Colmore
Have you ever wondered why the
Colmore Row Business District has such an eclectic mix of
architecture? The answer may lie in the fact that it was spared the
worst of WW2 bombing and remains one of the most architecturally
intact areas of Birmingham. The “new” buildings of the 1960s and
1970s follow simple modernist patterns, are of good quality and did
fit perfectly with their older neighbours.
An interesting aspect of development
in the Colmore District, unlike many other parts of the city, is the
care and comparative restraint with which it is being developed. Is
this a blueprint for how the conservation of all periods of
architecture could be handled by the planners? Possibly.
Today we showcase a number of
modernist buildings of different styles, some of them beautifully
conserved, others having been “developed” resulting in the tragic
loss of their original Modernist integrity.
Starting your walk on Great Charles
Street near its junction with Newhall Street, you will find two very
different versions of Modernist style. Number 40, Great Charles
Street, Devonshire House, designed by Essex, Goodman and Suggit in
1954 takes a form that harks back to Art Deco. Above the striking
portico of classical columns rises an unmistakably Modernist-style
central panel of windows and vertical fins in Portland stone, framed
by a set-back surround of stone with inset windows.
In contrast, No 36, Great Charles
Street, by Elden Minns & Partners, built in 1973, has a rich
facade of Inca-patterned cast-concrete panels. We love the vibrancy
and the fun expressed in this detail. These buildings hold their own
amid the grandiosity of their surroundings and both seem quite free
from the "prettification" that has befallen other Modernist
buildings we encountered.
Continuing up Newhall Street you
will find Nos 12 to 22, Edmund House, designed in 1962-3 by Fitzroy
Robinson & Partners. Herbert Fitzroy Robinson was a prolific
architect who collaborated with Sir Basil Spence in the design of a
number of Modernist and Brutalist buildings of note. Edmund House was
eleven storeys of Portland stone, windows and pale grey infill panels
which made it a simple, pleasing building until a truly ugly, three
storey portico and dark cladding was added some time in the 1980s,
turning a quiet, well-proportioned building into something akin to a
1950’s juke box. Across the road, No 11, Newater House, is well
worth a look, another simple building with soaring metal fins framing
an elegant rhythm of windows and stone panels. Here "improvements”
of stone cladding and an unsuitable glass and steel fan-shaped canopy
are less intrusive and the quality of the building can still be
appreciated.
A detour down Edmund Street will
take you to No 120. This wonderful building is faced with Portland
stone framing a simple, clean grid of windows atop a broad pediment
and balconies with inset railings which run the whole width. All
together a sophisticated, if understated piece of architecture
unfortunately now somewhat compromised by the addition of a heavy
granite wall and pillars. Masking the original central portico is yet
another steel and glass canopy.
Back on Newhall Street you cannot
miss the large gap next to Edmund House. This was the site of the
Nat West Tower designed by renowned Birmingham architect John Madin.
Architectural critic Andy Foster described the building as being "the
most important Brutalist commercial building in the city”. Now
obliterated to make way for “Birmingham’s tallest new tower ".
Emerge on to Colmore Row, a
magnificent sweep of Victorian and Edwardian buildings and opposite,
the beautiful, leafy, vibrant open space that frames St Philips
Cathedral. Beyond the cathedral, on Temple Row stands No 55,
originally the Bank of England building and certainly one of the
finest Brutalist buildings we have left. This unashamedly Brutalist
building has presence writ large, standing four-square on a raised
podium. The monumental rhythm of stone caissons framing large
rectangular windows, tied together with copper clad beams is crowned
with a muscular pediment which echoes the Art Deco period and
eloquently expresses the strength and power of its original purpose.
The quality of the building materials is evident in the combination
of Portland stone with panels of Fossiliferous Limestone which adds a
unique texture to the whole. Designed by Fitzroy Robinson &
Partners in 1969, it was one of three similar Bank of England
buildings, the others in Newcastle and Manchester.
This walk, a fascinating voyage of
discovery, shows what can be done with our heritage buildings without
demolishing or spoiling them with glass and plastic cladding. For the
most part developers have managed to satisfy modern business needs
with imagination and ingenious solutions which have added some lovely
ultra-modern spaces and efficient buildings while preserving the
historic character of the area. Could this be a blueprint for how we
should approach the conservation of all our built environment? To
quote Council leader Ian Ward (Post 15/2/18) "This is a city
with a rich and proud history and it is absolutely essential to
invest in our heritage and never forget the past". That past
also includes gems from the post-war period. We are after all only
temporary custodians of our built environment.
