We have a strong tradition of model making – a means of testing and expressing our ideas, and of course engaging clients in the process of design. 

Martyn Corner joined the practice in 1996 as a freelance model maker, and now runs our workshop along with his team Chris Davis and Andy Croft

What attracted you to model making as a career?

People love models. They are clearly legible and quickly explain the ideas inherent in a design from concept to materiality. We have designed at all scales. There is an innate skill set to being a model maker. You have to have an ability to see things in 3D, a fascination for detail and to be able to zoom in on architects drawing to see what matters most.

Does Hopkins have a house style for models?

Over the years our style of models has changed, reflecting changes in the wider industry. Originally we made a lot of timber models – they have a hand-crafted and tactile quality which reflects our architecture. We did go through a period of buying lots of ladies large white tights from John Lewis or Berwick Street Market. The gussets were excellent for making the fabric canopies and tensile structures we used in projects, such as the Saga Headquarters and the ticket office at Buckingham Palace. Then, as we started entering more competitions for larger complex buildings sings, we developed a style using blocks of coloured Perspex, great for differentiating different areas of the buildings.

How has technology changed what you do?

It’s made a huge difference to the way we work, and also to the speed with which we can turn around a request from the teams. We got our first laser cutter in the early 2000s – it was like having an extra member of the team. We would print 2D MicroStation drawings onto sheets, which we cut out and reassemble. Now we often print straight to 3D using a very accurate photo reactive resin which hardens when exposed to UV light. 3D printing hasn’t replaced hand-made models, it’s just added to our capacity. The model making team are proficient in 6 or 7 drawing programmes including Revit and Rhino – we often have to redraw the architects drawings to get the levels of accuracy required for model making.

What are the most memorable models you have made?

We have made some extraordinary models over the years, including some which have genuinely helped us win jobs such as The Wellcome Institute and Evelina Children’s Hospital. We once built a 1:10 section of Portcullis House. It was over 18 feet tall and costs £125,000. Another day we might be doing a topographical study in cardboard.

What is the biggest challenge?

Time. We might spend 168 hours on one model and the demand within the office is growing. In the old days I knew 6 months ahead what we would be working on but the pace is so much faster now – we might produce 50 odd models a year. We are continually investing in printers to help us work more quickly.

What do you most enjoy about your work?

We make an end product. There is a lot of job satisfaction in that. I’ve had so many opportunities here to learn, to try new things and invest in machinery. I love the design concept stage of model making – working collaboratively with the architects, sketching printing and profiling, to test ideas and help the design along. My work has taken me to some extraordinary places – I walked along the roof of the Velodrome before it opened, and I’ve been inside the chimneys at Parliament. We work at such a small scale all the time that sometimes, when I see the full size projects it blows my mind.