BowWow Haus London

There is one thing guaranteed to make London commuters break their nonchalant glaze. Few can resist the charm of a four-legged, furry friend.

BowWow Haus London capitalises on this. Organised by Outdoor Arts Foundation, the charity project has tasked 70 creatives with designing an extravagant dog kennel for a breed of their choice. The kennels will be exhibited all over London – in locations including St. Pancras International and the Four Seasons Hotel – and later auctioned off to raise money for London-based charity Blue Cross for Pets.

The participating designers were given total carte blanche. As a result, the kennels could be as flamboyant and daring as its creator desired. “One of the founding principles of BowWow Haus is to give architects and artists a platform on which to exhibit their creativity, talent and skill,” says Jay Goulde, executive director of the Outdoor Arts Foundation. “With everyday projects, architects have to worry about client expectations, health and safety requirements, building codes etc. But with BowWow Haus we gave them free rein to create a kennel of their dreams.”

BowWow Basil, is inspired by the majestic Saint Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow’s Red Square. The extravagant structure comprises a grand staircase that leads up to an ornate dome formed of delicate detailing, somewhat akin to fish scales. “The attention to detail and creativity shown on BowWow Basil is absolutely extraordinary,” says Goulde. “From the vibrant colours to details like the gold leaf on the spire, Russian for Fish has created a masterpiece.”

Although being exhibited in London, the kennels have been flown in by designers from all over the world. “When we started, we thought we would have participants from all over the UK, the fact that we have participants on board from five continents is superb,” says Jay. “Two of our kennels from Singapore travelled a staggering 10,900km to be included in the exhibit.”