Ruby LUCY Hotel, Lower Marsh

Cutting through a key conservation area in Waterloo, Lower Marsh is a historic street market with a naturally faceted route that kinks and twists before converging at the point of focus; The Old Vic Theatre. The route is characterised by an irregular rhythm of individual 18th - 19th century terraces with subtle variations in plot width, roof line and masonry which remain a central pillar of the overall character of Lower Marsh.

Kyson’s scheme for an 80-bedroom boutique hotel with integrated shops and restaurant replaces a post-war development that spanned 8 historic plots. The architectural language is conceived through an extensive study of the local vernacular with the ambition of re-integrating the site into the historic streetscape with a contemporary interpretation of established design principles.

In this outcome the irregular language of individual façades overlay the ordered and subtle articulation beneath thus creating a building that is perceived as one and many.