Elements of Architecture: The Window

The window room is part of the Elements of Architecture – a research-based exhibition in the Central Pavilion exploring the often overlooked but universally familiar elements of architecture used by any architect, anywhere, any time: floor, door, wall, ceiling, window, toilet, escalator, elevator…

The window used to make space, it asserted place-ness. Window seats, sills, bay windows, verandas, shutters, blinds, curtains all marked the position of the window on the façade and in the room. Since the 20th century, technological advances in window profiles and glass production have allowed many of these nuanced local components to be internalized in the window’s structures, the magically invisible window fittings. “The window became a device”

Our investigation focused on two different institutions: Sobinco NV, a window fitting producer from Belgium and the Charles Brooking Collection, the most extensive collection of English windows. Our aim in this room is to show the visitors how windows are made and shaped today compared to 50 years ago. The complexity of the window has shifted from visible exterior ornaments to invisible mechanisms. These window devices—hinges, handles, pivots, locks , etc— are now manufactured following complex production processes and according to strict regulations.

Sobinco’s imported window factory from Belgium forms the basis of this room. Real machines are polishing handles and hinges while assembled turn-tilt and pivoting window fittings are being tested. A rack with molds and small particles of window fittings produced by Sobinco is also on display. This all against a backdrop of classical English windows from the collection of Charles Brooking, salvaged from demolished English heritage – the history and the contemporary condition of the window in one space.