Bevin Court
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Bevin Court is a housing project in
Finsbury Finsbury is a district of Central London, forming the southeastern part of the London Borough of Islington. It borders the City of London. The Manorialism, Manor of Finsbury is first recorded as ''Vinisbir'' (1231) and means "manor of a man c ...
, London. It is one of several
modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...
housing projects designed in the city in the immediate postwar period by the
Tecton The Tecton Group was a radical architectural group co-founded by Berthold Lubetkin, Francis Skinner, Denys Lasdun, Michael Dugdale, Anthony Chitty, Val Harding, Godfrey Samuel, and Lindsay Drake in 1932 and disbanded in 1939. The group was one ...
architecture practice, led by
Berthold Lubetkin Berthold Romanovich Lubetkin (14 December 1901 – 23 October 1990) was a Russian-born British architecture, architect who pioneered International style (architecture), modernist design in Britain in the 1930s. His work includes the Highpoint I ...
. Following the dissolution of Tecton, the project was realised by Lubetkin, Francis Skinner and Douglas Carr Bailey. The project was completed in 1954.


Location

Located in Cruikshank Street, London WC1, the scheme is built on the site of the bomb-destroyed Holford Square in Finsbury. It incorporates the main building of Bevin Court, plus the smaller Holford House (which echoes the form of its larger neighbour) and Amwell House (itself of interest as a modernist interpretation of the bay-fronted Victorian terrace). The group of buildings as a whole reflects Lubetkin's respect for the pre-existing urban environment, a characteristic that makes his work stand out from that of many modernist architects of his generation. Post war austerity had imposed far greater budgetary constraints than in Tecton's housing showpiece Spa Green Estate, forcing Lubetkin to strip the project of the basic amenities he had planned; there were to be no balconies, community centre or nursery school. Instead Lubetkin focused his energies on the social space. Fusing his aesthetic and political concerns he created a stunning constructivist staircase — a social condenser that forms the heart of the building.


History

The building occupies the site of the 1902–03 home of
Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...
, which he occupied while in exile editing the
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
n socialist newspaper
Iskra ''Iskra'' (, , ''the Spark'') was a fortnightly political newspaper of Russian socialist emigrants established as the official organ of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP). History ''Iskra'' was published in exile and then smuggl ...
(Spark).Simpson, Theo. "Bevin Court occupies the site of Lenin's former home while he was exiled in London in 1902" (''The Independent'')
/ref> In honour of the
Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
leader, the building was initially planned to be named "Lenin Court". In addition the building was to incorporate Lubetkin's memorial to Lenin, which had been located on the site of Holford Square since 1942. However the memorial proved unpopular with the public and was repeatedly vandalised, to the extent that it required a 24-hour police guard. The end of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
marked the end of the brief thaw in Anglo-Russian relations and Finsbury Council lost their enthusiasm for both the memorial and the proposed name for the building. When it became clear that the Borough were no longer willing to keep the memorial on site Lubetkin buried its remains under the central core of the staircase. The proposed site of the monument (to the right of the main entrance) and a viewing aperture designed to allow the building's porter to oversee its wellbeing exist to this day. Before the building was completed the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
had intensified and as a result the scheme was renamed Bevin Court (honouring Britain's firmly anti-communist foreign secretary
Ernest Bevin Ernest Bevin (9 March 1881 – 14 April 1951) was a British statesman, trade union leader and Labour Party politician. He co-founded and served as General Secretary of the powerful Transport and General Workers' Union from 1922 to 1940 and ...
). On 28 September 2013, Bevin Court became the first council residential building to unveil a commemorative plaque, dedicated to the artist Cyril Mann who lived and worked there between 1956 and 1964. Notably, the building successfully made significant use of prefabricated floor and wall components. The building was given grade II* listed status in December 1998 and was restored by the
London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough, borough in North London, England. Forming part of Inner London, Islington has an estimated population of 215,667. It was formed in 1965, under the London Government Act 1963, by the amalg ...
in 2014–2016.


Artwork

The building also incorporates a mural in the ground hall entranceway painted by Lubetkin's collaborator
Peter Yates Peter James Yates (24 July 1929 – 9 January 2011) was an English film director and producer. He was known for making films in a wide variety of genres, including the Steve McQueen police thriller film '' Bullitt'' in 1968. He received nomin ...
, depicting Finsbury's coat of arms and aspects of its history. After long-term exposure to vandalism, wear and various unsuccessful attempts at repair, in 2015–16 the mural was restored to its original design using authentic materials for the period. The missing bust of Ernest Bevin was recreated at the same time and now occupies its original location in the wall opposite the mural. Glass screens were installed to protect both assets.


References


Further reading

* John Allan & Morley von Sternberg, ''Berthold Lubetkin'' (Merrell, 2002) * John Allan, ''Lubetkin: Architecture and the Tradition of Progress'' (RIBA 1992) * Utopia London (Documentary) Director Tom Cordell 2010 *


External links


Design Museum page
about Berthold Lubetkin *

Searchable database listing alterations requiring Listed Building Consent at Bevin Court hen accessed on 29 November 2014, this link was no longer functional/small> * Utopia London website page about Bevin Court {{Coord, 51.5304, -0.1131, type:landmark_region:GB-ISL, display=title Modernist architecture in London Residential buildings in London Berthold Lubetkin buildings Residential buildings completed in 1954 Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Islington 1954 establishments in England