Modern London Houses

My photos of some of the best modern-style houses in London

Compiled by David Anderson

Introduction

Despite the general opposition to Modern style houses, London has a considerable number of interesting individual examples, often hidden away in small mews sites or previously under-developed backland sites. I am aiming to gradually photograph each one and record their precise address.

When I say 'Modern' I don't mean of recent construction, but designed in the 'Modern Style' which arrived here in the thirties. In contrast to architectural styles of the past which modelled 'mass' sculpturally, the Modern Style uses space as its medium. Hence buildings in this style tend to have plain unornamented construction while having complex, connected spaces, often linking different rooms and levels and linking interior with garden.

Notes

In the borough pages below, clicking the small images will bring up a larger version. If I know the details, I have included the architect and date of construction in the columns after the image. The note "Listed" means this property is on the Government list of buildings of architectural or historical interest, giving it statutory protection. I have also included reference numbers (abbreviated to 'IoE') to the listed buildings website "Images Of England". Other abbreviations in the right-hand comments column are page references to books listed in the bibliography (below). I've also added some other buildings of interest, especially small blocks of flats.

London Borough Pages

Barnet
Barnet
Barnet
Bexley
Brent
Brent
Bromley North
Bromley
Camden
Camden
City of London
City Of London
Croydon
Croydon
Ealing
Ealing
Enfield
Enfield
Greenwich
Greenwich
Blackheath
Greenwich
- Blackheath
Hackney
Hackney
Hammersmith And Fulham
Hammersmith
And Fulham
Haringey
Haringey
Harrow
Harrow
Stanmore
Harrow - Stanmore
Havering
Havering
Hillingdon
Hillingdon
Hounslow
Hounslow
Islington
Islington
Kensington & Chelsea
Kensington & Chelsea
Kingston Upon Thames
Kingston Upon Thames
Kingston Upon Thames
Kingston Upon Thames
- Coombe
Lambeth
Lambeth
Lewisham
Lewisham

Merton

Merton
- Wimbledon Park
Newham
Newham
Redbridge
Redbridge
Richmond Upon Thames
Richmond Upon Thames
Southwark
Southwark
Sutton
Sutton
Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets - Estates
Waltham Forest
Waltham Forest
Wandsworth
Wandsworth
Westminster
Westminster

Show Homes at the 1934 Ideal Home Exhibition at Olympia


House 1
John Laing
& Son Ltd
Sunspan
House 2
Wates Ltd
Coalectric
House 3
Coalectric Estate
Development Co Ltd
Sunspan
House 4
E & L Berg Ltd
'Sunspan'
Davis
House 5
Davis Estates Ltd

House 6
J.J.Hodgson
& Sons Ltd
Universal
House 7
Universal Housing Co Ltd
'House of To-morrow'
Sunway
House 8
G.T.Crouch Ltd
'Sunway'
Morrell
House 9
Morrell (Builders) Ltd

Other House Type Pages

Laing Coronation
Laing Coronation
Tremar
Tremar

Architect Pages

Links

Bibliography

AR The Architectural Review
MH The Modern HouseF.R.S.YorkeThe Architectural Press1934, (References are from the Eighth Edition 1957)
MHE The Modern House in EnglandF.R.S.YorkeThe Architectural Press1937
NHGBNew Housing in Great BritainBruckmann and LewisAlec Tiranti1960
H&GSHouse and Garden Book of Small HousesEditor:Robert HarlingConde Nast1961
H&GMHouse and Garden Book of Modern Houses and ConversionsEditor:Robert HarlingConde Nast1966
ABT Architecture in Britain TodayMichael WebbCountry Life1969
JP Houses for TodayJune ParkBatsford1971
TMHTThe Modern House TodayNick Dawe & Kenneth PowellBlack Dog2001
EH England A Guide To Post-War Listed BuildingsElaine HarwoodBatsford2003
20CJ2Journal of the Twentieth Century Society No.2Gazetteer by Jeremy Gould with John NewmanThe Twentieth Century Society1996
20CJ4Journal of the Twentieth Century Society No.4The Twentieth Century Society2000

Other References

IoEThe English Heritage "Images Of England Website". Each reference number refers to a 'listed' building on this site.