Civil Justice Centre, Manchester

June 1, 2007

After an international competition, the Australian practice Denton Corker Marshall Architects was chosen to design The Civil Justice Center in Manchester. The building, inaugurated a few days ago, is the practice’s first major civic building in the UK. Conceived as a powerful sculptural element, it shows an opened architecture, meant to promote civic confidence, as this will be the new headquarter for The Ministry of Justice.

Its glazed “fingers”, accommodating 47 courtrooms, spring into the air, going beyond the building’s normal layer. They reach into the public space seeming to say that this building, with all its affairs, is accessibility to everyone. With a total accommodation space of 34,000 mp (for courtrooms, consultation rooms, offices and support space) disposed on 15 levels, this is the larges court complex built in the UK after the 19^th century Royal Court of Justice. Denton Corker Marshall Architects managed to design a building meant not only to reaches its symbolic civic role, but also to occupy its place in the existing city fabric without disturbing. Perfectly integrated and in the same time an architectural landmark with a powerful “story”.

New metropolitan architecture, Architecture Now, urban life

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Comment by Andy Marshall (fotofacade) on June 2, 2007 @ 2:13 am

I’ve posted a few photographs of this building on flickr. It is an intriguing building and it has caused quite a few comments on the posts. I think it works really well when part of the backdrop of the cityscape - because the cantilevered sections really add surprise to the vista.

Check out the set here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fotofacade/sets/72157600085282091/

Civil Justice Centre, Manchester

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