Corinthian Cantilever

The English Summer is approaching, and once again I increasingly begin to find myself either playing cricket and batting for my life or sitting outside on the patio drinking coffee and pondering what exactly to do next. The latter of which I am thankfully partaking in as I write this entry.

The Summer period and the sunshine that arrives with it almost never fails to create a new platform on which to view our surrounding architecture, as it does in a similar way towards woman when the dresses turn into an explosion of colour and lightness, and revealing more than usual I dare say. In an almost identical move the materiality and form of our surrounding architecture is also revealed in a new dimension with its play alongside the sun as it hangs higher in the sky allowing the light to slice and exaggerate corners and curves that were never before apparent, allowing them to enter into their full aesthetic and/or functional glory.

One such example of this theatrical summer expression is the cantilevered canopy associated with the office building on the Dingwall Rd known as Corinthian House. Extruded over the main entrance of the building is an unmissable gargantuan beast of a cantilever with the title 'Corinthian House' delicately grasping onto the very edge of this urban umbrella, in no way an exaggeration if one is to view the building from a satellite view you can clearly make out the cantilever escaping the building. Residing in East Croydon it is not too surprising that such a striking architectural detail exists, being surrounded by other corporate architecture and aesthetic preferences in this area of town makes for strong competition and an increasing feeling for the need to be considered and approved. Were as this situation usually creates over-sized aggressive architecture where the choice of form and material is often highly questionable, at Corinthian House the form and function of the cantilevered canopy both come across as well considered. The thin white profile of the canopy creates a wafer like appearance off of the bulk mass of the concrete building encouraging intrigue and question from visitors, whilst receiving appreciation for the function of protection from the elements all the way to the pavement and onward travel. The apparent structural defiance of the canopy is beautifully crafted and ultimately achieved, but it is such a shame that being so off of any main network full appreciation of its form fulls far short of what should be expected.  

tW

A Fresh Shape Up

Last night whilst I was in Croydon drinking a few beers and continuing to drag my hearing closer to an untimely death in the Black Sheep Bar, I noticed that the graffiti smiley-face ball that used to be on the zebra crossing outside was now within the confines of the sheep. A shame that this amusing chap cannot continue to brighten up mine and possibly a few other peoples week with its mixed embedded message of happiness and disorder, but I guess the dub-step coffin of the Black Sheep Bar is a far more suitable location for this small piece of Croydon culture than the local landfill.

tW

Last one out of Wellesley Road, burn it to the ground!

Two weeks ago I had the great pleasure of consuming a cup of coffee whilst discussing the present and future of Croydon with James Naylor, a local young gentlemen who has successfully imagined Croydon Tours a company where an insight into 'the most interesting town in Britain' is available. No longer will visitors simply be muscled out of East Croydon station and then left to their own devices, a genuine and insightful tour of Croydon is there for the taking.

So, like a bull to a matador I took the opportunity before I met James to visit the area of town opposite the Whitgift Centre across the Wellesley Road desert in an attempt to find more forgotten or never fully appreciated architecture. A great deal of time passed by with me walking in the company of the many corporate office buildings with their monstrous glass facades and columns in an attempt to be individual, yet I strongly began to feel the full effect of being in an area of town that is so centred on the business and financial operations of the world, that its architecture tries so desperately to escape the reality of its monotonous operations but ends up only looking less unique and more and more like each other. However,  like so much of Croydon that is now dedicated to commercial operations this slice of the urban landscape used to be a bustling residential are, so if you happen to turn down Walpole Rd you will encounter The Old House, a relic from times past.

Although the Old House is now used as office space, the story goes that an elderly woman lived at this address during the period when big business was moving in and setting up shop in this area of Croydon and having bought or bullied out all the other residents in the area the only person left was this elderly woman who successfully avoided relocating and lived in this house till her time was up. As can be seen today the new development of the area still went right ahead and the people at the top decided simply to construct their concrete children and tarmac carpets around this stubborn property, creating a remarkable contrast between the familiar human-scaled brick of the Old House and the oppressive and unimaginative human-cog architecture of the surrounding commercial development. It could be argued that right now the Old House stands predominantly as a monument to the anti-capitalist and the down-right necessity to stand up to power-hungry developers, an ideal that this humble piece of architecture achieves far more effectively than the 2011 Croydon riot ever did.

tW

Croydon and the Postmodern 3

Almost as if life-long brothers, one can argue that Iconography and Architecture have walked hand-in-hand for as long as the art of building a roof over ones head has existed, or ever since we left our hunter-gatherer characteristics and learnt to manage the growth of crops. It appears our human desire to indicate certain aspects of culture through the use of architecture is deeply and richly embedded within all corners of human history, effortlessly continuing into the twenty-first century.

London's everyday architectural icons such as the Gherkin (30 St. Mary Axe, Swiss RE Building) or the Shard (32 London Bridge) are well recognised not only in London but internationally, and due to this the design of such architecture can shy away somewhat from the pure function of the building and concentrate on the form and final presence that the architecture gives to the city as an icon. So considering Croydon's significance as the business and transport hub of South London it is unsurprising that like modern London Croydon too has its very own architectural icon, the Fifty-Pence-Piece Building ( No.1 Croydon / Threepenny Bit Building).

