a short while after we discussed our love for modular systems, we are talking about grids again. this isn’t just a graphic-designer-turned-textile-person’s obsession — they structure our cities, inform our screens, and quietly underpin almost every page layout and pattern we encounter. but beyond their role in organising space, grids can be a springboard for creativity, allowing designers to build complexity from simplicity. this post explores the grid not as a constraint, but as a tool of liberation — from early modernism to contemporary practice, including how zitozza plays with modularity in its textiles.
The Grid as Modernist Foundation
grids found their spiritual home in early modernist movements. bauhaus, and de stijl artists in particular, like piet mondrian reduced visual language to the essential: horizontals, verticals, primary colours. continuing the idea after the war, the swiss style emerged in the mid-20th century, with designers like josef müller-brockmann using grids to create visual harmony in posters and editorial layouts.
this was design as a rational act — about clarity, neutrality, and structure. the swiss grid system created a framework where typography and imagery could be arranged with precision. it was less about decoration and more about logic, a way to strip back the unnecessary and design a hierarchy of information.
speaking of the swiss — we love brutalism here, so now is the time to mention le corbusier, one of the most influential figures of architecture in the 20th century. in his seminal work towards a new architecture, 1923), he argues for a new visual order grounded in function, technology, and standardisation.
le corbusier's urban visions, particularly the ville radieuse and the controversial plan voisin, proposed cities built on a grid: modular, repetitive, efficient. these were not just aesthetic gestures but ideological ones, attempts to impose order on the chaos of industrialised life.
the city becomes a machine for living. blocks of buildings aligned on rigid axes, roads intersected at clean right angles (and roundabouts - think about glenrothes!), and light, air, and greenery were prioritised through geometric planning. the social and emotional consequences of these ideas are still felt today, but their influence on modern urban environments is undeniable.
the outskirts of bratislava, by SI Imaging Services / Imazins (source: getty images)
the outskirts of bratislava, by SI Imaging Services / Imazins (source: getty images)
Grids in Graphic and Interface Design
in contemporary graphic design, the legacy of the swiss grid lives on in everything from magazine layouts to responsive web design. grids provide consistency across platforms and allow for flexibility within a rational structure.
this is something i have less experience with but it has translated on from print to digital, and in UI/UX design, it is the grids that make digital interfaces feel coherent and navigable. the hidden scaffolding of columns and gutters supports typographic hierarchies and interactive elements, creating experiences that are intuitive without drawing attention to their structure.
The Balance Between Structure and Creativity
but the grid isn’t just about order. it can also serve as a space for subversion. architects and designers often use grids to set expectations — then disrupt them. breaking the grid, or the grid itself, can both become a statement - think about the iconic tables of superstudio.
in textile design, modularity offers a similar tension. zitozza's approach to block printing starts with fixed elements—repeating tiles, geometric forms — but introduces variation through placement, layering, and colour. a grid may begin the composition, but it rarely contains the outcome. it's not unlike building a city out of toy blocks: rules exist, but imagination ultimately dictates the layout.
Grids as a Living Language
grids, like language, evolve. they provide a shared syntax for designers, architects, and urbanists, but are constantly reinterpreted across time and context. from the pure geometry of modernism to the playful modularity of contemporary practice, the grid remains one of design's most enduring tools.
at zitozza, we embrace this legacy. our new collections explore grids as both framework and provocation. they are starting points, not boundaries.
after all, there is joy in structure. and sometimes, the most surprising creativity begins with a line drawn straight.
we’re back and finally able to sit down with our thoughts after having watched (and somewhat forgotten about) the brutalist movie. in that review i encouraged the research into the work of the real-life hungarians and brutalists whose lives the fictional story was based on - and i decided to start with marcel breuer since i received a great book about his work for last christmas.
those into design will know this already but i always like starting with the facts, he was born in 1902 in pécs, southern hungary and was one of the youngest students (and mentors) at bauhaus. he went on to establish his own practice in berlin, and after a two-year stint in london he moved to the states in the 1930s, first to teach architecture at harvard, then later to new york city where he continued to practice until the late 1970s.
the cesca chair, 1928
the wassily chair, 1925
for those into design, it’s also easy to recognise the heavy concrete masses of marcel breuer’s brutalist buildings — the hulking cantilevers and deep shadows of the 1960s and 70s that have since become icons of modernist architecture. but what’s more compelling than their visual impact is the thread that connects them to breuer’s earliest work. his design logic didn’t emerge suddenly in béton brut — it evolved from an obsession with functionality, structure, and modularity that was evident from the very start.
before architecture of course, there was furniture. in the 1920s, as a young bauhaus student, breuer designed the wassily chair using steel tubing — a radical departure from traditional craft at the time. lightweight, repeatable, and industrial, the chair wasn’t just functional: it was a system. breuer’s approach treated each part as a modular unit, capable of being assembled into something greater than its parts. this thinking didn’t just define his early designs — it forecast an entire architectural philosophy.
IBM research centre, la gaude, france
IBM research centre, la gaude, france
UNESCO headquarters, paris
UNESCO headquarters, paris
fast forward a few decades of immense architectural output (his practice designed more than 100 buildings), and the same logic manifests on a much larger scale. buildings like the UNESCO headquarters in paris (1951-1958), the IBM research centre in la gaude (1960-1961) or the iconic whitney museum in new york (1963-1966) carry the same DNA — modular systems, articulated forms, and a deep respect for material honesty. breuer’s concrete isn’t decorative. it’s structural, expressive, and fundamentally rational.
the book i’ve been reading — published in 1970s, written by máté major, long out of print, with that peculiar warmth of faded paper and sans serif fonts — documents this journey. the photographs, drawings, and models inside don’t romanticise his work; instead, they reinforce the relentless clarity of his method. whether designing a chair or a cultural institution, breuer asked the same questions: how can material, form, and repetition serve both function and expression?
whitney museum, new york
whitney museum, new york
as someone with a hungarian background myself, i’ve always felt a connection to breuer — not just because of the cultural context of course (despite our country being somewhat late and reluctant to recognise him), but because of how he saw the world through systems. that kind of thinking, for me, translates into surface design: building pattern from modules, constructing rhythm, shaping repetition. of course, my materials are softer, but the logic is not so different.
breuer reminds us that beauty can be found in structure — in the clarity of parts assembled with intention. whether it’s furniture, architecture, or textiles, that modular imagination still resonates.
i wanted to write this blog post for a long time but never knew where or when to start - but if that’s the case, then any time is good i guess, so why not share these thoughts now. this is pretty much the main “why” of what i do, and it just explains why i’m so interested in architecture as an inspiration. when we think about home decor, and specifically textiles, the sharp geometries of modernist and brutalist architecture isn’t always the first influence that comes to mind. yet, at zitozza, it’s at the heart of every pattern. the geometry of a brutalist facade, the rhythm of windows on a high-rise, or the weathered texture of a concrete wall — all of these architectural details find their way into our hand-printed textiles. but how does a building become a rug?
Finding Beauty in Structure
architecture is all about structure, rhythm, and materiality — elements that also define textile design. just as an architect carefully considers proportions and spatial balance, a good pattern plays with repetition and symmetry. the block-printing process we use mirrors this approach: each block is a building block, quite literally, in the design.
