Forest Hill and Sydenham Architecture Walking Tour - Saturday 16 December 2023 10.30am
Regular price $25.00Join Open City for a walking tour exploring the fascinating civic architecture of Forest Hill and Sydenham.
This walking tour from Forest Hill to Crystal Palace Park — led by architect and researcher Marianna Janowicz — explores the architecture of the area’s most prominent public buildings. Highlights include the Arts and Crafts-style Horniman Museum and Gardens, RCKa’s landmark TNG Youth and Community Centre, and the Brutalist Grade II*-listed Crystal Palace National Sports Centre.
A journey through styles and periods, this engaging and accessible tour traces the power and politics behind grand architectural ambitions including Frederick Horniman’s controversial tea trade wealth, the Baths and Washhouses Act 1846 which enabled the construction of Forest Hill Pools, and the London County Council’s ambitious postwar vision for a new Modernist centre of sporting excellence.
While many of these buildings tell similar stories of social reform and education they were all designed and delivered in very different ways with some founded by philanthropists and campaigners and others financed by private wealth or brought to life by public bodies. Clashing agendas and conflicts of opinion are also explored though discussion of the now demolished Sir Basil Spence-designed extension to Sydenham School, community efforts to save the Stirling Prize-nominated concert platform in Crystal Palace Park, and redevelopment plans for the National Sports Centre itself.
Meet: Bandstand at Horniman Museum and Gardens (Horniman Museum address 100 London Road London SE23 3PQ)
Duration: 2.5 hours
Distance: 5.5 km approx
Tour ends: at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
Access: fairly steep uphill section towards the start of the tour
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Marianna Janowicz is an architect, researcher and member of feminist design collective Edit. Her project about foraging and rights to land was selected for the main exhibition at Oslo Architecture Triennale in 2019 and her writing on subjects around space and social justice has appeared in Open City blog, Eyesore Magazine and BUM Editions Journal. Marianna is also a research assistant at London Metropolitan University and studies part-time for an MA in Architectural History at the Bartlett, UCL. Most recently Edit has designed ‘How We Live Now,’ an exhibition on the work of the feminist architectural co-operative Matrix, which is currently open at the Barbican Centre. Marianna joined the Open City tours team in June 2021.
Tickets are non-refundable and tours go ahead rain or shine.
* Please check for any planned transport engineering works, planned strike action or large scale events that may effect your journey before making your ticket purchase *
If you find you can no longer make the tour for any reason we are unable to transfer you to another date, but please feel free to pass your booked place onto a friend to go and enjoy the tour in your place.
In the event your tour date is cancelled you will be issued with a credit note (with no expiry date) that you can use to
- book onto a rescheduled date
- book onto any other tour from our programme
or you can request a refund.
All ticket purchases are in support of the work of our organisation including our pioneering education programmes. We really appreciate your support!
Get in touch with Adrianna at tours@open-city.org.uk with any queries.
Please select solidarity pricing to help Open City offer the concessionary tickets rate for student and jobseekers.
Our concession pricing (£9.50 for walking tours / £19.50 for boat tours) is available for students and jobseekers only.
If you find you can no longer make the tour for Covid or any reason we are unable to transfer you to another date, but please feel free to pass your booked place onto a friend to go in your place.
In the event your tour date is cancelled due to Covid or any other reason you will be provided with the opportunity to book onto a rescheduled date, book onto another tour, provided with a credit note (with no expiry date) or you can request a refund.
All ticket purchases are in support of the work of our organisation including our pioneering education programmes. We really appreciate your support!
Get in touch with Adrianna at tours@open-city.org.uk with any queries.
