John Lewis

[AndrewC]

24 minutes ago, Leo Tomlinson said:

The well known Sheffield Architect Peter Fauset  (who i worked with many years ago) puts forward some  sensible suggestions in  todays letters page in Sheffield Star paper , Its so good to see the experts championing the sixties buildings in our City for once , We have lost most of them ,   a situation that has lead to the ruination of parts of our City ,   Castlegate being a prime example /

There is plenty to like about lots of (not all) inter-war and post-war architecture. For a lot of normal people it's easy to see the charm in detailed, high-quality materials used in buildings that were common pre-war but it's less easy to appreciate some of the more subtle details that form part of any good building, no matter age or style.

 

Shape, scale, massing, rhythm (how the building facade is 'split'), functional layout, sense of place etc.; all of these are less easy to spot - but just as important - as pretty arches and an ornamental cornice. In that context, there's a lot of good in the John Lewis building, particularly when viewed from Barkers Pool.

 

Another thing is that people sometimes allow the superficial issues with a building to carry too much weight. People see a dirty, run-down building in John Lewis and they dismiss it architecturally when it truth, those are issues solved with a good clean, new windows, etc. If you did a lot of that to the JL building it would look vastly better than it does now.

[AndrewC]

18 hours ago, Ghozer said:

https://www.hhbs.org.uk/2022/08/22/colebroslisted/

Though I don't entirely agree with them on a lot of this, they do make at least one good point - the track record of modern buildings - even 'landmark' ones - in Sheffield and a lot of other UK cities with similar sites, is not a great one. Be careful what you wish for would probably be the key phrase here.

 

In my experience, people who would consider John Lewis 'ugly' don't tend to be massive fans of the kind of architecture style and quality that is most likely to replace it either.

Edited August 24, 2022 by AndrewC

[Guest]

20 hours ago, Ghozer said:

https://www.hhbs.org.uk/2022/08/22/colebroslisted/

The Cole Brothers building is not unattractive, particularly when compared to some of the monstrosities that have mushroomed around the campus city of late.

 

Good idea re. library/art gallery.  Bit of a reach with the car park use though.

[horribleblob]

22 hours ago, Ghozer said:

https://www.hhbs.org.uk/2022/08/22/colebroslisted/

Interesting. Sticking my head above the parapet, I think I'm one of a tiny minority who has always liked the clean lines and proportions of the Cole Brothers Building. The Roxy on the other hand...

[Jeffrey Shaw]

3 hours ago, Hecate said:

Good idea re. library/art gallery.  Bit of a reach with the car park use though.

Car-park adjacent to library: even better than present Central Library.

A good idea, plus a way to ensure a well-known building's continued use.

[crookesey]

15 minutes ago, LovePotion said:

It could be a nice hotel, bang opposite the City Hall, prime location. Perhaps Jury's Inn might take it on.

Why/when would it be required, who comes to Sheffield, and for what?

[Guest]

26 minutes ago, LovePotion said:

It could be a nice hotel, bang opposite the City Hall, prime location. Perhaps Jury's Inn might take it on.

Yes!  Either that or student accommodation, obviously.

[HeHasRisen]

1 minute ago, Hecate said:

Yes!  Either that or student accommodation, obviously.

Or a Fenwicks, duhhhh!

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Jeffrey Shaw said:

Car-park adjacent to library: even better than present Central Library.

A good idea, plus a way to ensure a well-known building's continued use.

Yes.  The green gloss might take some work though,

[hackey lad]

1 hour ago, LovePotion said:

It could be a nice hotel, bang opposite the City Hall, prime location. Perhaps Jury's Inn might take it on.

Think that’s listed for the current library