The drawing depicts the building's context in relation to Hanwell's Grand Union Canal, the disused Brentford Branch Railway and Warren Farm. The key colours indicate the interactions between the three building functions and the external walkways.

The first-floor plan (left) features three rotated zoomed-in plans (right), allowing clear visualisation of the internal spaces and the housing of the large gabion walls.

Two short sections display two pairs of walls with distinct functions: the archive housing the herbarium and the library (left), and the flower drying barn (right). Below, a long section depicts the interaction between the archive and the topography.

The building has two distinct personalities. The approach from Hanwell is striking with a bright red truss reflected dramatically in the Canal. The approach from Warren Farm is subtle and delicate, with the gabion walls emerging from the landscape.

Looking down the Grand Union Canal, one can see the building's urban-facing façade emerging from the dense surrounding vegetation (left). Inside the library of the archive, the afternoon light floods through the large west-facing windows (right).