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Leonidov, Ivan

@Barbican_City_of_London

Super concrete hexagon on the facade of Grade II l

Super concrete hexagon on the facade of Grade II listed Centrepoint, described by Nikolaus Pevsner as ‘course in the extreme’. Architect George Marsh for Richard Seifert & Partners designed this for Harry Hyams in 1966. Seifert was a prolific architect who built a huge number of buildings which capture the mood of 1960s-70s London. As well as Centre Point he designed St Martins Lane Hotel, the Nat West Tower (now renamed), the Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington & Euston Station and many more. His obituary in the Guardian described him as a workaholic who actually built more London buildings than Sir Christopher Wren. Seifert’s Centre Point has a complex history which made property tycoon Harry Hyams front page news. He leased the site at £18,500 a year for 150 years and single mindedly wanted the new 30 something floored skyscraper to only have a single occupier. His determination to build it involved him striking a deal with the LCC which involved him building a traffic junction familiar to any london driver in a hurry (not) the always jammed junction between St. Giles Circus, Oxford Street & Tottenham Court Road. The building did not find a tenant and became known as ‘London’s empty skyscraper’. Hyams, according to the press, refused to sell floor by floor, content to leave the building empty ...for years. It became a cause celebre, highlighting the utter desperation of London’s young homeless (many living under the Westway at that time in dire circumstances). London was in the middle of a housing crisis (some things never change). In Jan 1974 Direct Action occupied the building for a weekend to highlight the situation. In 1980 Centrepoint found a tenant, later becoming home to a number of businesses including a highly regarded charity supporting homeless young people, bearing the same name as the building. It has now been the subject of a major refurbishment with a substantial segment of the building residential apartments. Hyams notoriety did not end there, a prolific and very private art collector he left his magnificent estate in its entirety to the nation.

A slab of concrete from the late great Owen Luder.

A slab of concrete from the late great Owen Luder. This is Milford Tower, Catford , London Borough of Lewisham (1969-1974) at risk and the subject of a regeneration programme (different language for different perspectives) for so long and if the latest reports from summer 2021 are correct it will be demolished soon(ish) if you have a steer on the situation happy to update this post accordingly. Photo with thanks to @nickvanlearoijd

One of the most powerful elements about the Barbic

One of the most powerful elements about the Barbican Estate is how perfectly it is designed - the sheer scale and sense of balance, thought out with care and consideration by Chamberlin, Powell and Bon. Simply put it works, there is a synergy between the residential and the public parts of the estate, concrete buildings linked by green space and water. Listing the Barbican was recognition of the need to protect that beauty. (Image here is first view as you enter the estate from Barbican tube station)

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