{"id":547883,"date":"2025-11-04T06:33:26","date_gmt":"2025-11-04T06:33:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/547883\/"},"modified":"2025-11-04T06:33:26","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T06:33:26","slug":"undulating-benches-provide-versatile-public-seating-on-londons-strand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/547883\/","title":{"rendered":"Undulating benches provide versatile public seating on London’s Strand"},"content":{"rendered":"

Visitors to a recently pedestrianised public space<\/a> on the Strand in central London<\/a> can perch, lounge and relax on sculptural seating<\/a> designed by architecture firm LDA Design and fabricated by Millimetre.<\/p>\n

The bespoke seating was developed as part of LDA Design<\/a>‘s project for Westminster Council, which aimed to turn one of London’s most congested and polluted streets into a public space with seating for over 700 people.<\/p>\n

\"LDAThe bespoke seating was developed as part of LDA Design’s project for Westminster Council<\/p>\n

A 375-metre-long section of the Strand at Aldwych was pedestrianised, with interventions including landscaping, wayfinding<\/a> and biodiverse planting contributing to the improved civic space.<\/p>\n

The project, which features on the shortlist for Dezeen Awards 2025<\/a> in the bespoke category, helps to define three new spaces across the site, called the Garden Room, Spectator Edge and Activity Lawn.<\/p>\n

\"PublicIt helps to define three new spaces across the site<\/p>\n

These areas function as gathering spaces and relaxation zones for local residents, students at the adjacent Kings College London<\/a>, and visitors to attractions including Somerset House<\/a> and the Courtauld Gallery<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The benches’ curving, undulating forms introduce a sculptural element that aims to complement the landscaping and helps define the site as a versatile space for relaxation, art and performance.<\/p>\n

\"Curving,The benches’ curving, undulating forms introduce a sculptural element<\/p>\n

Each element morphs along its length to include different ergonomic profiles, from tall perches to laid-back loungers. Some sections incorporate backrests, while steel armrests provide spatial definition and improve comfort.<\/p>\n

The Garden Room seat provides a gateway to the pedestrianised area outside Somerset House and transitions into the Spectator Edge, which can be used as seating for a multipurpose performance space.<\/p>\n

\"UndulatingThe areas function as gathering spaces and relaxation zones for local residents, students and visitors to London<\/p>\n

The Activity Lawn seat forms the eastern gateway to the Strand. The curved form transitions from a double-sided bench to a seat with a backrest adjacent to the Kings College building.<\/p>\n

Each of the three 35-metre-long seats was manufactured by Millimetre<\/a> using 27 cubic metres of Accoya<\/a> timber, a modified wood chosen for its durability and stability.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Solar-textile<\/p>\n

Pauline van Dongen tops kite-like Umbra Pavilion with solar-powered textile\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

The complex forms were achieved using 3D computer modelling and a seven-axis Kuka robot was employed alongside traditional woodworking techniques to carve the unique components.<\/p>\n

The timber is overlaid onto bespoke steel frames fabricated in sections using approximately 2,872 individual parts that can be replicated and replaced if they become damaged.<\/p>\n

\"35-metre-longEach of the three 35-metre-long seats was manufactured by Millimetre<\/p>\n

All three of the seats conceal electrical cabinets and reinforced concrete structures required to mitigate hostile vehicle attacks.<\/p>\n

The cast-in-situ concrete elements were 3D scanned along with the ground plane and existing trees to ensure the seats could be fabricated to within a 10 millimetre tolerance.<\/p>\n

\"SeatingThe cast-in-situ concrete elements were 3D scanned<\/p>\n

Other examples of innovative public seating projects include designer Paul Cocksedge’s looping timber bench<\/a> in Hong Kong and a range of concrete street furniture<\/a> by Raw Edges that is designed to look like armchairs.<\/p>\n

The images are courtesy of LDA Design<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Visitors to a recently pedestrianised public space on the Strand in central London can perch, lounge and relax…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":547884,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[175860,748,393,4884,257,175861,55536,161623,126129,126912,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-547883","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-benches","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-england","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-london","13":"tag-outdoor-furniture","14":"tag-public-space","15":"tag-seating","16":"tag-sectionall","17":"tag-sectiondesign","18":"tag-uk","19":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115490037248381842","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547883","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=547883"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547883\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/547884"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=547883"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=547883"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=547883"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}