Quarterhouse Folkestone

Quarterhouse is a public performing arts venue in the historic centre of Folkestone, a port town on the south coast of England. In the 19th C Folkestone was known as an elegant coastal resort, with long beaches, frequent ferries and an active harbour. After a century of decline, the town embarked on an arts-led regeneration programme. This project is the result of a competition for a major public venue for both international and local performing artists, launched by arts charity the Creative Foundation.

This 1500sm, three storey building contains a 220 seat, 500 standing multipurpose auditorium for amplified music, theatre, film, comedy, dance performances and conferences. Supporting spaces include ground floor Foyer, Bar, Dressing Rooms, Loading Dock and Scenery Store, first floor Café/Bar and 2nd floor administrative offices for Creative Folkestone.

The architecture of the Quarterhouse operates in two ways: first, as an urban book-end, completing the terrace of late Georgian buildings that form Tontine Street; second, as a beacon, its glow and curtain-like cladding announcing Folkestone’s dynamic new cultural hub. The building’s most prominent feature, its fluted mesh cladding, is inspired by both the maritime iconography of Folkestone – shell window pediments and seaside town paraphernalia – and the translucent, waved texture of the scallop shells found in Folkestone’s harbour. Opaque white during the day, illuminated from behind and pinkish at night, the building’s façade announces the creative life within.