Architecture Gems Hiding In Poplar
Join us on a unique architecture walking tour titled Britain Reborn.
Image courtesy of Loreta Tale.
With the Canary Wharf skyscrapers glistening in the morning sun, finding the path to the quieter and less bustling neighbourhood of Poplar might appear deceptively challenging. After a fifteen-minute episode of feeling utterly lost, I am then warmly greeted by Austin McGrath, MA Architecture student who is going to guide all the tour participants through five captivating locations that illuminate the renaissance of Britain in the aftermath of World War II.
As we gather and eagerly await the arrival of all tour collaborators and friends, we find ourselves on the brink of immersing ourselves in Poplar's history. This historical tapestry is woven with maritime industry, the metamorphosis into an industrial epicentre, and the profound impact of wartime upheaval. It is a narrative teeming with stories of architectural evolution, innovation, and transformation.
From the Festival of Britain's 'Living Architecture' at St. Mary's & St. Joseph's Catholic Church to the iconic Balfron Tower, the controversial history of Robin Hood Gardens, the innovative Blackwall Tunnel Ventilation Shaft, and the postmodern rebellion embodied by the Temple of Storms, let's embark on this architectural adventure and uncover the hidden gems of Poplar.
Festival of Britain: Living Architecture: St Mary’s & St Joseph’s Catholic Church
Image courtesy of Loreta Tale.
After the war, the state of the United Kingdom was a complete chaos and people desperately needed something to rally about. So, in 1951, labour cabinet member Herbert Morrison initiated a nation-wide celebration of everything British, dubbed the Festival of Britain. While referencing the centennial of the Great Exhibition of 1851, this time around, the festival focused solely on Britain’s achievements and its promising future. Taking place in Poplar, Living Architecture was a part of the festival dedicated to demonstrating how Britain wants to live onwards through the means of architecture and introduced the British public to modernism for the first time.
The way forward was marked by the Abercrombie plan, an urban planning document developed by town planner Patrick Abercrombie which included famous maps of how to rebuild London wrecked after the war. His approach wasn’t about rebuilding everything but rather repairing what can be and replacing the rest with modern ideas.
Mid-century modernism got rid of all the classical things people couldn’t afford anymore as a direct consequence of the war. The biggest innovation of the time was the introduction of concrete which suddenly enabled architects to create shapes that they couldn’t before.
The Church of St Mary and St Joseph was built in 1951-1954 as part of Living Architecture, **and replaced an earlier church of the 1850s made by William Wardell which got destroyed in World War II. The new church was built using the traditional London brick which is common in the Poplar area as the soil consists mostly of clay.
Post War Britain: Balfron Tower
Image courtesy of Loreta Tale.
Stretching 84 metres up in the sky, The Balfron tower is a Brutalist residential building designed by modernist architect Ernő Goldfinger in 1965-1967. The left tower features all the utilities, while the right side of the building is reserved for living spaces, with several bridges connecting them both. The Balfron was Goldinger’s experimental version before getting funding for the Trellick, the Balfron’s bigger brother built in North Kensington in 1972.
In the post-war era, architects and urban planners in various parts of the world, including the UK, started to embrace Swiss architect Le Corbusier's principles of functional design, the use of concrete, and the idea of creating efficient, high-density housing. While Le Corbusier's specific designs may not have been replicated in London, his ideas and the modernist movement he represented had a substantial impact on the development of post-war architecture, including the Cities in the Sky projects in London.
With elevators becoming more common and affordable and concrete becoming the key component in innovative designs, architects started to explore new types of buildings and living situations to be made. For example, the walkways in Balfron were designed so that two pushchairs could get past one another, creating lots of areas and opportunities for interaction. Yet, the intricate spaces were hard to police and soon resulted in an increased crime rate.
To test the new building, Goldfinger himself moved into flat 130 on 25th floor for two months, throwing champagne parties for other residents in the hope of hearing their honest thoughts about the Balfron before developing the design for the Trellick. Yet, Goldfinger was rumoured not to have been a very nice person - it turns out, he used to be neighbours with Ian Fleming who named the villain character in James Bond after the architect. After getting sued, Fleming claimed that the name choice was a pure coincidence.
The Balfron got listed in 1996, meaning that any renovations made on the apartments would be a complicated process involving going through special government loopholes. Therefore, the flats aren’t actually that comfortable to live in, yet they have become a coveted real estate for the fans of their unique design and the work of Goldfinger.
Besides, the Balfron has made many appearances in pop culture, starring in the music videos of This Is Music by The Verve, Morning Glory by Oasis, Mortalhas by ProfJam, Ready to Go by Republica, and Money Talks by Rubella Ballet, films such as For Queen and Country (1988), Shopping (1994), and Blitz (2011), and television programmes like Hustle, The Fixer, and Whitechapel.
