Best and Worst Modern Buildings in Dublin

Blisterman

Thought, this could be an interesting thread. Post your favourite and least favourite modern (Post WW2) buildings in Dublin. Pictures as well, if possible.


Some of my favourites include

Baggot Street Bank of Ireland by Scott Tallon Walker


Dawson Street Offices by Shay Clery


Plus tons more, I'm sure, that I've forgotten.


Worst, I'd have to go for Oisin House on Pearse St.



So, what's yours?

John Mason

i love the building above Redz bar. It is amazing, i must try and get a photo of it in the morning

Dancor

irishbird wrote: »

i love the building above Redz bar. It is amazing, i must try and get a photo of it in the morning

+1, I only noticed it a few months ago, Doesnt seem to fit in where it is but it looks great, Real classic look to it.

xzanti

I like the St. Paul Travellers Building on Harcourt Street, can't find any images of it off hand...

humberklog

This beauty.Busarus. In before someone says it's the worst.
Designed by Michael Scott and his young team of bucks and was completed in 1953.
Beautiful mix of material and most importantly for such a building fabulously ergonomic. One of the true gems in the city.

humberklog

dancor wrote: »

+1, I only noticed it a few months ago, Doesnt seem to fit in where it is but it looks great, Real classic look to it.

Eh...post WW2? Meaning built after 1945.

John Mason

dancor wrote: »

+1, I only noticed it a few months ago, Doesnt seem to fit in where it is but it looks great, Real classic look to it.

No one notices it - i am making it my mission to point it out to everyone:) it used to be owned a tabbaco importing company i think. i would love to get inside and see what it looks like

John Mason

humberklog wrote: »

This beauty.Busarus. In before someone says it's the worst.
Designed by Michael Scott and his young team of bucks and was completed in 1953.
Beautiful mix of material and most importantly for such a building fabulously ergonomic. One of the true gems in the city.

i used to think it was horrendous but over the last few years i have began to see the beauty and think its brilliant.

whiskeyman

Worst has to be Hawkins House (HQ for Dept of Health / Children) without question.

I used to get my bus home from college and work here for years. It's f*^king shockingly awful!!


Last I heard, it was supposed to be marked for demolition? Still there's AFAIK...

http://www.irish-architecture.com/buildings_ireland/dublin/southcity/poolbeg_street/hawkins_house.html


Not sure on a favourite. Will try and think and post back

Danbo!

The building above redz:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/keithmaguire/2272059263/

In agreeance with whiskyman about the worst building...

Dancor

humberklog wrote: »

Eh...post WW2? Meaning built after 1945.

Yeah I know when WW2 ended. I didnt name it I just agreed with another user on what a great building it is.

lost_soul

And here is a look inside the building above redz: www.daft.ie/241280

humberklog

irishbird wrote: »

i used to think it was horrendous but over the last few years i have began to see the beauty and think its brilliant.

I put a pic with the post but it doesn't seem to have stuck. Ah well. Yeah Irish it can be a slow burner of a building. The interior detail is beautiful too. For me there is no building of its standard in Dublin.

humberklog

dancor wrote: »

Yeah I know when WW2 ended. I didnt name it I just agreed with another user on what a great building it is.

Yeah Dancor I know. I shoulda quoted originator and noticed mistake too late. Sorry m'lord, I'm flaggilating myself as I type.


Hawkins house is too easy to call brutally ugly (because it is), however there are few buildings left standing of its era and style in the city. Apparently its for the hop soon and hmmm I don't know. It's very relevant (if only to show us not what to do!). I like looking at it from Eden Q. The top of it looms over the buildings in front of it with menace, like an expelled bootboy pupil from the '70's about to beat up a teacher as they head for the car park on their way home.

spurious

lost_soul wrote: »

And here is a look inside the building above redz: www.daft.ie/241280

What a fantastic view.

Dancor

humberklog wrote: »

Yeah Dancor I know. I shoulda quoted originator and noticed mistake too late. Sorry m'lord, I'm flaggilating myself as I type.

And so you should be

Jello

spurious wrote: »

What a fantastic view.

Yeah it's amazing, some place too!

humberklog

dancor wrote: »

And so you should be

I was learning to enjoy the flagilating! Have to say though after loooking at the link with the building it was worth mentioning. Never realised there was an apartment in it. And Fock Me what a pad!

Dancor

Yeah its some place alright. I wonder what floor its on, I know for a fact that redz nightclub is building upwards, But how far up I dont know, I wouldnt be happy about the noise if I splased out on a pad like that.

AlexBM

+1 for the building above Redz. I donate blood there quite regularly. After you donate, you can relax with your orange juice and Tayto and enjoy a view similar to that of the most fantastic apartment already shown. Just one floor below it, I think.

I've always loved it, but am amazed so many people didn't notice it. There must be so many gems hidden away that we all miss, even though they're right in front of us!

Also, I too like Busaras. I'd like to point out that I can't stand Bus Eireann, but that shouldn't reflect on the building. There's an interesting book, an interview with Micheal Scott sort of thing, by Dorothy Walker. I think. I'll have to look that one up, but it has a few plans of the building in it. Interesting read.

And interesting fact - Scott was told that the absolute maximum amount of parking spaces needed for buses would be 16, at any time in the future (apologies, that's badly phrased, but you get what I mean). So he planned it around that. Anybody that frequents Busaras as often as I do will know that this is sadly not the case...


My other favourite is Central Bank. I love that it's so uncompromising. And I'm quite fond of the Ulster Bank building across from Custom House (I think).

My least favourite is probably the Ilac Centre. Dingy.

Jemmy

Wow never noticed that building above Redz, its gorgeous.

