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Yardhouse was a temporary artists’ and designers’ workplace at Sugarhouse Yard in East London, and its colourful, handmade concrete tiles gave the simple building a lively, scale-like appearance. Assemble arranged the tiles in a random assortment over an off-the-shelf cladding system rather than documenting a measured or engineered “scale” pattern.
The 12-by-12-metre studio contained 16 workspaces around a double-height central atrium. Its timber post-and-beam structure, adaptable open interior and reported cost of just under AUD 1.5 million made it a demonstration of how short-term vacant sites could support creative work without relying on specialist construction methods.
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What was London’s Yardhouse?
Yardhouse was a temporary collaborative workplace created by the London architecture collective Assemble at Sugarhouse Yard in East London. The project was conceived as a practical demonstration: a site with a short-term vacancy could be occupied by artists and designers instead of remaining unused while longer-term plans were developed.
That temporary brief shaped both the building’s straightforward construction and its social layout. Rather than treating the workplace as a permanent office block with fixed rooms and conventional finishes, the design used a simple timber frame, a readily available cladding system and an interior that could change as occupants’ needs changed.
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Architecture & Design’s 17 July 2014 profile reports the project details and credits the information to Assemble, with a “Courtesy Dezeen” attribution. It is an editorial project account, not a set of technical drawings or a construction specification.
How did the handmade concrete tiles create a “scaly” façade?
Assemble handmade colourful concrete tiles and placed them in a random assortment across the exterior. The changing colours and irregular visual rhythm are what give photographs of the building a scaly impression: the surface reads as a field of overlapping or repeated pieces rather than as a flat, uniform wall.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems“Scaly” should therefore be understood as a visual description, not as evidence of a particular tile geometry or a tested façade system. The source does not state that the tiles were shaped like animal scales, arranged to a mathematical pattern or designed with a specific interlocking profile. It describes a random assortment of handmade tiles and the way that treatment enlivened the public space in front of the studio.
The distinction matters because the appearance alone cannot establish how the cladding performs. No tile dimensions, concrete mix, pigment recipe, surface treatment, joint width or fixing detail is supplied in the project profile. Those details would require primary construction documents or a technical account from the designers.
Why was the façade treated as a field of coloured pieces?
The tile treatment gave a modest temporary building a recognisable public face. A basic timber structure and standard cladding could have looked anonymous; the handmade pieces introduced colour, variation and evidence of making at the edge of the site. Architecture & Design specifically describes the tiles as enlivening the public space in front of the studio.
That strategy also fits the project’s collaborative purpose. Handmade components can make a workplace feel like a shared project rather than a sealed commercial box, while an assortment allows variation without requiring every piece to be identical. The source does not document a colour schedule or explain who fabricated each tile, so the safest conclusion is limited to what is reported: Assemble made colourful concrete tiles and used them in a random arrangement to animate the façade.
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For painters and colour practitioners, the useful lesson is compositional rather than technical. Colour was not confined to an interior mural or sign; it was distributed across repeated exterior units so that the building’s identity could be read from the surrounding public realm. The project offers an example of colour working through repetition, contrast and irregularity, without proving that any particular pigment or coating would perform in another setting.
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What was the building’s construction system?
The reported construction was deliberately uncomplicated: a simple timber post-and-beam structure paired with an off-the-shelf cladding system. The profile also says that non-specialist construction methods, together with support from the London Legacy Development Corporation, helped deliver the project.
“Non-specialist” does not mean that the building had no professional design or approval requirements. It means the account presents the methods as accessible enough to support a temporary, collaborative project rather than depending entirely on a bespoke industrial process. The source does not identify the contractors, tools, timber sizes, structural calculations or procurement route.
The concrete tiles were handmade for this façade, but the article does not explain whether they were cast on site, produced in a nearby workshop, or attached by a specialist subcontractor. It also does not state how the tiles were supported, ventilated, drained or replaced. Readers should not infer those details from the photographs or from the word “off-the-shelf.”
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Yardhouse measured 12 by 12 metres and contained 16 studios arranged around the perimeter. A double-height atrium ran through the middle, creating a shared central volume instead of filling the plan with enclosed rooms.
The arrangement puts individual work areas at the edge and collective space at the centre. Each studio could function as a distinct base, while the atrium provided visual and social connection between occupants. Because the source does not give a measured drawing, door schedule or circulation diagram, the perimeter arrangement should be read as the reported organising principle rather than a complete account of every room or route.
The central void also makes the compact footprint legible. Sixteen studios within a 12-metre square necessarily require an efficient plan, and omitting internal partitions helped preserve that efficiency. The project profile does not give the floor area of each studio, ceiling heights beyond the description “double-height” for the atrium, or the number of storeys, so those figures cannot be calculated reliably from the published summary.
Why were there no internal partitions?
The studios omitted internal partitions so the spaces could adapt to different uses and encourage collaboration. In a workplace for artists and designers, activities may change from desk work to model-making, fabrication, meetings or display. A fixed cellular plan would make those changes harder; an open arrangement leaves more room for occupants to negotiate how the building is used.
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This flexibility was especially relevant to a temporary building. Short-term occupants may have different equipment, group sizes and working patterns, and the building was intended as a demonstration of temporary use rather than a finished, permanent institution. The absence of partitions is therefore both a spatial decision and a response to uncertainty about future users.
