The Gentle Author At RIBA
September 18, 2016
In Gracechurch St, City of London
Next Wednesday 21st September at 8pm, I shall be presenting my photographs illustrating THE CREEPING PLAGUE OF GHASTLY FACADISM at the Royal Insititute of British Architects, 66 Portland Place, W1B 1AD. I will be showing choice examples of spectacularly incongruous facades from these pages, supplemented by new pictures taken over the summer.
My presentation is part of RIBA LATE – COPY PASTE CITY SCAPE, celebrating the opening of a new show entitled WE LIVE IN THE OFFICE in the RIBA Architecture Gallery by artist Giles Round, who will be printing facades from the RIBA archive onto ceramics.
Admission is free and you are all invited. Click here to book.
An affront in Spitalfields
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Those facades always look awful. Valerie
This looks positively mouth watering! I am sending the details to friends in London. I love the word FACADISM.
Best of luck in this venture, GA. It is a trend that needs challenging and I hope you get a positive reception. Much of this trend is about laziness – the avoidance of having to work to produce plans that make the most of an old building. There is also the expectations of the client of course. It can be so different – the old town hall in our nearest town, Oldham, was neglected and allowed to decay. The first suggestion was to keep the facade and demolish the rest. Fortunately a very impressive young council leader saw things differently and the building has been redeveloped keeping the outstanding internal features while finding a new community use as a multiplex. Not my choice but one which which is self-financing and safeguards the building.
It saddens me to see this every growing practice continue especially in the City of London/Spitalfields with the destruction of such wonderful interiors.
Grotesque destruction of heritage in the pursuit of money. Good luck with your talk!
I think the facade in Spitalfields was in the former Dorset Street. If so, it has been demolished.
Agreed. Facadism is just a sop; to stop the protestors who despise the money-orientated destruction and to pretend that what remains is in any way meaningful. One imagines that the people behind all this do not live in facades – their money will be spent on homes of beauty. The White Hart in Bishopsgate – what a travesty.
I knew nothing about this trend which says a lot why are these things Kept Secret it’s usually because of dodgy money and a complete lack of concern for Heritage and what people who live in the area really want or need
Good luck with this project GA, we all support you in your efforts to highlight this appalling modern attempt to silence those of us who protest at the wanton destruction of buildings that should be preserved for future generations to enjoy. Heaven alone knows what they will say about facadism, no doubt very rude words indeed will be used as it is nothing but a national disgrace! We have not had to endure anything like this where I live but beautiful buildings have been demolished in the past to be replaced by 1950s so called architecture which now features in books which aim to demonstrate just how bleak and featureless such buildings are. This monstrosity is in our High Street next door to our magnificent Town Hall. The building which was destroyed was the Cups Hotel and only last week our local newspaper ran an article reporting on the overwhelming opposition that the council faced at the time; everything was ignored and they began the demolition before an application for listed building status could be obtained. Every one who lived in Colchester at the time still talks about it as the start of a serious decline in our council’s behaviour with regard to the demolition of large parts of our heritage. We are having to fight every step of the way as you do in London so I wish you every success in your attempts to make everyone aware of the pitiful facadism. Well done and good luck.
The legacy of fat Boris.