Quite right, it’s modernism which is the culture-erasing plague. The best colonial architects – such as Lutyens and even Baker in New Delhi – interwove their designs with local designs, skills and traditions. I can’t think of any British (or for that matter Spanish, Portuguese, not sure about French) colonial architecture that was simply imposed, taking no account of local tradition. The same can’t be said for international modernism. Give me the spicy Anglo-Indian fusion of a balti any day over the bland internationalism of McDonalds.
Stephen Rose
3 years ago
Interesting article, surprising just how sensitive, those colonial architects could be, we tend to think of cultural fusion as a contemporary idea. But this didn’t just occur in colonial architecture, but within European nation states, Hussmann’s Paris, got exported all over Europe, look at Budapest, Sofia. Art Nouveau had a different subtle take from Bueno Aires to Birmingham. Lutcyens British School in Rome, took the East transcept of St Paul’s and exported classicism back to Rome.
Modernism, looks more like a true imposition, but that’s more to do with mega bucks and Meg egos.
J Bryant
3 years ago
Long live Prince Charles of Tartaria!
Andrew Thompson
3 years ago
Thought by the heading of this article that it was going to be yet another load of tosh about that Krankie woman up North again
Quite right, it’s modernism which is the culture-erasing plague. The best colonial architects – such as Lutyens and even Baker in New Delhi – interwove their designs with local designs, skills and traditions. I can’t think of any British (or for that matter Spanish, Portuguese, not sure about French) colonial architecture that was simply imposed, taking no account of local tradition. The same can’t be said for international modernism. Give me the spicy Anglo-Indian fusion of a balti any day over the bland internationalism of McDonalds.
Interesting article, surprising just how sensitive, those colonial architects could be, we tend to think of cultural fusion as a contemporary idea. But this didn’t just occur in colonial architecture, but within European nation states, Hussmann’s Paris, got exported all over Europe, look at Budapest, Sofia. Art Nouveau had a different subtle take from Bueno Aires to Birmingham. Lutcyens British School in Rome, took the East transcept of St Paul’s and exported classicism back to Rome.
Modernism, looks more like a true imposition, but that’s more to do with mega bucks and Meg egos.
Long live Prince Charles of Tartaria!
Thought by the heading of this article that it was going to be yet another load of tosh about that Krankie woman up North again
The tartan army?Didn’t the Romans build Hadrian’s Wall to keep them out? We are going to need considerately more bricks this time.
Yeah, who thought the Bay City Rollers, took up architecture..