Open space is not automatically successful for every activity. The source does not discuss acoustic separation, storage, heating, ventilation, accessibility or fire compartmentation. It supports the narrower point that the design deliberately avoided internal partitions to keep the studios adaptable and collaborative.
How did the temporary-use brief influence the architecture?
Yardhouse addressed a common problem in redevelopment areas: land can sit vacant between one use and the next. By placing a working community on the site for a limited period, the project treated the gap as an opportunity rather than dead time. The building’s modest scale and straightforward frame suited that interim role.
The façade helped make the temporary occupation visible. Colourful tiles announced activity to people outside and gave the public edge of Sugarhouse Yard a more distinctive character. That does not mean the tiles were removable, reusable or designed for a particular relocation sequence; the source supplies no such information. It means the temporary workplace was given a civic presence instead of being concealed behind an anonymous enclosure.
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What was the reported budget?
Architecture & Design reported a project cost of just under AUD 1.5 million. That is the figure and currency used in the 2014 source; it should not be silently converted to pounds or a current equivalent.
The amount is a headline project cost, not a published breakdown. The source does not separate design fees, structure, cladding, tile fabrication, site preparation, services, labour, approvals or later removal. Nor does it state whether land costs, taxes or support from the London Legacy Development Corporation were included. Comparisons with other temporary workplaces would therefore require matching definitions of cost before drawing conclusions.
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Because the project profile dates from 2014, the figure describes the historical report rather than a current construction price. Inflation, exchange rates and changes in labour or material costs mean it cannot be used as a present-day estimate for a similar building.
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What can be confirmed about the tiles, and what remains unknown?
The confirmed facts are limited but clear:
- Assemble made the tiles by hand.
- They were concrete and colourful.
- They were distributed in a random assortment across the façade.
- The treatment was intended, in the source’s description, to enliven the public space in front of the studio.
The published account does not provide tile dimensions, weight, reinforcement, aggregate, pigments, curing method, sealant, surface texture, thermal movement allowance or replacement procedure. It also does not describe the attachment to the off-the-shelf cladding system. Without those details, it is impossible to assess weathering, fire performance, structural loading or maintenance requirements from the article alone.
That evidence boundary is important for anyone trying to reproduce the look. A photograph may suggest a particular mould, glaze or fixing, but none of those can be identified reliably from the available data. The project is best understood as a documented design idea and spatial arrangement, not as a build-it-yourself specification.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What does Yardhouse show about colour in temporary architecture?
Yardhouse demonstrates how colour can give a short-lived building a strong identity without changing its basic structural logic. The timber frame and standard cladding provided the economical envelope described in the source; the handmade tiles supplied variation and visual focus. In that sense, the façade separated construction efficiency from visual monotony.
The random assortment is also a useful reminder that a lively surface does not require a single large image. Repeated small units can create texture at a distance and reveal individual colour differences close up. That observation is an interpretation of the reported arrangement, not a claim that the designers followed a formal colour theory or measured viewing-distance study.
For painters considering architectural work, the project raises practical questions: how will colour read in changing daylight, how much variation is intentional, and how will a pattern meet corners and openings? Yardhouse’s source does not answer those questions, but its façade makes them visible. Any new project would need its own specifications for pigment stability, substrate compatibility and maintenance.
How should the “scaly façade” description be read?
The phrase is a compact way to communicate the building’s visual character. It should not be mistaken for a technical classification. The source reports a random assortment of handmade colourful concrete tiles; it does not document a scale-shaped module, a repeating algorithm or a performance-tested rainscreen.
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Reading the phrase this way keeps the architectural idea and the evidence aligned. The façade is notable because a temporary studio received a tactile, colourful exterior made from individually produced pieces. Its interest lies in the contrast between a simple construction system and a highly articulated surface, not in an undocumented claim about exact geometry.
What is the most accurate summary of Yardhouse?
Yardhouse combined a temporary-use brief with an adaptable interior and an expressive exterior. Assemble placed 16 perimeter studios around a double-height atrium in a 12-by-12-metre plan, left out internal partitions so the spaces could change with their users, and used a simple timber post-and-beam structure with off-the-shelf cladding.
Handmade colourful concrete tiles, arranged randomly, transformed that straightforward envelope into the scaly-looking façade described in coverage. The reported cost was just under AUD 1.5 million, with support from the London Legacy Development Corporation and non-specialist methods helping the project reach completion. Beyond those facts, the technical record is incomplete: the source does not establish tile specifications, fixing details, performance data or the building’s current status.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was the Yardhouse project reported?
Architecture & Design published its project profile on 17 July 2014. The article credits the project information to Assemble and includes a “Courtesy Dezeen” attribution.
Was Yardhouse intended to be a permanent studio complex?
No. It was conceived as a temporary workplace for artists and designers on a site with a short-term vacancy. The available account does not state how long the building remained in use or what replaced it.
Can the façade tiles be specified from the published article?
No. The profile confirms handmade colourful concrete tiles in a random arrangement but gives no dimensions, mix design, pigment formula or fixing method. A construction-ready specification would require separate technical documentation.
Who supported the project’s delivery?
The report identifies support from the London Legacy Development Corporation alongside the use of non-specialist construction methods. It does not provide a detailed funding schedule or name every organisation involved.
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