Today, Tate Director, Nicholas Serota and architects Herzog & de Meuron revealed the latest plans for the new development at Tate Modern.Instead of the glass façade originally envisaged, the building willbe enveloped in a textured brick lattice. The design links theextension much more closely to the brick structure of the existingpower station building. In the same spirit it makes a feature of theunderground oil tank spaces, keeping them as dramatic raw spaces forart {previously they were going to house an auditorium}. This dialoguebetween the found and the new is at the heart of the architecturalvision for the building.Creating a green building is also high on the agenda, and these revisedplans deliver on that front. It will use energy efficiently throughpassive design principles such as natural ventilation, seasonal daylighting, solar shading etc. But the team is also looking at installinggeothermal heat pump systems and thinking about how to use the wasteheat generated by the electrical substation that’s still on the Tatesite {you can hear the hum of the transformers when you stand in theTurbine hall}. The recovered heat could be used for warming thebuilding in winter, or heating hot water in kitchens and washrooms insummer.The building will include more varied spaces for Tate’s growingCollection and better facilities for the gallery’s educationprogrammes. It will rise 70 metres above ground in 11 storeys, and willadd an additional 21,500 sq metres to Tate Modern’s existing 35,000 sqmetres. Outside there’ll be two new public spaces – a piazza to thesouth and new gardens to the west designed for families and children.We’re aiming to get it all built by 2012, and it should cost about £215million at 2012 prices {we’ve raised £67 million so far}.  In themeantime, now that the exterior finish has been decided the projectteam will be turning their attention to the interior spaces, which iswhere the ModBlog comes into its own. Please keep sending us your comments and pictures to help the process along.
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