Chapter Two:
THE BUILDING — EXTERIOR

Title: Chapter Two: The Building — Exterior.

Overview: Often described as a piece of art itself, we examine the outside of the building and talk about how it has evolved and introduce you to the history of the building.

History

The University of Liverpool's Victoria Building took only three years to build — commencing construction in 1889 and achieving completion in 1892. The building was designed by Alfred Waterhouse, not only one of the most eminent Victorian Architects of his time, but a Liverpudlian Architect, too.

For over one hundred years, this Grade II building has been a melting pot for cultivating some of the world’s top minds, and responsible for nurturing a wealth of Nobel Prize winners.

Then an opportunity came along, the global spotlight was on Liverpool in 2008 as it was crowned European Capital of Culture. That very year it was reopened by The Princess Royal after it enjoyed a Multi-Million Pound transformation project to turn it into a building for the people of the City to enjoy, showcasing the University’s collections of artefacts through a now publicly accessible museum and gallery.

Image Credit: Original Work.

Photography Gallery

A Modern-Day Architect's Perspective

British Architect, Gregory Holland, who previously studied Architectural Technology at Liverpool John Moores University, is currently working in Belgium, and who hails from the Liverpool City Region himself, said:

"I find that modern architecture is very minimalist and this can sometimes lead to structures seeming relatively inexpensive or inaesthetic, and I think this can downplay or tarnish the intimacies that buildings offer the occupants.

Whereas architecture from earlier periods, like Victorian-era architecture, offers a more maximalist approach. The ornate details and flurry of patterns and details on the façade are much grander and behold a wider magnificence. They also use asymmetrical design so no two buildings are the same.

We, as city-dwellers, often spend our time looking down —no higher than shop signs or street markings— I think this is often due to the concrete jungle we find ourselves in. There's no real interest in anything other than what's in front of you.

Victorian architecture offers you the opportunity to look up. Clock towers always catch the eye as well as give useful information, and once you look at the clock, you find yourself appreciating the finer details of the surrounding structure."

Watch Gregory Holland chat to Peter Eric Lang about the contrast between Victorian architecture, such as Alfred Waterhouse's work, in comparison to the approach that modern architecture can take.