MSA Stage 4 School of Architecture

Daniil Solomou

Urban Building

GBPT Institute
520 Sauchiehall Street | 343 Renfrew Street

The proposed GBPT Institute brings the public realm indoors, creating a new “Glasgow Room” within the city’s network of historic spaces. It honors Glasgow’s architecture through its materials and preserves heritage while keeping collective memory alive for future generations.

A deliberate break in the urban grid connects Sauchiehall Street with Renfrew Street, extending the public space and transforming the site into an open, welcoming civic setting. The spatial experience unfolds like a theatrical journey, moving through compressed and open areas before arriving at a central multifunctional space. This shifting scale and rhythm deepen public engagement.

In line with GBPT’s focus on adaptive reuse, the central hall accommodates a range of uses, from performances and markets to gatherings or quiet reflection. Its flexibility keeps it responsive to Glasgow’s daily life.

Through this blend of heritage and contemporary design, the GBPT Institute becomes a living part of the city, carrying its architectural story forward.

 

Urban Housing

Tradeston

The proposal introduces a flexible, modular housing system that reinterprets Glasgow’s tenement tradition for contemporary living. A structural stone façade grounds the building in its historic context, while a steel frame allows for future reconfiguration. This adaptability ensures the architecture can evolve with social and demographic shifts.

Unit diversity supports a wide range of residents, promoting inclusivity and resilience. Shared gardens, co-housing blocks, and mews foster a strong sense of community. Internally, the project balances formality and informality, structured street frontages give way to more intimate, expressive interiors.

By combining modular design with reclaimed materials and contextual sensitivity, the scheme becomes a living, evolving framework that connects past and present while anticipating the needs of the future.

Contact
daniel2002solomou@gmail.com
D.Solomou1@student.gsa.ac.uk
Digital Portfolio
@danielsolomou
Projects
Urban Building
Urban Housing

Urban Building

Architectural Position

Glasgow Building Preservation Trust Institute

The proposed GBPT Institute seeks to extend the public realm inward, creating a new “Glasgow Room” within the city’s continuum of historic spaces. Rooted in the ethos of the Glasgow Building Preservation Trust, the project repurposes heritage architecture to serve contemporary civic life, ensuring Glasgow’s stories and built identity remain alive for future generations.

A key design move introduces a break in the urban grid, connecting Sauchiehall Street and Renfrew Street to form an accessible civic threshold. The spatial journey unfolds as a theatrical procession—transitioning from compression to openness—culminating in a grand multifunctional hall. This central space, constructed in sandstone as a tribute to Glasgow’s architectural fabric, is conceived as a flexible venue that accommodates a variety of uses: from public talks, markets, and exhibitions to moments of quiet rest and reflection.

Rather than over-prescribing the programme, the design leaves the space open to interpretation, empowering the community to shape its purpose. The building acts as a beacon, its structure emerging from the monolithic stone base, echoing the city’s historic landmarks while signaling a vision for the future.

Through this synthesis of preservation and innovation, the GBPT Institute becomes more than a building— it is a living civic room that adapts with the rhythms of the city, celebrating both its heritage and its evolution.

 

Site, Sequence, and Experience

With the programme arrangement guided by the site’s history, a theatrical procession into the main public space unfolds through the primary Sauchiehall Street entrance. This journey is defined by a sequence of spatial compressions and releases, moving through the existing building. It begins with a moment of compression, offering a glimpse of openness, followed by another constriction, and finally expanding into the grand openness of the main space. A large curtain at the threshold between the existing structure and the new space further transforms the experience, altering the user’s perception with each visit. The spatial and material qualities of the main space also shift with the time of day and the nature of the activity, whether it’s a casual stroll, a public talk, a market, or an evening event.

 

Program Diagram

Parti Diagram

Axonometric

Technical Axonometric

Worms Eye View

Birds Eye View

Long Section

Sectional Axonometric

Plans

Sauchiehall Street Visual

Renfrew Street Visual

Elevation Model

1:20 Model

Cross Sections

Cross Sections

Block Model

Urban Model

Urban Housing

The proposal introduces a flexible, modular housing system that reinterprets Glasgow’s tenement tradition for contemporary living. A structural stone façade grounds the building in its historic context, while a steel frame allows for future reconfiguration. This adaptability ensures the architecture can evolve with social and demographic shifts.

Unit diversity supports a wide range of residents, promoting inclusivity and resilience. Shared gardens, co-housing blocks, and mews foster a strong sense of community. Internally, the project balances formality and informality, structured street frontages give way to more intimate, expressive interiors.

By combining modular design with reclaimed materials and contextual sensitivity, the scheme becomes a living, evolving framework that connects past and present while anticipating the needs of the future

Manifesto

Manifesto

Block Axonometric

Block Axonometric

Alternatives

Units

Massing

Ground Floor Plans

Generic Upper Floor Plans

Sections

Sectional Axonometric

Axonometric

Material Collage

Internal Visuals

Artefact