Brutalist architecture may not be to everyone’s taste, but there are plenty of people out there who think it’s really cool, actually and shouldn’t be messed with. One of those people is acclaimed artist Tracey Emin, who was recently at the head of a campaign to save Margate’s ‘brutalist masterpiece’, Arlington Tower.
The 18-storey residential block has loomed over the town’s seafront since 1963. The tower wasn’t at risk of being demolished or anything like that, but it was at risk of getting... new windows.
A planning application was submitted for the building’s original single glazed sliding windows to be replaced with double glazed tilt-and-turn windows. Tracey Emin owns a flat in the building and alongside around 200 other residents and campaigners argued that the change would alter the iconic design and ruin the architectural character and authenticity of the building.
Emin said: ‘Arlington House is a historic building in Margate, at the time of its construction Margate was booming and it was an emblem of the future
‘In the last few decades it’s been left to go to rack and ruin without care or respect for its monumental brutalist architecture. If this building were in any European town or city it would have been protected from the beginning. It should be listed and renovated back to its original beauty.’
The building’s leaseholder says that the window replacements would be part of a wider refurbishment scheme benefitting those who live in Arlington and the surrounding area. It argued that the difference between the old and new windows are ‘minimal’.
The latest development (from December 4) has seen Emin’s campaign triumph. Thanet District Council unanimously voted to reject the proposals, with Emin posting: ‘A loud cheer was heard in the Margate council chamber. For me personally it was such a relief. The decision restored some of my faith back into humanity.’
Time Out in Margate
Home to one of our coolest neighbourhoods of 2022, we’re big fans of Margate here at Time Out. So, naturally, we’ve got comprehensive expert guides to the town’s best things to do, best restaurants and best Airbnbs to stay in.
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