What kind of architectural style is this, and where can I find more?

[ZjQj]

Hello everyone

I'm after a bit of advice/direction and this seems the perfect place to ask..

I'm trying to build up some inspiration to draw and model (digitally) buildings and landscapes and have found a couple of styles that I want to use for reference.

I don't know a great deal about architecture, but find certain types of British buildings fascinating and beautiful but I'm not even sure when they were built, or even if they are a 'style' or a 'movement'.

They seem to mostly be industrial or commercial buildings, red brick, flat roofing, occasionally with cement render and pronounced lintels, and white metal-framed windows. They appear to be very sturdy and well built. Shapes are usually very harsh and utilitarian.

Where I grew up near Manchester there we plenty of these places on old semi-derelict industrial areas, although quite a few were (and possibly still are) in use. I seem to recall a few pharma and chemical companies using these buildings, such as ICI and Ciba-Geigy.

I would guess that they were built around late 40s to mid/late 60s, but it is just a guess - I live not far from Trafford Park in Manchester (a huge industrial estate) but I've not seen many of these buildings. Trafford Park was heavily bombed by the Luftwaffe during WWII, so maybe they were built pre-war.

I would love to know more about these buildings, their design and the inspiration that drove their architects, and I'm hoping some of you knowledgeable people here can set me in the right direction and maybe at more photos of this type.

Here's some examples of the buildings I'm talking about - I'm finding it quite difficult to source reference photos (which is why I'm posting here of course) so these might be a little mixed up but hopefully you'll get the gist.

The foreground building is the one I'm looking at here


This one's a bit art deco (I think) so not quite right, but the windows on the right are more demonstrative.




The windows here aren't quite right, but the general shape of the building is right.




I'd be really pleased if anyone can help me out - if I've not really explained myself please let me know and I'll add more details.

Thanks!

[joshsam]

Originally Posted by ZjQj

The foreground building is the one I'm looking at here


This one's a bit art deco (I think) so not quite right, but the windows on the right are more demonstrative.




Thanks!

There are two styles in these pics. Art deco built with brick and expressionism but both in a more sober way. Both very commen in Europe.

Famous example are buildings like the battersea power station in Londen or the Schöneberg-Tempelhof in Berlin.

[joshsam]

Originally Posted by ZjQj

The windows here aren't quite right, but the general shape of the building is right.


Thanks!

No style here. Just some random plain brick factory building of wich there are millions in Europe probably 30 years old max.

[joshsam]

Ps: You might also want to compaire those first immages with modernism in brick at the Interbellum (1918–1939)

[ZjQj]

Thank you Joshsam - sorry I didn't reply sooner!

This will really put me on track now, and I can see that Brick Expressionism even has it's own (substantial) entry on Wikipedia(en)!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brick_Expressionism

and it's a category with 17 related items:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Categor..._Expressionism

Reading through these led me on to Brick Gothic (again with it's own page) which I find stunning, having only seen any of this style of architecture (that I'm aware of) in Riga, Latvia.

Knowing this style now gives me access to tons of resources via the web (including this forum of course), so again - thank you for your help - really, really appreciate it!

[Kiboko]

Originally Posted by ZjQj

Reading through these led me on to Brick Gothic (again with it's own page) which I find stunning, having only seen any of this style of architecture (that I'm aware of) in Riga, Latvia.

Amsterdam is full of it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amsterdam_School

Just outside the citycenter

[joshsam]

@ ZjQj: you're welcome

[Taller, Better]

Tons of it in Toronto, too. Exactly same colour of brick, too.

[Copperknickers]

London is full of it. Sudbury Town tube station you might like:

[CNB30]

It looks like an Art Moderne/Bauhaus