Tired of London, Tired of Life - A website about things to do in London

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21 January 2010

See the National Radiator Company building

Often regarded as one of London's few gems of art deco architecture, black granite-clad Ideal House is an office block on the corner of Great Marlborough Street and Argyll Street designed by Raymond Hood and Gordon Jeeves and built between 1928 and 1929. The building received Grade-II listed status in 1981.


The seven storey building was designed for the American National Radiator Company, and was inspired by their famous building in New York, constructed a few years earlier. The black granite is complemented by enamel friezes and yellow, orange, green and gold details, chosen because black and gold were the company colours.

For more, see http://heritage.elettra.co.uk/artdeco/profile.php?building=ideal

^Picture from Flickr courtesy of oosp^
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2 comments:

  1. Hels26 January 2010 at 11:53

    The eight slides give excellent views of the black granite, windows and the enamel frieze, but no idea of the doors or the ground floor lobby area. But we certainly can say that compared to the over-the-top parent company in New York, this building looks understated and elegant.

    What does a Grade-II listed status mean in practice? Is the building protected from being pulled down? From being renovated on the outside?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tom Jones26 January 2010 at 12:18

    Hi Hels,

    Thanks for popping by.

    Basically, listed buildings can't be demolished, extended or changed without special permission.

    Sometimes they are but it's very rare as the status makes it very hard.

    Tom

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