About the competition
The Royal Parks in London are among the greatest public spaces in the world and free, clean and fresh drinking water is vital for their visitors.
Thanks to a generous donation by the Tiffany & Co Foundation, we were able to launch a competition in partnership with The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and The Royal Parks for a new design of a low-cost, attractive drinking fountain to be installed in a number of locations in the Parks.
Why launch the competition?
As with many of the parks across the UK, there are a lack of drinking fountains in the Royal Parks. This is likely to be due to:
- lack of availability of a well-designed, hard-wearing, good value, public drinking fountain that conforms to all the modern standards
- several of the showpiece water features and many of the public drinking fountains in the Royal Parks – some of them generations old – needed to be refurbished or replaced.
Therefore, we wanted to improve the provision of fresh, healthy, energy-efficient drinking water in The Royal Parks and other public spaces – by commissioning the design of a new, top-quality, low-cost, model drinking fountain.
It is also vital to provide visitors with an attractive, sustainable alternative to the vast numbers of plastic water bottles disposed of in the Parks.
The competition itself
The objective of the competition was to find a design – and designer – for this new model drinking fountain.
This two stage International Competition was launched on 14 June 2010 by the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson. It was open to individuals or teams from any design discipline and from any part of the world.
Entrants were asked to incorporate the following requirements into their drinking fountain design:
- Appear aesthetically pleasing in the Royal Parks historic landscape
- Display a high quality standard
- Be robust and practical to maintain
- Suitable for the British climate
- Water-efficient
- Adhere to H&S and DDA standards
- Be easily replicated on a budget of £3,750 including VAT
- Adaptable to various situations
The first stage was anonymous; entries were given numbers by RIBA, and only at shortlist stage was anonymity lifted. Shortlisted designers were then invited to present their Stage One concept to the jury panel and answer a series of Q&A’s.
The judges
Michael Freeman
Michael was the panel's chairman. He is a Trustee of the Royal Parks Foundation and founder, with his brother, of Argent Group, the company spearheading central London’s largest development, King’s Cross Central. Michael and his family generously donated the Freeman Family Fountain to Hyde Park in 2009, which acted as the catalyst for this design competition.
Fernanda Kellogg
Fernanda was the jury panel’s representative from the Tiffany & Co. Foundation. Fernanda is Chair of the Board of The Tiffany & Co. Foundation, which was established as a philanthropic foundation in 2000. The Foundation has a thriving environmental conservation programme and, in addition, fosters design excellence by supporting organisations dedicated to design and the decorative arts.
Paul Williams
Paul was the jury panel’s RIBA Adviser. He founded the architectural practice Stanton Williams in 1985, with Alan Stanton. He has been responsible, with Alan, for the creative direction of the studio since its inception and, as a director, is responsible for many of the studios award winning projects. In 2005, he was elected a Royal Designer for Industry (RDI) for sustained excellence in design throughout his career.
Paul Finch
Paul was the jury panel’s CABE advisor. He is currently the chair of CABE, the Programme Director of the World Architecture Festival and editor emeritus of Architectural Review and Architects’ Journal. Paul has chaired CABE’s London 2012 design review panel since 2006.
Andrew Graham-Dixon
Andrew is a leading art critic and TV presenter. He is Chief Art Correspondent for the Sunday Telegraph and a Turner Prize judge, as well as board member of the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead.
Sara Lom
Sara is Chief Executive of the Royal Parks Foundation, the charity for the eight Royal Parks. She has previously managed a 90-acre estate in the South of France, worked in the fine wine trade in St James’s and was Deputy Managing Director of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra until she joined The Royal Parks nine years ago.
Robin Levien
Robin was the jury panel’s product design specialist. With his colleague of 20 years, Dave Tilbury, he has designed some 15% of all bathroom suites currently sold in the UK. In recognition of his sustained excellence as a designer, Levien received the distinction of Royal Designer for Industry (RDI) from the Royal Society for Arts in 1995.
Dennis Clarke
Dennis is Senior Park Manager at The Royal Parks. He has managed St James’s Park, amongst others, and has extraordinary knowledge about anything and everything to do with the Parks and their visitors.