The Modern Movement in Ireland: A Case of Pluralistic Ignorance

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PAUL CARBERRY The Modern Movement in Ireland:

A Case of Pluralistic Ignorance

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Fig.1 The Emperor’s New Clothes by Hans Christian Anderson The King’s subjects; through their unwavering loyalty, reject what they see and experience with their own eyes, of how they privately feel, because they believe that everyone else accepts that he must be adorned in magical cloth; fit only to observed by the worthy. ...Then only to be exposed by the undistorted mind of a child’s scrutiny.

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THE MODERN MOVEMENT IN IRELAND: A CASE OF PLURALISTIC IGNORANCE

A Dissertation

Presented to the Organization DoCoMoMo In fulfilment of the requirements for the ‘Special Award Dissertation’ Competition.

BSc. Architectural Technology & BA. in Architecture By Paul A. J. Carberry

Waterford Institute of Technology Waterford City, Co. Waterford

July 2014

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Declaration

I hereby declare that this is entirely my own work and that all the sources have been quoted and acknowledged by means of complete references, and that it has not been submitted as an exercise for the award of a degree at this or any Institute or University. I agree that DoCoMoMo may lend or copy this Dissertation on request.

Paul Carberry BA, Bsc (Arch Tech).

30/07/2014

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Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Mr. Garry Miley; for help, knowledge and guidance and especially for the feedback and support of this piece of work (in its earliest draught in particular).

... And a special thank you to Eleanor Heylin-Kelly; the first person to believe that I could do it.

.)

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Preface I was delighted to have an opportunity to address such a vague, open-ended question, on a subject that – in my short years studying architecture – have come to be fascinated by, that is, by the Modern movement of architecture in Ireland; particularly where credit is given and more specifically, to whom credit is given to, in this case those accredited for bringing the modern movement to Ireland and perpetuating it. In particular I am referring to Michael Scott the man accredited to spearheading the movement in this country. In the few years studying architecture, I have found it inconceivable astounding how many people credit Scott as “The most important architect of the twentieth century in Ireland” I must immediately state from the commencement that I do not want to give the reader the impression that Michael Scott didn’t deserve (or achieve) a great number of the (worthy) accolades he earned in his lifetime, nor, that I hold an unfavourable bias against the man and his achievements (quite the contrary in fact). But I am going to try and demonstrate the lack of care, attention and detail Scott often (but not always) displayed in his buildings and more importantly try to demonstrate exactly why I feel they are deficient or fall-short of their international counterparts; I will try to demonstrate this through a comparison of a selection of his works with their more successful counterparts and by laying bare the perpetuated 19th century (ill advised) idea, that I believe Scott designed by; that to obtain the best results it was necessary to copy fine examples of already existing architecture that is universally admired. I believe it is also his comrades, the informed architectural professional (not the uninformed laymen), that must take some responsibility for this, as I believe we have fallen into the state of social psychology known as pluralistic ignorance; a condition in which the majority of group members (in this case architectural professionals) privately reject a norm (the adoration of an unworthy building) but incorrectly assume that most others accept it, and therefore they go along with it. Perhaps it is because we are apprehensive or uneasy in our ability to articulate it, or to repudiate certain characteristics of certain movements that we were not a part of, or around to contribute to, that we allow in effect “middling” architecture to carry “weight” that it just does not possess, resulting in a great many arbitrary buildings. Finally I will close my opening thought with this; we must learn to objectively and unbiasedly (and confidently) be able to point to a building and call it what it is, if we are to improve upon past endeavours.

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Abstract Though the modern movement was introduced early on during the turn of the century, it was mostly out of necessity of the new Free-State trying to get her footing after independence; predominantly in the form of hydro-electrical buildings (and achieved mostly by foreign architects), and yet the arrival of the Modern movement in this country (and indeed the agent of its amelioration) is more often than not accredited to the architect Michael Scott, but the author of this dissertation believes that not only is this demonstrably untrue in regards to the former, but that we all know it to be so with regards to the latter; and yet not only does one not want to say it vociferously, one doesn’t even wish to say it audibly. ... With the convergence of the most prominent architectural movements of the space-time concept came the International style, and championed by the vocal efforts of government minster Darrel Figgis and ultimately the workings of Joseph Downes and fellow confederates. But initially it was the leading architect of the Irish Art & Crafts movement, William A Scott, who acted as a progenitor for those who would commence and vanguard the Modern movement, Vincent Kelly (Scott’s Mentor), Downes, and eventually Michael Scott himself; who’s first real independent architectural contributions came in the form of detached housing in 1930. While it is very tempting (and often too easy) to reference one’s character rather than one’s body of work, the author has painstakingly refrained from such; as The Abbey Theatre itself raises some serious issues about the course architecture has taken in this country and these questions remain regardless of what type of man Scott actually was. There is an extreme naivety in the design and execution of this building that needs to be addressed; including the debt it owes to Mies van der Rohe’s work in Chicago; particularly at the Illinois Institute Technology. As a former successful actor (of both stage and screen) and then well seasoned architect, the Abbey should have well and truly been his magnum opus, but ended up being the biggest ‘blunder’ of his career. There certainly seems to be a point in the architectural journey of all prominent designers; where one comes to a cross road in their respective careers, to either; rub elbows with the affluent few of our society (where substance and quality are often overlooked for the prestige of name/personality) or; to step back and allow one’s body of work to speak for itself (as all works should; either standing or falling on its own merits, regardless of the renowned name or illustrious titles one has).

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDMENTS ................................................................................................................ v PREFACE.................................................................................................................................. vi ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................................. vii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 1 1.1

Aims ................................................................................................................ 2

1.2

Objectives........................................................................................................ 2

2. THE MODERN MOVEMENT ...................................................................................................... 3 2.1

The Most Prominent Movements of the new Conception ................................ 4

2.2

Convergence of the movement(s) .................................................................. 6

2.3

The International Style ..................................................................................... 6

3. MODERNITY COMES TO THE FREE STATE .......................................................................... 8 3.1

The Pioneers of the Irish Movement ................................................................. 9

3.2

The International Style in Ireland ................................................................... 11

3.3

Michael Scott ................................................................................................ 14

3.4

Addressing Scott’s Contribution ..................................................................... 16 3.4.1

Geragh House .................................................................................. 16

3.4.2

The Irish Pavilion .............................................................................. 18

3.4.3

Busáras ............................................................................................ 20

3.4.4

The Abbey Theatre ........................................................................... 22

4. CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................................... 25 REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................................... 26 FIGURE REFERENCES........................................................................................................................ 28 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................... 32

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1. INTRODUCTION

Main proponents of the predisposing techniques:

The debate(s) on modern architecture have been continuing since the beginning of the twentieth century. What caused the desperate need for a new architecture? What was the starting flame for the modern movement? To which extent could modern architecture legitimize itself? Throughout time passed, these questions were asked in order to understand the very idea of modern architecture and the notions it introduced to the history of architecture. Many historians have been debating the true concept of Modernism and its defining characteristics for decades without resolve and it will certainly not be resolved here in this dissertation. Various sources have handled the issues from various points. But this dissertation is not about the movement itself (as a whole) but where and when it began to flourish and how it arrived on the Island of Ireland, who pioneered the movement and who was ultimately given credit for it. So for this dissertation I will try to briefly describe where the

Fig. 2 Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le- Duc (1814-1879) Credited as being one of the first true architectural theorists, his ideas on the idea that materials should be used ‘honestly’, that the outward appearance should reflect the rational construction of the building. Though few actually realised, many of his designs would later influence the Art Nouveau style. (Frampton, 2007, p64)

Modern movement ‘apexed’ – by this I mean not focusing on where it began, so much as where some of its specific styles had begun to flourish internationally; such as the commencement of research into Space-Time and it culminating in the International style – and which architects were at the forefront of each variation within the movement, and then briefly summarize what factors, characteristics and common dominators are (generally) agreed upon by professionals in the field, that denote “Modern architecture” and how they came to be translated in the movement in Ireland (trying to stay within the contextual boundaries of Irish architects; as there were many fine examples of the international style that were realised in the republic; especially in the form of cinemas, by British architects).

