The Old & the New

I thought I would balance yesterday's grim b&w images of Luton town centre with some more upbeat colourful images. Shows how easy it is to influence perceptions simply by choosing what we show and how we portray it.

Technique challenge - Architecture and DDW's alphabet challenge V is for strong Verticals

The current town hall (top) was built in 1936, the original having been destroyed in peace day riots in 1919. The new town hall is a steel-framed building clad in grey Portland Stone and used no fewer than seven million bricks. H.R.H. The Duke of Kent opened the town hall on 28 October of that year. The building has many typical Art Deco features, but is correctly described as neoclassical on account of the contrast between the classical and modern styles.

In contrast to the bold vertical lines of the exterior, the principal interior rooms and corridors are very ornate. Many of the interior's original furnishings survive to this day and again are Art Deco in style, including the windows, staircase rails, door panels and radiator screens. Many of the features recall images from the town's coat of arms, which is displayed above the main entrance: the bee, the wheatsheaf, the rose and the thistle.
The bell in the rebuilt town hall is the heaviest in the county weighing approximately two tonnes.

In 1998 Luton Town Hall was given special protection and was listed as a Grade II listed building "of special architectural or historical interest".

And the multi coloured monstrosity (bottom) is only included as it contrasts what passes for architecture in the town these days and because I love the way the town hall is reflected in its windows.