About this Event
The design phenomenon that became known as Art Deco exploded on to the international scene at the famous exhibition of 1925 in Paris, and by the early 1930s the sleek new looks of international modernist architecture were reaching Scotland, propelled by an idealistic new generation of architects like Thomas Tait, Ebenezer Macrae and the Reid/Forbes partnership.
This is the heritage we’ll be discovering, and we’ll start with a bang – Leslie Graham Thomson’s wonderful Caledonian Insurance building in St Andrew’s Square – then into to our luxury minicoach, and on to chat about the roots of Art Deco at the crown jewel that is St Andrew’s House, built as the Civil Service HQ of Scotland and still a major government office. From there we’ll continue our tour of the city, stopping at many of our best 1930’s buildings. Tea shall be served in the gorgeous period surroundings of the former Maybury Roadhouse!
You’ll see streamlining in garage, school and roadhouse inn design, Beaux Arts style neoclassicism, true Le Corbusier modernism in a Craigmillar café, glamorous white apartment blocks, and form following function in monumental concrete bridgework. You’ll also see Edinburgh’s top two surviving 'roadhouse' inns, both beautifully preserved and in use, plus a beautiful 1938 public library. There will be lots of photo stops, and selected interior looks too!
Meantime, you’ll hear from your guide the inside story of how modernism came to Scotland and its architecture world. What happened when the unstoppable force of the modern movement met the immovable mass of Scottish conservatism? You’ll hear about the personalities and conflicts that shaped Scotland’s built environment, from Le Corbusier himself to Basil Spence, Edinburgh’s own superstar architect, plus we’ll be looking at the social changes that shaped the new architectures. You’ll hear the architects’ own words from articles and letters of the time, often quite boisterous!
Come and enjoy all this and more with us on Monday 9th November!
Event venue & nearby stays
Melville Monument, 42 Saint Andrew Square, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
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