International Malls: Bush Fair Shopping Centre
Harlow, Essex, England - circa 1950s
Bush Fair Shopping Centre (don't think it's called that anymore), in Harlow, was a quaint open-air pedestrian mall, nestled amongst several similar "shopping precincts" (as they call them) in the famous Harlow Town Centre retail area (still there today) in Merry Old England. Kind of looks like some schools I went to as a wee lad, actually. But still groovy either way!
posted by Keith @ 2/27/2007
2 Comments:
I tell ya, you'll have to change the name of the blog to "Malls of the World." :)
This district is very characteristic of post-WWII redevelopment. I can't even begin to describe the architecture, modernist? International?
We need some Brits to fill us in!
Scott
International style is the term I'd use, though modernist is fine, too.
I'm not familiar with this particular mall, but such pedestrian shopping precincts were very popular in the 1950s and similar designs can be found in many cities around Europe. Some were razed, remodelled or enclosed (which happened to a late 1950s open air shopping mall in my town), but others are still virtually unchanged.
I should have pictures of the Lijnbaan shopping precinct in Rotterdam at home, which was the prototype for this sort of thing. I'll see what I can dig up and mail them to you.
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