From Facades to Fabric
consider, for example, our TÉGLA collection. inspired by the bold, repeating brickwork of modernist and brutalist buildings, the pattern distills architectural structure into textile form. what might seem cold or industrial in concrete becomes warm and tactile when printed on fabric. the transition from one material to another changes how we experience the design, bringing an unexpected softness to rigid geometric forms.
Materiality Matters
the choice of materials is just as deliberate in both fields. architects think about light, shadow, and surface—how materials weather over time, how they interact with their surroundings. with textiles, texture plays a similar role.a pattern printed on jute has a different presence than one printed on cotton; the roughness of the fabric enhances the depth of the ink, just like roughcast concrete reveals layers of shadow and light.
Bringing Architectural Thinking into Interiors
so how does this translate into interior design? architects and designers often work with a restrained, neutral palette, focusing on form and function. patterned textiles — especially those inspired by architecture — can complement this aesthetic by adding a layer of depth and storytelling. whether it’s a cushion that echoes the lines of a city skyline or a rug that captures the essence of a tiled facade, these pieces allow architectural appreciation to extend beyond the built environment and into the home.
A Living Connection to Design
so i guess how i want to create a dialogue between buildings and interiors, between public spaces and personal ones, the external and the internal: by bringing the architectural influences onto textiles. i really believe that the interior of a designed space can reflect the same thoughtfulness, structure, and material integrity that define great architecture on the exterior. and in doing so, it becomes not just a space to live in, but a place designed with intention.
hello again - this is a short announcement that we will be debuting our little brand at london’s leading design festival. we are thrilled to announce our participation as we are extremely busy working towards the event where we’ll unveil our brand new tileset, a little summer collection and a lookbook for new patterns and prints. the festival will grow bigger and better this year with even more venues between 20-22 may 2025. visit our stand g3 at platform, 70 cowcross street EC1M 6EJ - a hotbed of emerging talent that gives space to emerging brands about to break into the industry (the perfect place to introduce zitozza to architects and interior designers!)
hello again! we have some news for you, or more like, a review. not a building or a book this time, but a fictional story which i’m not that used to. however when something titled “the brutalist” came onto the scene about a hungarian, of course i felt obliged to visit the cinema for the third time in the decade and i thought i’d share my thoughts with you.
i want to emphasise though, that i am not a story person, it’s probably personally my fault that cinemas are dying, i can’t keep up with any series and, despite loving books and reading, the last piece of fiction i read was probably in high school. i am not proud of this, i am just providing some context for this review so you can safely ignore my take and go view it yourself. the first thing i want to say that it is beautifully made and you can tell that everyone involved in the making of this film took their craft extremely seriously. it is rather spectacular, filmed with a 1950s technique called vistavision, and it’s quite something i recommend watching in the cinema. there is an interesting score throughout, the writing moves at a decent pace despite the long runtime and the actors all do a fantastic job (with a bit of ai enhancement- the hungarian did sound fluent mind you.)
the second thing i want to say about this film though that if you were expecting to see a lot of cool design and beautiful architecture, you will be disappointed. when i first read about the story, following a hungarian-born brutalist architect finding his feet in america after the war, i was hoping it would be more closely inspired by icons such as marcel breuer, lászló moholy-nagy, or even ernő goldfinger but it is a different story. most crucially, our fictional hero, lászló tóth (adrien brody) was unfortunately not able to escape the horrors of the holocaust and moves to america only after having survived it, in 1947, having to start his life and career all over again.
the long runtime is split across two halves, and in the first half, taking place from 1947 to 1952, we see him taken in by a relative (alessandro nivola) who gives him a job in his furniture shop in a small town in pennsylvania, where he meets a wealthy businessman (guy pearce) who will later hire him to design as a sort of memorial to his family for the community, a cultural and sports centre with a library and a church (yes, all that in one building.)
watching this half of the movie i thought this film should be titled “the modernist” instead, as we see him in a quite contemporary struggle of being radical and different in a somewhat more conservative environment. this would be fairly relatable to any millennial i’d imagine, but i’m not sure how true to the depicted age it really is. at one point he creates a steel frame furniture set, reminiscent of something by marcel breuer, only to be met with indifference and rejection. in real life the cesca chair for instance, was a huge hit that would influence furniture design for the rest of the century and further, and, by 1948, it was already a 20-year old design. i’d imagine even in small town pennsylvania it would not be seen that unusual - this is still the country of charles and ray eames. for more context, the new bauhaus, founded by the very real lászló moholy-nagy, was already open in chicago for about a decade by then.
instead of joining them, his supposed ex-colleagues, our hero shovels coal until he gets hired by guy pearce’s unscrupulous character - if this is a metaphor of the loneliness of the average 2010s creative trying to get by in a foreign country with an evening job whilst on an unpaid internship in the hope of securing their first temporary contract at a big-name studio surviving on lawsuit payouts over half-built vanity projects, then i guess it works - i can assure you that an entire generation got the t-shirt.
however as a believable story set in a golden age of industry and building, it does not work as much, although i only have the word of art history books as i was not alive at the time. i do accept that cutting edge modernism wasn’t ever truly “mainstream” as such, but during the time the film was set, it was at least desired, aspirational, and, i’d imagine, decidedly cool. the second half of the movie picks up in 1952 - modernism is massive in the states by now, and for a bit of global context, despite still the rationing, festival of britain is already happening across the atlantic, chandigarh is being built by le corbusier in india and the plans for brasil’s new capital will also be drawn up in a few years time. the film completely forgets about this enormous, global movement of hope and optimism. eyewatering budgets are approved for huge projects to be built, celebrated for generations afterwards. this is a unique era in history of unmatched ambition and prosperity, with a real creative buzz in the air - and this context, this positive mood is entirely, and sorely left out of this miserable story.
then it falls apart a little bit more and there is a revelation in the epilogue that i will spoil below, so please do not read further if you have not seen it yet and want to.
it turns out that the main concrete building (which we never get to see in full) is a replica of the architect’s and his family’s suffering in the concentration camps. no, it is not explained as some kind of visual metaphor, we are explicitly told that it is a near-exact representation. now i understand why a filmmaker, a storyteller might think it works - of course, there are many stories of awful, unimaginable suffering that are told beautifully. but i do not think that spatial design can be like that and i struggle to accept that you can physically recreate the worst known hell on earth and offer it as a sanctuary and place of relaxation and learning for the community. if you really believe that form follows function, then you simply cannot take a building where the function was the extermination of people and give it a different function, especially not of recreation. in fact i find it really quite distasteful towards the memory of the holocaust. i also think it is strengthening this lazy and misunderstood idea about brutalism, that it equals brutality and that the raw surfaces and austere interiors can only come from a place of oppression, imprisonment and suffering. this is quite damaging towards this style of architecture and it might not help the celebration and preservation of these buildings - although if the movie wins awards hopefully it becomes a bit more recognised.
so despite all the miserable nature of the film, i hope that you will still get inspired and will want to explore the work of the real-life hungarians and the real buildings of this era - and find the hope and optimism in the works along the way. i have just got my hands on a hungarian book about marcel breuer from 1970 (when he was still alive) and i will write about this next. subscribe below to be the first to read about this and more brutalist wonders.
