Prince Charles' fire station

architecture.knoji.com/prince-charless-vision-of-britain/

Architect Michael Johnson says, "The Fire Station (2008) can be described as third-hand architecture - it’s inspired by Georgian buildings that were in turn inspired by Greek temples. The pilasters and pediments evoke Greek temples, but the intervals are filled in with brick and sash windows. It looks like a doll’s house version of a Georgian building, but on a 1:1 scale. Is this environment a bastion of English tradition or a reactionary fantasy that tries to keep the modern world at bay?"

But is it surprising that some people might wish to keep the modern world at bay when the modern world is being made so depressing by contemporary modern architecture? With his Poundbury experiment Prince Charles has shown that modern architecture doesn't have to be ugly. What does it matter if the fire station is built in a "third-hand" style, as long as it LOOKS okay? And it will look okay once it has weathered in a bit and there's more greenery around.