Fig.3 François Hennebique (1842-1921) Was a French engineer who pioneered his reinforced concrete construction system in 1892, integrating separate elements of construction, such as the column and the beam, into a single monolithic element. (McBeth, Douglas: Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers, 1998)

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1.1.

AIMS The aim of this dissertation is to first and foremost devise, using demonstrable evidence; who the pioneers of the modern movement in Ireland actually were and then measure the result of their output against each other and their counterparts internationally.

1.2.

OBJECTIVES I will try to construct this hypothesis through empiricism,

operative history and theory and personal writing; reading and comparing appropriate and relevant texts, narratives, accounts and archival footage to investigate if they can substantiate my theory; taking into account the possibility of similarities and differences within each medium and possible bias or strong personal opinion of the respective authors and narrators.

Fig.4 Hendrik Petrus Berlage (1856-1934) Considered the "Father of Modern architecture" in the Netherlands and the intermediary between the Traditionalists and the Modernists, His theories inspired most of the Dutch architectural groups of the 1920s inc. his usage of the wall as a flat surface purified from any ornament. (Gideon, 2008, p311)

Fig. 5 Auguste Perret (18741954) a French architect and specialist in reinforced concrete construction. His trabeated Rue Franklin, is regarded as one of the canonical works of 20th-century architecture, not only for its use of the reinforced concrete frame but also for the way in which its internal organization was to anticipate Le Corbusier’s later development of the free plan. (Kenneth Frampton and Yukio Futagawa, 1983, p116)

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2. THE MODERN MOVEMENT

Perspective used in the Renaissance:

Sigfried Gideon appropriately equates what research into space was during the modern movement, to what perspective was to the Renaissance – it being the most important constituent fact in their understanding – It had remained a constant element through all changes of style and right up until the first decade of the 20 th century, this four-century-old habit of seeing the outside world in the Renaissance manner – that is, in three dimensional terms – was Fig. 6 Christ before Caiaphas

rooted in the human psyche. Around 1830 a new sort of geometry started to emerge that employed more than three dimensions – though science has now taken it to a stage where mathematicians deal with figures and dimensions that cannot be grasped by imagination – it is only

Giotto was the first painter to systematically attempt to achieve perspective in his paintings; as shown here with white lines converging at the vanishing point. (Power, 2011)

relevant here in so far as its affect on the sense of space. We were to move on from the classical limited and one-sidedness of space. It became progressively more apparent that the aesthetic qualities of space weren’t limited to its infinity for sight – or our finite sightline. (Gideon, 2008, p435)

So now the very essence of space has changed, and is conceived today for its ‘many-sidedness’ – that is the infinite

Fig. 7 The Tribute Money Masaccio was the 1st great painter of the Quattro-Centro period of the Italian Renaissance, the red lines showing direction of perspective. (Giorgio Vasari, 1906, p287-288)

potentiality for relations within it and ultimately the impossibility of an exhaustive description of an area from one point of reference – that the character of the space changes depending on the point from which it’s viewed. “In order to grasp the true nature of space the observer must project himself through it” (Gideon, 2008, p436)

Sigfried Giedion

Fig. 8 the Eiffel Tower The Stairways in the upper-levels of the Eiffel Tower are among the earliest architectural expression of continuous interpenetration of outer and inner space. (Gideon, 2008, p436)

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2.1.

MOST PROMINENT MOVEMENTS OF THE SPACE-

Cubist demonstrations of

TIME CONCEPTION

Space-Time:

This new conception of space – for the first time since the Renaissance – led to a self-conscious enlargement of our ways of perceiving it. The artistic movements of Cubism and Futurism, tried to introduce this new unit of Space-Time into the language of art. It was most fully achieved by the Cubists. Following upon their first efforts, there emerged three main factions within the movement – common aspirations included an attempt to rationalise Cubism –

came together in 1917 as painters, they referred to

Le Corbusier & Ozenfant were greatly interested in commonplace objects and the difficulties of transparency. The “marriage des contours” between the different objects and outlines anticipates the interpenetration of inner and outer space that would prevail later in Le Corbusier’s arichitecture.

their particular style as Purisme, they were the most

(Gideon, 2008, p520)

the procedure ranging in magnitude in the different groups;

▪

Fig. 9 Still Life (1924)

In France Le Corbusier and Ozenfant (Cubist painter);

successful of the factions in achieving the aim of cubism and ultimately in its application to architecture.

▪

In Russia, Malewitsch; adapted an abstract-art movement which resulted in the omission of the object and resulted in paintings being reduced to symbolic intensity;

achieving,

fundamentally

only

pure

interrelationships; as demonstrated in Malewitsch’s half-plastic architectural studies “Architectonen”. This highly influenced László Moholy-Nagys’ direction of the Bauhaus during his tenure there. (Gideon, 2008, p437-440)

Fig. 10 Alpha Architectone (1920) & Beta Architectone (1926) (Malewitsch, 1920)

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▪

In Holland by the Dutch painter Piet Mondrian, who reduced the three-dimensional volume to a new level of Plasticity, the plane; reducing them to their fundamental elements of pure colour, their equipoise and interrelations, and by Theo van Doesburg and his publication Stijl, progressed much more radically than their French counterparts.

The cubists set out to view objects relatively; that is from several points of view simultaneously, with no particular points

Fig. 11 Axonometric (1923) Van Doesburg painting, showing; the interrelationships between vertical and horizontal planes. (Theo Van Doesburg 1923)

having exclusive authority. The introduction of the advancing and retreating planes of cubism; interpenetrating, hovering, often transparent, without anything fixing them in realistic position, were accentuated in 1912 by the addition of new elements – to appeal to the tactile sense – by means of materiality (new materials). (Gideon, 2008, p438)

Fig 12 Composition No. 10 (1939–42) The De Stijl artist, Theo van Doesburg, suggested a link between non-representational works of art and ideals of peace and spirituality. (Christina Lodder, 2003)

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2.2.

CONVERGENCE OF THE MOVEMENTS Although the various disciplines of Cubism addressed the

Space-Time conception differently – the French Purists through painting of the everyday mundane objects; the Russian constructivists through the opposite, a flight away from the object, to eliminate it completely, and the Neo-Plasticists reducing the three dimensional volume to the new element of plasticity, the plane – they all converged towards a type, a cannon of standardization. It implied a universality of approach which generally favoured lightweight technique, synthetic modern materials and standard modular parts (so as to facilitate fabrication and erecting). It was also predisposed towards the hypothetical flexibility of the free plan and thus preferred a skeleton frame construction to masonry. (Frampton, 2007, p248)

2.3.

THE INTERNATIONAL STYLE At the beginning of the 1930s, one could now speak of shared

characteristics in terms of recurring motifs, like; strip windows, flat roofs, grids of support, cantilevered horizontal planes, metal railings and curved partitions, as well as the general qualities of the design; like the tendency to use simple rectilinear volumes articulated by crisply cut opening, or emphasis on hovering planes and the interpenetration of spaces. (Curtis, 2013, p257)

In their book The International Style, Hitchcock and Johnson made further attempts to outline the main visual principles of the movement; that the stress was on the volume (not the mass), regularity, avoidance of all decoration, etc. (Hitchcock, Johnson, 1932, p239)

Fig. 13 Le Corbusier's Five Points of Architecture. An Architecture manifesto he authored in L’Esprit Nouveau & his book Vers une Architecture. It was best realised in his Villa Savoye.

