The 'upcycled' urban allotment created an unexpected and beautiful space in the middle of London's bustling Kings Cross where people can come and eat all year round harvest and watch things grow. It is an extension to Lucy Tauber's thinking previously embodied through 'Waste', a sculptural segment of a building of the future exhibited at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition in 2009. 'Waste' was built entirely using construction industry waste found in skips, on community websites or on the street; it proposed re-use in architecture and interrogated the nature of how we build and what buildings can be for.
“Grow your own” and “home-made” are the buzzwords of today and the design of the roof terrace contributes to this debate participates to promote simple, innovative, hands-on, eco-conscious living and creates connections for the Big Chill with local communities and sustainable groups that share their agenda. The project also presents ideas of sustainability and the importance of local biodiversity to encourage insect life in urban environments.
The vertical herb garden incorporated into the perimeter structural walls also created a dialogue that informed a new seasonal menu for the group that focus's on fresh ingredients and herbs.
The allotment was formed using construction industry palettes, which were adapted on site by Lucy Tauber for use as planters. The works were carried out with Kate De Sylas, chef and horticulturalist and founder of Unpackaged in London Fields.