The Hive at Kew Gardens

BDP

Kew Gardens, London

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Temporary pavilion

Individual buildings

Winner Artas-ua.info Institute Awards 2016

£1.3 million

3482m2

13 June 2016

To relocate the Hive from Milan to Kew as a cost effective, yet visually stunning, temporary installation that delivers the strong message of the decline of the world’s bee population. The installation will form part of a wider strategic approach by Kew to enhance its educational and scientific research offer.

Design Considerations:
• Hive to be positioned on an existing grass mound
• Amount of cut & fill (and earthworks) to be minimised
• Special attention to be paid to existing trees due to their intrinsic importance
• Method of retaining the mound around the Hive to be carefully
considered, from both a cost and visual perspective
• Lightweight bridge link will be required to access into Hive. Length of bridge to be kept to minimum, to reduce size/weight of structure, keep costs down and minimise size of foundation(s) required etc
• Views to Hive to be maximised from the Broad Walk (running alongside
the Western edge of the site), with views from the Orangery (situated
to the North of the site) also to be considered
• The Hive is to be accessible to all, without the need for a lift, steps or ramps (with handrails and tactile paving) where at all possible
• A time capsule buried on the top of the mound is to be repositioned as close to the existing position as possible
• Power/data for the Hive is to be taken from the existing infrastructure
running through or alongside the site

Artas-ua.info practice: BDP; client: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; artist and creative lead: Wolfgang Buttress; principal contractor: Stage One; structural, electrical and civil engineer: BDP; structural engineer, the Hive: Simmonds Studio; acoustic consultant: Hoare Lea

The experience of the Hive at Kew Gardens is visual, audible and can also be experienced through vibration using bone conductors below the Hive.

The Hive itself is intrinsically linked to a real beehive within Kew gardens. An accelerometer (vibration sensor) registers movements of the bees within the beehive, which feeds live signals to 1000 LED luminaires within the Hive sculpture. The visual experience is enhanced by a soundscape in the Hive and the surrounding landscape, based around pre-recorded bee sounds and accompanying music.

As the meadow develops and various plant species come into flower, these
sounds and sights will be accompanied by real bees within the meadow, creating a multi-layered, multi-sensory experience.

Hard surfacing throughout the installation is formed using bound stone and recycled car tyre rubber. This creates a sustainable and fully permeable surfacing solution which allowed us to drain the scheme without any visible drainage points.

The scheme design required a steep embankment to be formed to accommodate level change and envelop the Hive. A bespoke retaining solution was developed to allow the planting to establish and thrive to ensure the design concept of the meadow continued throughout.

The team worked closely with Kew Gardens and Wildflower Turf to develop a wildflower mix which would primarily provide an attraction for pollinators,
but also create a beautiful setting for the Hive sculpture throughout all seasons.

Due to the relatively short timescales associated with the project and the public use of Kew Gardens, it was imperative that the wildflower meadow should be established when the installation opened in June 2016. To achieve this display, Wildflower Turf were commissioned to grow the wildflower meadow on to be lifted in May, in the same way that general turf is used. This allowed the Hive structure and associated groundworks to be completed prior to installation of the meadow, which was laid in a semi-established state within two weeks of construction completion.

The general wildflower landscape mix with 34 native
species and 3 grasses forms the primary mix:
The species mixture consists of:
3 Grasses:
Crested Dogstail, (Cynosurus cristatus), Sheep’s Fescue,
(Festuca ovina), Slender Creeping Red Fescue (Festuca
rubra ssp. littoralis)

WILDFLOWER MIX:
Autumn Hawkbit, (Scorzoneroides autumnalis)
Betony, (Stachys officinalis)
Birdsfoot Trefoil, (Lotus corniculatus)
Bladder Campion, (Silene vulgaris)
Cats Ear, (Hypochoeris radicata)
Common Knapweed, (Centaurea nigra)
Common Sorrel, (Rumex acetosa)
Common Vetch, (Vicia sativa ssp. segetalis)
Common Toadflax, (Linaria vulgaris)
Cowslip, (Primula veris)
Field Scabious, (Knautia arvensis)
Greater Hawkbit, (Leontodon hispidus)
Lady’s Bedstraw, (Galium verum)
Meadow Buttercup, (Ranunculus acris)
Meadow Cranesbill, (Geranium pratense)
Meadowsweet, (Filipendula ulmaria)
Musk Mallow, (Malva moschata)
Ox Eye Daisy, (Leucanthemum vulgare)
Perforate St John’s Wort, (Hypericum perforatum)
Ragged Robin, (Lychnis flos-cuculi)
Red Campion, (Silene dioica)
Ribwort Plantain, (Plantago lanceolata)
Salad Burnet, (Sanguisorba minor)
Self-heal, (Prunella vulgaris)
Tufted Vetch, (Vicia cracca)
Wild Carrot, (Daucus carota)
Wild Marjoram, (Origanum vulgare)
Wild Red Clover, (Trifolium pratense)
White Campion, (Silene latifolia)
Yarrow, (Achillea millefolium)
Yellow Rattle, (Rhinanthus minor)

The central area of wildflower border turf contains all
the above in the mix, the following 19 non-native
species:
Gold Alyssum, (Alyssum saxatile ‘Compactum’)
Californian poppy, (Eschscholzia californica ‘Ballerina’)
Blue flax (Linum perenne, ‘Blue Sapphire’)
Large flowered Self Heal, (Prunella grandiflora ‘Freelander
mixture’)
Alpine Rock Cress, (Arabis alpine ‘Rosea Grandiflora’)
Blanket Flower, (Gaillardia aristata ‘Primavera’)
Diamond White Flax, (Linum perenne ‘Nanum Album
Diamond’)
Rock Soapwort, (Saponaria officinalis)
Alpine Rock Cress, (Arabis alpine ‘Corbeille d’argent’)
Wallflower, (Cheiranthus cheiri ‘Tom Thumb’)
Alpine Forget-me-not, (Myosotis alpestris)
English Marigold, (Calendula officinalis ‘Fiesta Gitana’)
Chrysanthemum, (Chrysanthemum maximum nanum ‘Silver
Princess’)
Hyssop, (Hyssop officinalis)
Modern Border Pink, (Dianthus plumarius)
Candytuft, (Iberis umbellata)
Golden Tickseed, (Coreopsis tinctoria ‘Illico’)
Common poppy, (Papaver rhoeas)
Daisy, (Bellis perennis)
Additional species will be plug planted to extend and
strengthen the flowering periods.

The native hedging consists of the following:
Hawthorn, (Crataegus monogyna)
Blackthorn, (Prunus spinosa)
Wayfaring tree, (Viburnum lantana)
Guelder rose, (V. opulus)
Common Privet, (Ligustrum vulgare
Field maple, (Acer campestre)
Dog rose, (Rosa canina)