The Barbican Conservatory

The Barbican Conservatory is a much-loved urban oasis where immersive planting meets monumental Brutalist architecture. It is famed for its dramatic and lush greenery - around 800 separate species - which includes some rare and endangered flora. The Conservatory was built around the 100ft tall Theatre fly tower, from which scenery for productions on the stage - six stories below - is lowered into place. As well as its striking contrast of concrete with vibrant planting, the Conservatory has an innovative bespoke steel structure and aluminium-framed glazing, with planting beds formed from the brick paving used across the Estate.

Barbican Renewal

Barbican Renewal is the plan to ensure every part of the Barbican Centre’s iconic site is restored, revitalized and relevant for future generations. The Conservatory is one of the first major projects to be progressed and received planning permission in early 2026. It will close to the public at the end of the year for a three-year project. Despite the dedication and skill of our horticulture team, the Conservatory has faced persistent challenges: ageing glass, problematic heating and cooling systems, and outdated horticultural infrastructure that make maintaining the plants a constant uphill battle. The original layout is inaccessible with many steps, stairs and narrow pathways. Crucially, the decades-old waterproofing has failed and the Conservatory leaks into the Theatre below. The Conservatory will be completely refurbished as part of Barbican Renewal. This creates an opportunity to deal with some of the historic challenges and to sensitively revitalise the space, returning some features to their original locations and providing full level access to every area of the space. The Conservatory will be completely replanted during Barbican Renewal with a new scheme which reflects the Barbican’s brutalist style and is rooted in the principles of ecobrutalism. The revitalised Conservatory will be a free, welcoming and accessible public green space that celebrates and honours the bold vision conceived by the Centre’s original architects, Chamberlin, Powell and Bon. In tackling the infrastructural issues, opportunities arise for a series of subtle yet high impact improvements to how the Conservatory is experienced.

Expert talks and tours

On the day, visitors will be able to hear talks and tours from the Barbican's Head Gardener, architects Allies and Morrison who are leading the Renewal design team and landscape designers Harris Bugg Studio. Please note, you will need to book an 'Entry to Conservatory and plant adoption event' ticket in addition to a ticket for any tour you wish to join, so that you can access the space. The Centre's horticulture reuse partner Wayward Plants will be running a plant adoption event, so that visitors can receive a free cutting from the Conservatory to grow at home. These will be limited to 125 plants per session, with a maximum of one plant per visitor. In addition to the Conservatory activities, we will be offering short welcome tours of the Barbican Centre, departing from the Shop at Level G at half past each hour from 11.30-4.30. Tickets can be booked for all slots. Walk-ups will be accommodated depending on capacity at the time.