Cultivation and Conservation are the key aims for this Seed Bank project.

I used two key words to frame my understanding of this project: Cultivation and Conservation.

Cultivation is about the desire for my project to assist in highlighting the importance of biodiversity in our cities and the natural landscape.

Conservation is applied in my project in two ways, the conservation of the current green space in the town, the green bank, and the conservation of the historic structure of the Gardener’s House, and by extension the Castle Walls themselves, which the Gardener’s House is attached to.

The site of my project greatly influenced the project. Castelfranco's is symbolised by the Castle Walls and its towers. These walls are encircled by the green banking and a moat. This space has the potential to become a space for the community to gather in a biodiverse space. I was already considering the concept of conservation with the Gardener's House, which was previously underutilised by the town, and thus the concept of ecological conservation felt like a natural progression. A Seed Bank was a clear physical symbol of the conservation focus of my project.

The small size of the Gardener's House meant that I needed to create new spaces to fit the spaces I envisioned for the project. However, I wanted to reduce the amount of green space lost resulting in me creating a structure that was underpinned beneath the Gardener's House which extended out to be level with the riverside. This building would contain the Seed Bank, a Laboratory space and Shop. I also created a Waterfront Pavilion that with a café and outdoor deck. This would be a space for the community to gather amongst the natural landscape. In the Gardener's House, there was little space to work with as the existing staircase needed to be moved to allow for accessibility. Also, the top floor's ceilings were too low in places due to the sloped roof, however, this opened up the opportunity for a double height education space on the first floor.

The main material of extensions was a copper cladding which matched the existing colour of the brickwork and plaster. However, the texture counted these materials highlighting the differences between old and new. Additionally, in some spaces this cladding is perforated to create interesting light effects in the spaces.

Overall, I am pleased with my final design. I feel that I have created a space that can contribute to the now today but also a space that looks forward and will be useful for future generations. I am pleased that I managed to feature an education space as this allows the project to have a forward-looking stance as it seeks to educate future generation on the importance of conservation in a space that provides the means for different conservation processes.