#london — Modernist Delights

The Mint Building, City of London, 2025

A modern glass building façade with a grid of repeating rectangular windows, each framed by metal and covered with dark, louvred shutters. The reflections of the sky and nearby structures are visible in the glass panels.

Originally designed by Peter Foggo, constructed in 1997-99. Currently due to undergo refurbishment which will remove the brise soleil, which is part of the building’s striking look.

Baynard House, City of London, 2025

A building with 4 floors of continuous thin-framed aluminium windows, as well as vertical ribbed concrete between each floor. At the bottom, a series of metal horizontal vents and an entrance to an underground carpark.

The building was designed by William Holford incorporating a separation of pedestrians from streets, with a first-floor adjoining walkway along Queen Victoria Street that connects to Blackfriars station.
Baynard House, London – Wikipedia

Streets in the sky! Definitely one to go back to. It is, however, a nightmare to photograph, owing to the coach parking out front.

External stairs & vent, National Theatre, London, 2025

A brutalist concrete staircase with three steep flights leads to upper levels, framed by thick railings. Metal barriers and a traffic cone block the lower entrance. The building’s geometric, angular lines dominate the symmetrical design.

Stairwell, National Theatre, London

A dimly lit concrete stairwell with dark carpeted steps leads upward and turns left; stainless steel railings line both sides. The walls are textured concrete, and a small sign reading “STAIRS” is visible above the landing.

Wayfinding signpost outside the National Theatre, 2025

A signpost on a cloudy day points to nearby attractions including National Film Theatre, Hayward Gallery, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Festival Pier, National Theatre, and Jubilee Gardens, with buildings and trees in the background.

Charming use of colour and iconography (especially on the Festival Pier sign), which you don’t see in an era of consistent, unified design languages.

Prince Charles Cinema, Westminster, London, 2025

A marquee on the Prince Charles Cinema displays “QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE ALIVE IN THE CATACOMBS.” The cinema’s black awning is below, and the building above has patterned windows. The sky is partly cloudy.

After a short period supporting the dramatic arts, the venue was reinvented as a kind of soft porn cinema, and began showing European arthouse movies with “a level of nudity that British and American cinema wasn’t ready for”.
Wikipedia

Not a straight-up soft porn cinema, god forbid, just a kind of one.

West Ham station, London, 2025

A red and white London Underground train is stopped at an outdoor station platform. Behind the train are brick and glass buildings. The sky is partly cloudy, and no people are visible on the platform or inside the train.

Bring back glass bricks!

Gate House, Clerkenwell, London, 2025

6 storey 1960's office building with an exposed concrete frame and a column of mosaic detailing above the main entrance, as well as a to let sign. The front face of the building features a geometric graph of thin-frame aluminium windows. In the foreground of the picture, roadworks.

View from Farringdon Station, London, 2025

A view of the backs of various London buildings, with a Tube line with a modern Tube train running on it. At the back, centre-left, two of the Barbican towers are visible.

Check the two Barbican towers centre left – which I obviously didn’t spot until posting this picture.