today is a special day as this is going to be my first ever post about hungarian brutalism. i’m not entirely sure why i haven’t blogged about anything in my home country before - perhaps the pressure to know more about these buildings than i do is too much! but i guess the time has come to present something cool and exciting and interesting - this is one of the more famous ones and as such, an internationally more accessible and digestable example - that is the OKISZ offices in budapest, hungary.
built between 1971 and 1973, this office complex is located in a particularly leafy pocket of zugló, the 14th disctrict of budapest, almost exclusively surrounded by art nouveau villas and churches. the architect is recordedas jános mónus - who won an ybl-award (a sort of hungarian pritzker prize i guess) for the “high quality fusion of structure, technology and form” demonstrated in this very building. the company was ÁÉTV at the time, the state development company (according to the construction archives, operational from the late 50s until the late 90s) tasked to build public-use buildings for budapest: schools, hospitals and of course, offices - this one to house the countrywide union of small-scale industry bodies (the acronym is the OKISZ in the building name) and i’m really sorry that the language of the economic structures of socialist hungary does not necessarily translate too well to my engllish language readers but hey i’m trying my best!
it is a striking, fine piece of brutalism that understands and seamlessly fits into its environment without losing its character, not trying to be imposing without being too modest. a review from 1984 claims - and i’m paraphrasing somewhat, that “it would have been shameless and impolite to try and compete with its surroundings, however you should also live up to such an environment full of notable buildings” and it does do a remarkable job at that.
it has an exciting elevation of five floors stacked upon each-other in a dynamic, stair-like manner and a somewhat L-shaped plan. the facade continues this rhythm of protruding concrete mullions between the slick windows - for those who love this style it’s a bit of a jackpot i think. i went on a freezing cold january day in thick heavy snowfall - the white contrast it created with the concrete was really eye-catching from a pattern point of view too, but it also somehow emphasised the spatial nature of this building.
obviously, this is a textile designer’s blog, so i’m a layperson when it comes to the ins and outs of the structural geniuses of such architecture, but eye-pleasing proportions are, i think, a universal language that can be appreciated by everyone.
brutalism is also not necessarily inherently minimalist, you can notice fantastic details even outside - but this is also an interior textile blog so i was yearning to go inside. even though i could not (in fact, a security guard came out to check what i was up to outside too, haha!) however as a part of othernity, the hungarian project for the venice biennale for 2021, a series of guided walks by the centre of contemporary architecturewas organised back in 2020, several bloggers and journalists attended taking amazing photos of the inside. it looks very 1970s, cosy and very socialist (every building in my childhood memories has a similar details or typeface i think!) and it also has one of those ever-moving lifts that we call paternoster in hungary.
i’m going to recommend you two of these articles about this walk in 2020, both with brilliant photography - first hype&hyper (if you don’t know them, please get acquainted with this comprehensive cultural quarterly focused on eastern europe.) and also check out the blog post from welovebudapest, with fabulous indoor shots including of the roof terrace.
for the floor plan and elevations, and an interesting drawing on the accompanying furniture design, please see the previously quoted lechner centre article, it’s very insightful! the reason for this many resources available on this particuar building is of coruse the venice biennale project for 2021 - this building was one of the 12 selected to represent the hungarian pavilion. all 12 were focused entirely on this particular era of architecture and architects of our surrounding countries were invited to participate in their re-interpretation.
despite this celebratory re-discovery happening, brutalism in hungary is quite endangered and none of these buildings are under listed status, however many are loved and used and perhaps the attitudes are changing somewha and after years of the somewhat over-politicised and emotionally fuelled attitudes the architecture of the socialist era in hungary, it’s refreshing to see it getting more appreciated and putting some of these buildings into a more recognised place. i hope to bring you more examples of hungary in the future.
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hello again - long time no see and long time without hugging some concrete! this month we finally brought to you TÉGLA, our brand new tileset (after many, many months of work and preparation). these were all inspired by brickworks and facades found on so i want to show you a building with an interesting texture and facade that reflects that inspiration. besides, i think we do deserve a trip now, don’t we? so let’s go on a short but sweet one, just to glasgow - as we’re visiting the savoy centre on sauchiehall street.
quite a striking example example of 1970s brutalism, it was built between ‘71 and ‘79 and designed by gavin paterson & sons, on the ruins of the old savoy theatre. it now consists of a shopping centre complete with an indoor market, and an 11 storey office block.
obviously, the purpose of writing these blog posts is to celebrate these concrete designs and bust thay common myth amongst the naysayers that these are depressing buildings - on a particularly overcast day in the glasgow winter it does unfortunately seem to be a bit of a task. rain-soaked or not though, the building has an impressive, exciting looking elevation walking up on hope street (connecting sauchiehall street and renfrew street.)
the glasgow weather must have been considered as the concrete clad facade is somewhat protruding, offering a bit of a shelter above head-hight. the cladding features a concrete pattern of narrow vertical rectangles, with a beautiful relief of the centre’s logo (in a typographic design of what i assume must have been, or perhaps inspired by the original 1910s theatre’s.) this logo repeats on the renfrew street side too, painted in blue - a fresh touch of colour amongst the imposing concrete.
the protection from the elements continues as there is a fully sheltered footbridge connecting the north side of renfrew street - taking you right to the first floor of the building. i did not manage to get inside, however i’m told it’s been refurbished and there are plans to further regenerate - not without controversy. you can follow this excellent and insightful timeline from glasgow heritage (who do happen to run a brutalism-related exhibition at the merchant city as well!)
the 11-floor office blocks towers above the more horizontally laying front of the building - the neatly arranged windows do make inspiring patterns (you might discover them on our printed goodies i’m sure!) - it’s a beautiful and interesting building that makes its surroundings a little bit more exciting.
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hello again - we have some more exciting brutalism-related news to share! zitozza are proud to be involved with a new exhibition, part of a wider series of events called concrete designs to thrive, exploring how good design can keep a city can fit and well, curated by journeys in design - with city walks, talks, workshops and exhibitions.
you can join the glasgow green and grey walks - sunday strolls around one of glasgow’s favourite parklands, to spaces and places with fascinating heritage, talking en route about thriving in the city (this walk was developed and delivered in 2023 with the help of a small group of guides with experience of homelessness); 2-4pm sundays 16th and 23rd.
we’re thrilled to be a part of the materials and modernism exhibition featuring the work of five scottish creatives, all inspired by modernist architecture, offering key works in mosaic, wood, ceramic, cast concrete and printed textile (that’s zitozza!); open 10am to 4pm monday to friday at the briggait in glasgow, from 12th - 27th june - please do come and visit!
part of this is also design for a city, fit and well- the latest in a series of twilight talks, when an expert panel presents the case for retrofit rather than wrecking ball, remodelling, repurposing, and reclaiming for the better. Extra time and refreshments will enhance the chance for good connection on the evening of thursday 20th june at the briggait.
finally, a call out to help craft healthy city, healthy citizen ‘zines in a set of wednesday workshops at the briggait, exploring well-being and urban design in ‘zine format, to include use of printed smart phone pics captured by our walk participants, posted using the hashtag #concretescotland, 2-4pm wednesdays 12th 19th and 26th june.
