Jan Kattein Architects reflect on 15 years of retention, re-use, repurposing and repair – and giving an antique gramophone horn a brand new steam-punk lease of life.
Jan Kattein Architects at their studio in Islington, north London. From left to right: Chandni Patel; Gareth Marriott; Sueyen Chong; Jan Kattein; Chrysanthe Staikopoulu; Rosie Park; Thomas Butterworth; Alastair Johnson; Jasmin Yeo.
For us, sustainability is as much a social as it is an environmental challenge. It is one which demands that we continually support and build capacity of those most vulnerable to the implications of climate change.
We partner with communities and 3rd sector organisations to co-create spaces that speak to a multitude of civic objectives, giving participants the social, emotional and practical skills to make a difference in the world. Our projects leave a social and a physical legacy.
Our team of 11 brings together diverse skills and perspectives for more nuanced, holistic and impactful design responses. We speak English, German, Malaysian, Mandarin, French, Cantonese, Greek and Gujarati. 60% of our team identify as women and 25% are from a global majority background.
Our process is informed by a thoughtful inquiry into the ecological, economic and social parameters that define a place. This approach generates inventive and unique design responses that are deeply relevant to the needs of the communities we work with.
Material stewardship is so intertwined with our philosophy that it’s hard to pin-point when it began. Recently, we repurposed an antique gramophone horn left over from Jan’s university project to feature in our steam-punk toilet refurbishment at the Discover Children’s Story Centre.
Why would you ever want to discard a thing that has character, patina and traces of a time gone by? Re-used materials have stories to tell and storytelling is a powerful tool to connect people with places.
Retention, repair and repurposing of sanitaryware, doors, windows, flooring, steel, and furniture is only the beginning. We design for flexibility and to accommodate change by using demountable and re- deployable structures, we in-build latent capacity and we share sustainable construction skills through community building.
For 15 years our work has helped to redefine how social and environmental policy is implemented. We have prepared four planning policy guidance documents and spoken to more than 10,000 people in connection with our work.
Jan Kattein Architects
N1 7AA
