In The Eye of The Beholder

A poetic ode to the best of classic and modern British architecture.

Rhyming couplets introduce the film - sponsored by Bison Concrete Limited - which uses poetry, geometry and visual comparison to contrast and equate the very best in classic and modern British architecture. Tracing shape, form and the 'organic imitation' of construction, texture and moulding, the film finds reflections of nature within architecture. Using the city of Bath as a model for architectural harmony, utility and grace, it acknowledges that modern society brings a need for rearrangement in the manner of life and construction. It shifts focus to the virtues of concrete and other materials, and their ability to reflect the graceful architecture of the past. And once modern developers have been driven from the centre of cities like Bath, the film concludes with a confident desire that these developers and architects might 'take hope from concrete, steel and wood; with a will and a heart, repeat he could.'

Featured Buildings

Royal Crescent, Bath

Keywords

Architecture; Concrete; Construction; Housing