Wednesday 29 April 2009

BMW DEALERSHIP, BEDDINGTON, LONDON BY TALBOT CONSTRUCTION

Car dealerships are a breed of their own in British architecture. I don't know whether there are dedicated building regulations for them, or quite how this genus of the species 'bad architecture' has developed in the way it has. They always look uniquely clipped together and temporary. It is as if car dealership design has developed on Easter Island: you can see where it came from, but at some point it stopped having any relationship with the rest of the construction industry.
The constructional logic is derived from the sign - a structure with clipped-on symbols. Like all buildings like this, the cladding system is a law unto itself with strangely small panels contrasting with the over large and annoyingly reflective glazing. Look at the picture above: in its vertical expression, there is no hierarchy between glazing member, structural column, downpipe and advertising hoarding.
This is unreal architecture, the same wherever it appears. It embodies nothing about BMW, nothing about the excitement of the expensive machines inside. It's the kind of building that shoddy planning authorities allow to pollute the roadside when they can't think of anything else to do with a site.
By the way, I love that this super-generic building intended to promote carbon-guzzling machines is in the same town as the godmother of eco developments, BedZed. Way to have a joined-up strategy, London Borough of Croydon.

4 comments:

  1. You think that is bad? Try this one.
    http://www.bathheritagewatchdog.org/western.htm
    It is a dealership, a repair workshop and 7 flats in the middle of a World Heritage Site.

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  2. 'By the way, I love that this super-generic building intended to promote carbon-guzzling machines is in the same town as the godmother of eco developments, BedZed. Way to have a joined-up strategy, London Borough of Croydon.'

    Some mistake shurely? The BMW 1 series won the World Green Car of the year in 2008 and BMW's Efficient Dynamics features are leading the industry towards energy frugal, cleaner motoring.

    If you're going to have a pop at car dealerships what about the acres of glazing concealing highly lit spaces that need to be cooled even in winter?

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  3. I've worked in the 'car dealership design' business (got out as soon as i could...) and what's REALLY scary is that BMW have a very strong design code and they actually WANT their dealerships to look like this! Who do you blame...client or designer?

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  4. London Borough of Sutton, actually.

    But you're right in your comment about the council 'not knowing what to do' with the site. The owners wanted to redevelop it with housing but the council insisted on retaining the employment generated by the chocolate factory which previously occupied the site.

    They dug their heels in and in the end had to concede the car showroom on the frontage with some light industrial at the rear.

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