McMorran & Whitby

by Edward Denison

McMorran & Whitby are a secret presence in post-war British architecture. Led from the late 1950s by Donald McMorran and George Whitby, the practice represented an unbroken development from the monumental inter-war classicism represented by figures such as Charles Holden and Sir Edwin Lutyens. In seeking an alternative path for modern architecture, McMorran & Whitby produced durable buildings with a respect for context, but avoided any accusation of unimaginatively reproducing the past. Theirs was a progressive classicism full of invention and beauty. Being out of fashion, they suffered neglect but their work has increasingly won admirers and many of the buildings are now listed. This book is the first major publication on McMorran & Whitby’s work, with an inspiring combination of contemporary photography and previously unpublished archival material. It is an essential read for architects, students, and historians, not least because it uncovers and celebrates buildings outside the mainstream that we need to understand and cherish. This book has been commissioned as part of a series of books on 20th Century Architects by RIBA Publishing, English Heritage and The Twentieth Century Society.

Genres: Architecture

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Dr Edward Denison is a Lecturer at The Bartlett School of Architecture and an independent architectural, urban and cultural specialist. He is Director of the MA Architecture and Historic Urban Environments, Co-coordinator of Year5 Thesis, Module Coordinator of Multiple Modernities Architecture on the MA Architectural History, and a PhD Supervisor.

Reviews

[N.E. McMorran · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will never look at a building the same way again!
A very important, though I am a little biased, and detailed history of the work of a ‘band’ of neo-classical/Georgian architects during the post-war period, who went against the Modernist school of the time to design buildings, and the spaces within them, that sensitively responded to the needs of users.
The book focuses on McMorran’s journey from his early years and training under E. Vincent Harris, through his career working with Horace Farquharson and later with Whitby, when the younger architect joined as partner. A particularly interesting aspect of the book centres around the criticism the group received, especially Donald, for their ideas, as well as their negative feelings about the media bias of the time, and the gross misinterpretation of their work much of which has since been celebrated, listed, and still stands strong (including Hammersmith and Wood Street Police stations, and the Old Bailey which features daily on the news...).
I wonder what they would have made of the state of the media today, and our phoney society? And of architecture post 70s? So sadly, and quite oddly, none of them lived long enough to be able to share... but had they, I am certain they would have shouted about it all over social media.

I am not an architect, but, being from a family of them and as a designer/author, I found the book easy to follow and there was a lot I could relate to. Great for all professionals interested in design, social housing, and the post-war period. And all fans of symmetry.