Longlisted – MacEwen Awards 2023

We are delighted to announce that our The Lexi Cinema & Lexi Hub project in Kensal Rise has been longlisted in this year’s MacEwen Awards.

A huge thank you to our amazing client and project team for making it such a success: 

• Client: The Lexi Cinema
• Architect: RISE Design Studio
• Structural engineer: CAR Ltd
• Main contractor:  CBC Design & Build
• Services engineer: Enhabit
• Sustainability Consultant: Kaspar Bradshaw
• AV Consultant: Omnex Pro Film 
• Cinema Technical Specialist: Sammy Patterson 
• Screen + Projector Pod Specialist: Powell Cinema Engineers 
• Intruder Alarm Specialist: NSS Security Solutions 
• IT Specialist: Blashford IT Support 
• Landscape consultant: Dan Shea Garden Designer 
• Acoustic consultant: Munro Acoustics 
• Approved building inspector: Quadrant
• Wayfinding Designer: Zalacain Wayfinding 

We are very happy and grateful  for the excitement and curiosity generated by the 99m2 Lexi cinema  extension. It’s a truly humbling experience.

RISE Design Studio is elated to announce the completion of the refurbishment and extension of The Lexi, a cherished gem in the heart of London and the city’s only social enterprise cinema, nestled in Kensal Rise.

A beloved asset to the local community, RISE brought back to life a 99 sqm piece of empty land in the rear parking lot of the historic Edwardian gabled brick theatre . Teaming up with The Lexi, we consulted Brent Council who guided us away from the initial idea of a formal beer garden  due to noise considerations. Instead, they proposed a potential enclosed second screen . And voila! RISE began to visualize an eco-friendly second cinema and bar , aiming to accommodate the expanding community programme and boost the revenue for The Lexi’s ecological charity endeavours . With Brent’s instrumental support, the project – affectionately named The Lexi Hub – was guided by continuous advisory, ensuring a delicate balance between planning policy and community needs.

Thanks to a successful two-year fundraising campaign, boosted by grants from Brent NCIL, a generous £50,000 contribution from the Mayor of London’s community fund , and heartwarming local donations, The Lexi and RISE submitted a planning application endorsed by 1,211 local signatories. The construction, filled with hope and anticipation, kicked off in July 2020.

Nestled in a residential area, The Lexi Hub demanded a thoughtful design approach, considering the intimacy of neighbouring homes . Driven by community partnership, RISE envisioned an extension that reflected the same affection and care for the community that The Lexi continues to receive from its loyal patrons . The design of a sunken extension, dug 1.5m down to reduce the massing of the new Lexi Hub, ensured the addition only rises 2m above the neighbouring garden wall and also facilitates level access from the car park. The Lexi Hub can now accommodate up to 30 viewers with flexible space for wheelchair users, panel discussions, and events and also houses a brand-new bar .

In order to minimize visual bulk, the design drew inspiration from neighbouring roofs, using in situ cast concrete arches that lean away from neighbouring gardens at a 45º angle . Reclaimed London stock brick and buffed stainless steel reflecting the sky above were used to beautifully blend the extension into its surroundings. As a token to nature, a lush green wildflower roof was installed . Prioritizing sustainability, The Lexi Hub was designed to minimize heat loss and energy usage, featuring an MVHR system for regulating temperature and air quality, a pioneering move in UK cinemas! 

Sadly, during the construction, a fire  caused significant smoke damage to the original Screen One, requiring a thorough refit of the existing interiors. Yet, RISE managed to salvage precious period details and characters, including the original parquet flooring which was restored and reinstated in the Box Office . The unfortunate incident was an opportunity to breathe a new life into the cinema’s facilities and spaces. Raw blush plaster and black walkways now serve as subtle guides, leading patrons from the Box Office to a glimmering side extension, and onto a newly refurbished bar, ending at Screen Two .

Life and movies  are about embracing the unexpected, and at The Lexi, we’re all set to face the future together, armed with the magic of cinema!

A complete list of the longlisted projects is available on the RIBA Journal website. The winners will be announced at the end of January and in the RIBAJ February 2023 print edition.

A review of the project by Chris Foges with photographs by Henry Woide was featured last August in Architecture Today, please see here for the article. 

If you would like to talk through your project with the team, please do get in touch at mail@risedesignstudio.co.uk or give us a call on 020 3949 8471

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