Comparison of the Hayward Gallery and the Royal Festival Hall Essay

Introduction

Brutalism in architecture began to develop in the middle part of the 20^th century as a variant of Modernism to represent massive architectural forms. From this point, Brutalism was discussed as an approach within the developed Modernist movement. Brutalist buildings were characterised by the massive construction, use of rough materials such as the concrete, and bold finishing (Scott 2007, p. 57). The Royal Festival Hall and the Hayward Gallery are discussed as the examples of the British variant of the modern ‘Brutalist’ architecture in spite of the fact that the buildings are quite different in their form, construction, and design. The Royal Festival Hall was built in London in 1951 as a large concert hall in the Southbank Centre in London. The modernist elegant building of the Royal Festival Hall was planned and designed by Robert Matthew and Leslie Martin (McKean 2001, p. 24). The Hayward Gallery was constructed in 1968, and its main function was to provide the large space for exhibitions. This large art gallery contributed to the development of the art complex of the Southbank Centre. The architects Norman Engleback, Ron Herron, and Warren Chalk constructed the concrete building to accentuate the features of Brutalism (Risebero 1985, p. 224). From this point, if the Royal Festival Hall is characterised by transparency and lightness typical for the Modernist architecture of the first part of the 20^th century, the Hayward Gallery is a perfect example of the ‘Brutalist’ approach in architecture of the middle part of the 20^th century because of the construction’s monumental character and massive architecture. Thus, it is important to compare the different architecture of these buildings that are connected in the art complex of the Southbank Centre in London.

Planning and the Vertical Arrangement of the Royal Festival Hall and the Hayward Gallery

The Royal Festival Hall project was one of the most challenging for architects because of their focus on the advantages of the Modernist approach in their combination with monumental forms typical for the Brutalist architecture. Discussing the planning of the Hall, it is important to note that the architects chose to realise the concept of the “the egg in a box” in their building (Wheatley 2007, p. 19). The main focus was on constructing the “stone-clad” auditorium in the centre of the building that was “surrounded by beautifully articulated multi-level public spaces” (Wheatley 2007, p. 19). Thus, today foyers and places round the auditorium are wide and full of the air and light (Picture 1). Spaces on all the floors of the building are opened to provide the ease access to galleries, staircases, and other public places.

Picture 1

Focusing on the vertical arrangement in the building, it is important to pay attention to the role of the symmetrical staircases in the Royal Festival Hall. These staircases allow the ease circulation of walkers in the building, and they significantly add to the design’s solemnity (Picture 2). The circulation in the Royal Festival Hall is improved as a result of the renovation project in 2008, when “the significance of original entrances on all sides of the building” was reinstated (Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre 2008).

Picture 2

The architecture of the Hayward gallery differs from the planning of the Royal Festival Hall because the architects focused on accentuating the aggressiveness of the concrete and the unpolished beauty of the stone used in order to construct the massive building that reflected the elements of Brutalism, Modernism, and Urbanism. From this point, “the buildings neighbouring the Royal Festival Hall were seen as a strong reaction against the Festival’s tempered, peculiarly British modernism”, and the Hayward gallery was the most impressing concrete construction of the Southbank Centre (Atkinson 2014, p. 87; Picture 3). As a result, the construction of the Royal Festival Hall resembles the block made of the concrete and glass when the Hayward gallery’s building is more intriguing because of many rough lines and forms presented in its architecture.

Picture 3

The approach to planning the Hayward gallery differs significantly from the architects’ approach to planning the Royal Festival Hall. If the Hall’s structure resembles the ‘egg in the box’, the location of galleries and public places in the Hayward gallery is more structured and organised. The architects planned both inside and outside galleries, but the use of the outside galleries by the public was limited (Risebero 1985, p. 224). In order to accentuate the carefully planned galleries, the architects focused on the connection between galleries on different floors in order to contribute to the public’s circulation inside the building (Picture 4). The characteristic feature of the Hayward gallery’s planning is the presence of three massive concrete towers that contribute to complicating the building’s form and contain lifts for visitors (Southbank Centre History 2014). The walk paths serve to connect the galleries on the floors when the concrete staircases and large lavatories contribute to the vertical arrangement inside the Hayward gallery.

Picture 4

Interior and Finishing of the Royal Festival Hall and the Hayward Gallery

The finishing of the Royal Festival Hall is typical for the Modernist architecture and design. Thus, when the Hall was opened, its “large external columns were faced with a Derbyshire marble known as ‘Derbydene’, a polished variety of carboniferous limestone composed mainly of fossil debris” (Atkinson 2014, p. 79). This approach allowed the architects to support the focus on using the natural materials. However, the most impressive feature of the Hall’s building is the extensive use of glass. The extensive areas of glass used in the building’s exterior are important to support the play of light inside the building in order to accentuate wide spaces round the auditorium. From this point, it is relevant to discuss the idea and construction of opening in the building with the focus on the Royal Festival Hall’s large windows. These windows play the central role in influencing the distribution of light in the Hall (Picture 5).

