Concrete Futures
In Poplar, East London, the Balfron Tower and Robin Hood Gardens Estate are celebrated examples of modern architecture. Designed by Erno Goldfinger, the Balfron Tower is Grade II* listed and has been refurbished within a Conservation Area. By contrast, the Robin Hood Gardens Estate (Alison and Peter Smithson) failed to gain listed status and is undergoing phased demolition as part of the Blackwall Reach regeneration scheme.
This is walk to discover the Brutalist ideas and utopian ambitions of the architects behind these social housing projects and consider what aspects of the past might have led to such diverging futures for these two estates.