It has been just 300 days since ground was broken in North Greenwich for Venue Lab’s newest venture; Magazine London has now officially opened its doors. This purpose-built destination is the largest of its kind in London, offering a striking blank canvas across 3,205m2 of industrial-style space for up to 3,000 people standing; the site also features a 7,000-capacity outdoor showground, boasting unbroken views across the river towards Canary Wharf. This brand-new, multi-use venue provides an unrivalled landscape for brand events, awards dinners, conferences, exhibitions, fashion, the arts and ticketed culture.
The venue was designed by architects Nissen Richards Studio, which designed the V&A Lecture Theatre and National Waterways Museum in Gloucester. The warehouse-style, external steel structure of the building displays a slick, horizontal saw-tooth cladding set against the vertical city skyline of Canary Wharf. A bespoke sign sits proudly above the entrance and is backlit to project a silhouette of the venue’s logo. Devised by brand developers, Carter Studio, Magazine London’s name draws on modern connotations, in the sense that a Magazine is an all-encompassing form of media, welcoming all types of content. The logo uses redaction to censor the venue’s brand identity, enabling the hirer to take over the building and make it their own.
Although industrial in design and material, the building also features an impressive eight metre high, floor-to-ceiling glass window that perfectly frames a breath-taking view and brings an abundance of daylight into the space. The interior fit-out comprises over 2,100 OSB boards to bring a warmer wall finish to the warehouse-style design of the building. In total, the project used 13.96 miles of timber, as well as 149,713 screws and 757.5 litres of paint to stain the venue in a specific shade of black; RAL 9005. This black palette is also mirrored in the venue’s polished concrete floor, steel skeleton, production truss and even the outdoor, limestone patio to achieve a unified finish.
The project is a collaboration between Venue Lab (innovative space creators), Vibration Design and Production (technical production specialists), Moving Venue (catering experts) and Knight Dragon (property developers). Vibration Design and Production have invested over £1.2m as the venue’s exclusive partner, installing a state-of-the-art lighting and sound system which will remain in-situ all year round.
The venue has already attracted a wide variety of high-profile, public and private events ahead of 2020. From brand events, awards dinners, conferences, exhibitions, fashion, the arts and ticketed culture; there are 22 events confirmed between September 2019 and the end of the year. Upcoming events include Michael Bibi Presents Isolate, World Travel Market’s International Travel and Tourism Awards and Stylist Live LUXE. The venue hosted Desperados’ ‘EPIC HOUSE PARTY’ last weekend (Saturday 7th September 2019), in which 3,000 attendees crossed its threshold to mark Magazine London’s official opening.
Simeon Aldred, Group Strategy and Creative Director, Vibration Group said: “Magazine London is set to become an integral part of the capital’s events landscape. We are thrilled to announce the opening dates for the venue, with an amazing calibre of events lined up towards 2020 and onwards. This is a huge milestone for the development of Greenwich Peninsula, and to have created a brand-new cultural venue here is crucial in adding to the cultural diversity of the area.”
Author: Adam Parry
Adam is the co-founder and editor of www.eventindustrynews.com Adam, a technology evangelist also organises Event Tech Live, Europe’s only show dedicated to event technology and the Event Technology Awards. Both events take place in November, London.
