Wednesday, April 28, 2004
MY FIRST ARCHITECTURE POSTING As you may have noticed, in my site's byline it say this blog is also about architecture. Now given that it's been running since last August I have to say it is in fact quite dismaying to disciver that this is my first posting. (Oh yes, and I also concede that my postings on religion and church issue have also been a little ligth so to speak.)
So Lord Foster's gerkin is now close to finished and the BBC's Megan Lane loves it, she really does:
As an instant icon of 21st Century Britain, it has all but supplanted the Routemaster bus and Big Ben as shorthand for London on TV, in ads and on film. In Love Actually, it reared above Liam Neeson as his on-screen son told of a schoolyard crush during a stroll along the South Bank.
Now, it should be noted that the BBC doesn't normally go in for intentional satire in its news reporting, but this puff piece certainly sounds more like its own parody than serious journalism. I mean read those words again and think about them. "Icon of 21st century Britain"? Really? And of course the world's press is flocking to London to report on this sensational new manifestation of Britain. Or not as it is in reality. And the idea that it already has supplanted red busses and Big Ben as a shorthand for the capital is simply ballooney.
That said, it's elegant and a positive addition to London's skyline which is otherwise made of fairly dire and uninspiring stuff. And I mean "stuff". Here's a pic which proves my point. It's a nice building but Mrs Lane's verbal orgasmating is totally inappropriate.
PS: On the site where I find the pic there's also this pretty one of Salisbury Cathedral's courtyard this one I'm actually familiar with and as a topping which is appropriately entitled "only in England". ;)
So Lord Foster's gerkin is now close to finished and the BBC's Megan Lane loves it, she really does:
As an instant icon of 21st Century Britain, it has all but supplanted the Routemaster bus and Big Ben as shorthand for London on TV, in ads and on film. In Love Actually, it reared above Liam Neeson as his on-screen son told of a schoolyard crush during a stroll along the South Bank.
Now, it should be noted that the BBC doesn't normally go in for intentional satire in its news reporting, but this puff piece certainly sounds more like its own parody than serious journalism. I mean read those words again and think about them. "Icon of 21st century Britain"? Really? And of course the world's press is flocking to London to report on this sensational new manifestation of Britain. Or not as it is in reality. And the idea that it already has supplanted red busses and Big Ben as a shorthand for the capital is simply ballooney.
That said, it's elegant and a positive addition to London's skyline which is otherwise made of fairly dire and uninspiring stuff. And I mean "stuff". Here's a pic which proves my point. It's a nice building but Mrs Lane's verbal orgasmating is totally inappropriate.
PS: On the site where I find the pic there's also this pretty one of Salisbury Cathedral's courtyard this one I'm actually familiar with and as a topping which is appropriately entitled "only in England". ;)
