#brick — Modernist Delights

Williamson Power Station, Lancaster, 2026

An abandoned red-brick industrial building stands silhouetted against a vibrant sunset with pink and orange clouds. A tall chimney rises from the side, and a metal security fence encloses the gravel car park and overgrown path in the foreground.

🪧 Days Without Posting Williamson Power Station: 0.

Palác Morava, Brno, Czechia, 2026

A multi-storey corner building with a red-brick façade and a white stone-clad corner section stands at a city intersection. The ground floor features shopfronts with green frames and Sklizeno signs, while tram tracks curve across the foreground under a cloudy blue sky.

A curved block of flats with a red-brick and white-tiled façade stands against a blue sky with scattered clouds. The street-level shopfronts feature signs for Utopia Čajovna, Ryor, and a Fitness 2000, with cars parked along the pavement in the foreground.

An urban building with a curved façade of red brick and light-coloured concrete stands against a blue, cloudy sky. Multiple rows of windows are visible, and the ground floor features shopfront windows with signs that read Jídelna and Bez lepková. Black trolley wires cross the upper frame.

A multi-storey building with a rounded, red-brick corner façade rises above a street-level commercial area. Shops include a tea room labelled Utopia, a Ryor cosmetics store, and a Fitness 3000 gym, with several parked cars lining the pavement under a bright blue sky.

Palác Morava is a building of two halves – an older 6 storey half (the last 3 pictures here, built 1929), and a newer 4 storey half (the first picture, built 1936).

It’s mainly the older part of the building which appeals to me – it’s a concrete frame clad in attractive decorative patterned brick, and the inward curve of the upper storeys provides visual interest.

The building is surrounded by tram tracks on all sides, which does make it rather difficult to photograph cleanly.

Keele University Chapel, 2026

A modern brick building with tall, narrow windows. A purple banner above the door reads, Open for all. Free to enter. Everyone welcome. Keele Chapel. The entrance is open, and the sky is clear and blue.

A bright room with purple chairs, a small table, and a coat stand faces large wooden double doors with barred windows. Sunlight streams in, and emergency exit signs are above the doors. Brick walls wrap around the cosy waiting area.

Two tall, narrow windows with metal bars are set in a brick wall. Through the windows, blurred figures and a table are visible, suggesting people seated in a room beyond. The bricks vary in colour, giving the wall a textured, rustic appearance.

Interior of a modern church with a high wooden ceiling, exposed beams, and pendant lights. The back wall features a cross, textured panels, and a large wooden door. Glass railing and people are visible on the right. Warm natural light fills the space.

Tall, multi-panelled window with geometric vertical sections set in a brick wall inside a building with high ceilings. Modern hanging light fittings are visible on both sides. Sunlight streams through the glass, illuminating the interior.

Tall brick wall with three large vertical sections of rectangular glass windows. Wooden beams divide the sections. Modern stage lights are mounted near the windows. Light streams in, illuminating the interior. Ceiling is angled and has a wooden finish.

View looking up at a modern architectural ceiling with geometric acoustic panels suspended in rows, surrounded by curved concrete beams and tall windows with rectangular glass panes letting in natural light.

Interior view looking up at a ceiling with exposed wooden beams, two large windows letting in daylight, a brick wall below, red pipe, and concrete pillars to the right; the setting suggests an industrial or loft-style space.

A brick building with many tall, narrow windows arranged in rows, each with white frames. A black drainpipe runs vertically between the windows. The ground is paved with large stone slabs. The sky is clear and blue.

I didn’t get a good photo of the front, but it looks like a some sort of beautiful, crazy, double grain silo.

Marks & Spencer department store, Lancaster, 2025

A Marks & Spencer shopfront with a brown brick façade, arched upper windows, and large display windows below featuring Christmas-themed posters. The white sign above the entrance displays the shop name in bold black letters. Blue sky is visible above.

Marble House, Maida Vale, London, 2025

A long, three-storey brick block of flats with small balconies and white-framed windows faces a tree-lined pavement on a sunny day. Some balconies have plants, and shadows suggest it is morning or late afternoon.

Holmfield House, Kensal Town, London, 2025

A mid-century modern building with geometric patterns, large windows, and shops, including RELLIK, on a sunny street. Cars are parked along the kerb, and a red van is in the foreground. A leafy tree stands at the left, and a blue sky is above.

A person walks past a modern, grey brick block of flats with horizontal windows and blue accents. Bicycles are parked along the pavement. A shaft of sunlight highlights part of the building. The sky is clear and blue.

A three-storey, modernist building with long horizontal windows, blue tiles, and geometric designs stands at a street corner. Several cars are parked beside it. A person in a high-visibility vest is near a bicycle rack. Trees frame the image on the right.

A grey and blue modern block of flats with horizontal windows, round vents, and blue tile detailing. Parked cars and a motorbike line the street. A leafless tree stands near the pavement under a bright, clear sky.

Standing in the shadow of Trellick Tower on the day that I shot it, this is one of my favourite buildings. So much so, I have a Mandy Payne print of it in the office.

Diespeker Wharf, Islington, London, 2025

A three-storey brick building with DIESPEKER CO LTD painted in large white letters, featuring arched windows, a main entrance with glass doors, and greenery in front. The sky is partly cloudy, and a modern building adjoins it on the right.

Victorian (so much for the delights being modernist) former timber mill & terrazzo and marble manufacturing warehouse.

Duncan Street, Islington, 2025

Three-storey brick building with shops at street level, including a hair salon, Double Knot, and Kall kwik. Stairs lead to entrances. Leafless tree branches overhang above. A School road sign is visible. Windows reflect trees. The pavement is mostly empty.

Time to confess my secret fondness for split-level buildings. They remind me of such structures in the homeland, where shops may be on ground and first floors, the latter accessed by an external walkway, streets-in-the-sky style.

The rear of this row of buildings has garages on the ground floor with three floors above, where the front only has two, seemingly with no change in elevation. I assumed the flats, internally, would also feature some split-level malarkey, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Instead, a Rightmove listing for one of the flats reveals another fun feature – top floor flats feature private courtyards in the centre of the building.

Notice, too, the brick benches built in between sets of steps.

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.

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.