The Veggery: A playful greenhouse pavilion lands at London's Barbican Estate

A new greenhouse pavilion called The Veggery has opened within the Barbican Estate in London, designed by Studio Folk Architects and Raskl. The project marks the closure of the 2026 London Festival of Architecture and was awarded through a competition. The structure features a hexagonal footprint, a vaulted polytunnel roof, water butts doubling as columns, and a turnip finial. It blends traditional English greenhouse typologies with the Barbican's brutalist architecture, particularly its barrel-vaulted roof. Giant paper collages created by students from the City of London School for Girls adorn its translucent façade. The pavilion serves as a greenhouse, event space, classroom, and lunch spot, aiming to foster community engagement. Patrick O'Keefe of Studio Folk Architects expressed excitement about the installation, while Dan Rose of Raskl highlighted the collaborative effort with Culture Mile BID and the site's significance at St Giles. The project was supported by NLA and the Culture Mile Business Improvement District.