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The most common characteristics of International Style buildings are said to be: ▪

Rectilinear forms;

▪

Light, taut plane surfaces that have been completely

Renowned examples of the International Style:

stripped of applied ornamentation and decoration; ▪

Open interior spaces;

▪

A visually weightless quality engendered by the use of cantilever construction. Glass and steel, in combination with usually less visible reinforced concrete, are the

Fig. 14 Villa Savoye (1928-31) Le Corbusier Poissy, France

characteristic materials of the construction. (Encyclopedia Britannica, 1990)

For Kenneth Frampton, to suggest (as he did in his book Modern Architecture: A critical History – 1980) that; “The international style was little more than a convenient

Fig. 15 Bauhaus (1925-26) Walter Gropius Dessau, Germany

phrase denoting a cubistic mode of architecture.” was all but patently obvious in hind sight; considering the book was written 30 years after movement had, both; reached its pinnacle and then dissipated; rejected for Post-Modernism that emerged in the 1960s. But for those responsible for the genesis of the international style it was the culmination of everything. British architectural historian Sir Nikolaus Pevsner articulated the feelings of those responsible, best, when he stated:

Fig. 16 Lovell House (1927-29) Richard Neutra LA, California

"To me what had been achieved in 1914 was the style of the century. It never occurred to me to look beyond. Here was the one and only style which fitted all those aspects which mattered, aspects of economics and sociology, of materials and function. It seems folly to think that anybody would wish to abandon it." (Gabion. 2006)

Fig. 17 E1027 (1926-29) Eileen Gray Nice, France

(Nuttgens. 2001) Page | 7

3. MODERNITY COMES TO THE FREE STATE The beginnings of the Modern Movement in architecture

Most notable departure from the conventional historicism:

certainly began at the commencement of the 20th century; with the use of new structural techniques; such as reinforced concrete and structural steel framing, and the gradual departure of historical revivalism; mainly through the works of leading architect of the Irish Art & Crafts movement, William A Scott, whose works acted as a progenitor for the explicitly modern works, by the generation that followed, in particular his former pupils; Joseph Downes and Vincent Kelly. But it wasn’t until the 1920s that the effects of the revolution in architectural design can be seen in Ireland, as the work of her pioneering international counterparts became known. (Larmour, 2009, p8-13)

After the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922, the country had strong aspirations (now that she was no longer under British rule) to move even further away from the influence of the British Empire. So when it came to look for inspiration for the ambitious new project for a national electricity supply system, the country looked much further afield; to main-land Europe. The result was commissioning the German firm Siemens Schuckert to harness the waters of the Shannon in a hydro-electric scheme. (Becker, Olley, Wang, 1997, p17-18)

The idea of harnessing the water of the Shannon was to enable the eventual electrification of rural Ireland, it was a vast and ambitious project, which originated from a young Irish engineer T A McLaughlin when he returned from working abroad (and with plans for implementation by his employer; Siemens) eventually convincing the Irish Government to accept the proposal. (Rothery, 1991, p143)

Fig. 18-20 the Shannon Scheme (1925) by Siemens-Schuckert. It involved the construction of a huge dam and power station at Ardnacrusha, Co Clare, and a large weir at Parteen some miles upriver. Its architectural form was quite impressive; utilising a large steelframed and concrete-walled power station, reminiscent, in its tall windows, steeped pitched roofs, and overall mass, of pre-first World War industrial work in Berlin. IT contained several components but they were all interconnected to form a single building. The main building, the generator hall, was built up of a massive steel frame-work, resting on steel hinged bearings mounted on concrete foundations, the spaces between the framework being filled with concrete so that the exterior appearance was of a concrete building. (Larmour, 2009, p13-16)

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3.1.

THE PIONEERS OF THE IRISH MOVEMENT Despite becoming a brand new free state, Ireland did not

Earliest attempts at Modernism from Irish architects:

champion her own architectural style, but rather supported (quietly) an international image; consequently, explicitly modern buildings by Irish architects were essentially a response to a European revolution in architecture, rather than the result of a native evolution. In fact a government minister of the time, Darrel Figgis, reflected that an idea of an Irish Style was, perhaps, a falsehood. He instead pleaded for ‘simplicity and truth’, for the abandonment of ‘antique manners, and the ‘cleansing’ of minds of imitations. This as noted by Sean Rothery in his book Ireland and the New Architecture 1900-1940; “The Figgis address could have come from an internationalist manifesto.” (Larmour, 2009, p13) (Becker, Olley, Wang, 1997, p18)

It was in the late 1920s that Ireland saw the first attempts

Fig. 21 Transformer Station Fleet Street, Dublin (1929) by Vincent Kelly. Designed in a simple yet bold modern manner for the ESB, it was built in white finished concrete with parapet roofs and steel window frames, with a bulky dominating angled tower in the corner. The original jazzy window bars of the art deco windows have since been replaced. It was one of the first examples of new architecture in Ireland (Rothery, 1991, p143)

made at modern architectural design, contributed by Irish architects; of which the two main proponents – Vincent Kelly and Joseph Downes, were former pupils of William A Scott. Kelly’s most notable effort at this time was as an electricity transformer station in Fleet Street, being described at the time as: “A striking example of pure utility building achieving the distinction of an architectural landmark” (ibid., 1930, p1089)

“the building owns nothing to any period but its own; its forms have been dictated by the 40-ton transformer and switchgear which it houses”

Fig. 22 Offices of New Ireland Assurance Company (1929-30) Dawson Lane, Dublin.

Designed in a similar restrained modern style, with some art deco details. (Larmour, 2009, p20)

(Architect and Building News, 1931 p396) (Larmour, 2009, p20) Page | 9

Joseph Downes, was responsible for a design of a rather more ornate building, extensively more affected by Art Deco styling,

Exporting of architecture:

a

new

more so than any of Vincent Kelly’s designs, that was in the form of the Bank of Ireland, Royal Avenue, Belfast (1928-30). As Downes explained at the time, he was trying to; “bring the design of the building into line with the more advanced architecture appearing in Great Britain and abroad.” It was a rare but significant export of new architectural style from one state to the other at the time and seen as a pioneer work of a transitional style. (Rothery, 1991, p143) (Larmour, 2009, p22)

Kelly on the other hand was sent on a tour of continental Europe (as with the commissioning of the electrical supply system) for inspiration for the upcoming 1930s programme for new hospital buildings; to make a study tour, of contemporary hospitals in Switzerland, Sweden, Germany, France, Austria, Holland, Italy and Czechoslovakia. He visited 65 hospitals in three months and following the study a number of new hospital buildings were begun. The Language of Modern architecture was to spread throughout the country with these; large scaled horizontal, white structures, with flat roofs, supporting sun balconies and projecting concrete Fig. 23-26 Bank of Ireland (1928-30), Royal Avenue, Belfast by Joseph Downes.

canopies. (Becker, Olley, Wang, 1997, p18)

one cannot deny the immense influence that Alvar Aalto’s Paimo

Often denoted as introducing the modern movement to Belfast. Steel-framed and clad in Portland stone, with a flat roof, its top storey was set back from the façade to each side of a stepped corner clock tower, while a feature was made of large metal windows, vertically expressed, with metal panels between them.

Sanatorium (1932) had on these designs.

(Larmour, 2009, p22)

All of the new hospitals built during the 1930s were modern in style, the versions and the influences differed, even Kelly’s own designs ranged from mid Art Deco at Nenagh (1932) to full international style in the white cubist manner, for Cashel (1934), but (Rothery,

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3.2.

THE INTERNATIONAL STYLE IN IRELAND

Most impressive examples of the new style:

The formal language of the international spread to various parts of the country, not through domestic dwellings – which were generally limited to the Dublin area, (as were the new cinemas, which were by in large designed by British architects), but by the extensive programme of new hospital buildings as mentioned above.

Fig. 30 Portlaoise County Hospital (1933-40) By Scott & Good.

Kelly himself, was commissioned to design several of these hospitals himself (including a number of which never got the go ahead, as well as advising on many others) when he returned from his investigatory travels abroad. (Larmour, 2009, p34)

Three of the most notable hospital contributions were large country hospitals at; Portlaoise, Co Laois (1933-40), Tullamore, Co Offaly (1934-42) – both by the recently established partnership of Michael Scott and Norman Good – and Kilkenny (1935-42) by Joseph Downes and Francis Bernard Meehan. (Larmour, 2009, p34)

The hospital at Portlaosie largely did away with traditional materials and massing, the buildings are all flat-roofed and finished in plain white plastered surfaces, it is regarded as successful – albeit

Fig. 31-32 Tullamore Hospital (1935-42) also by Scott & Good.

unexciting – functionalism. The hospital at Tullamore, Co Offaly, presents walls of traditional rugged limestone (primarily for promoting the use of local materials; in this case quarried stone) still notable shows a Dutch modern influence; by the stron horizontality, vertical stair glazing and a round bay dominating the central block. The hospital at Kilkenny was somewhat more elegant also a functionalist exercise in white, flat-roofed forms. (Rothery, 1991, p146-47)

Fig. 33-34 Kilkenny Hospital (1935-42) by J A Downes & F B Meehan.

