All Letters to the editor articles – Page 89
-
OpinionRelative value
I wonder how the £111 million spent on the refurbishment of the Festival Hall compares with its original cost. Can anyone enlighten me?
-
Opinion
Streets wise
The shared surface/space concept (News June 8) is well established and proven in practice, and aims to adjust the skewed balance between motor vehicles and other users in urban areas.
-
OpinionSixties add-ons not all bad
Congratulations to you and the architect Allies & Morrison on the superb refurbishment of the Royal Festival Hall (Works June 1).
-
Opinion
Complex issues
The petition against Israeli architects working in East Jerusalem organised by Abe Hayeem and Charles Jencks, although well intended, is simplistic and imbalanced. It ignores wider issues affecting the region such as the complex political background and the violence of the conflict, as well as the sustainable urban issues affecting ...
-
Opinion
Depressing view
My stroll last Sunday along the riverside upper deck of the Royal Festival Hall in anticipation of its opening this Friday after the £92 million refit was depressing.
-
Opinion
Positive feedback
As a contribution to the debate about how to improve late 20th century modernist icons it is a shame Christopher Woodward’s feature on the Royal Festival Hall was not more positive about improvements to the RFH auditorium.
-
Opinion
Shaky ground
Charles Jencks (Letters June 1) might be interested to know that there was no such state as Palestine in 1907 as the area was part of the Ottoman Empire.
-
Opinion
Making a stand
The question of whether or not architects, as a profession, should engage in politics (Debate June 1) is determined by what you accept to be the role of a professional.
-
Opinion
We must object to Israeli actions
Michael Peters’ invoking of the community of developers as a reason for not protesting against the further dismem-berment of Palestine (News May 25) is in the worst tradition of intimidation.
-
Opinion
African realities
In his review (May 18) of the RIBA South African architecture exhibitions, Tom Woolley raises some good points but he misses the target on architectural education in South Africa, particularly at the University of Cape Town, where I trained. His comments are typical of an outsider looking in.
-
Opinion
Area of conflict
While I applaud the government awarding grants to improve energy-inefficient homes (News April 27), it seems that giving grants to buyers of low-scoring properties would boost sales of these properties, albeit marginally, and so work against the principle of energy performance certificates, which aim to encourage buyers to purchase efficient ...
-
Opinion
No to BD politics
I do not think that articles carrying quotations on controversial political issues should be headline news in BD (May 25). Do we not have enough of that stuff in the general media? Have we run out of valuable architectural subjects?
-
Opinion
Even-handed
I was interested to read your front page urging Israeli architects to end works in disputed territories.
-
TechnicalEverybody gets together — if there’s a space
Public space must be one of our values if we want a healthy society
-
OpinionHuman league
Greatly though I respect Sam Webb’s persistence, I fear we overlook the one feature common to the succession of errors that led to condemnation of the Ronan Point system — personal responsibility.
-
Opinion
Political points
The RIBA, led by Jack Pringle, continues its fight for political correctness. In a primarily white society, it is not surprising that this is reflected in the make-up of the profession. Most architects achieve middle-class status, and the relatively small percentage of women members arises from a complex social history.
-
OpinionPublicity is vital
So Michael Peters of Identica (offices in Canada, UK, USA & China), whose mission statement is “discover, create, optimise the brand experience”, has reacted to our petition with the threat that we “are going to burn our bridges with a number of developers — Israeli, British and European”.
-
OpinionThe route to quality housing
I read with interest your articles on the Williams Report (May 18). It is a shame that the views of council officers were not obtained, particularly design officers, because they are very much part of the process. It is a challenge to raise the bar of the housing industry and ...
-
Opinion
Valuable legacy
Your front page last week was the clearest reminder of the importance of Colin St John Wilson’s written and built legacy of a caring and reasoned architecture in a profession increasingly complicit in its own emasculation as a serious and humanising cultural force.
-
OpinionSpaced out
Another housing report, the Williams Report (BD May 18), comes from more very worthy practitioners hoping that good design will triumph in the mass housing market to put the sea of mediocrity firmly into the past.