Picture 5

Discussing the overall finishing of the Hall, it is important to state that the dominant colour used in the exterior and interior of the building is white. Thus, the bright white colour contributes to considering the Hall’s building as the monumental, but light construction. It is important to state that the transparency of “the foyers and their flowing internal spaces” is the distinctive features of the Royal Festival Hall (Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre 2008). Additionally, white large spaces inside the Hall’s building are the main feature of the specific Modernist design. Focusing on the interior, it is also important to mention the use of the luxurious materials and woods in decorating the staircases and interior surfaces in the building (Picture 6). In spite of the focus on the union of the nature and building in the architecture of the Royal Festival Hall, the textures and materials originally used in the design of the furniture cannot be discussed as light and natural. Thus, the plywood furniture with the steel elements was originally designed for the Hall’s auditorium (Atkinson 2014, p. 80). The dominant colours used in the furniture are mainly natural and white, without the focus on the previously used bright colours.

Picture 6

If the finishing of the Royal Festival Hall is characterised by the focus on the glass, the finishing of the Hayward gallery is extremely ‘Brutalist’, and it is characterised by the active use of the concrete. The predominant colours in the interior of the Hayward gallery are grey, white, and black (Risebero 1985, p. 224; Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre 2008). The architects and designers added the glass in order to expand the spaces of the originally small foyers on the gallery’s floors. The glass was also used to decorate the newly built cafes and public places inside the Hayward gallery (Picture 7).

Picture 7

The Royal Festival Hall and the Hayward Gallery in the Urban Context

The Royal Festival Hall and the Hayward Gallery should be primarily discussed in the urban context because the architecture of these buildings aims to support the urban landscapes and unite the art, people, and nature. When the Royal Festival Hall renovated in 2008, the entire environment round the Hall was reshaped in order to make more paths and link places for people. Thus, “Queen’s Walk has been linked by new stone steps to a line of shops, cafes and bars created out of the 1964 riverside extension” (Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre 2008; Picture 8).

Picture 8

While focusing on the Royal Festival Hall and the neighbouring Hayward gallery as the architecture complex, it is important to note that the complicated lines and forms of the Hayward gallery made it possible to see two buildings at different levels because of differences in the levels of walkways (Southbank Centre History 2014). In order to place the Hayward gallery within the urban and Southbank Centre’s context, the architects planned the walkways connecting the stairs to the building’s terraces with the paths round the neighbouring structures (Picture 9).

Picture 9

The Royal Festival Hall’s exterior is in harmony with the urban landscape because of the use of glass and white colour in the building’s exterior. Thus, the white walls of the hall are in contrast to the blue line of the sky in London, and the glass surface of the building is similar to the glass surface of the Thames. As a result, the lights of the Hall are reflected in the river waters at night. Much attention is paid to uniting the people and the urban and natural environment with the help of terraces. Being on a terrace, a visitor can see the river’s surface and the circulation between the terraces and auditorium is not limited. Today, two new staircases “sheltered by bright metal canopies link the riverfront and the upper level terrace, repopulated by a new riverside café” (Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre 2008). Thus, “enclosing the original concrete pergolas, two glass pavilions are now used throughout the year”, and the audience becomes the part of the urban landscape while using the new glass lift that leads to the Waterloo entrance of the building (Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre 2008). From this point, the architecture of the two monumental buildings can be discussed as playing the great role in the urban context, and Modernist and Brutalist elements of the constructions’ design add to the overall perception of the art complex in London.

Conclusion

The Royal Festival Hall and the Hayward Gallery can be discussed as the unique examples of the British Modernist architecture. In spite of the fact that both buildings are discussed as examples of Brutalism in the architecture of London, the elements of Brutalism are differently represented by the architects in these monumental constructions. It is important to state that the architecture of the Royal Festival Hall is rather elegant because the building was significantly changed as a result of the renovation in 2008. The architects focused on adding many glass elements to the design of the building in order to make the whole construction more transparent and full of the air and light. While comparing the architecture of the Royal Festival Hall with the architecture of the Hayward Gallery, it is important to focus on the variety of lines and forms used in the Hayward Gallery’s building. Towers and structures with different levels are used to make the construction more complicated and challenging for the perception. In addition, these two buildings are massive, but they create the unique complex in the urban environment because of similarity in textures and techniques that are used to construct the Royal Festival Hall and the Hayward Gallery.

Reference List

Atkinson, H 2014, ‘The first modern townscape?’, in P Larkham & Erten E (eds.), Alternative visions of post-war reconstruction: creating the modern townscape, Routledge, London, pp. 72-90.

McKean, J 2001, Architecture in detail: Royal Festival Hall, Phaidon Press Ltd., New York.

Risebero, B 1985, Modern architecture and design: an alternative history, MIT Press, London.

Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre 2008, Web.

Scott, F 2007, On altering architecture, Routledge, London.

Southbank Centre History 2014, Web.

Wheatley, J 2007, ‘The sound of architecture’, Tempo, vol. 61, no. 242, pp. 11–19.