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Besides these hospitals, one of the main driving forces for the modern architectural design was the detached or semi-

Earliest example of International Style semidetached housing:

detached house, it had reached Britain by the mid 1920s; introduced by Peter Behrens and was eventually introduced to Ireland by 1930. First examples were seen in Dublin from the designs of Joseph Downes for the Royal Hibernian Academy exhibition, for both a single modernist house at Shankill, Co Dublin and a development of repetitive flat-roofed semi-detached houses at Kincora Rd, Clontarf, also Co Dublin, both designed in the (albeit restrained) vein of the Dutch De Stijl group, faintly leaning towards the International style. (Larmour, 2009, p26)

Domestic Architecture may have had a limited amount of creative exploration of the new architecture (the houses being

Fig. 35-36 Houses at Kincora Rd Clontarf (1930), Co Dublin. By Joseph Downes. Aemi-detached houses in Clontarf, Dublin, the earliest example of an attempt into the International style.

modest in scale and small in number). The new Dublin Airport terminal, on the other hand, would eventually allow for a full innovative, committed engagement to the international style. (Becker, Olley, Wang, 1997, p20-21)

Probably the most interesting example and the first truly individual modern house in Ireland, was built by Londoner Harold Greenwood, and has been described as ‘Dublin’s ‘wonder-house’, ‘ultra modern’ and ‘the last word in artistic comfort in Ireland’. It was laid out on a butterfly plan at an angle of 90° (see fig. 37), with an open loggia on the ground floor with an open balcony above it with cantilevering roof (see fig. 38). Built with; rendered precast concrete blocks, with reinforced-concrete columns, beams and flat-roofs, with steel frame windows. It had oil-fired central heating as well as various automatically controlled fittings and appliances, a refrigerator, internal telephones, dining and carving tables containing electrical hot plates, concealed (recessed) lighting, and specifically designed furniture.

Fig. 37-39 Wendon (Balnagowan

(Rothery, 1991, p199)

Dublin. By Harrold Greenwood.

House) (1929-30), Glasnevin, Co.

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The single most enduring, significant and original piece of architecture, with full innovative and exploratory engagement with

The International perfected:

Style

the international style is Desmond Fitzgerald’s Dublin Airport Terminal. A Large and well proportioned building constructed using reinforced concrete frame with cantilevered balconies and laid out on a symmetrical curved plan, rising in stages up through five levels. The outer or longer curve faces the airfield while the inner curve embraces the incoming passengers. Its curved form combined with the long horizontal lines and open cantilevered viewing platforms and railings which bowed at the ends on the intermediate floors, to convey an impression of the dynamics of transportation. The layout of the landscaped axial approach on the landward side, with its flange-like arrangement of roads tailing off from the entrance front, contrived to combine with the curved form of the building itself to convey, from aerial viewpoint, the overall outline of an aeroplane. (Larmour, 2009, p66-69)

The design was early even by European standards, and it was certainly in advance of most work done in the style in Britain at the time. The attribution of the design of the terminal continues to be a contentious issue amongst peers; many who believe that Fitzgerald was not the main designer, that it was in fact the work of the young team under him. Some testament to this could be that his other design in the immediate post-war years failed to attract any real positive attention, quite the contrary in fact, many attracted adverse criticism, though this could be incidental as he was not universally liked and this may have been a conceived ill-bias amongst his peers; as he was known for his enormous selfconfidence, egoism and arrogance which failed to endear him to many fellow architects. (Rothery, 1991, p214-219)

Fig. 40-43 Dublin Airport Terminal by Desmond Fitzgerald (1938-40). In terms of early international style the Dublin Airport terminal was the most important building in Ireland, and despite the confusion of the exact input of Fitzgerald and his talent team of young architects, must stand as the foremost achievement of the decade. Although the building is considered an original exercise in the International Style and not derivative any other single modern building, there are influences from some of the more famous and widely illustrated modern buildings of Holland. (Rothery, 1991, p215)

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3.3.

MICHAEL SCOTT Michael Scott (1905-1988) credited as the man who changed the

Scott’s earliest attempt at the Modern detached house:

face of Dublin, is considered the most important architect of the twentieth century in Ireland (Paul Larmour even affirms his consolidation as ‘the doyen of modern architects in Ireland’), and one of its leading exponents. He first demonstrated his skills at painting and acting. Initially he wanted to pursue a career as a painter but his father pointed out that it might make more financial sense to become an architect. Later in life, reminiscing on his father, Scott said;

“I think he was right because I’ve always been interested in shaping materials since the day, when aged six, to my delight, I caught a glimpse beneath my teacher’s skirts of a well formed wooden leg.” (Larmour, 2009, p84) (Archiseek.com, Sep 21, 2009)

Scott (like many of his contemporaries) did not study architecture at a School, but was articled as an apprentice to the firm of Jones and Kelly, and there, between 1923 and 1926, he studied under Alfred E. Jones. Scott later claimed that it was not until he left Jones and Kelly that he became aware of the trends of modern architecture, while in fact the firm (despite being quite conservative in their designs) did have a great architectural library with many books on

Fig. 44-47 Ceuta House Strand Rd, Co Dublin, by Michael Scott (1933).

current European architecture and current design trends of the period. During his apprenticeship, Scott joined School of Acting at the Abbey Theatre and appeared in many plays there until 1927. (Archiseek.com, Sep 21, 2009)

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By 1931 he had joined with Norman D. Good to form Scott and Good, and they opened a practice at 36 South Frederick Street,

Scott’s early attempts into public buildings in the Art Deco Style:

Dublin. The partnership were responsible for the design some very successful and well received buildings in the modern style, particularly hospitals and cinemas (though these were more flamboyant exercises in Art Deco). Scott, although not responsible for the interior design or exterior form of the buildings, was responsible for the commissioning of artists to produce work for the building. Scott commissioned the sculptor Laurence Campbell to produce a triptych relief panel of ‘Mother Éire’ for the front of the Theatre Royal. Scott was to use the work of Campbell quite often to decorate his buildings in the future. (Archiseek.com, Sep 21, 2009)

During the latter half of the 1930s, Scott was the President of the AAI and was instrumental in bringing Walter Gropius (18831969), the creator of the Bauhaus and one of the original pioneers of the International Style, to come to Dublin where he gave a lecture at the Engineers Hall in Molesworth Street on 10 November 1936. The lecture was entitled ‘The International Trend of Modern Architecture’. (Larmour, 2009, p62)

This lecture was based on Gropius’ recently published book The New Architecture and the Bauhaus (1935) and the conclusion of the address was almost word for word the final page of the book. Scott later stated in an interview on the importance of the Bauhaus and Walter Gropius to his architectural development

Fig. 48-50 the Ritz Cinema (1939) by Michael Scott & Associates. The original perspective drawings for the cinema include large areas of glazing on the façade as well as between the pilotis on the side elevation, where a riverside restaurant was to be sited. Most of this was never completed as the budget did not allow it to be fitted to the finished building. The interior was dominated by a double height public space lit by a large expanse of glass on the front façade. One of a number of examples of buildings attributed to Scott but was in fact designed by Bill O’Dwyer.

world. When I became aware of it, I really began to

Scott had been known to walk away from commissions that he did not find challenging or interesting. Increasingly he was passing on work and commissions that he had received to young graduate architects whose work he admired, in this case O’Dwyer.

understand what I was doing.”

(Archiseek.com, Sep 21, 2009)

that: “The Bauhaus was a remarkable event in the history of architecture. It had a dramatic event on the whole creative

(Archiseek.com, Sep 21, 2009)

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3.4.

