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1) What about giving Archeire some publicity?

2) Why office developments frequently look much better designed than apartments blocks?

3)Do people really like the design of apartments?

Hi TG

“Do people really like the design of apartments?”

Interesting question: I reckon the majority of people don’t really care to be brutally honest.

Most apartments built in Dublin are crap but most of us are desperate for a place, any place that’s affordable and hence often end up in a Red brick monolithic heap or a twee and cheap looking, plastic mock-georgian toy town.

We don’t necessarily stay in them for life either, moving on to something better/nicer/our own.

The ugly/cheap/laughable disease of apartment blocks will continue to blot our country I’m afraid as will dreadful and mis-placed housing estates in the countryside.

“Tudor Abbeyhall commons”

Etc…

‘The ugly/cheap/laughable disease of apartment blocks will continue to blot our country’ as long as we dont do something about it. Maybe we can learn from the Dutch who have gone a long way with residential developments, social housing and with good, exciting architecture.

Ach nach gcuimhin leat goidé a tharla don chead uair san Isiltír nuair a thog Gerrit Rietveld an Schroder House i stil De Stijl. B’fhuath le muintir na h-aite an teach agus caitheadh clochanna trid na fuinneoga !

But don’t forget what happened in Holland one of the first times inventive home architecture was used. Gerrit Rietveld’s neighbours hated his house so much they threw stones at it !

http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Schroder_House.html

Yes, but look at all the Corporation housing of the 1930s in Dublin, all based on the Amsterdamn School – especially around Townsend Street. All very fine buildings and still some of the best housing stock in the city today.

Oh, of course – I agree with you. The flats around Townsend Street and Ringsend are my favourites in Dublin [why oh WHY did they put those completely rubbish windows? That really annoys me…].

Do you think the corpo would do anything as good as that now? I think in the old days we were pehaps slightly deluded about the cost of administrating communities – the capitalists came in and streamlined everything for better or worse.

I keep forgetting that this is actually a forum populated by practising architects and that yes, something can be done about it. Mostly by yourselves! You have my support then – how can I support you?

John

Ya i agree,
the corpo have done some great projects in the past. But the same problems can been seen as on the topic of C.I.E . so these flat are been let run down just like Bus`R`Us. Maybe they could also reinvent? themselves like cie.
As for the stories of the apartment blocks that have poped up over the last few year.
as these use many standard (cheapest) material eg doors, fixings, furiture, fire places even fridges and cookers.
They have the effect of making you feel Very “at home” in other peoples (boxes)apartmants!!!

That’s a good point:

I remember living in Monkstown in Dublin years ago in an Apartment complex called Packenham.

Apart from the fact that it had hardly any windows [what’s the deal with that by the way? Don’t architects like big windows anymore or is the developer trying to save money?] it was the same as everybody else’s.

One of the weirdest things was when we got notice to quit we checked out other apartments there. They were nearly all the same. Aggghhh! It made me feel like I was living everybody else’s life too to an extent. It was as if many of the things I did each day were shaped in the same way as my neighbours.

The most completely bizarre thing though was that one of the apartments was at the other gable end of the block from us and was actually a complete mirror image of ours. In reverse. It was like stepping into an alternate universe! I couldn’t handle that at all!

Creepy

John