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Cited as the original inspiration for #BrutalistArchitecture & its philosophy, the residential BLDG #UniteDHabitation by #LeCorbusier influenced #Modernist architects & #EU #SocialHousing during the 1950s & 60s. Providing everything residents needed for modern communal living, corridors served as streets, to shop, play, live & share a Vertical Garden City on the terrace roof.
In Source: Unité d'Habitation
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After the #Blitz of #WW2, demand for #SocialHousing in Europe, for dislocated families was high. #LeCorbusier focused on communal living & his pioneering approach to large-scale housing produced #UniteDHabitation, completed in 1952. With 1600 residents over 18 floors, he innovatively organised space to integrate private living, utilitarian & communal spaces into one.
In Source: Unité d'Habitation
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Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, #LeCorbusier, was a Swiss-French architect, designer, urban planner & #ModernArchitecture pioneer. #UniteDHabitation is a seminal work, designed in response to a post war #SocialHousing crisis. Constructed from Beton-Brut / Raw #Concrete, cheap in post-war EU, the material-form characterised life after war: rough & unforgiving #BrutalistArchitecture
In Source: Unité d'Habitation
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Plans to build #SlovoHouse were quickly approved by Soviet authorities who used #SocialHousing to put Ukrainian intellectuals in one house & monitor them. Residents faced #PoliticalRepression & most were shot in the 1930s #StalinistTerror; 11 at #Sandarmokh. Registered an #ImmovableMonumentofUkraine in 2019, this symbol of resilience was hit by a #RussianMilitaryStrike in 2023.
In Source: “Slovo” House
“I built skyscrapers for people to live in,” said the architect #ErnoGoldfinger about #TrellickTower, a 31-storey #Kensington residence. With sky bridges & spaces that echo #BalfronTower #BrutalistArchitecture ideals, this #SocialHousing was meant to enable the community to live with dignity, but neglect, media panic & policy failures turned it into a symbol of urban decline.
In Source: Trellick Tower
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In less than 10 yrs after its opening, #TrellickTower was considered a failure. But during the 1980s, the residents got organised & showed “Pride in place” & turned the story around. Maintenance improved, crime fell & in 1998, it became #Grade2Listed. Today, it is both a celebrated icon of #BrutalistArchitecture, & a warning of how easily #SocialHousing can be undermined.
In Source: Trellick Tower
The #RightToBuy in the 1980s, gave the tenants of the #Barbican estate an opportunity to buy their flats at a discount, gradually shifting public ownership to private. As more homes entered the open market, values soared. What began as a vision of dignified #SocialHousing became a symbol of #Privatisation & #Gentrification of London’s #BrutalistArchitecture legacy.
In Source: Barbican
#BalfronTower was #Grade2Listed in 1996 for its architectural value. Without protecting its #SocialHousing purpose, ownership was transferred to #PoplarHARCA in 2007 for #Refurbishment, forcing tenants out without plans to return. From #TrellickTower to #Barbican, London’s #BrutalistArchitecture is cherished & preserved, but severed from the life they were built to serve.
In Source: Balfron Tower
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Cast in #Concrete & #Grade2Listed, #BalfronTower has not changed in appearance, but everything is new inside. From 2014–17 the #SocialHousing council flats were redeveloped & sold as private homes, with polished floors & concierge service. Only #Flat130 is untouched, a nod to the visionary architect #ErnoGoldfinger. The form survives. The story changed. #BrutalistArchitecture
In Source: Balfron Tower
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