which make a positive difference to people’s everyday lives. Our customer orientation enables us to develop a deep understanding of the people who use our places. We employ a lean team of experts, who have the skills to translate this understanding into creating the right places, and we have an efficient capital structure which is able to finance these places effectively.
UK Retail assets account for 51% of our portfolio. As the UK’s largest listed owner and manager of retail space, our portfolio is well matched to the different ways people shop today. We are focused on being the destination of choice for retailers and their customers by being the best provider of spaces and services. Comprising around 22 million sq ft of retail space across shopping parks, superstores, shopping centres, department stores and leisure assets, the retail portfolio is modern, flexible and adaptable to a wide range of formats.
Our Office and Residential portfolio, which accounts for 49% of our portfolio is focused on London. We have an attractive mix of high quality buildings in well managed environments and a pipeline of development projects which will add significantly to our portfolio. Increasingly, our Offices are in mixed-use environments which include retail and residential elements. Our 7.5 million sq ft of high quality office space includes Regent’s Place and Paddington Central in the West End and Broadgate, the premier City office campus (50% share).
We were awarded the 2016 Queen’s Award for Enterprise, the UK’s highest accolade for business success, for our continued economic, social and environmental achievements over five years. Our industry-leading sustainability strategy is a powerful tool to deliver lasting value for all our stakeholders. By supporting communities, improving environments and growing economies, we create Places People Prefer and enhance long-term returns. Further details can be found on the British Land website at www.britishland.com.
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About the London Design Biennale
More than 30 countries have confirmed their participation in the first London Design Biennale; a prestigious global event at which the world’s nations will present newly commissioned works in contemporary design, design-led innovation, creativity and research.
A new highlight of the cultural calendar, the Biennale will see some of the world’s most exciting and ambitious designers, innovators and cultural bodies gather in the capital for a major exhibition that will explore the role of design in our collective futures.
The London Design Biennale is a new independent production from the team behind the London Design Festival. The three-week long Biennale, comprising of an exhibition and collateral talks programme, will overlap the Festival, complementing its citywide programme of commissions and partner events every two years.
Sir John Sorrell, Ben Evans and Dr Christopher Turner are president, executive director and director of the London Design Biennale. The London Design Biennale’s International Advisory Committee and Jury includes: Paola Antonelli, Adelia Borges, James Lingwood, Jeremy Myerson, Jonathan Reekie, Martin Roth,
Victor Lo, Ana Elena Mallet, Kayoko Ota, Richard Rogers and Paula Scher.
The London Design Biennale is supported by the Mayor of London and UK Trade & Investment.
For further information and the full line-up of international entries visit:
www.londondesignbiennale.com | @londonbiennale | #LDB16
For further press information about the London Design Biennale please contact Brunswick Arts on ldb@brunswickgroup.com
About Edward Barber & Jay Osgerby
Designers Edward Barber & Jay Osgerby founded their London studio in 1996. Their diverse body of work spans industrial design, furniture, lighting and site-specific installations as well as gallery and public commissions such as the London 2012 Olympic Torch and projects for the Royal Mint. They are currently working with leading global manufacturers including Knoll, Vitra, B&B Italia, Cappellini, Venini, and Flos. Their work is held in permanent museum collections around the world including V&A and Design Museum in London, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and Art Institute of Chicago. In 2001 Barber & Osgerby established Architecture design practice Universal Design Studio, and in 2012 they founded Map, a company specializing in research and strategy-led design.
In 2007 they were awarded Royal Designers for Industry by the Royal Society of Arts and in 2013 the designers were honoured with OBEs for their services to the design industry. In 2015 they were awarded The Panerai London Design Medal .
www.barberosgerby.com
Instagram: @barberosgerby #barberosgerby #forecast
For further press information about Barber & Osgerby please contact Valentina Giani at Camron PR on 020 7420 1700 valentina.giani@camronpr.com
Press Contact:
Pip Wood, British Land
020 7467 2838
Anita Gryson
LUCHFORD APM
020 7631 1000
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- British Land to support the UK entry at the inaugural London Design Biennale to be designed by Barber & Osgerby
Source: British Land