Modernist Delights

I don’t like the music of Antony Szmierek enough to own his albums in duplicate, but how could I refuse with gorgeous album art like that? This one’s going right in my Forton Services shrine. Nosy greyhound notwithstanding.

A black dog sniffs two vinyl records on a table. Both records are by Antony Szmierek, featuring snow globe artwork with futuristic buildings and colored spheres inside. The left record is numbered 067. A patterned cushion and gray blanket are in the background.

Posted on March 11, 2025.

Sun-drenched Sale, 2025

I think this area has been pretty sensitively re-developed, although at £15 for breakfast, the rents can’t be cheap 😬

A modern pedestrian street lined with shops and cafes on both sides. Bicycles are parked in the foreground, and string lights hang overhead. People walk or sit at outdoor tables under a clear sky, with tall, dark buildings in the background.

Posted on March 9, 2025.

New Century House, Manchester, March 2020

Looking up at an octagonal stained glass skylight with a geometric, colorful pattern. The ceiling around it is white with visible peeling paint and some cracks, suggesting age and wear. The stained glass glows with natural light filtering through.

A dim, narrow hallway with dirty, peeling cream-colored walls leads to two doorways at the end. The left door is labeled with a restroom sign. The floor is bare and scuffed, and the atmosphere appears old and neglected.

A slightly open, old window with peeling paint reveals a stone balcony railing outside. Blue sky with scattered clouds is visible above the railing. Beige curtains hang to the right, and sunlight casts soft shadows inside.

A hallway with beige walls and missing ceiling panels leads to a set of double wooden doors opening into a large, empty industrial space with worn floors and visible ceiling beams. Exposed wires hang from the hallway ceiling. The scene appears abandoned.

An empty, spacious room under renovation with exposed ceiling grids, blue carpet, scattered debris, and white columns. Two people walk near the right side, and large windows along the walls let in natural light. The space appears to be in an office building.

View through a window showing nearby multi-story buildings with white brick facades and large windows. The sky is partly cloudy, and city streets are visible below. Some reflections and smudges appear on the glass.

A small, brown metal spiral staircase ends abruptly at a ceiling opening in a worn stairwell. The wall beside it has large patches of peeling paint. A person in a black hat stands in the foreground, partially visible.

A group of people in coats stand inside a large, mostly empty room with wood-paneled walls and a dramatic ceiling covered in rectangular acoustic panels. The floor appears unfinished, and some scattered furniture and a whiteboard are visible along the wall.

A sign on a beige wall reads New Century House, Floor LG. Below, it lists Staff Facilities: Staff Restaurant, Staff Shop, Strollers Deli Bar, and Sports + Social Club. The sign has black, blue, and gray sections.

If I posted this 2 days ago when I meant to, it would’ve been 5 years to the day, too!

Posted on March 6, 2025.

A staircase on the UMIST campus, 2022

I had a thing for exposed staircases during the summer I moved out of Manchester. Still do.

A modern brick building features large geometric windows with purple panels, revealing an indoor staircase. There is a wooden door at ground level, a small window to the left, and a glass rooftop structure above, all under a clear blue sky.

Posted on February 28, 2025.

Ellen Wilkinson Building, Manchester, 2022

A four-story modern building with large rectangular windows framed in black and some outlined in orange. The entrance has glass doors, a canopy, and a sign. In front, there are green shrubs, a black railing, and a paved pathway leading to the door.

There’s more of it, from 2024, here.

And as if on cue, Steve Marland has posted some archive pictures of it, too.

Posted on February 26, 2025.

Modern and old in London, 2023

I’m not fact checking this so I’m leaving the gates open for somebody to tell me the church is in fact newer than the towers.

A historic stone church with a red brick steeple stands by a canal, surrounded by leafless trees. Modern, tall concrete buildings loom in the background under a cloudy, gray sky, creating a contrast of old and new architecture.

Posted on February 23, 2025.

Stonebow Centre, York, 2022

A modern, multi-story concrete and glass building with balconies, set above a street with bus stops and people waiting. Signs reading TO LET are visible in the windows. The sky is clear and the scene looks urban and busy.

I prefer it in black & white.

Posted on February 21, 2025.

Level -2 of the City Tower, Manchester, 2025

A dimly lit concrete parking garage corner with exposed pipes and a small utility box on the wall. Yellow paint marks the edges of columns and curbs, and shadows fall across the rough, gray concrete surfaces.

A view looking up a concrete stairwell with visible stairs, walls, and ceiling. Metal scaffolding stands on the right, partly blocking the lower stairs. Lighting creates shadows, and there are green exit signs and orange pipes visible in the background.

Dimly lit industrial basement with exposed concrete walls and ceilings. Red pipes run overhead; a bar with hazard tape hangs across the top right. Metal fencing and yellow posts form corridors below, and construction materials are scattered around.

Posted on February 19, 2025.

Bold Street Methodist Church, Warrington, 2025

A red-brick church with tall narrow windows and a large cross on its facade stands behind a leafless tree. Cars are parked along the building. In front, there is a grassy park area with shrubs, a black trash bin, and fallen leaves. The sky is clear and blue.

Posted on February 13, 2025.

Latest posts

Covered walkway in Sale, 2025

Modernist album art, 2025