Smithson High school, 1954- present

The start of New-Brutalism

The Smithson high school , previously known as the hunstanton high school was built in 1954 by architects Alison and Peter Smithson. The commission for the high school was the first for the young architects. “Alison met Peter, the team of architects won their first commission when they were still in their twenties. Hunstanton Secondary Modern School(Norfolk, 1949-1954) offered a rare opportunity for them to realise their bold idealised vision”. The building is a two story rectangle with a central void, a flat roof and two indoor courtyards. “The noisy elements such as the workshops, gymnasium and kitchen are without the main block”. The building’s program is divided into noisy vs not noisy. The project is made up of two structures and two courtyards. The noisy program and not noisy program is separated through the courtyards. The couple got inspiration from Mies van der Rohe and wanted to incorporate his ideas of modern architecture into the design of the school. Mies had the belief of universal space. He liked big open spaces that can be shaped into the function that needs it at that time. The couple created a rectangle which housed all the different types of program. The building was coined new brutalism and was the first of its kind. After this building the new term “new brutalism” was used to describe institutions that had the same idea .“ The polemical issue here essentially concerns the way in which prefabrication was approached in terms of large modules, and the way that this ran counter to the reductionist simplification of the architectonic language evident in post war public architecture”.  “They are arguably among the leaders of the British school of New Brutalism. They referred to New Brutalism as "an ethic, not an aesthetic."After the introduction of this new style many other looked to learn or copy it. Brutalist architecture aimed to expose the material and structure of a building. They wanted to create a new approach to modern architecture. The architects aimed to show the raw side of the building while having modern aspects to it. The building cuts down on labour and cost by using prefabricated pieces. The couple tried to copy some of Mies ideas by using an extensive amount of glass and steel. “Their architecture, although exploiting the cost and labour efficiency of mass production and prefabrication, would be anchored to location. Hunstanton steel and brick structure is often thought to be the clearest expression of these early ideas”.The raw aspect of the building ties into the location by using local materials in the building. The facade of the building is entirely made of steel and glass. This use of materials shows the modern aspect of the building while also showing of the structure which is the steel. The work of this team was at the end of a style and the start of another. “their work has since become evocative of what is now seen as a pivotal moment in British post-war architecture”. They helped to introduced a new way of thinking.

sources:

https://www.archdaily.com/519027/what-can-be-learnt-from-the-smithsons-new-brutalism-in-2014

James Taylor-Foster. "What Can Be Learnt From The Smithsons'

Alison + Peter Smithson works and projects, by Marco Vidotto.