Led by LCF Archives and Cultural Programming, ‘Love Letters to the Buildings’ delved into the rich history of our cherished buildings. Through extensive research in the LCF Archives and Library and the exploration of special collections, films, and oral testimonies, we embarked on a journey to highlight the profound significance of these spaces.
To identify the most meaningful spaces throughout the LCF sites, Cultural Programming engaged with students, staff (current and former), and alumni - unearthing extraordinary memories, reflected in a final series of exhibitions across the buildings. Along with the archived materials, cherished moments served as the focal point of a series of tours that took place throughout June 2023. In the blog below, we delve deeper into the captivating history of LCF's buildings and immerse ourselves in the final tours that gracefully bid farewell to these iconic halls.
Oxford Circus Building at John Princes Street. London College of Fashion - College Archive
London College of Fashion (formerly Barrett Street Technical College) opened at John Princes Street in 1963. A purpose-built brutalist campus that was part of a large redevelopment of land backing onto Cavendish Square following bombings during World War II. It was built on top of commercial spaces for department stores, an unusual challenge for the architects requiring suppression of the avant-garde modernism favoured at the time. Yet the architects managed to create features like the concrete tracery mullions in alternate shapes, scaling the outside of the stairwells backed with glass blocks in primary colours. This building represents a post-war vision of what a site for education, living and community could be. It was designed by the London County Council architectural group responsible for iconic buildings such as Southbank Centre, London College of Communication (formerly London College of Printing) and Thamesmead Estate.
One of the oldest parts of the building is the mulberry tree in the courtyard, its believed to have been planted as a 10-year-old sapling in 1904, the year the building opened. The building was originally purpose-built for the Hammersmith College of Art, which had a tradition of education and training in art, craft and building professions. The school was the vision of William Lethaby (involved in the Pre-Raphaelite and Bauhaus movements) whose philosophy was that 'teaching should foster both a proper understanding of tools, materials and function and also the notion of art as service rather than as an expression of genius'.
In August 2000, Cordwainers College merged with LCF. The Cordwainers College was a specialist school for leather-working, shoemaking and saddlery, founded in 1887 and now resides at Golden Lane. Cordwainers are shoemakers who practised their trade for centuries within the walls of the City of London, some of these shoes from the Cordwainers Collection are now on show at the building alongside an installation of an imaginary Cordwainers office, a tribute to the technicians who dedicated their craft and skills to the education of Cordwainers. Prior to the Cordwainers' residence here, the building was formerly a school with a playground on the roof so the children could play away from the smog that engulfed London. Rumour has it that the house on the rooftop was the temporary office for Bob Geldof's Live Aid, a historic charity concert in 1985.
The building was a former school for girls founded by Lady Eleanor Holles in 1710 before also becoming part of Cordwainers College, then later London College of Fashion. The first botany bed was created at Mare Street in 1908 for teaching when it was a school, and later became beds for plants to support the production of natural dyes, introduced in 2011. It's considered one of the most beautiful of the LCF spaces.
Curtain Road is named after the Curtain Theatre which opened in 1577 - home to some of Shakespeare's earliest plays and arguably the birthplace of modern theatre. In the late 19th century, East End furniture was popularly associated with the cheap and nasty, often dismissed as 'Curtain Road stuff’. The Curtain Road building used to be an almshouse, charity-owned accommodation for east Londoners, and eventually was rebuilt as a school building.
LCF is excited to announce that from September 2023, when it opens the doors to its new home as part of East Bank, it will offer a brand-new, free, cultural programme open to the public.