journeys in design founder dr john ennis said, “it’s a privilege to bring our concrete designs to thrive to the heart of glasgow in 2024 and to collaborate with such a diverse array of designers, artists and producers around glasgow green and the briggait: it’s very clear why this park and this venue are such treasured parts of the city’s culture.”
hello again, believe it or not, it’s been another month and a very, very long time since we posted anything architectural or photographic - things have been busy but actually, we needn’t always go on a long, exotic journey to find some good, inspiring facades. for this short little trip, we’re staying in edinburgh today to look at another student accommodation.
the building is at 8 roxburgh place (on the corner of west adam place), you can get to it by walking up the stairs behind the dovecot (this is very specific but if you’re a brutalist textile lover, it’s a highly recommended double trip to the textile studios as well as this concrete monster!)
the building belongs to the university of edinburgh and i can’t for the love of my life find the architect! if anyone knows, do reach out. i’m guessing it was built in the 1960s and recently renovated. by all accounts it is rated highly among students, mainly for the excellent location and the stunning views of the city, and i have zero doubt it’s an absolutely brilliant experience to stay there for your studies.
this is a textile design blog though, so as usual, we’re here for the patterns and the facade does not disappoint. it’s only five floors tall so it’s not an imposing monstrosity at all, and the human scale is made evident by the large window panels and the even facade - all floors are the same height, there is not a grand entrance or an all important ground floor, the seamless repeat of windows start immediately off the ground.
the near-square shaped windows sit in rounded rectangles with some relief details above them and it makes me imagine it inside in the style of futuristic space capsules. this panelling continues on all elevations, even without windows, the details are there, which is quite obviously a pleasing sight to the pattern lovers.
there is a bit of an extrusion on the front side, and due to that, it looks like there is a bit of an offset to the grid of windows, which breaks the monotony a bit and brings some excitement to the facade. i enjoyed walking around here - there is another lovely brutalist gem right across it, a university teaching centre recently renovated by reiach and hall. surrounded by the medieval churches of old edinburgh, they don’t look out of place at all in this living, breathing city.
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as we are cracking on with 2024, i’ve decided that of the many architectural inspiration series we planned, it’s probably best to tackle the beast first and share some images and thoughts of the barbican estate in london. i’m calling it a beast because it’s an enormous, expensive and very well-known icon of british brutalism. for this seasoned concrete-hugger, it then makes no sense to keep postponing this blog post any further (especially as our rug already exits and more stuff might come soon…), so do come with us to explore the place from a textile designer’s perspective.
i guess everyone somewhat interested in brutalism knows some of the basic facts - designed on a 35-acre ww2 bombsite by chamberlin, powell & bon for the corporation of the city of london, it opened its first flats in 1969 but the completion of the construction only really finished in the late 1970s, after a long and expensive process and it is now home to approx 4000 people in 2000 flats. of course the uniqueness of the estate comes from the fact that unlike many other brutalist projects in the uk, it was not built for social housing and the architects were not held by the typical council budget restraints -which resulted in one of the most free and complete architectural visions, achieved by some extremely time consuming and labour intensive processes.
if you want to know about these in more detail, my first recommendation is raw concrete by barnabas calder. quite early on in the book, he has a brilliant chapter about the barbican, with some focus on the social context around it, from conception throughout the whole of the construction process which makes for a very informative and interesting read as it touches on some of the tensions throughout the whole process of building it. he provides an important angle that does not often get mentioned on design blogs like these, as we tend to get lost in the form and the aesthetics - with good reason of course, but without context it would become rather meaningless.
i first visited a couple of years ago and the first thing that really affected my perception was its sheer scale. of course it is at this enormous scale that these visions for the order of forms work the best, and i think this is why it’s such a brutalist mecca here, the complete, intact and vast system of space. i don’t exactly know where my search for a geometric order comes from, all i know is that the deceptively monotonous facade of the terraced blocks (arranged in neat squares of course) gives me a sense of enclosed cosiness and open clarity at the same time. in every one of these blog posts i’m attempting to describe this feeling but it’s so hard to explain - there is just this sense of calm that i only find in places such as this.
the three 42-floor tall tower blocks bring some exciting angles with a lean, triangular layout and column of balconies tightly stacked into the sky. of course, the repeating geometric forms serve a textile pattern designer well. it really helps that i visited on a sunny day and the shadows projected on the surfaces aid the imagination in reducing these sharp angles to two-dimensional shapes. but the surface itself, the slate and hammered concrete texture that really is on every surface, is equally important - i always say that i want the weave of my cloth to resemble the raw concrete itself, and the pattern to play with the form.
to explore a bit more about the material and the techy bits of the architecture, my second recommendation is my favourite podcast series, about buildings and cities - they have a brilliant episode about the estate, touching on some of these details of the surfaces too as they take you on a journey around the estate. they’re much better suited to explore a more architectural angle than i’d ever be able to so do have a listen to it.
what i found the most surprising about it that it was a lot less grey than i imagined - of course, the concrete surfaces are raw and beautifully grey, and the shapes and forms are varied and playful, but the pavements are tiled with maroon bricks all over, and the ponds with the surrounding greenery reflect with a very strong teal and green everywhere. it is surprisingly colourful and stimulating in its order, the “oasis” comparisons do seem to be very fitting - not in small part due to the tropical garden accessible to residents only.
but we can’t quite go away of course without stepping foot in the arts centre, home to a concert hall, cinema and exhibition halls amongst others. seeing how the columns and the concrete coffered ceilings repeat and continue inside is an exciting exploration that i really enjoyed even if some of might not work that well today or may be in need of renovation.
for the last recommendation, i want to bring you an article from the rics blog, as it’s quite fresh and talks a bit about some of the repairs as well as bringing you some amazing pictures that hopefully will inspire you to appreciate it if you haven’t visited already - and if you have, i hope you’ll now see it from a surface pattern design angle too.
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as a textile designer, i spend a lot of time thinking about surface — how it behaves, what it suggests, and how it feels. when i travel, i often photograph brutalist buildings not just for their form, but for their surface logic — how repetition, rhythm and materiality work together. the palace of justice in lisbon is one of the most quietly decorative buildings i’ve seen, and it’s shaped a lot of my thinking about how concrete and cloth can speak the same visual language.
it’s been a while since we’ve last embarked on an architectural inspiration journey, but holiday season is coming up, so i thought i’d give you a little tip, to visit a wonderful brutalist building in one of my favourite cities. the city is lisbon, portugal, where i showed you a beautiful church before, and this time we’re going to court! okay, nobody’s going to get sued, we are just going to admire the building. the palace of justice stands as a testament to the unique approach to brutalism by the portuguese. join me on a short walk around this gem!
the building was designed by januário godinho and joão henrique de breloes andresen and built between 1962 and 1970. it is in the SOS brutalism database but thankfully it is not currently in danger as it is used as the main court. it stands at the head of parque eduardo VII, a peaceful, green patch in the centre of the city.
it has everything a brutalist marvel should have - the skillful blending of monumental proportions and robust materials - it is a long building with concrete columns supporting its cantilevered facade on all sides. because of that, it looks lightweight that is slightly lifted off the ground, and it does have this uniquely portuguese take on brutalism: the concrete facade here is not raw or imposing - it is incredibly decorated, light and airy, punctuated by geometric patterns and rhythmic textures, corresponding to the delightful tiled surfaces this country is so famous for.
