Lost Futures: The Disappearing Architecture of Post-War Britain
Text by Owen Hopkins.
Lost Futures casts a detailed look at the wide range of buildings constructed in Britain between 1945 and 1979. Although their bold architectural aspirations reflected the forward-looking social ethos of the postwar era, many of these structures have since been either demolished or altered beyond recognition. In this volume, photographs taken at the time of the buildings’ completion are accompanied by expert research examining their design and creation, the ideals they embodied and the reasons for their eventual destruction.
Lost Futures covers many buildings, from housing to factories, commercial spaces to power stations, and presents the work of both iconic and lesser-known architects. The author charts the complex reasons that led to the loss of these postwar projects’ ambitious futures, and assesses whether some might one day be restored.
British architecture historian and curator Owen Hopkins is the author of several popular architecture books, including Reading Architecture: A Visual Lexicon, Architectural Styles: A Visual Guide and Mavericks: Breaking the Mould of British Architecture. His scholarly interests have ranged from Nicholas Hawksmoor’s Baroque grandeur to Alison and Peter Smithson’s Brutalism, taking in everything in between.
Featured image is Tricorn Shopping Centre, Portsmouth, Hampshire, 1965. Designed by Owen Luder Partnership and photographed by Sam Lambert, it was demolished in 2004.
How we love Lost Futures, the Royal Academy's concise new book documenting 35 architecturally and philosophically important buildings erected in the UK between 1945 and 1979 which have since fallen into disrepair, been demolished or been altered so radically that they no longer resemble the originals. Pictured here is the Pimlico Secondary School on Lupus Street in Westminster, London. Photographed in 1971, it was designed by architect John Bancroft for the Greater London Council of the Department of Architecture & Civic Design in 1970 and demolished in 2010. Other buildings are by Ernö Goldfinger, James Stirling, Alison and Peter Smithson, Team 4 and Ahrends, to name a few. continue to blog
FORMAT: Hbk, 6.75 x 9 in. / 128 pgs / 60 images. LIST PRICE: U.S. $25.00 LIST PRICE: CANADA $34.5 ISBN: 9781910350621 PUBLISHER: Royal Academy Publications AVAILABLE: 4/25/2017 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Out of stock indefinitely AVAILABILITY: Not available TERRITORY: NA ONLY
Lost Futures: The Disappearing Architecture of Post-War Britain
Published by Royal Academy Publications. Text by Owen Hopkins.
Lost Futures casts a detailed look at the wide range of buildings constructed in Britain between 1945 and 1979. Although their bold architectural aspirations reflected the forward-looking social ethos of the postwar era, many of these structures have since been either demolished or altered beyond recognition. In this volume, photographs taken at the time of the buildings’ completion are accompanied by expert research examining their design and creation, the ideals they embodied and the reasons for their eventual destruction.
Lost Futures covers many buildings, from housing to factories, commercial spaces to power stations, and presents the work of both iconic and lesser-known architects. The author charts the complex reasons that led to the loss of these postwar projects’ ambitious futures, and assesses whether some might one day be restored.
British architecture historian and curator Owen Hopkins is the author of several popular architecture books, including Reading Architecture: A Visual Lexicon, Architectural Styles: A Visual Guide and Mavericks: Breaking the Mould of British Architecture. His scholarly interests have ranged from Nicholas Hawksmoor’s Baroque grandeur to Alison and Peter Smithson’s Brutalism, taking in everything in between.
