ABSTRACT
One of the most pressing concerns for our twenty-first century society is the challenge of the huge stock of existing buildings that have outlived the function for which they were built. Their worth is well recognised, and the importance of retaining them has been long debated, but if they are to be saved, what is to be done with these redundant buildings? Whether these are edifice of character and worth, or ordinary straightforward structures that have simply outlived their purpose, demolition and rebuild is no longer seen as the obvious solution to the continuous use of the specific site. It is now a commonplace architectural approach to reuse, adapt and add-to, rather than the building being razed and a new structure erected in its place; but too often it seems that the only possible solution is another gallery; however, a society can only support so many museums. How can the architect and designer help facilitate a new function for these obsolete structures?