ADDRESSING SCOTT’S CONTRIBUTION 3.4.1

‘Geragh’ House:

Geragh House

Scott’s own house is often considered the reigning masterpiece of the modern house; even Sean Rothery describes it as; “The best and most innovative of all the modern house of the thirties” (Rothery, 1991, p202)

The design goes beyond the rather limited rectilinear forms of most modern house up to that point, and creates a series of cascading curbed bays on an angled plan, seemingly buoyant on square columns. This was an obvious gesture in response to the rocky coastal site adjacent to an early 19th century Martello Tower,

PLAN

with reference to its circular form, but fashioned in the language of the International Style. (Larmour, 2009, p49)

The flat roof and balconies picked up great views over Dublin bay. Original to the aesthetic of its day; it was originally sited on stilts, but over the years the spaces underneath were filled as the family’s needs expanded, but apart from that it remains intact. The house is basically a shallow v-plan embracing the garden with one end rectangular and the other round nosed. It was one of the first houses built in this country using mass concrete throughout. The concrete is rendered externally and painted white. The house is made up of a series of decks, railings and portholes; indeed one end resembles the stern of an ocean liner with a descending series of circular bays and crescent balconies.

Fig.50-53 ‘Geragh’ House (1937-38) by Michael Scott. The Maritime references of the international style are all present in the design of Geragh house; the curved bays compliment the 19th century stone fortifications and battery on one side and Martello Tower on the other. (Rothery, 1991, p201)

(Clerkin, 1996, irish-architecture.com)

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Scott claimed to have designed the house in one day.

Orginal concept sketch for ‘Geragh’ House:

“I started one morning at eight o’clock and by 4 o’clock the following morning had finished the initial sketch plans. I was a quick boy in my day.” “I thought of the house as a series of descending circles, each one wider than the other. It’s my tribute to the tower and to James Joyce.”

Fig.54 Design for a house at Sandycove, (1934) by Walmsley Lewis.

(Clerkin, 1996, irish-architecture.com)

The authorship of the initial design can certainly be hotly debated1; in fact, it was heavily influenced by at least one known existing drawing, for a more curvilinear and dynamically expressive design-proposal for the exact same site, by the English architect Walmsley Lewis, predating Scott’s design by three years (see Fig. 54). This of course isn’t to say that he wasn’t permitted to it; tracings of it were found amongst his personal belongings in ‘Geragh’ after his death. There was also a note on the reverse of a photograph of the drawing stating the intended construction material (reinforced concrete) and a willing proposal of; “I would let you have two dull surface prints of this for your portfolio if you let me know. E. Walmsley Lewis.” (Larmour, 2009, p49)

The detailing of the building was clearly inspired by its

Fig. 55-58 the ‘White City’ of Tel Aviv.

international predecessors in Tel Aviv, ranging from the Bauhaus

A collection of over 4,000 buildings built in a unique form of the Bauhaus or International style in Tel Aviv from the 1930s by a group of German Jewish architects who immigrated to the British Mandate of Palestine after the rise of the Nazis.

Style to The International Style; with their undulating façades, low balconies and full height semicircular curtain-walling (see Fig.5457).

(Mann, 2009, pXI) While it is acknowledged that some significant questions have been raised about the originality of Scott’s design for Geragh House and his apparent failure to acknowledge the influence of a previous design for the same site, discussion of such issues is beyond the scope of this essay. 1

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3.4.2

The Irish Pavilion

Irelands 1939 World Fair, New York entry:

The second building I believe needs reassessing is Scott’s contribution to the 1939 World Fair in New York., in the form of the Irish Pavilion. This was to be Irelands first appearance as an independent state at an international exhibition or fair, so there was a profound desire on the governments part, to make a statement about national identity with a building of recognisable Irish character, in particular one with a separate identity from Britain, Scott said;

Plan

“That it was essential to build something which would make a direct appeal to the 25 million Irish Americans’” (Clerkin, 1996, irish-architecture.com) (Larmour, 2009, p49)

So much so, that there was a lot of pressure and politics involved; originally caused by Ireland being offered a spot with the rest of the British Empire (on the insistence of the British citing;

Model

‘political interests’ would be best served by the Empire exhibiting as a block, rather than being scattered). This pressure and political manoeuvring was reflected in the commissioning of Scott, as both the AGA’s (Architecture Graduate’s Association), and the RIAI favoured an architectural competition to select the design for the building. The RIAI wished to send a representative to the Government to promote this idea, and Vincent Kelly of course proposed Scott. Other members wanted Scott to be accompanied by a representative of the AGA, but this was rejected after pressure from Kelly. So Scott went alone to the Department of Industry and Commerce in April 1938. Scott was not formally appointed until 10 June 1938 but travelled to New York the next day with a full set of drawings and a model. (Clerkin, 1996, irish-architecture.com)

Fig. 59-62 the Ireland Pavilion, New York World’s Fair, by Michael Scott.

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It does seems likely that Kelly and Scott orchestrated Scott’s trip to the Government on his own so that Scott would get

Gunnar Asplund’s Paradise Restaurant 1930 :

the commission, coupled with the fact that one of Scott’s friends (F. H Boland) was the Assistant Secretary to the Department of Industry and Commerce and who also happen to be married to the artist Francis Kelly, whose work Scott had used at Tullamore). (Clerkin, 1996, irish-architecture.com)

The building itself was constructed of steel, white painted stucco, and glass, combining the latest curtain-wall techniques with an unusually curvilinear plan that took the form of a shamrock. In the documentary film ‘Michael Scott: A changing Man’ (2006), Scott states the intention of using the national emblem of Ireland as a shape for the plan; “I didn’t sleep a couple of nights thinking about this one, and then the theme of the world fair “the world of tomorrow”, it struck me that perhaps if I could have something on plan, that would suggest Ireland ... as people fly more and more, people now look at buildings on plan, from the air, and then the terrible thought of a shamrock came into my mind. I blushed at the very thought of it, however, it started to evolve with the leaves of the shamrocks being the exhibits and the stem being a long curved hall”. In later years as the use of the shamrock in Irish design became clichéd, he claimed that the plan was forced upon him by a member of the Government, despite previous allusions to its conception. Inspiration, though never cited, no doubt came from another exhibition piece, in the form of Gunnar Asplund’s ‘Paradise Restaurant’ for the 1930 Stockholm exhibition, most evidently is the inspiration for the run of horizontal canvas blinds which were later added to counter the NY sun glare, something Asplund incorporated and indeed anticipated, that Scott hadn’t.

Fig. 63-65 Paradise Restaurant It is not unlikely to think that success of the exhibition didn’t reach Scott in Ireland. To fully understand the scale and significance of this exhibition, one only needs to look at the international critical reaction the exhibition garnered at the time. Sigfried Gideion called it “unrivalled for overall effect” and prompted American critic G.E. Kidder Smith to proclaim that “seldom in any country has an architectural exhibition been so complete” and “there is no country in the world with a higher overall standard”. (Sandren, cargocollective.com, 2014)

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3.4.3

Busáras

The Central Bus Station:

Busáras is one of the first post Second World-War examples of the International Modern style in Europe. It was designed by Scott and his team of young architects and designers between 1945 and 1953. It was built against a background of public opposition (particularly the Roman Catholic Church), which centred on the external appearance and function and excessive cost of over £1,000,000 before completion in 1953. Scott made a point of surrounding himself with those in

PLAN

power for commissions, so much so that throughout the 1930s and 40s there was little in the way of large architectural commissions that were not provided by either government or the Church. Naturally enough, Scott got control of any CIE (Córas Iompair Éireann – the national transport company) commissions that were going, being appointed Consultant Architect to CIE. Scott generously passed on many of the commissions to the younger talented architects around him while remaining CIE’s Consultant Architect. Scott’s role as consultant architect meant that he gave the green light to all final drawings and designs for the various projects. By 1945, Scott had surrounded himself with a young and talented team, some of who were still studying in college. The team included Wilfrid Cantwell (born 1920), Kevin Fox (born 1922), Patrick Hamilton (born 1921), Kevin Roche (born 1922), Patrick Scott (born 1921), and Robin Walker (1924-1991). Many more worked on the project to a lesser extent. According to Sean Rothery who worked for Scott from 1951, “Scott always let his team work on their own, and he rarely interfered.” Wilfrid Cantwell was the main designer of the building and was principal architect until he left Scott’s firm in 1947, at which stage the main structure and façades were already designed. (Archiseek.com, Sep 21, 2009)

Fig. 66-70 Busáras, (1944-53) Store Street, Co Dublin, Michael Scott. Originally planned solely as a bus station, but later with the addition of a new office headquarter.

