This website contains profiles of Modernist buildings in Britain. Each profile contains a description and history of the building, photographs and a location information. The following list of sites are Modernist buildings are "Pavilion". Click the building name or the "read more" link to view the building profile.
Marina, Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, TN40 1DP
The Victorian era saw a rapid growth of seaside resorts around the coast of Britain, fuelled by a number of factors. In Britain, working conditions for workers were improving, driven by worker's unions and increased acceptance of workers rights. The 1871 Bank Holidays Act granted workers four days when banks and offices were closed, the first guaranteed holidays for workers across Britain; while in 1909 Trade Boards Act created four trade boards that could determine minimum wages in certain industries, giving more workers higher wages. The expansion of the railways pushed out from the major cities to reach smaller seaside towns.
Together, increasing household incomes and improved transport links to the seaside allowed tens of thousands of working-class Britons to take day trips to the seaside. Entrepreneurs seeking to take advantage of these waves of visitors developed a unique brand of British seaside entertainment from Punch and Judy shows to donkey rides; from candy-floss, to ice-cream and sticks of rock.
Increasing rivalry between neighbouring resorts saw seaside towns commission architects and planners to design and build the very best amenities: piers, lidos, hotels, pleasure gardens and pavilions, all designed to tempt the holiday-goers. By the end of the 1930s some 15 million Britons annually were taking a holiday at the seaside.
Bexhill-on-Sea was no exception. As its population expanded and its popularity as a seaside resort grew the mayor, the 9th Earl De La Warr, formulated an idea for a centre for arts and entertainment for the town. In 1933, an international competition... Read more »
Tags: Pavilion
The Esplanade, Penarth, Wales, CF64 3AU
Penarth Pier stands at the junction of Beach Road and The Esplanade in the Welsh seaside town, a couple of miles south of Cardiff. The original pier was designed by H F Edwards and construction began at the beginning of 1894, before its official opening on 4 February 1895.
The original pier was fairly simple in form, with a wider landward section, a narrow pier neck, a wider central section housing two shelter structures, and a further narrower section leading to a wider pier head. The pier had a pavilion at its head and two ornamental toll houses, with adjoining small shops, at the landward end.
In 1926 the owners of Penarth Pier set about making improvements to the structure. The first stage saw the construction of a concrete landing stage at the pier head, allowing steam ships to call at the pier for pleasure trips.
The original toll houses and shops were demolished and a much larger shore-end pavilion building was constructed from concrete. To allow the construction of the new pier pavilion the shore end was widened by the firm of Messrs MacDonald of Avergavenney, to incorporate a supporting concrete frame. The pavilion itself was built by Messrs E J Smith of Cardiff.
Designed by M F Edwards, the pavilion adopted the fashionable Art Deco style, with Mughal architectural influences. The most famous example of a building from the Mughal empire period is the Taj Mahal palace at Agra, India.
The form of the pavilion is of an elongated rectangular block extending along... Read more »
Tags: Pavilion