Robin Hood Gardens
Image courtesy of Loreta Tale.
The Robin Hood Gardens, designed by architects Alison and Peter Smithson, is a residential estate completed in 1974. Although it dates back to the same era as the Balfron, the estate controversially didn’t get listed, with the estate now being midway through demolition.
The reason for its obliteration is straightforward - the buildings are simply not good enough for comfortable living. As a matter of fact, many architecture designs dating from the era reveal that good design was not a priority for the architects; it was more about them being the masters telling others how to live best.
This was evident in the way the designs would instruct people how to plan and live their life based on how much living space, rooms for children, or spaces for cars they had. Besides, the communal play areas in Robin Hood Gardens featured playing equipment that was made out of concrete, emphasising that its design didn’t focus on utility but rather aesthetics.
While usually famous architects employ their full creativity when working on private buildings, the only significant projects in the post-war Britain era were funded by the government. As a result, many of the public housing projects from this era have unique and intricate designs which weren't considered controversial at the time because architects were treated as the masters of living.
Just before the demolition works began in 2017, the V&A acquired a part of the estate and cut out a large chunk of the building which was later exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale in 2018. The exhibition aimed to explore the legacy of the estate and pose questions about how social housing should look like in the future.
Connecting Britain: Blackwall Tunnel Ventilation Shaft
Image courtesy of Loreta Tale.
In the East part of London, bridge construction was never in favour because of the intense boat traffic. Otherwise, the bridges would have to be either very tall and be able to open and close.
First opened in 1897, the Blackwall Tunnel is a significant pair of road tunnels running under the Thames and connecting Tower Hamlets with the borough of Greenwich. What makes it become a true architecture gem is the two giant ventilation shafts located on each side of the river.
If they were to be designed today, the shafts would most likely look like simple metal boxes. However, architect Terry Farrell, working for the London County Council Architects Department at the time, went the extra mile and decided to over-design the modest constructions, creating beautiful bits of architecture that didn’t really have any reason to be that way.
Completed in 1967, the vents became so iconic that their listing in 2000 ensured that during the construction of the O2 arena, a special hole was made in the building to leave enough space for the shaft.
Postmodern Britain: Temple of Storms
Image courtesy of Loreta Tale.
By the 1990s, everyone in Britain had grown tired of post war housing and modernism. For the past 30 years, people had been living according to the rules imposed by the domestic structures architects had put into place.
Architecture leading up to modernism had been all about referencing what was before. When modernism arrived, architects decided not to reference anything anymore – everything had to adhere to the modern living standards and the past was treated as a bygone era, not a source of inspiration.
Architects of today have found a balance between learning from the past and applying future ideas in their designs. However, in the midst of this transition exists an intriguing in-between phase which lasted for about five years and was the ultimate rebellion against modernism in the most aggressive yet silliest way possible.
The rebellion was expressed through translating old ideas and objects into new materials, whose loud and attention-grabbing design connoted emotions of anxiety, fear, and confusion.
Dubbed the Temple of Storms by its architect John Outram, the extravagant water pumping station in the Isle of Dogs was built between 1986 and and 1988. An unapologetic celebration of infrastructure with witty classical references, the decorative eaves and pediment covered in corrugated cladding and the two colossal Corinthian columns turn the modest structure in a true temple of the modern age, while the giant eye in the middle serves the function of an extraction fan.
What makes this building a true marker of its time is its inherent satire and ludicrousness, with Outram treating this unassuming pumping station as the most important building ever. Yet, this is also what caused the demise of the trend, as the witticism was only amusing for those with considerable knowledge about architecture.
Illustration courtesy of Aaron Oddoye and graphic design courtesy of Orna Costello.
Just as the two-hour journey through the rich history of Poplar drew to a close, the heavens opened and heavy rain started to pelt down, almost as if nodding to the fact that it was time to rush back to the DLR and get back to our usual ends of London.
Still, Britain Reborn allowed me to explore a corner of London that, under different circumstances, might have remained undiscovered, and the novelty of the experience truly let the architectural evolution and innovation of post-World War II Britain come to life before my eyes.
The day brimming with architectural wonders and shared moments reminded me of the thrill of exploration and desire to venture off the beaten path and uncover the hidden treasures of our surroundings. And now, with a knowledgeable guide at your disposal, there's now every reason to take a stroll through Poplar, or perhaps it may ignite a spark within you to wander around and take a closer look at your own neighbourhood, too.
Written for Shift London, 2023.