Is Rotterdam's architecture ambitious enough? / January 18, 2012 by Tom Oliver Payne

With my family heritage deeply embedded in the city of Rotterdam, I was glad to recently learn that for a long time the city has been considered the architectural and high-rise capital of the Netherlands.

INSTAGRAM

In Portugal, Milan and on the Med in Sicily in October. I forgot how beautiful this part of the world is in Autumn. And as much as I love Australia, I always forget how beautiful old European architecture is. The ornament and detail makes for interesting places. Every street and building tells a story. We seemed to have lost the care and craftsmanship in creating places that we once had. It’s no wonder millions of people travel to older pre war cities to simply ‘walk around’. Awesome seeing the dudes @jonnycazzola @chriskeenan @samdjackson and cruising about each day with @merrydeath .

Denys Lasdun’s 1957 Keeling House, taken a few years back when I was living nearby in Bethnal Green, London. Concerned that modernism didn’t consider what made neighbourhoods work, he designed the building with wings to encourage interaction between neighbours, a bit like a Victorian terraced street. Sometimes ideas succeed and sometimes they fail, but better innovation is attempted rather than pumping out the same old. _____________ . . . . . _____________ #denyslasdun #london #modernism #architecture

Great time helping launch The Place Economy III with the rest of the @hoynedesign team. 800+ pages of case studies and interviews on best practice placemaking projects. When Andy asked me to write for the book, I wanted to cover projects that better utilise existing urban spaces to bring joy in cities. It wasn’t long after interviewing several people involved in creating the Uram youth precinct in Kazan, Russia, that the war in Ukraine broke out. We discussed whether publishing this was the right thing to do, but ultimately decided that political decisions don’t always represent the views of those in communities. So, we went ahead. I’m always inspired by people who have seen a real challenge and responded with a creative idea. Ultimately, that is what innovation is about. And that’s what I love about all of the projects throughout this book. Well done to Andy and the rest of our amazing Hoyne team on this achievement. _____________ . . . . . _____________ #urbandesign #architecture #placemaking

Back in London last year I visited Battersea Power Station. Bricks and mortar that honour history and with a chimney lift-shaft, encircling shared street and basketball courts engage with the city in a new way. We’re lucky in Sydney that we can learn from projects like this to think about White Bay Power Station, Newtown Tram Sheds and North Eveleigh. Rather than carving up and selling off, major heritage projects like these are incredible opportunities to be imaginative, tell stories, add to the public’s experience of the city. _____________ . . . . . _____________ #batterseapowerstation #london #sydney

Hong Kong, Mar 2023 _____________ . . . . . _____________ #hongkong #hk

_____________ . . . . . _____________ #berrynsw #bnw

Awesome experience speaking for @hoynedesign at a few events recently on the need for bold visions to bring life and culture into city centres. Some shots from the UDIA National Summit talk and q&a w Ticky Fullerton. 🤘🏼 _____________ . . . . . _____________ #cities #placemaking

A few photos from one of my favourite tall buildings in Sydney. Designed by Seidler, the MLC Tower (now 25 Martin Place) has definitely stood the test of time. Australia wasn’t a pioneer of modernism, but we did a good job of it. _____________ . . . . . _____________ #harryseidler #modernistarchirecture #sydney

TWITTER