Jello

AlexBM wrote: »

And I'm quite fond of the Ulster Bank building across from Custom House (I think).

Yep a nice building allright.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ulster_Bank_Dublin.jpg

Jemmy

Jello wrote: »

Yep a nice building allright.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ulster_Bank_Dublin.jpg

Pic not working!

carlmango11

I absolutely despise that building you see when coming from College Green to Westmoreland. The one with the TO LET on the side of it. Whoever actually decided, after seeing the design of it, to build it should actually be shot dead for being such an idiot

AlexBM

Thanks Jello, nice pic. It's working for me, Jemmy...

I just thought of another one. I love the Dublin Civic Office (I don't think that's the name, but I'm talking about the one on Wood Quay). Bit of a waste of money, really, but it is pretty stunning.

Gaspode

AlexBM wrote: »

I just thought of another one. I love the Dublin Civic Office (I don't think that's the name, but I'm talking about the one on Wood Quay). Bit of a waste of money, really, but it is pretty stunning.

Hmmm, I was going to quote that as one of my pet hates. I hatethe look of those buildings!
I think Liberty hall looks absolutely dreadful now, though I did like it at one stage.
Hawkins house has to be top on the worst list. The Quality hotel on Granby Row, discussed in another thread recently is a good example of a really bad, dull and uninspiring modern building, and there's loads of those knocking around!

Dancor

I honestly cant think of many great looking post WW2 buildings in our city. Most of what went up after that was cheap council blocks, Now they are being replaced with cheap unispiring apartments and office blocks that look like lego, Maybe one or two of the banks, Ulster bank already being mentioned are ok but with the ammount of building that happened in this city you would think we would have alot more to be happy to look at.

Blisterman

Jello wrote: »

Yep a nice building allright.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ulster_Bank_Dublin.jpg

Actually, I was going to put that as one of my favourites, but I'd no idea what that's called. Great building.

loyatemu

this topic has come up before and once again I'm going to nominate the Marino College building on North Strand. Awful, awful, awful.

I also don't like Busaras

*ducks*

humberklog

The Ulster bank building's roofs (when seen from the correct perspective) make an illusion of one large pyramid. The correct perspective runs along a South West to North east axis. So look from somewhere around rathfarnham say? and it comes together a one large pyramid. (I was site engineer on part of it). All that said I wouldn't be keen. The railings around it take a lot from it.
Kinda like wood quay and really hate it! Maybe if kennedy was allowed finish it it would have made more sense but with the outcry his 2nd phase didn't go ahead and a different architect took over. Saying that with a little foresight at the time the government shoulda shelved it altogether and created one of the more impressive viking settlement sites this side of europe. Could have paid big dividends touristically. Also it would have allowed a large green space running from Christ church down to the liffey. Ah well.

humberklog

I like the new building on Dame st. At corner of dub. castle entrance. Tidies up that space nicely. It's a big pity that the don't allow scateboarders at the open space area to the left of it. That sort of stuff breathes life into a city.

Blisterman

God, I saw that for the first time the other day, and it's awful looking. Neither fits in with the surrounding buildings in any way, or is architecturally interesting enough to stand out and be proud.

humberklog

Blisterman wrote: »

God, I saw that for the first time the other day, and it's awful looking. Neither fits in with the surrounding buildings in any way, or is architecturally interesting enough to stand out and be proud.

It came in for quite a slagging when it was revealed. Especially as council had bigged up the project. Bit like the FAI revealing Steve Staunton as manager. So I know I'm well in minority in liking it. I don't things should necessarily fit in though. In fact a prefer whan they especially don't. I really don't like the fire escape to the side though.

jdivision

ah humberklog, are you serious. It's dreadful. My favourite building in recent years is The Harcourt Building http://www.profileproperties.com/harcourt.whtm
Right scale and right look for the location

arybvtcw0eolkf

humberklog wrote: »

I like the new building on Dame st. At corner of dub. castle entrance. Tidies up that space nicely. It's a big pity that the don't allow scateboarders at the open space area to the left of it. That sort of stuff breathes life into a city.

OMG, your the first I've come across with anything positive to say about that 'thing'.

I'll have to take some photo's over the weekend, but I was up there yesterday and had a good look around it. Its hidious, it doesn't have ONE redeeming feature.

Actually its a thundering disgrace that this thing could get planning permission & everytime I think about it I get visions of brown envelopes.

Dord

jdivision wrote: »

ah humberklog, are you serious. It's dreadful. My favourite building in recent years is The Harcourt Building http://www.profileproperties.com/harcourt.whtm
Right scale and right look for the location

That's a nice one alright.

snickerpuss

I love the Ulster Bank Building and the new Irish Times building too. I also like the Bord Gáis building on Foley Street. I can't find any pictures of it.

Blisterman

jdivision wrote: »

ah humberklog, are you serious. It's dreadful. My favourite building in recent years is The Harcourt Building http://www.profileproperties.com/harcourt.whtm
Right scale and right look for the location

Yeah, that's a great looking building.
It looks especially cool, when the Luas turns around it. Showcases both the building and the Luas nicely.

AlexBM

What's this building on Dame St? I'm never around that part of town anymore...

arybvtcw0eolkf

Blisterman wrote: »

Yeah, that's a great looking building.
It looks especially cool, when the Luas turns around it. Showcases both the building and the Luas nicely.

When taken in context of some of the other buildings along there it looks awful.

And while it looks very modern now, I don't think it will age well.

jdivision

AlexBM wrote: »

What's this building on Dame St? I'm never around that part of town anymore...

It's where they dug up the little park in front of the castle. It's dreadful, utterly risible.