the structure and the shape of the supporting columns create an interesting rhythm, and it is this frequency and rhythm that i find so relaxing. the concrete here is not raw, it is processed and organised into intricate, detailed patterns that pierce through the facade.
obviously it is the patterns i’m attracted to as a textile designer. the tile references in particular have a connection to my favourite way of creating geometric patterns and i love this building for showing that brutalism can be playful and decorative too. my main aim has always been to infuse this modernist spirit into textile designs and create a connection between the realms of architecture and interior decor. i want to bring it inside and bridge the gap between the monumental and the intimate, to translate the feeling of calm i get from these buildings to the feeling of calm at home.
i hope that you get to visit this beautiful building, in the lisbon sun it shines white, with the shadows adding an additional depth to this textured facade. and i hope you’re not tired of my ramblings yet, i always think that every building explains a little bit more about my mission!
if you’re interested in how architecture and surface design connect — or how brutalist texture can inspire calm, not coldness — explore how these ideas translate into our BÉTON collection or get your own block-printed textile pieces. these buildings don’t just inspire what I make — they shape how I think about design altogether.
there’s a building here in st andrews that quietly unites two very different worlds: centuries-old academic tradition, and raw, rhythmic modernism. as a textile designer obsessed with surface pattern, i’m always drawn to the overlooked beauty of brutalism — and this particular student accommodation block is a hidden gem. if you're a design student, architecture fan, or just someone who appreciates visual rhythm in everyday places, this short tour is for you.
it has been a month since we last have updated our blog and even longer since we last had a little tour of brutalism… so it is time to get out of hibernation now and get the boots on for some well-due concrete hugging. don’t worry, we’re not going very far - in fact, staying right here in east fife, as we visit one of the student halls of the university of st andrews.
surrounded by lots of greenery in the north haugh, it is a short walk away from the town centre and the golf course. it was designed by james stirling and it opened in 1967 - it is a beautiful brutalist gem in a town and university that’s rather renowned and cherished for its mostly much older architecture going back to medieval times. it was judged to be 12th in urban realm’s top 100 scottish modernist buildings, and it has been category A listed since 2011 - it is a popular building that’s here to stay.
the building has an V shaped plan of two large wings, embracing a relaxing, wide green space in between. brutalism often gets reduced to “grey concrete,” but that’s a shallow reading. here, the design balances sharp geometry with soft landscaping — a vital contrast that creates a calming, grounded space for student life. the elevations of both wings incorporate the increasing ground height as the hill beneath slopes upwards. it has a striking, hypnotic rhythm to the modular facade - the zigzagging row of windows only reveal themselves from the east.
what fascinates me most is the textural patterning: 45-degree diagonal textures rotate across the tessellated concrete panels, forming a two-dimensional zigzag print that almost reads like texture-within-texture kind of printed textile. it’s a modular, repeating geometry — exactly the kind of form reduction that inspires my block-printed designs. apologies for the pre-occupation of the concrete surfaces - this is a textile design blog afterall. i don’t read buildings like an architect; i see them as surfaces. i’m always looking for rhythms, repetitions, and subtle asymmetries that could translate into interior textiles — prints, cushions, even fabric-based wall art. the façade of this residence block, with its directional patterning and textural wear, is a visual goldmine.
it is a busy-looking unit with lots of life - housing approx 250 students divided across five residential blocks. the original plan was for 1000 students but the other buildings planned never came to be.
i did not study at st andrews so i have to rely on the university’s own website for a peek inside. it is much loved by students - partly for its rich social life, but also the quirky, octagonal room layouts. the building’s wikipedia page mentions that the stairwells of three blocks have glass enclosures for natural light, student crowd rates it 7th out of 17 halls at the university and i’d like to think that the architecture plays some role in it too.
if you liked this short tour, stay with us for more inspiration as we plan to visit more sites in the near future and bring you more posts and photos about them - and of course subscribe to our newsletter to be always the first to read! until next time!
whether you’re moving into halls or just need to make your flat feel a bit more like home, our handmade block-printed cushions and fabric prints bring bold texture to any space — with a modernist edge.
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Email us at postbox@zitozza.com with your uni name to get your code. No minimum spend — just good design, made locally.
it’s becoming a busy autumn / winter season here for us at zitozza, but we do manage to escape on the occasional break to take an inspirational trip to admire some great architecture and forms. there has been a recent trip to lisbon, portugal, and we have some fabulous brutalist buildings to cover as well as the country’s signature tile designs - surely that requires an article at some point in the future.
but we can start with an easy one, a true little 1960s gem in the heart of the city, a five minute walk from the square of marques de pombal, there is a little brutalist church in amongst the residential buildings - the sagrado coração church, on rua camilo castelo branco. it is hard to see it is a church from the outside, as it stands on an elevated level from the street, with stairs inviting up to a square embraced by offices and some residential units. on the sunny day of the visit, it felt like a relaxing island just off the busier streets, but it was by stepping inside it revealed its wonderfully peaceful and serene atmosphere.
inside, it is clear what the architects - nuno portas and nuno teotónio pereira - were trying to achieve. the use of concrete is consistent, but not in an overwhelming, intimidating way as the material is broken up and softened with textures. the wall has a bricklay texture to it, while the ceiling reveals an even rhythm of the angles of the structure. the ceiling does not seem to be at an uneasy height, yet the smoothness of the columns do make it appear quite heavenly.
it is however the light, that seems to play the main role of bringing the spiritual and the godly inside. the light comes in at angles that must have been very carefully designed and is parallel to the staircases, casting shadows on the textures inside, while at the chapel it comes through unfiltered and in full, as if it was almost ready to listen to the prayer.
this article on hidden architecture has the floor plan (along some sketches by the architects too), and it does reveal the scale of the open space, and the even proportions unlike the traditional aisles. the sketches also reveal the careful planning of lights and shadows - its role in reaching some kind of spiritual peace is universal and not dependent on religion, just think of junichiro tanizaki.
this church isn’t dimly lit, or dark, nor is it overwhelmingly clear and bright. concrete has its reflective quality on light but also has its own texture to break it, which the architects also played with here by adding more, and the artificial lights are also carefully placed to interact with it. atlas obscurarecommends a visit during night time too, to experience the different light circumstances.
lisbon is an amazing city and churches are found from every style and era. its famed cathedral is almost a millennium-old and some of its most famous sights are the gothic monasteries and the golden baroque altars - all worth a visit and appreciation. i hope you don’t mind me picking this brutalist gem though, as one of my favourites. the building won the Valmor prize in 1975 and in 2010 it was recognised as a national monument, so it earnt its place on the visitor attractions and please do visit when you get a chance in lisbon.
