Peckham Health Centre, built from 1933 to 1935, was by Sir Owen
Williams. It was supposed to be a health center that would prevent disease
rather than cure it. Two doctors that really advocated the new approach to
disease launched it: prevention before cure. They are shifting lifestyle; they
are invested in scientific discovery and they are invested in
experimentation. The doctors wanted to
be one step ahead, the idea that you don’t settle with solving problems, but want
to be able to anticipate problems. This is a characterization of modernism.
Modernism wants to be one step ahead, in social and political agenda. It wanted
to solve problems before they even happen. The agenda is deeply embedded in
technology. There is no fluting, no columns, and no clearstory windows. It is
really a sort of visual set of features that are derived out of tectonics. It
is created by the idea of social progress and technological progress. Technological
progress is evident in the materials being used and how they are being used.
They believed being healthy was dancing, and exercising. These were radical
thoughts back then. The building used concrete, glass, and steel, extensive use
of glass. They had cruciform columns, because you reduce the space you need to
take up for structure, so increase and maximize the space needed for people to
occupy.
MARS (Modern Architecture Research) Group existed from 1933-57. This was a British initiative that came from continental Europe. CIAM is the French acronym for the “congress international Modern architecture”. Mars had a representative from different parts of Europe, however they lacked one from Britain. This shows how further along Britain was with modernism. The other name for modernism is the international style. Britain is really resisting the latest architectural style that we call the international style, or early modernism. The group set up sub-groups and each sub-group is dealing with a question that is absolutely significant to the socio-political effects of that time. They are kind of like a government, kind of like ministries, like education and other topics, etc. They are really trying to put forward, socio and political visions. They are drawing attention to real issues, burning issues. They do not produce anything as a collective, but they do have an exhibition, in 1938, that is the first platform for modernism. They group created an urban plan that offered different scales. This plan provided not just housing and amenities. Scale went from residential to neighborhood, to burrow, to district. The concept of neighborhood formed by the MARS group does not exist at the time; the legacy of that concept is what will be built after the war. The way in which they think of these units are each social units. Unit is the key word there.
MARS (Modern Architecture Research) Group existed from 1933-57. This was a British initiative that came from continental Europe. CIAM is the French acronym for the “congress international Modern architecture”. Mars had a representative from different parts of Europe, however they lacked one from Britain. This shows how further along Britain was with modernism. The other name for modernism is the international style. Britain is really resisting the latest architectural style that we call the international style, or early modernism. The group set up sub-groups and each sub-group is dealing with a question that is absolutely significant to the socio-political effects of that time. They are kind of like a government, kind of like ministries, like education and other topics, etc. They are really trying to put forward, socio and political visions. They are drawing attention to real issues, burning issues. They do not produce anything as a collective, but they do have an exhibition, in 1938, that is the first platform for modernism. They group created an urban plan that offered different scales. This plan provided not just housing and amenities. Scale went from residential to neighborhood, to burrow, to district. The concept of neighborhood formed by the MARS group does not exist at the time; the legacy of that concept is what will be built after the war. The way in which they think of these units are each social units. Unit is the key word there.
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