Laban Dance Centre
Reinforcing sense of place and character through robust signs and artwork
Strong yet sensitive artwork to bring a vibrant contemporary dance centre to life.
Laban is a contemporary dance centre in Deptford, South East London, and recipient of the 2003 Stirling Prize for Architecture. Holmes Wood collaborated with architects Herzog & de Meuron to create and implement the building’s wayfinding scheme and information graphics. We also worked with artist Michael Craig Martin to realise a large, permanent artwork to wrap around the centre’s main theatre. So as not to compete with Craig Martin’s strong palette, we adopted a black-and-white approach for the signs, reinforcing the contrast between light and colour on the one hand, and an industrial aesthetic on the other, which is central to the building’s sense of place and character.
Client: Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance
Architect: Herzog & de Meuron