Derelict Victorian house in foreground, new multi-storey apartment block in background, taken from Mill Street

 

Grey is never a good colour for buildings in Slough, and this picture shows why. So many modern architects assume bright blue skies will forever illuminate their works as it does in their CGI brochures, but reality rarely obliges, at least in Slough. Also, it’s another consequence of developers not fully considering the surrounding environment of their projects, either meteorologically or architecturally, with the 15-storey ‘Lexington’ building in the background being about as sympathetic as an abattoir to the local skyline.

 

We also get an apt visual juxtaposition of the two Sloughs that are emerging (as discussed in the last few posts): the grounded, low-rise low-class population in urgent need of a new set of clothes and a makeover, and the affluent outsiders, invited in to occupy tall buildings full of luxury apartments at night, commuting to the capital from the nearby station by day, and never threatening to actually become a part of Slough’s reality.

 

 

PS: That house looks like it’s actually been hit by a friendly bomb or two!