Reply To: Burlington Road building

Originally posted by Frank Taylor

This building makes me smile. It lifts my spirits when I catch sight of it. It’s full of personality. Pompous and oversized, maybe- but it’s funny. Does it not make you laugh?

Maybe the owner built it as a way of making a rude gesture to his wealthy neighbours. Maybe he is taking the piss out of conservationists.

What is worrying about this building is that it was not built as some sort of architectural joke (and I am not sure if buildings can be used as a medium for comic references as their relative permanence ensures that the joke becomes old but unavoidable pretty soon). What is worrying about it is that it was conceived in the imagination of someone and then actually made into a reality as an expression of their taste which they want to share with (or inflict on) the general public. For me it is the architectural equivelant of Hello magazine: Glossy, shiny, hyperreal etc.