Concrete Poetry
'An essential coffee-table tour' Wired
The end of the Second World War was an era marked by community engagement through post-war progressive civic architecture and art that gave rise to some of the UK's most important pieces of public art: from Richard Serra's Fulcrum in London's Broadgate to Barbara Hepworth's works across the country, to the less well-known Cumisky mural in Skelmersdale and the vivid Schottlander shapes in Warwick. These works of art have become familiar companions; backdrops to British lives.
In Concrete Poetry, Simon Phipps photographs, explores and celebrates Britain's post-war public art, placing it in context and considering its future. Complete with incredible photography, an introduction by Phipps, an essay by Darren Umney and detailed captions, this book honours not only the artworks themselves, but the community spirit of the age from which they came.
Designed by creative agency Studio Small, Concrete Poetry is a uniquely beautiful book that is as inventive as its subject matter.
Book details
- Format
- Hardback
- ISBN
- 9781910463123
- Published
- 6 November 2018
- Pages
- 192
- Duration
- Dimensions
- 180 x 230 mm
- Genre
- Art and Architecture
- Imprint
- September
Reviews
'With this collection, Simon Phipps has, through his tenacious handling of both the space and place of each subject, extended his artistic exploration of the everyday and, at the same time, provided a documentary record of the steadily diminishing and disappearing artistic assets of this country. What makes the record especially poignant is that it is not only the works of art that are threatened, but also the fragile but tangible humanitarian concern and community spirit they embody'
'Gems of British Brutalism and Modernism are under threat from time and tide, as much as the wrecking ball - luckily, photographer Simon Phipps has been documenting these harsh beauties for his book, Concrete Poetry... From the Denys Wilkinson Building to the Blackwall Tunnel's ventilation shafts, the UK is studded with post-war concrete odes to a better tomorrow. For those of us who don't have the time to trot around the country, ticking these pioneering structures off their list, Phipps' book is an essential coffee-table tour'
