Modernist Delights

Lloyds Bank, Lancaster, 2024

A three-story, gray stone building with six windows above a green sign that reads LLOYDS BANK. The bank entrance is lit and features glass doors. An ATM is on the left side beside the doors. The sidewalk is empty, and dusk light is visible.

About as well photographed as possible, after orthodontic treatment, and with a bag of apples in my hand.

On The First Issue Of Vogue Polska

For something a bit different today: the cover of the first issue of Vogue Polska. The Palace of Culture and Science is just completely arresting to see in real life, originally an unwanted Soviet gift, it somehow has a might incomparable to more modern skyscrapers. I love this moody cover which features it front-and-centre.

Two women in stylish black coats and high heels pose confidently by a vintage black car, with one leg forward. They stand in front of the towering Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw on a gray, snowy day. The words “VOGUE Polska” are at the top. — Juergen Teller, 2018.

I also can’t resist quoting this section from its’ Wikipedia article:

A number of nicknames have been used to refer to the palace, notably Pekin (“Beijing”, because of its abbreviated name PKiN), Pajac (“clown”, a word that sounds close to Pałac), and the “Drunk Confectioner’s Nightmarish Dream” (koszmarny sen pijanego cukiernika), attributed to poet Władysław Broniewski. Other nicknames include the “Syringe” (strzykawka), the “Elephant in Lacy Underwear” (słoń w koronowych gatkach), the “Russian Wedding Cake” (ruski tort) and “Stalin’s rocket” (rakieta Stalina), as well as more pejorative appelations like “Stalin’s dick” (chuj Stalina).

Barbican Estate, London, 2023

A wide courtyard with tall, concrete Brutalist apartment buildings featuring balconies and rounded rooftop structures. The foreground has wild grasses and shrubs, and a few people are walking on paths under a cloudy sky.

Barbican Estate, London, 2023

How could I have let this beauty linger in my photo library for a year?

Curved concrete walkways and angular buildings form a Brutalist architectural scene, featuring exposed concrete surfaces and sparse vegetation. A multi-story building with rounded roof elements stands in the center, under an overcast sky.

Hard to photograph Superdrug, Cantenbury, 2023

This hard to photograph Superdrug on a sloping street isn’t going to win any awards for photography, but the zig-zag roof and first-floor glazing are architecturally excellent.

A modern Superdrug store with large windows and a zigzag roof sits on a quiet city street. People walk past, and a bicycle is parked nearby. The sky is partly cloudy, and adjacent buildings have concrete and brick exteriors.

The Lancaster Hospital, Lancaster, 2024

I like some of the elements, such as the green roof windows at the rear, the porthole below, and the glass bricks in reception, but clearly the psychiatric hospital in Den Dolder I reblogged yesterday is way more interesting!

A modern three-story building with large vertical windows and stone accents, seen on a clear day. The sun casts shadows on the facade. There is a sign reading “Lancaster University” at the front, cars parked on the street, and green grass and trees nearby.

A modern, gray hospital building with large windows and a sign reading Reception above the entrance. There is greenery and bushes in the foreground, and a blue sky overhead. A Hospital sign is visible on the left side of the image.

Reading: The Council House by Jack Young

A book titled The Council House lies on a wooden floor. The cover features a photograph of a modernist building with concrete and glass panels. The book is published by Hoxton Mini Press, as indicated at the bottom of the cover.

An open book lies on a wooden surface, displaying a page titled 36 Broadwater Farm Estate with descriptive text on the left and a photograph of modern, angular grey buildings surrounded by greenery on the right.

Picked this up on a whim at the Barbican Shop after my last visit, and I’m glad I did. There’s a lot to enjoy here, all of it absolutely beautifully photographed. All my faves are at the beginning, so read in reverse if you want to finish on a high.

Links (affiliate): Amazon UK (£15.35), Bookshop.org (£18.95)