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South Bank Centre, London

In 1951, the land south of the Thames River became the site of the Festival of Britain. In attempt to boost postwar morale, a complex of modernist architecture was created to serve as a cultural center which included the Royal Festival Hall, the cigar-shaped Skylon tower, a giant ferris wheel and the saucer-shaped Dome of Discovery (an inspiration for the current Millennium Dome). Although still a thriving arts center, South Bank Centre is criticized for its cold, harsh architecture. The following commentary comes from Caroline Jones, a resident of London.

View along London's South Bank
Photo Courtesy of Caroline Jones
Reprinted with permission

The South Bank
Reader Commentary by Caroline Jones

The South Bank is a complex of quite outstanding ugliness, found as the name suggests on the south bank of the River Thames. With its harsh concrete brutalism, the complex is frequently derided by conservatives as the embodiment of all that is wrong with modern architecture (although it is not all that modern now). South Bank Centre is an extension of the 1951 Festival of Britain and long-term home of London’s biggest arts center. The complex houses the Royal National Theatre, National Film Theatre, Royal Festival Hall, London Television Centre and the Hayward Gallery among others.

Commentators frequently debate the wisdom of having the country’s important cultural centres located in what looks like a massive public car park, usually complete with teenage skateboarders. Although the South Bank is a place of unobvious charm, it is now, ironically, a valuable part of our architectural heritage. The South Bank is an almost perfect example of the 1950/60s ultra modern style. And at a time when these places are frequently demolished as eyesores, it’s one of the few public buildings of its kind left.

Apart from aesthetics, the South Bank has a serious design problem, being the most irritating building to use on a practical level. The maze of separate buildings, split level surfaces, connecting walkways and circular staircases often make you feel like you’re trapped in a giant Escher drawing. It’s all too easy to get lost and even when you can see where you want to go, it’s somehow impossible to actually get there.

The South Bank’s current state of disrepair makes it look even worse. A critic recently described it as being a mess of "weather-stained concrete, rain-swept walkways, urine-soaked stairs" -- a damning though not inaccurate description.

Personally, I think South Bank Centre is in the wrong location. The buildings' stark white lines would look attractive against clear blue skies and in perpetual sunshine. (And the mainly open air complex is not an unpleasant place to be in summer.) But forty something years of British riverside weather haven’t been kind to a porous material like concrete, and now the buildings are riddled with damp, moss, mold and most worrying, large cracks.

Since the 1980s politicians have been debating what to do about it with suggestions of both demolition and moving out. But now with the current urban regeneration of the whole south bank area and additions like the Millennium Wheel and Tate Modern within walking distance, renovation seems like a more probable scenario.

Read More About London's South Bank:

• The Tate Modern
• Adaptive Reuse

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