Terry Farrell: Postmodernism and its Legacy

“Postmodernism was all-encompassing, not a style but an era, and as a phenomenon it was about holistic connectivity, the broadening of all viewpoints.” Terry Farrell, 2011.

Coinciding with the Victoria and Albert Museum’s major Postmodernism exhibition will be a discussion at the RIBA about the legacy of postmodernism; amongst the speakers representing some of the movement’s protagonists will be architect Terry Farrell. But, has enough time lapsed since the end of the movement to assess or even appreciate its legacy? Some of its greatest examples in architecture are still considered controversial. Many postmodernist buildings – even the most well-known – are not protected, and the consequences can be currently witnessed in Camden where the Hawley Crescent façade of the former TV-am studios, designed by Farrell in the early 1980s, is being torn down. A model of its façade forms part of the V&A’s exhibition, one exhibit amongst many that together analyses the wide spectrum of material and cultural outputs of postmodernism, including: architecture, music, cinema, fashion and dance.

The upcoming talk, ‘The Legacy of Postmodernism’, will see Sir Terry Farrell, Nigel Coates, Piers Gough, Sean Griffiths, Kester Rattenbury and Jane Pavitt discuss the legacy of the movement on architecture and design in the UK. 6.30pm – 8pm, 25 October 2011.

To book tickets or to find out more visit RIBA Blogs

Photograph: Alban Gate, 125 London Wall, City of London (© Kathy de Witt / RIBA Library Photographs Collection)