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A double height hall and concourse protrudes from beneath a six-storey office block on the northern part of the site, allowing free circulation for the passengers and busses. Further accommodation was placed in three storeys at a right angle to the main block. The two block’s ends are clad in Portland stone. The concourse roof construction dispensed with intermediate columns by adopting a system of two-way diagonal beams, intersecting at slender concrete columns positioned at three metres centres along the periphery, from which a 65mm-thick corrugated canopy slab, cast on hard board shuttering, cantilevers seven metres. Air

Fig. 71a-72 Showing extensive use of mosaic throughout the building.

conditioning was also included and was automatically controlled by a compressed air system and a basement vacuum cleaning plant had outlets on all floors. (Wang, 1997, p119)

Busáras was to win Scott the Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland Triennial Gold Medal for Architecture and many accolades from architects all over the world, despite the fact that he had little to do with its design. “He was a bit like Diaghilev. It wasn’t so much what he did himself as the fact that he assembled a group of very talented people around him, stimulating a lot of creative thinking, which made things happen. He was more of an impresario than an architect.” “Scott was a lousy architect; his judgement was pretty good but his ideas were pretty poor.” “The only drawing he did on Busáras was when the city architect specified an imitation Wyatt window in the stone on the south end-wall to reflect the Custom House. So Scott did the drawing and submitted it to the planning office. After planning permission, it was quietly forgotten about.” (Archiseek.com, Sep 21, 2009)

-

Fig. 73-75 Swiss Pavilion at the Cité Universitaire & Salvation Army hostel by Le Corbusier and the Ministry of Education by Oscar Niemeyer; All cited Busáras.

as

inspirations

for

Wilfrid Cantwell Page | 21

3.4.4

The Abbey Theatre

The changing Abbey:

“There is no building that has been given such attention, as the rebuilding of the Abbey Theatre”. “We consulted with the best Architects in the world... and brought on Monsieur Pierre Sonrel as the consulting architect”

Fig.76 Original

 Michael Scott

The final (and most important) piece that needs to be examined is Scott’s redesign of the Abbey Theatre; as I will try to demonstrate that though it should have been his most revered effort, it ended up being his most reviled. The building is located next to the River Liffey and was built on a floating concrete raft. The Theatre consists of two auditoria, the first is the main Abbey Theatre with a fan shaped auditorium which can be adjusted in height to accommodate Concerts or Theatrical performances, and has a capacity of 492. The width of the auditorium is approx 12m and extends 25m at the back & its depth is 18m from the proscenium opening to the back wall of the

Fig.77-78 New Abbey

auditorium. The forestage has two lifts which can be lowered to form an orchestra pit, or extended forward by fourteen feet to make a more intimate space. The height of the auditorium can be adjusted for different theatre or concert conditions Fig. 79 PLAN

The second below the Foyer of the main Abbey is a smaller Studio Theatre called the ‘Peacock Theatre’, this has a capacity of 127 and can be used in the traditional manor or with a stage surrounded on three sides by seating. The Peacock is dedicated to the presentation of new plays and contemporary classic drama. Fig. 80 SECTION

(Lloyd 2001, Arhurlloyd.co.uk,)

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Though the design for the theatre itself had been indeed

IIT & Abbey comparison:

carefully executed (no doubt to Scott’s personal history on the stage as well as the contributions of Pierre Sonrel), the design and morphology of the building itself was not, but came evidently from Mies van der Rohe’s IIT buildings in Chicago. At The Illinois Institute of Technology Mies’ utilizes a straightforward expression of construction and materiality, which allows the structure to transcend into the realms of art; in that it is aesthetically pleasing and well balanced. Their refinement and innovation place them among the most distinguished collection of buildings (not only within his own back catalogue) but of their age, and define his (and their) importance in the history of architecture. The materials are inspired by the factories and warehouses of Chicago's South Side and;

“embody 20th century methods and materials: steel and concrete frames with curtain walls of brick and glass.”

It’s clearly evident that Scott took his inspiration for the

Fig. 81-82 IIT Metal & Mineral Building Though the building is simple in form, its façade is broken up into various geometric grids based off the structural system which also reflects & continues throughout. Fig.83 Glazing, Venting & Brickwork as it appears on the elevation of The Abbey Theatre

Abbeys design right off the campus of The Illinois Institute of Technology, but what is also clear is that he didn’t understand what he had, for all intents and purposes, copied. He knew it was “modern architecture” but had no Idea what Mies had actually accomplished at IIT: The strength & stability of the stereotomic foundational footing; that in the case of the Wishnick building and the Minerals & Metals Research building rises partially up the façade and suddenly becomes a very transparent tectonic structure, both in form and its space making

Fig.84 Glazing, Venting & Brickwork as it appears on the façade of Mies van der Rohe’s IIT campus.

objective, a delicate and harmonic transition; which also hints at, then continues inside and throughout the building.

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Here is where he refined the famous ‘Mies Corner’, made possible through a quoin; which is by ending each row of headers with a three-quarter length brick. The effect where the walls join is something like an unzippered zipper, revealing the Mies corner i.e. two I-beams joined by two flat panels of steel in between, this use of steel gestures at the internal structure of the building without actually revealing it. This just does not transpire in The Abbey; the corner didn’t achieve the same result; this is simply because (although visually similar) they didn’t have the same purpose, in structure or space making technique; in allowing the columns to take the weight meant

Fig. 85-86 The Mies Corner

the walls didn’t have to. The façade which was broken up by the structural grid, created panels, which were then either filled with brick or glazing, which created a geometrical pattern as opposed to the what emerged at The Abbey; the façades shows no rhythm or balance and the brick work is overwhelmingly bare in its singularity (the repetitious stretcher bond utilized doesn’t help, with no interruptions or changes to pattern) unlike at IIT where Mies uses the brick as an infill panel between the tectonic frame (and these different sized quadrangles are further harmonized with Mies’s use of the English cross bond arrangement, which consists of altering rows of stretchers (full brick) and headers (half brick) creating

Fig. 87-88 External Corner of The Abbey & Mie’s IIT respectively

repetitious changing rhythm. Scott’s own concept for the Abbey; imagining it as “a Magic Box”, alone, should have suggested another kind of materiality, insted of minicking one whos very nature inplies trnaasparency and truth; just as Mie’s utilized it at IIT; what is suggest outside is revealed inside, the structure is cear honnest and visable. A theatere by its very nture should not have been inspired by factories, as Rasmussen perfectly articulates in his book Experiencing Architecture (1959) that when one copies and pastes a facade onto a new structure on the wrong site and in the wrong city “it becomes quite meaningless”. (Rasmussen, 1959, p12)

Fig. 89 Façade of The Abbey Theatre The facade of The Abbey is unbroken, cumbersome & heavy, as a result of the vast amount of brick and lack of broken rhythm & hierarchy.

