Brutal utopias: the National Trust launches a new tour series
The National Trust launches a new tour series
Brutalism's image makeover is reaching its zenith, surely, with the National Trust – that bastion of period properties – jumping on the brutal bandwagon. The institution is hosting 'Brutal Utopias: a National Trust celebration of brutalist architecture', with exciting behind-the-scenes tours of some of the most important brutalist structures in London, Norwich and Sheffield.
Championed by young pioneering architects determined to reinvent social housing after the Second World War, brutalist homes replaced bomb-damaged slums. But despite the optimism, they were too often poorly maintained. What had been crisp concrete sometimes ended up as a sink-estate.
Sheffield's 1961 Park Hill housing estate, which is on the National Trust's itinerary, was an example of all that was wrong with the movement. Its architects Jack Lynn and Ivor Smith were heavily influenced by Le Corbusier's Unité d'Habitation in Marseille, hence the al fresco corridors or 'streets in the sky'. However, Park Hill suffered from social issues and neglect, and was only saved from the wrecking ball by being Grade II* listed in 1998. Studio Egret West and Hawkins\Brown are now renovating it for developers Urban Splash.
On tours of the Southbank's Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Hayward Gallery in London, visitors will get to admire the original fixtures and fittings that are normally off-limits, before the buildings close for a two-year, £24m refurbishment by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios.
In Norwich, tours will be conducted around the University of East Anglia, whose campus was designed by Denys Lasdun, architect of the National Theatre. Perhaps visitors will catch a glimpse of the £8m redevelopment of Norwich's Westlegate Tower, which is being transformed from a defunct 1950s eyesore into luxury apartments by 5th Studio.
As well as the on-site access, the National Trust is arranging a romp around London aboard a 1962 Routemaster Coach. Tours will take in concrete delights including Frederick Gibberd's Lansbury Estate; Chamberlin, Powell and Bon's Barbican Estate; the Alexandra Road Estate by Neave Brown; and Ernö Goldfinger's Trellick Tower. A must for fans of brutalism's concrete charms.
INFORMATION
Visit the National Trust for timings and information on the tours
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
-
Boise Passive House’s bold gestures support an environmentally friendly design
Boise Passive House by Haas Architecture combines sleek, contemporary design and environmental efficiency
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Tour the Morgan Motor Company’s Worcestershire factory
The Morgan Motor Company might seem timeless – or even dated – but underneath the handcrafted aluminium bodywork is a manufacturer with great skills and grand plans: we take a factory tour
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Don’t miss: Thea Djordjadze’s site-specific sculptures in London
Thea Djordjadze’s ‘framing yours making mine’ at Sprüth Magers, London, is an exercise in restraint
By Hannah Silver Published
-
In memoriam: John Miller (1930-2024)
We remember John Miller, an accomplished British architect and educator who advocated a quiet but rigorous modernism
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
River Wing at Clare College responds to its historic Cambridge heritage
University of Cambridge opens its new River Wing on Clare College Old Court, uniting modern technology with historic design
By Clare Dowdy Published
-
Camden Workshop offers flexible family space in a transformed north London warehouse
Camden Workshop, a transformed industrial space in north London, was designed by architects McLaren Excell to combine residential space and a creative studio for its owners
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
The Haydon shows off its dramatic stepped volume and triplex penthouse
The Haydon, designed by architects Acme, reveals the triplex penthouse within its dramatic, stepped volume in London’s Aldgate
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
This Oxfordshire house is a modern retreat designed to frame views of nature
An Oxfordshire house by Richard Parr Associates draws on its content to craft contemporary countryside living for its users
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
‘London Estates’ surveys the architecture and influence of the capital’s council-built homes
‘London Estates: Modernist Council Housing 1946-1981’, a new book by FUEL, is the perfect place to start for inspiration on how architecture can improve every sector of society
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The Architecture Window opens in London offering space for ‘micro-exhibitions’
The Architecture Window by Unknown Works opens at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, creating space for creative exploration and fresh voices around the built environment
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
‘Tropical Modernism: Architecture and Independence’ at the V&A is a bold exploration
London’s V&A presents ‘Tropical Modernism: Architecture and Independence’, a deep dive into 1940s architectural influences within West Africa and India
By Amah-Rose Abrams Published