Re:Pair
An act of care disguised as construction.
The Water Tower
The Water Tower is an ongoing act of repair.
A late nineteenth-century structure once built to serve a nearby hospital, it stood derelict for decades before being taken on in 2018. The project began without a defined brief or programme, driven instead by a sense of responsibility towards a building at risk.
Its restoration has unfolded slowly, guided by an attitude of care rather than intervention. Work has proceeded incrementally, allowing the building’s character, material memory, and imperfections to shape each decision. The process blurs the boundaries between conservation and occupation, between architecture as profession and as daily life.
re:pair describes both a method and a mindset. It reflects a belief that repair is not simply about return to function, but about re-establishing a relationship between people, place, and time.
The Tower remains in progress, its unfinished state embraced as part of the work itself. Through it, the practice continues to explore themes of reuse, domestic adaptation, and the quiet persistence of buildings that outlive their purpose.