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well, it’s been another long pause between blog posts, but it’s not been forgotten, only postponed, due to, uhm, general life happening at a pace, i guess. but when things get busy and exhausting, there comes the need to take a break and go somewhere else to recharge. so let’s take a road trip. let’s go, from scotland, to somewhere nice in the sunny south of great britain. anywhere. if you like going fast, you’ll take the motorway, the m6. it’s not the most scenic of routes, so it gets monotonous, and since tiredness can kill, there will be a time to take a break. and there, you’ll eventually come across a fabulous concrete tower emerging in the landscape with a futuristic footbridge arching over the motorway, and suddenly you feel compelled to indicate your exit to spend some time in this fascinating piece of architecture - we’ve arrived to forton services!
i have always been obsessed with logistics. the excitement of logistics and infrastructure never gets boring – perhaps it’s no surprise that some of zitozza’s block printed fabrics are directly inspired by road signs and wayfinding systems.
i just love it when everything and everyone in the system has its place and function, a well oiled machine itself that can take care of millions of people and things getting where they are meant to be when they are meant to be. but while the architecture that serves this system has to be purely functional, for curious travellers who are excited to be somewhere new soon, the associations fill all of this functional stuff with positive meanings, the typefaces on vans and reg plates, the smell of the handwash soap, the hot touch of the disposable coffee cup are all symbols of the anticipation of getting there. so from this point of view, a well designed, interesting motorway station is a piece of happiness on earth, and ...for someone who makes textile prints of road signs – like SOROMPÓ or any number of grid-based modular patterns – it’s a piece of inspiration too, doubly so if it’s brutalist of course!
forton services today belongs to the moto bk chain, and you’ll find it on the m6 between junction 32 and 33. it opened in 1965, and according to SOSbrutalism, the designers were bill galloway and ray anderson of the architecture firm tp bennett and son. (yes, that’s of the same thomas bennett of the saville theatre, amongst other things - today they do a lot of interesting commercial projects - totally worth a look!)
there are some two-storey buildings on both sides of the motorway with restaurants and cafes, connected by a high-tech looking footbridge forming a light arch over the motorway. to walk across it is a great exercise to stretch the legs a little and the eyes to the distance too. the timber ceiling panels of the inside of the bridge somehow creates a very nostalgic mood in the warmth of this texture reflecting the light directly below it. that just further excites about the travel - i’m not sure how materials do it but’s definitely the timber. the tunnel view of the inside of the bridge has an octagonal frame with the joins at each window panel cutting your corners diagonally. the outside view of course is the endless motorway and the crowds of cars going somewhere.
of course, it’s most distinctive point is the pennine tower, emerging from the landscape on the northbound side with its cantilevered hexagon at the top. it used to be some accommodation and a restaurant - this blog has some archive images of the fabulous decor in its full glory (as well as the whole structure when it was pristine white!) it reminds me of the early decor of the UFO bridge in bratislava a little bit (more of that in another blog post i think…) and i would have loved to enjoy a meal there, the views across then countryside must have been breathtaking on a sunny day.
unfortunately due to the strict fire regulations, it is now closed to the general public and it is now grade II listed, even though it might be hard work to re-open it.
it was intentionally designed to resemble an airport’s traffic control tower and that all i can feel is the anticipation of getting somewhere, perhaps it’s succeeded in its job. it is a cliché to say that we must enjoy the journey as much as the destination, but in the case of how motorway stations ought to be, there is definitely truth in it!
if you enjoy exploring the crossroads of architecture and textiles, you might like ourcollections – heavily influenced by modernist infrastructure and brutalist forms. see you next time - and don’t forget, tiredness can kill, take a break.
hello again - long time no see, in an architectural regard at least we haven’t really been able to publish a new post for a while. that’s all about to change as we have visited a few more sites and we’re keen to show you all the photos in several posts coming (as one-off episodes probably, so no more series for now.)
let’s start with the best - the building of leicestershire county council, also known as county hall. it is hiding behind leafy greens in glenfield, on the outskirts of leicester, next to the A50 leading into the city centre. it was built in 1967 and has been used as the county council headquarters since then. names are hard to find, but it was designed by the council’s own in-house architectural team - the RIBA picture database names the architect as thomas locke and the council’s architectural office.
seen from the road, the building emerges slowly from behind the lush trees, showing off its sleek facade. it is only by going closer where the site reveals its enormity - it expands across a huge field, many council departments are located here - but the layout is clear, spatious and airy. from the front, the slightly concave arches on the window frames remind me of a japanese pagoda towering above extending ground floors and an elevated wing standing on v-shaped legs that frame the green view below.
going under these we find a leafy court surrounded by shiny office windows, revealing a cast concrete mural of antony hollaway that depicts the river soar. his style reminds me of the town artists in the new towns of scotland, particularly the art of david harding in glenrothes.
in the centre of the court, there is also an armed forces memorial, added in 2012 titled ‘stand easy’ by kenny hunter - it’s a group of 1:1 life-size sculptures of young personnel. apart from being meaningful piece of art, somehow their placement in the centre also helps reveal the deeply human scale of the surrounding building and how the architects thought about the proportions - you get an inviting, peaceful sense of place here.
there are so many interesting and thoughtful details - the lightwell in the corridor roof above each window section (presumably to maximise the natural light inside) is not just functional but creates a slick, interesting spatial play - it’s a shame the day was not that sunny, i would have loved to see the shadows it creates. the extensive use of glazing overall did make me wonder about the light inside too.
on the left of the tower, there is a relief pattern in the arcade ceiling - here there are two small stairwells that lead to the outer end of this elevated corridor - from here you can take in a nice view of further out of the town, and what i presumed were fountains (i wish they were working that day.) it’s a really beautiful building and i’m happy to see it loved, maintained and functioning as it was intended to - i was not the only photographer on site on the day of my visit indeed!
it is in a remarkably good state compared to many other buildings of the same era i visited and it makes me slightly suspicious that a state of neglect in the case of brutalism could be in some cases a conscious or semi-conscious decision, to have these buildings replaced rather than renovated. but i’m glad that i managed to find one that’s working as it was intended to.
i hope you enjoyed this short visit, there are plans to travel to get out of scotland more often - subscribe to our newsletter to be the first to read about them here! take care.
hello! first of all, apologies for not having posted anything for ages, zitozza have been very, very busy in the last few weeks with making stuff and taking them to events… but we haven’t yet shared the best news on the coolest (probably ever!) project - the COP26 housein glasgow. this is a sustainable model house built at the broomielaw for the COP26 climate conference and as an obsessive architecture and sustainability geek, i was eager to learn more about this and with a huge thanks to beyond zero homesi managed to put together a little bit about this.
the house itself is a project of many contributors, designed by peter smith of roderick james architects, developed bymembers of beyond zero homes - a collaboration between developers, architects, suppliers and industry bodies with the single aim to demonstrate how beautiful, affordable, healthy and comfortable homes can be developed with minimal impact on the environment, throughout their lifecycle.
photo by fourfifteen, with thanks to beyond zero homes
there’s an important thing to mention here before delving into the details here - i’d like to emphasise that this house isn’t some kind of futuristic concept, but designed for the present and built using materials and technologies that we have available today and it is very much a present imperative to use them across our building projects if we take our climate goals seriously. so what exactly are these materials and technologies and what makes a building sustainable?
according tothis assessment by daniel doran of circular ecology, the house is an exemplar of embodied carbon. most embodied carbon emissions come from the supply chain of construction products – the extraction of raw materials, processing, transporting and manufacturing and then there’s transporting products to site, installation, repair and replacement during use, and their end-of-life deconstruction and disposal. what makes the house actually carbon negative, beating RIBA’s own carbon target by large, is largely thanks to the material choice of locally grown timber. the uk is one of the largest timber importers in the world which is not only an unnecessary addition of shipping-related carbon, but growing them locally also supports reforestation and capturing carbon.
