Modernist Delights

367 – 373 Byres Road, Glasgow, 2025

A stepped, modern brick building with many rectangular windows rises towards a partly cloudy blue sky. Sunlight creates a glare on the left. A white parking sign with a blue P and green Wichtrose is mounted on the lower right.

A modern, angular brown and beige building with large vertical glass windows rises towards a cloudy sky. The building has geometric shapes and sharp lines, contrasting with the soft, overcast clouds in the background.

A long, multi-storey car park with brown brick and rough concrete walls. A red fire alarm box is mounted on the lower wall, and a green panel stands out on the upper level. The sky is partly cloudy, and the street below is empty.

Glasgow Botanic Gardens, 2025

View of a glass greenhouse ceiling with a black metal frame. Sunlight shines through the glass panes, some of which are dirty. Green tropical plant leaves are visible in the lower right corner. Blue sky and clouds are seen through the roof.

Continuing my weakness for glasshouses.

McMillan Reading Room, Glasgow, 2025

A large, brick building with a tall arched window and double glass doors at the entrance. Several people are gathered on the steps and walkway outside. Sunlight filters through trees flanking the building, and the sky is partly cloudy.

A curved brick building with tall, narrow windows, each covered by vertical metal bars. Greenery and overgrown plants are in the foreground, and a modern building with blue-green glass panels is visible in the background.

A close-up of a brick building façade with four tall, narrow windows. The windows have white frames and vertical bars. The glass reflects the blue sky, clouds, and parts of nearby buildings. Green foliage is partly visible on the left.

A curved brick building with tall narrow windows, a lamp-post, and an exterior staircase with a metal railing leading to a doorway. Bushes line the wall, and a tree with green and orange leaves is visible in the background under a partly cloudy sky.

People, in my photos. Actually groundbreaking.

Hunterian Art Gallery, Glasgow, 2025

A modern university campus with concrete and glass buildings, including the University Library. The architecture features angular shapes, large windows, a cylindrical tower, and wide steps leading to entrances. People are walking near the buildings under a partly cloudy sky.

The curious structure on the left is a reconstruction of Charles and Margaret Mackintosh’s house, part of the Hunterian Art Gallery.

More details and some great interior photos on Absolument! here.

The house was built at the same elevation, direction, and dimensions as its original. Nicely enough, it’s only 100 meters from the home’s original spot. The effect is that the lighting conditions and ethos of the house feel the same while you’re in its cocoon.

The clad thing at the back best not discussed.

‘1840-1990‘ by Lucy Baird, Glasgow, 2025

A large, abstract metal sculpture is mounted vertically on a concrete building façade. The sculpture consists of curved and angular metallic shapes, creating a geometric design. Windows and a tree are visible nearby under a partly cloudy sky.

Stainless steel sculpture commemorating the 150th anniversary of the University of Glasgow’s Regius Chair of Civil Engineering and Mechanics, affixed to the south-east elevation of the Rankine Building.

Rankine Building, Glasgow, 2025

A large, grey concrete building with multiple rows of windows and a modernist design. People walk in and out of the entrance, where a blue sign reads James Watt School of Engineering. Trees frame the scene, and the sky is partly cloudy.

A concrete ventilation structure stands against a rough, pebbled building wall. Above it, rectangular windows line the building. A bicycle rack and a parked bike are visible in front, with scattered debris on the dark pavement.

A brutalist-style building with exposed concrete, rows of rectangular windows, and a tall cylindrical chimney. The sky is blue with a few clouds visible. Pipes and industrial elements are seen along the building’s dark exterior wall.

A large, grey, concrete Brutalist-style building with rectangular windows, angular features, and exterior staircases. People walk by on the pavement; trees and a blue sky with scattered clouds are visible in the background.

Close your eyes, and imagine how this would have looked before it had uPVC windows put in.

‘The Progress of Science’ by Eric Kennington, Glasgow, 2025

A tall stone relief sculpture on a building depicts abstract and figurative scenes: workers on rooftops, a staircase with a figure holding an object, trees, seated figures, clouds, smoke, and industrial elements, all richly detailed in geometric, stylised forms.

Panel on the south elevation of the James Watt South Building.

James Watt South Building, Glasgow, 2025

A multi-storey brick building with many windows, three tall blue-tinted window sections in the centre, and a glass-sided extension on the left. A person sits on a bench near flowerbeds, and trees frame the right side. The sky is partly cloudy.

A close-up view of a modern building’s exterior, featuring large glass windows in a grid pattern. Some windows reflect the sky and clouds, whilst others reveal fluorescent lights and faint interiors. The window frames are metal and slightly weathered.

A close-up of three large, weathered windows in a beige building. The upper window panes are clear, showing lights and reflections, whilst the lower panes are frosted and stained, with visible dirt, cracks, and wear. A metal railing is at the bottom.

A modern building with large grid-like glass windows, four storeys tall. There is a blue-tinted cycle shelter with bicycles parked outside. Part of an older stone building is visible on the right. The sky is partly cloudy above.

Low-angle view of a modern building with large blue-tinted glass windows and concrete balconies. Tree branches with green leaves frame the top of the image, and reflections of the sky and foliage are visible in the windows. Sky is partly cloudy.

A low-angle view of a modern building facade with large grid-like glass windows, some panels are tinted or open. The building has metal railings and a concrete base, with a blue sky and clouds reflected in the glass.

The gate to modernism, Glasgow, 2025

View through an ornate black iron gate of a pavement and street, with a pedestrian walking past. In the background, a modern, angular concrete building and some trees are visible under a partly cloudy sky.

The best angle you can get, when you start taking photos through a single-file gateway, just as a lecture ends and dozens of students politely start lining up behind you.

Modernist Delights is a blog about modernist and brutalist architecture. Find out more.