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4. CONCLUSION As Rothery points out, Michael Scott was 'just one of a small band of young Irish architects who adopted the International Style during the 1930s', but then why are his efforts the most reverent and longstanding? Scott's suave good looks, his ‘joie de vivre’ and his 'sociable, highly entertaining personality' undoubtedly contributed to his professional success and I believe was indeed the driving force behind it. Sean Mulcahy saw him as being above all an 'impresario of projects', with the ability 'to conjure up and communicate a vision, to enthuse and reassure his client and his team, to set high standards and to see they were attained'. (Engineers’ Journal, March 1989, p6)

Scott had always made a point of cultivating those in power for commissions. In Ireland in the 1930s and 1940s there was little in the way of large architectural commissions that were not provided by either the Government or the Roman Catholic Church. Unlike the firm Robinson Keefe who cultivated the church hierarchy, Scott attached himself to Government ministers. He became very friendly with Sean Lemass who’d later be Taoiseach (1959-1966) and Scott’s influence over the arts and architecture would be at its height during this time. It is I believe all but transparent, the importance of public relations in regards to the reverence that one’s work garners (especially in the current architectural epoch in which we live), Perhaps then Scott was not the first great Irish architect he’s revered to be but actually the first great PR machine, that promoted and advocated this new movement. The unfortunate reality is, that this is the paradox at which we find ourselves today, (as we evidently did then) that if one spends more time rubbing elbows with the privileged few than on the veracity and quality of one’s output, there’s a possibility of starchitect-dom, or, partake in the latter and risk been overlooked for your contributions completely; Joseph Downes (as I think Rothery perfectly articulates) that though his name is practically forgotten, the fact is, he spent his life building a compendium of architectural knowledge; with his literary collection, gaining extensive experience from his travels (including as an architectural photographer) and with his lectures to the AAI, made him one of the most important and influential propagandists for the modern movement in Ireland without the PR behind him; he indulged in none of the self publicity or socialite lifestyle that Michael Scott was well attuned to, and yet in his own quiet humble way is possibly the greatest single influence on the introduction to modern architecture in Ireland and he did it for the passion of the profession rather than gratification of the self. Page | 25

REFERENCES  History of Architectural Theory, Hanno-Walter Kruft, 1994, p.141.  McBeth, Douglas: "Francois Hennebique (1842–1921) – Reinforced concrete pioneer", Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers, 1998  Kenneth Frampton, 1983. Modern Architecture 1851-1945. Edition. Rizzoli. P 116  Kenneth Frampton, 2007. Modern Architecture: A Critical History (Fourth Edition) (World of Art). Fourth Edition Edition. Thames & Hudson. P90  Sigfried Giedion, 2009. Space, Time and Architecture: The Growth of a New Tradition, Fifth Revised and Enlarged Edition (The Charles Eliot Norton Lectures). Revised Edition. Harvard University Press. P435  Utopian Reality: Reconstructing Culture in Revolutionary Russia and Beyond; Christina Lodder, Maria Kokkori, Maria Mileeva; BRILL, Oct 24, 2013"Van Doesburg stated that the purpose of art was to imbue man with those positive spiritual qualities that were needed in order to overcome the dominance of the physical and create the conditions for putting an end to wars. In an enthusiastic essay on Wassily Kandinsky he had written about the dialogue between the artist and the viewer, and the role of art as 'the educator of our inner life, the educator of our hearts and minds'. Van Doesburg subsequently adopted the view that the spiritual in man is nurtured specifically by abstract art, which he later described as 'pure thought, which does not signify a concept derived from natural phenomena but which is contained in numbers, measures, relationships, and abstract lines'. In his response to Piet Mondrian's Composition 10, Van Doesburg linked peace and the spiritual to a non-representational work of art, asserting that 'it produces a most spiritual impression…the impression of repose: the repose of the soul'."  William J.R. Curtis, 1996. Modern Architecture Since 1900. 3 Edition. Phaidon Press.  Henry Russell Hitchcock, 1997. The International Style. Reissue Edition. W. W. Norton & Company.  http://hughpearman.com/modernism-or-should-that-be-modernwasm/  , 1990. Encyclopaedia Britannica. 15Rev Ed Edition. Encyclopaedia Britannica (UK) Ltd. Page | 26

 Patrick Nuttgens, 1997. The Story of Architecture. 2 Edition. Phaidon Press.  Paul Larmour, 2009. Free State Architecture. Edition. Gandon Editions.  , 1997. Ireland: 20th-Century Architecture in Ireland. Edition. Prestel.  Sean Rothery, 1991. Ireland and the New Architecture 1900-1940. Edition. Lilliput Pr Ltd.  World Heritage Centre, retrieved 14 September 2009 

Barbara E. Mann, A place in history: modernism, Tel Aviv, and the creation of Jewish urban space, Stanford University Press, 2006, p. xi

 http://cargocollective.com/marcusandren/WORSHIPPING-ASHES

(retrieved

on

30/052014)  http://www.miessociety.org/legacy/projects/minerals-and-metals-building/ (retrieved on 30/052014)  Steen Eiler Rasmussen, 1964. Experiencing Architecture. 2nd Edition. The MIT Press. P 12

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FIG. REFERENCES  Fig.1 The fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen (c1899) Philadelphia: Lippincott. Copy at New York Public Library, scanned by nicole_deyo, obtained from http://www.archive.org/details/fairytalesofhans00ande  Fig.2 http://perso.wanadoo.fr/patrimoineindustriel/Petit%20Fagnieres/tour. htm  Fig.3 http://ccilnb.free.fr/DE04.htm  Fig. 4 Bouwmeesters: H. P. Berlage (1856-1934)  Fig.5 http://ccilnb.free.fr/DE04.htm  Fig. 6  Fig.7.http://glasnost.itcarlow.ie/~powerk/GeneralGraphicsNotes/projection/ perspective_projection.html http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tribute_Money_perspective.jpg  Fig.8 http://www.dudziak.com/picture.php/eiffel_tower_stairs6550  Fig.9 http://media-cacheec0.pinimg.com/originals/90/03/e2/9003e2612c263bdc1c3829363dc35e65 .jpg  Fig.10 http://coisasdaarquitetura.wordpress.com/2011/03/26/elementarismos-ii/  Fig.11 http://secono3.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/doesburg012.jpg  Fig.12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piet_Mondrian#mediaviewer/File:Mondrian_Co mp10.jpg  Fig. 13 Eliinbar Sketches  Fig.14 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:VillaSavoye.jpg  Fig.15 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bauhaus.JPG  Fig.16 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lovell_House,_Los_Angeles,_California.JP G  Fig.17 http://theartsblog.ie/wpcontent/uploads/2013/12/5179692774c5b66afb000545__w_540_s_fit_.jpg  Fig.18 http://www.irishsociety.org/_/rsrc/1282993861407/home/hedgemaster-archives-2/historyevents/the-shannon-scheme-for-the-electrification-of-the-irish-freestate/Shannon_Scheme_electrification.jpg  Fig.19 http://img.rasset.ie/0006314b-642.jpg  Fig.20 http://multitext.ucc.ie/images/1127.jpg?hunchentootsession=63258%3A3776CA6B116A12602A08E4C9F20B3885  Fig.21 http://www.architonic.com/ntsht/new-eire-ireland-s-modernist-selffashioning-revisited/7000569  Fig.22 https://www.google.ie/maps/place/Dawson+St/@53.341443,6.257229,3a,75y,309.31h,96.07t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sU973O5Lfo_Vom xko2vrtkg!2e0!4m2!3m1!1s0x48670e9c0c516a7b:0xc58a19dc4564ea13  Fig.23 http://www.modernistbritain.co.uk/pix/33/photos/1.jpg  Fig.24 http://www.modernistbritain.co.uk/pix/33/photos/8.jpg  Fig.25 http://www.modernistbritain.co.uk/pix/33/photos/6.jpg  Fig.26 http://www.modernistbritain.co.uk/pix/33/photos/4.jpg Page | 28