photo by fourfifteen, with thanks to beyond zero homes
the house is of course eco-conscious in using responsible heat sources and airtight insulation - it is using infrared heating which works by heating the house itself rather than the air in it, so it is much more efficient, comfortable, space saving, and perhaps the biggest benefit in a wet country such as scotland is reduced moisture. of course the insulation is achieved with triple glazing and even theinsulation and the cladding is using timber.
i’m not an expert on construction and structure, but it really amazes me how many places in the design uses timber even where we’re not that used to seeing it and it is also designed to dismantle easily - this will be demonstrated live after the conference, when the house will be disassembled and re-built in aviemore to join an affordable housing scheme of 12 of such houses. i’m going to be honest, i was a little bit sceptical about how much of these houses we can build efficiently in a city though - after all, timber is not known to be hugely scaleable, and in a climate-stable future, we want to spare as much land as possible, don’t we? however, talking aboutRIBA’s operational carbon targets, the architect peter smith said “for larger houses using this same build system, the target is significantly easier to achieve” which leaves me hoping it would work with multiple households too.
photo by fourfifteen, with thanks to beyond zero homes
last, but not least, we should talk a little bit about the decor - the house was styled by roddy clarke who made conscious decisions to continue the use of sustainable and natural materials inside with wood furniture and locally sourced soft furnishings - which is why i’m so proud and pleased to loan one of my jute rugs to the project. (while we cannot grow jute here locally, it is still one of the most sustainable textiles in the world in terms of carbon capture and water footprint.)
it really is a wonderful project and i hope that in the past few weeks, all the important people in the sector has visited and learnt from this model because we need to implement these practices right now if we want to keep our future liveable. it is easy to get into a negativity spiral about climate change, because we are undoubtedly on a depressing course and we are definitely going to feel the effects of our ignorance for a long time. however, it’s not true that we haven’t done anything or that we are unable to. we do have affordable solutions at hand with which we can limit some of this damage and we are able to use them. i do believe we are smart enough and projects such as this house makes me feel hopeful and positive for the future!
well, i hope you’ve had a lovely time visiting the scottish borders scouting for modernist icons by the wonderful peter womersley, because this is the very last stop! we arrived in the town of melrose, on the outskirts, in what seems to be a quiet, residential area, and are standing in front of the boiler house of the demolished hospital that used to be known as melrose district asylum. it is no longer there, except for the boiler house, designed by peter womersley.
built in 1977, it is another one of his award-winning works, for industrial architecure. it is a highly functional building and perhaps much more “brutalist” than the previous ones we visited so far, but it is really far from raw, in the sense that everything is finished to a great quality and the details are smart as always on his buildings.
i’m aware that hospitals use a lot of steam not just for heating the buildings but for keeping things clean and sterile too, however i’m obviously not exactly familiar with the ins and outs of a boiler house, so i cannot write too much about what functions certain parts do. what i can certainly tell (as the most prominent feature of the side of the building) that there are three hoppers on its side, which were used to store the coal and they form a great rhythm of what i call these “upside down pyramids”, built into a wall of horizontal layers and it has inspired some great geometric patterns, so even if i don’t quite understand how it works, i still find a lot of joy in the aesthetic of the building.
aesthetic it is indeed. the concrete is smooth and not worked to timber patterns this time, but the almost minimalist surface is put together from narrow slabs, forming an even, soft pattern on the surface. the joins follow this pattern, somehow it’s so easy on the eye it’s almost a source of tranquility, which is a funny thing to say about a boiler house i guess.
a the time of visiting, it was not in a great state and the concrete was visibly aging. but we’ve left this our last station not just because it really was physically the last stop of the day, but also let’s finish on a positive note: this building’s fate is no longer hanging in the balance, it is being salvaged by being developed into flatsby studio DuB. the plans look amazing, contemporary and also preserving almost all forms (they’re even keeping the chimney!) and i hope it will work out in a residential function. it’s funny to see that something that was designed to sustain one particular function could be turned into something else so beautifully but i suppose it’s always possible if you work with what’s left behind by a genius.
i’m sad to say that even though there are many more buildings around in the uk (and even worldwide) by peter womersley, we’ve come to an end of our tour. i hope you’ve enjoyed it and we hope to join us on the next one - we might have to be taking a little break as we’re getting busy with all things festive, but we’ll find time to immerse ourselves in great architecture and will definitely be back!
happy autumn! we’re back to work, back to school, back to looking ahead and also back to talking to people so i’m really pleased to announce tha after a long hiatus, t the design conversation series is continuing with a new arist! ciara mcinnes is an architect and fine artist based in glasgow. i discovered her fabulous prints on instagram during lockdown when i was craving to see beautiful buildings - some of them are the exact same buildings i’m also fascinated by, such as the netherdale stadium of peter womersley – so i was really keen to know more about the background about these beautiful works.
ZITA: hello ciara! first things first - could you say a few words about yourself, what you do and how you got there?
CIARA: hi there, thank you so much for having me! i'm an architect and fine art printmaker based in the west end of glasgow. i work in the medium of lino print, combining traditional handprinting techniques with contemporary, urban subject matters. inspired by the city, street art and general urban chaos, my work typically documents lost landscapes, urban spaces and historic buildings.
ZITA: i can see your architectural background - it comes across beautifully on your urban prints. i’m always glad to find other people who also see the beauty too in the things that often get a bad press. could you share a little bit about what inspires you about these landscapes?
CIARA: for me, the built environment is so inspiring, constantly changing and evolving. i love to document the city in my work, taking tiny snapshots of a place in time, knowing that it will never look exactly the same again. the light will be different, the graffiti will change, it will eventually be lost for good and exist only in print.
in architecture, it has always been the case that the styles of the previous generation are undervalued because they are seen as dated but not yet historic. In glasgow, there has been a huge cull of brutalist architecture in recent decades, a style that is only now starting to gain recognition. i'm really drawn to document these buildings in particular because of they represent an important era in history, when architects and designers were tearing up the rule book.
ZITA: that’s fascinating. i do love that era too, and the ideas they represent! do you have a favourite place, a city or a building you go like regularly going back to? Or do you continuously look for something new?
CIARA: i am always on the lookout for somewhere new, i love to travel. at the start of 2020 i visited mexico city which was such a vibrant and energetic city. the architecture is so diverse from pre-hispanic to cutting edge contemporary and everything in between, it's somewhere I'd love to go back to.
ZITA: that must have been beautiful. you mentioned brutalism before, but is there a particular school of architecture or style you’re attracted to more than others?
CIARA: i'm a fan of minimalist, contemporary architecture. there's a few places really leading the field such as scandinavia and japan but it's not something we have really embraced in scotland yet. there's an architectural practice called SANAA who create some truly breathtaking work.
ZITA: thanks for the tip, i will make sure to check it out. so what is the next cityscape or building you’re turning into a print? can you tell anything about any work in progress?
CIARA: i'm currently working on pair of prints that explore the temple gasworks in the north of glasgow. the structures of the old gasholders are still in place and create these skeletal figures in the landscape which you can see for miles around. i'm going to be integrating some more natural imagery in the prints which is a new direction for my work so i’m excited to see the finished pieces.
