Farmacy: Samantha Lee

The London Yields exhibition currently on show at The Building Centre in London investigates the unexploited possibilities for urban agriculture in London. Two of the most visionary schemes presented at the London Yields are Farmacy by Samantha Lee and King’s Vine London by Soonil Kim-King, both students from the Architectural Association. Farmacy is a proposal for a farm which grows, manufactures and sells medicinal herbs. The scheme envisages the herbs being grown within nests along the brick wall of Regent’s Canal. The iconic gasometers house the factory production and its machinery where the herbs get washed, dried, ground and distilled: prepared for commercial use.

King's Vine: Soonil Kim-King

King’s Vine London is a design solution for an aerial vineyard by Soonil Kim-King, an Intermediate student in Unit 3, at the AA.

King's Vine: Soonil Kim

Kim-King’s impressive design was inspired by the reticular structure of railway networks between St Pancras and King’s Cross station. Although his proposal has a surreal cinematic quality, which recalls Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner, the vineyards have a realistic calculated production capacity of 10,000 bottles of red wine every year. The intermediate Unit 3 at the AA is run by Nanette Jackowski and Ricardo de Ostos.

Urban Agriculture Curtain: Bohn & Viljoen with Hadlow College

For the more grounded inner city residents tempted to embrace the urban agriculture trend imposed by the recent credit crunch and the soaring prices of food supplies, London based practice Bohn & Viljoen Architects (in collaboration with Hadlow College) has developed a suspended vertical structure for growing vegetables. The Urban Agriculture Curtain – which provides the window display for the duration of the show – will be growing salads and herbs to be harvested (and promptly replaced) every two weeks for consumption in The Building Centre’s Café.

Capital Growth: James Potter

Part of the exhibition is also The Capital Growth campaign scheme, which aims to create 2,012 growing spaces by 2012. In its first phase, Capital Growth aimed to establish 50 new growing spaces in London. In the long term the campaign hopes to give practical support to communities as well as getting involved directly with landowners and planning issues.

Croydon Roofscape: AOC

London Yields is at The Building Centre 9 April – 30 May 2009