Photographing Robin Hood Gardens over the years

The recent demolition of Robin Hood Gardens reminded me of all the times I’ve photographed it over the years and how much I’d enjoyed each visit. The various angles of the blocks meant that there was great light striking at least one of it’s facades during the morning, then around lunch time there was an hour when it was too oblique, before becoming more interesting again in the afternoon. This made it an absolute delight to photograph

The first time I photographed it was in 2009 when it was still cared for and wasn’t yet a destination for social media posts, this is one of many images I have of it that’s with the RIBA’s picture library and is one of my favourites from that time. It’s also been used in a couple of books, which is always nice.

East Block of Robin Hood Gardens with central mound

A year later I went back and the estate manager granted me access to take some more photographs for the RIBA, this was the first chance I had to properly explore the estate from the inside and appreciate even more how the shifting light affected it’s appearance.

The intense campaign to preserve it via listed building status unfortunately failed and in 2017 the demolition of the west block started. Early on in the demolition a chunk of concrete fell onto the nearby road, resulting in a pause of a few weeks while they reassessed their approach. This left me with plenty of time to visit again with the right light to capture this classic view of it.

Demolition of West Block of Robin Hood Gardens

Not long after, I started my Brutalism in Colour project, but it would be another 3 years before I considered Robin Hood Gardens for the project. I’m generally reluctant to include residential buildings in the project as it’s not a great look standing around people’s houses at night pointing a camera at them, but the block was mostly empty but this time and the oblique angle meant that I wasn’t intruding on anyone’s privacy.

I returned a few times over the years to capture its continued decline and the contrast with the rejuvenation of nearby Balfron Tower. But it wasn’t until they started demolition again recently that I considered it again for my project. On this visit I chatted with a very cheerful worker who gave me an idea of when the rest of it would be gone by.

Demolition of East Block of Robin Hood Gardens.

I visited again on the 9th of March to find not much left so came back in the evening to photograph it for Brutalism in Colour. On the 10th of March demolition in full swing.

I then visited on each of the following three (bitterly cold) nights to capture this sequence (one day there was no change). They’re wildly different to my first images of it, but rank among my favourites and seem to me a fitting tribute to the estate.

Photographing Robin Hood Gardens over the years

Photographing Paddington Fire Station