 Fig.30 http://www.architonic.com/ntsht/new-eire-ireland-s-modernist-selffashioning-revisited/7000569  Fig.31 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-buildingsoffaly/hospital_endblock_detail_lge.jpg  Fig.32 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-buildingsoffaly/hospital_centralblock_detail_lge.jpg  Fig.33 http://www.hse.ie/images_upload/portal/eng/services/Find_a_Service/Hos psCancer/lukeskilkenny/Stlukeshospital.jpg  Fig.34 http://d3hjf51r9j54j7.cloudfront.net/wpcontent/uploads/sites/5/2012/03/St-Lukes-Kilkenny.jpg  Fig.35 http://webspace.webring.com/people/wa/adfunchal/kincora1.htm  Fig.36 https://www.google.ie/maps/@53.362569,6.199334,3a,49.4y,144.47h,85.6t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1szf6QlJbXhDcemw3XWAG_Q!2e0  Fig. 37 Plans for ‘Wendon’,BoithrinMobhi, Dublin byHarold Greenwood, published in Irish Builder & Engineer (‘Artifix’, 1932)  Fig.38 Brendan Joseph Madden (2010). https://www.scribd.com/doc/48546069/Wendon-Balnagowan-Ireland-sfirst-modern-home-Brendan-Joseph-Madden-BDes-Hons-Thesis-NationalCollege-of-Art-Design, (Original Photo: Vonne McLoughlin - 1965), [accessed May 2014].  Fig.39 Brendan Joseph Madden (2010). https://www.scribd.com/doc/48546069/Wendon-Balnagowan-Ireland-sfirst-modern-home-Brendan-Joseph-Madden-BDes-Hons-Thesis-NationalCollege-of-Art-Design, (Original Photo: Vonne McLoughlin – 1965), [accessed May 2014].  Fig.40 http://archiseek.com/2010/1937-dublin-airport/#.U7q_aPldXuc  Fig.41 http://imma.galleryaccess.com/files/stills/fitzgerald_ex_2010_3_242.jpgig.42 http://www.iarc.ie/wp-content/themes/yoko/images/slider6.jpg  Fig.43 http://image.architonic.com/imgTre/01_11/Dublin%20Airport%20%20GA_3.jpg  Fig.44,45,47 https://www.google.ie/maps/dir/Ceuta,+Strand+Rd,+Dublin+13/Howth+Rd, +Co.+Dublin/@53.37882,6.10269,3a,49.7y,81.93h,94.86t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s45oPrEmnzlUQua 0ArAKuwQ!2e0!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x486704e3bcec64f9:0xfbf1711d d1687c10!2m2!1d6.1023638!2d53.3788422!1m5!1m1!1s0x48670f96c2bac4b1:0x283a26b3 bbbdb6a5!2m2!1d-6.168555!2d53.3798344  Fig.46 http://arranqhenderson.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/img_1808.jpg  Fig.48 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-buildingswestmeath/athlone_ritz_lge.jpg  Fig.49 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-buildingswestmeath/athlone_ritz_riverside2_lge.jpg

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 Fig.50 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-westmeath/0002.jpg  Fig.51 Paul Larmour, 2009. Free State Architecture. Edition. Gandon Editions. P51  Fig. 52 http://image.architonic.com/imgTre/01_11/Geragh%20%20PL_1%20ret.jpg  Fig.53 https://yy2.staticflickr.com/3353/3537937953_124a4f5025.jpg  Fig.54 Paul Larmour, 2009. Free State Architecture. Edition. Gandon Editions. p45   Fig.55 http://www.telaviv4fun.com/sitebuilder/images/bauhaus_house250x214.jpg  Fig.56 http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1096/gallery/  Fig.57 http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/22296126.jpg  Fig.58 http://www.bauhaus-center.com/images/7.jpg  Fig.59 http://image.architonic.com/imgTre/01_11/Irish%20Pav_NY%20%20PL_d2b.jpg  Fig.60 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/usa-victoriananewyork/0062.jpg  Fig.61 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/usa-victoriananewyork/0059.jpg  Fig.62 http://www.dailytonic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/IrishPav_NY-GA_1-sep.jpg  Fig.63 http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/3/127803/1699748/1930%20GUNNA R%20ASPLUND%20paradise%20cafe.jpg  Fig.64 http://media-cacheec0.pinimg.com/736x/10/dd/b5/10ddb5febea8c5157b7f568a1063dd9d.jpg  Fig.65 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Stockh_1930_4.jpg  Fig.66 Paul Larmour, 2009. Free State Architecture. Edition. Gandon Editions. p86  Fig.67 http://disseminatingarchitecture.wordpress.com/2013/02/01/representingan-busaras-architectural-review-1953/  Fig.68 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-dublin/0619.jpg  Fig.69 Paul Larmour, 2009. Free State Architecture. Edition. Gandon Editions. p86  Fig.70 http://image.architonic.com/imgTre/01_11/Busaras%20%20MS_148b%20gr.jpg  Fig.71 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-buildings-dublinnorth-s/mosaic_wing_underside_lge.jpg  Fig.72 http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_vF0K0s3bBEU/TA64pDTglnI/AAAAAAAABY4/S 31nzcg9zFQ/s640/000153a.jpg  Fig.73 https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3066/2520029521_cae0a1e46e_z.jpg?zz=1

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 Fig.74 http://files1.structurae.de/files/photos/64/grand_projet_paris_14eme_cite_i nternationale_universitaire_de_paris/maison_du_bresil_1.jpg  Fig.75 http://www.bdonline.co.uk/Pictures/web/u/f/p/ministry-of-educationand-health-ri_300.jpg  Fig,76 http://www.abbeytheatre.ie/images/sized/images/uploads/user/articles/290 c2dc1c5d48ef73a6868c9548b950f-645x475.jpg  Fig.77 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-buildings-dublinnorth-a/abbeytheatre3_lge.jpg  Fig.78 http://www.abbeytheatre.ie/images/sized/images/uploads/user/articles/196 6_Abbey_Theatre_Exterior-448x303.jpg  Fig.79 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-buildings-dublinnorth-a/abbeytheatre4_lge.jpg  Fig.80 http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/ireland-buildings-dublinnorth-a/abbeytheatre4_lge.jpg  Fig.81 http://viewpictures.co.uk/ImageThumbs/HBLE-0001-6415/3/HBLE00016415_Exterior_views_of_the_Minerals_and_Metals_Research_Building_at _Illinois_Institute_of_Technology_in_C.jpg  Fig.82 https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7353/10800286986_e189a7f8db_b.jpg  Fig.83 https://www.google.ie/maps/@53.34836,6.257486,3a,54.2y,65.12h,117.41t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sOCCfK267MlXA klukKaCe-A!2e0  Fig.84 https://www.flickr.com/photos/faasdant/3924593430/in/photostream/  Fig.85 https://www.flickr.com/photos/faasdant/3923798825/in/photostream/  Fig.86 https://www.flickr.com/photos/faasdant/3924586196/in/photostream/  Fig.87 https://www.google.ie/maps/place/The+Peacock/@53.348298,6.257391,3a,75y,28.97h,116.38t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sMWjqDF7olkJoB mZOfRLQOQ!2e0!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0xccc775cbb009e382  Fig.88 http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lqi1lxZuNL1qeyobp.jpg  Fig.89 http://archiseek.com/2010/1966-abbey-theatre-abbey-street-dublin/

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SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Space, time and architecture: the growth of a new tradition Siegfried Giedion - Harvard Univ. Press - 1941 (2008 reprint)

 The source of modern architecture and design Nikolaus Pevsner - Thames and Hudson – 1973 (reprint 2002)

 Modern architecture: a critical history Kenneth Frampton - Thames and Hudson – 1980 (reprint 2011)

 Studies in tectonic culture: the poetics of construction in nineteenth and twentieth century architecture Kenneth Frampton - John Cava - MIT Press 1995

 Le Corbusier Kenneth Frampton - Thames & Hudson – 2001

 Modern architecture since 1900 William J. R.Curtis - Phaidon – 1982 (reprint 2013)

 The story of architecture Patrick Nuttgens - Phaidon Press – 1983 (reprint 2001)

 De Stijl Paul Overy - Thames and Hudson – 1991 Page | 32

 Experiencing Architecture Steen Eiler Rasmussen – The MIT Press – 1959

 Full Irish: new architecture in Ireland Sarah A.Lappin - Princeton Architectural Press – 2009

 20th-century architecture, Ireland Annette Becker - John A.Olley - Wilfried Wang - Hugh Campbell - Prestel – 1997

 Ireland and the new architecture: 1900-1940 Sean Rothery - Lilliput Press – 1991

 Free state architecture: modern movement architecture in Ireland, 1922-1949 Paul Larmour - Gandon Editions – 2009

 Michael Scott, architect: in (casual) conversation with Dorothy Walker Michael Scott - Dorothy Walker - Gandon Editions – 1995

 Revival of the Bauhaus in Tel Aviv: Renovation of the International Style in the White City. Yavin, Shmuel; Ran Erde - Tel Aviv: Bauhaus Center. – 2003

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