ZITA: sounds really exciting, i’ll be looking forward to seeing the finished prints. i’m also interested in your technique. your prints are very photographic! how are you working them into your prints? can you explain a little bit about your process as well?
CIARA: i always start a print by creating a master pen drawing which i then trace using carbon paper onto the lino block. i will usually combine elements from several photos or images into a final composition, all with a little artistic license. i often make little tweaks at the carving stage too, with a lot of natural elements freehanded as I go. the prints evolve through the printing process so i never fully know what the print will look like until the very end.
ZITA: that is really interesting! and your colour scheme is very minimalist and together with your ukiyo-e inspired technique, it reminds me a bit Japanese influences. it is very consistent throughout your work and it works to a wonderful effect – could you tell more about this? do you have a process of deciding about the colours in your prints?
CIARA: japanese printmaking is certainly an inspiration, particularly the dedication to craftsmanship and technique. my colour palette is typically very tonal which allows me to focus on the form of the print, then I create focal points by picking out details in metallic. i typically mix my inks with extender to create a more translucent effect, i love how this gives the prints an almost watercolour like finish.
ZITA: it does! the results are really beautiful. and now the questions i ask from everyone - can you recommend a book or an artist or a maker whose work is worth looking into? something that keeps you going?
CIARA: i recently discovered an artist called claas gutsche who's based in berlin, a fellow lino cutter, his work is so precise and his technique is definitely something to aspire to. in a totally different direction i’ve always loved the work of a painter called maurice utrillo who was a contemporary of the impressionists but worked in quite a different style. he has a really fascinating story, using painting as a form of therapy. he painted the world around him, focusing on the built environment and often unloved corners of paris. i only recently found out that the kelvingrove museumholds one of his pieces but it's currently in remote storage.
ZITA: sounds like someone you would have loved to met! i will be definitely checking them out. and lastly but most importantly, where can we see your work next?
CIARA: well, i do have a few exhibitions on the horizon but sadly i’m sworn to silence until the official announcements! all i can say for now is that i have an upcoming show in a glasgow gallery this autumn, which will feature some specially created pieces. i'll also be popping up at a few art and design fairs across glasgow later this year, so keep your eyes peeled!
ZITA: very mysterious! i will keep an eye on your social media! thanks a lot for your time.
after our somewhat bittersweet stop last week, we’ve arrived to the penultimate station in our tour of peter womersley’s buildings in the scottish borders. we’re in newtown st boswells, where the council for the county of the scottish borders have their headquarters in a concrete and glass office building designed by peter womersley. we have of course seen wilderhaugh and we know what he’s like when it comes to designing office buldings but this one is a few scales up in size, and probably the largest building of our tour altogether.
that means there’s plenty of details to observe although it’s not possible to go completely around it due to the restricted access at the back. nonetheless it’s worth a visit, the building is a striking structure towering on an open green, embraced by its leafy surrounding of the village. built in the late 1960s, originally serving the much smaller administrative unit of the roxburgh county offices - today it employs approx 1000 people and has grown a post-modern extension on its side.
it’s not a brutalist design - the concrete is not raw but shaped with timber with the imprints visible on the facade. the clever use of glazing is also dominant throughout this building and there are a lot of intriguing details. its most striking feature is the service tower of course, cleverly connected to the main office buildings via elevated, glazed corridors with a garden underneath. this kind of biophilic thinking is found in modernist architecture a lot, and in peter womersley’s work too in church square too and elsewhere.
the building is not actually quite at how peter womersley imagined it. he won the competition to design it in 1961 but it was only completed in 1968 after some opposition by the locals. it’s still not really popular - however, even though the structure is cited as a reason, i suspect this could be also due to the amount of people who commute to the village by cars, and less at the fault of the architect. for sure, you can see that it’s dated in some aspects (like its contemporaries it probably is poorly insulated and things like wheelchair access are always haphazardly added to these buildings later.) nonetheless it was innovative and modern at the time, and the office space inside must be light with green views.
this building is the largest scale example of the genius of the fine details womersley could think of and i would have loved to see the what it would look like if it had been completed to his plans. the institution it serves has obviously grown and perhaps outgrowing both the original building and the village it’s in might not be good for its popularity, but i do hope that with time it is getting the appreciation it deserves.
so that’s it for now, i hope it’s not too boring yet to and you’re still excited about discovering the details of this brilliant architectural mind. if you do, then please stick around for last episode - we still have the boiler house of melrose district asylum to visit, so you can subscribe below to our newsletter in order to miss it… it comes a free print and the latest news from us, with pattern designs inspired by brilliant architecture. see you soon!
aaaand we’re here! it’s only the 4th station of our tour of peter womersley’s buildings in the scottish borders, but arguably the most iconic one! we are visiting bernat klein’s old studio and house, near selkirk. it’s a famous, grade A listed and most revered building, yet in its fate still hangs in the balance as it has been neglected in a poor state since the 2000s and the more time passes, the more expensive it gets to restore it to its former glory.
the studio was built in 1972 for textile designer and personal friend of womersley’s, bernat klein (whose work is probably also worth its own blog post later) and it won a RIBA award in the following year. it is a separate building form the family house, high sunderland, which is a modernist masterpiece in itself (built earlier, in 1957), and it is still a private residence so this post is focusing on the studio, which has been abandoned since 2000s. so before we dive in, i’m going to do an unusual thing and this time, and i don’t really recommend to visit in its current state, or at least not to go too close to it. these photos are from 2016, and since then, i’m not sure how dangerous it has become to go close to - i know it’s tempting but i would strongly discourage you to do so. i didn’t either to be honest, most of the close-up work was done by my camera, and i hope it did a good job regardless and you’re able to see why this work is so masterful and why it needs to be preserved.
there are many details and elements that tell you just how much thought the architect put into the building. before i visited it, as a student at university, i attended a guest lecture by historic environment scotland about peter womersley, his life and his work and there was a good few minutes dedicated to an enthusiastic review of this building. a vivid description that got stuck with me was about the flashes of colours one would see through the amazing, huge, frameless glazing - that’s bernat klein using this amazing studio space to make amazing art. their friendship is a great symbol to me that textiles and architecture are really connected areas that can constantly inspire each-other which is really the whole reason of this blog.
my images are black and white so i’m not sure how much it comes through that it’s surrounded with leafy, lush greenery, with stairs leading up to a bridge to access the cantilevered second floor (he was such a master of gravity - see also his beautiful work of the netherdale roof.) i’m trying to show you on these images the imprint on the concrete - i heard that peter womersley would be mortified to be called brutalist today, and indeed, the concrete is not raw at all here but very much takes the shape of the timber it was formed with, adding an extra tactility to the structure.
so we hope you enjoyed this visit - i hope we can go back when it’s fully restored and the building is put to a great use. if you want to help the cause to preserve this studio, i recommend you check out and get in touch with preserving womersley, a group of dedicated enthusiasts whose aim is to keep the work of this genius architect standing.
if you enjoyed this, do stick around as we’ll stop at two more places at this tour - we’ll visit a the impressive scottish borders council in newton st boswells, and the boiler house of melrose district asylum. you can also subscribe to our newsletter to our forms below (you can get a free print with it) and the latest news about prints inspired by brilliant architecture. see you soon!
