“Group-cum-Brutalism”?

Abstract

Highgate Spinney (1964–66), designed by Howard & Rotherham, is a five-storey block of thirty flats in the north London suburb of Crouch End. It is one of many buildings published in Zodiac 18 (1968) – a substantial issue of the Italian magazine, dedicated to recent and contemporary British architecture in general and to New Brutalism in particular. Though published alongside canonical buildings of British New Brutalism, Highgate Spinney has largely been erased from the historical record.To revisit and expand upon the inclusion of Highgate Spinney in Zodiac 18, this article explores the partnership of Howard & Rotherham and the design of their building. Both architects brought a range of experiences to bear on the design. The article focuses on those of Bruce Rotherham, because he has an established reputation in New Zealand, and because comparatively little is known of the life and other architectural work of John Howard, who died at a young age, shortly after the completion of Highgate Spinney.The article considers Rotherham's formative years with the Group Construction Company and Group Architects in Auckland, his early work experiences in London and the impact of his two years of study at the Architectural Association School of Architecture. It also reveals interactions between Rotherham and James Gowan. These provide grounds for considering buildings by Stirling & Gowan, particularly the Flats at Ham Common and Preston Housing, as points of reference and comparison for the design of Highgate Spinney. The article shows that Highgate Spinney demonstrates synchronicities with the Stirling & Gowan precedents, while also being an independent and considered design in its own right.