The fractured pod-like architecture of the Fifty-Pence-Piece Building sits on its urban throne at the top of East Croydon, but with its moat of transport infrastructure for added defence it can seem rather unwelcoming and difficult to access at first but is well worth the additional adventure. Once underneath you can gaze up at the seemingly countless concrete cantilevers that seem to defy gravity, yet at the same time be absorbed by how ultimately light-weight the structure somehow appears to be, undoubtedly an amazing aesthetic achievement. Unbelievably the heavy concrete floor slabs are wonderfully defied by the apparent external gap between the corner columns, which in such a simple and imperceptible way allow the structure to appear increasingly lighter than it truly is. Without question a talent that most corporate architecture in Croydon could certainly learn from.

I fortunately had the great privilege around two years ago to visit the upper-most floor of No.1 Croydon during an Open House tour that I had attended, operating within the room at the time was the display and marketing for the master-plan of East Croydon depicting colourful and festive futures filled with farmers markets and apartment balconies hoping to generate a better Croydon. However, as I looked out of the window over the vast urban field, looking at the Warehouse theatre and pondering what might happen to this piece of history in the planned Utopian future, I could not help but feel I was already standing in the best space in Croydon.

tW

Croydon and the Postmodern 2

Nestled amongst the towering forest of office blocks and hotels along the leafy path that is the Wellesley Rd you can find some of the most venturesome architecture in Croydon, limbs of the urban environment that have taken on an appearance and aesthetic of their own accord. The monstrous authoritative twins that are Lunar House and Apollo House directly on the Wellesley Rd, which operate as the headquarters of the UK Border Agency, house such an example of Postmodern architectural experimentation.

For the most part architectural inspiration is not plucked out of the air at random but is found through local contextual influence whether it be materiality, traditions or history, however when the decision was made in the late nineteen-sixties to construct Lunar House and Apollo House the primary source of inspiration happened to be the Apollo 11 moon landing. An incredibly bold and unquestionably peculiar direction to take considering the whole 'Space Race' was a cold war playground game between the US and USSR that clearly had nothing to do with Croydon. Nevertheless during this rather ruthless sixties development period, Croydon quite literally was to have a mesmerising architectural experiment crash-land in the middle of town.

Hovering above the ground on what appears to be a concrete cake-stand is a three-story hexagonal extension to the main office building of Apollo House. In what could be seen as a deliberate juxtaposition to the towering right-angled verticality of the office tower this little piece of architecture delicately hovers above street level mimicking what can only be the presence of a UFO. Yet even with this architectures odd shape and position to its context it merges into its urban business landscape with majestic efficiency, hardly noticed as the public go about hopelessly attempting the pass over Wellesley Rd or weave their way through the confusing back streets of East Croydon. So another architecture and another fade to black, but with this example I can not help but feel this is the actual goal all along, not commonly observed, but a lovely piece of architecture to look at.



tW

Croydon and the Postmodern

A few days ago I found myself in that common situation we all find ourselves in at some point during our lives when the title of a song escapes the mind leaving one completely useless for a few moments whilst desperately trying to escape the subconscious cycle of attempted recollection. Which is exactly what unfolded whilst I was trying to remember where I had once seen what could only be described as a provocative postmodern car-park facade in Croydon, a fairly challenging task for one primary reason;

1. There are seven independent multi-story car-parks in central Croydon alone.

As luck and persistence would have it I did manage to stumble my way across this particular facade again, latched onto the side of the AMP Building near East Croydon station. Here the traditional almost endless horizontal elevation of the car-park has been gagged by an edgy and visually distorting moulded concrete element. The acute-angled 'v' shaped elements help generate an alternating opaque and then transparent appearance that is unique and playful, externally one can wonder of the activities and movements that the facade is hiding and internally a secure viewing platform over Croydon's everyday happenings is accessed. I thoroughly enjoy the postmodern interventions that exist throughout Croydon, they create a richness through architectural experimentation that is rarely seen in the awakening new architecture.


tW

Five-a-day

Recently whilst strolling down to the bus stop at the bottom of Church St functioning solely on a caffeine and photoshop diet on the journey home from yet another gruelling studio interim crit at university, I noticed this small green box structure near the Warehouse Theatre that I shamefully must confess I missed on the previous visit. Slap in the face. It was the fruit and veg stall that I had in fact observed a select few times on the way to East Croydon station but had always assumed it was a temporary structure smuggled into this location in the early morning hours to supply the working populace with their five-a-day on the daily pilgrimage to work. As it turns out the Croydon Fruit and Vegetables box is in fact a permanent architectural feature of Dingwall Rd and has been for some time.

I guess the best way to describe this rather juxtaposed green box is like an earring lost within the bedlam of a bedroom, patiently resting in the same lonesome spot amongst the chaos until one day it is found again, like a diamond in the rough. Especially if one considers the future development of the area, which as it stands mainly consists of new glass facade addicted office blocks and housing, Croydon Fruit and Vegetables little addition of playful yet dignified architecture will surely perish. Maybe it could stay? Maybe it could become a glass cube too?

I whole heartily recommend a visit to Croydon Fruit and Vegetables not only for your health but for the opportunity to pause, interact and experience a space that is if anything usually treated as a pedestrian highway with coffee shop service stations. Croydon could really benefit from this type of urban approach by allowing more of these boxes to exist throughout the town, by applying the same structure and perhaps changing the colour of each you can create a theme that eventually becomes opaque in existence and trusted by the community. Would it not be fantastic and exciting to have the pace of life and interaction that exists on Surrey St Market throughout more of Croydon?

The opportunity to promote a healthier lifestyle whilst generating fresh and vibrant urban activity at street level is at hand, and clearly this direction of urban solution is far more important than new office blocks, shopping malls and car parks. Until then this little green box will remain an earring, surrounded by Croydon.


tW