Robin Hood Gardens
90 mins.
The now-demolished Robin Hood Gardens council estate often occupies opposing positions within the architectural imagination. Was Alison and Peter Smithson's 1972 Brutalist contribution to the London cityscape a misunderstood masterpiece or a well-intentioned failure? Fifty years later, filmmakers Thomas Beyer and Adrian Dorschner capture the building in all its glory right before the wrecking ball brings an end to Smithsons' magnum opus. While the controversial East London council estate is honoured at the Venice Biennale, the film revisits the building's critics, champions and the inhabitants themselves to determine the true legacy of this concrete utopia.
The now-demolished Robin Hood Gardens council estate often occupies opposing positions within the architectural imagination. Was Alison and Peter Smithson's 1972 Brutalist contribution to the London cityscape a misunderstood masterpiece or a well-intentioned failure? Fifty years later, filmmakers Thomas Beyer and Adrian Dorschner capture the building in all its glory right before the wrecking ball brings an end to Smithsons' magnum opus. While the controversial East London council estate is honoured at the Venice Biennale, the film revisits the building's critics, champions and the inhabitants themselves to determine the true legacy of this concrete utopia.
