Grrrrrand Designs…
I love Grand Designs, it’s been an inspiration to me and is at least partially to blame for this project. But the latest series has so far defined grand in terms of pounds and pence rather than any more noble or aesthetic value. So far we’ve seen rich people building rich peoples houses - grand in terms of Victorian upper class values of opulence and decadence, but out of step with 21st century sensibilities and environmental anxieties.
There have been occasional glimpses of green technology and design - I think a ground source heat pump has popped up at least once, these buildings have obviously been well insulated and therefore energy efficient and I imagine all that glass has been installed with solar gain in mind. But these are not key topics within the programmes and are not being highlighted as I think they should be in a world where sustainable building & living are crucial issues that we need to tackle with tenacity.
Perhaps it’s not the job of Grand Designs to promote the green agenda, perhaps it’s the job of Grand Designs to be a ‘pimp my crib’ show - rich people in James Bond homes showing off to the rest of us. I don’t think that’s what Grand Designs started out to be and I hope it’s not what it now aspires to be now.
Kevin McCloud must shoulder some of the blame for this - I know he cares about sustainability, take for example his involvement with HAB housing (Happiness, Architecture and Beauty):
HAB is committed to creating communities which are a pleasure to live in and sustainable in the broadest sense.
…but the series so far, at least in my watching of it, has failed to get the balance right, failed to promote the sustainable perspective that must gain influence and priority in the development of buildings of all sorts.
In the words of McClouds namesake, Kevin Keegan:
‘I’m not disappointed - just disappointed.’
In the words of the song: emphasize the positive, eliminate emphasize the negative - let’s have a frank and honest evaluation of buildings within the context of the current day, not just praise people for building shopping centres to live in. Perhaps the rest of the series will live up to my hopes….?
Grrrrrrr…
If you enjoyed that post, then read these...
How Green is Cement? on October 19th, 2007
Being about to pour several tonnes of concrete into the floor of our barn I was interested to read about the environmental impact of cement usage.
Paid to recycle on April 3rd, 2008
Love him or hate him or just find him amusing, I read with interest that Boris Johnson is advocating a positive encouragement to recycling in the environmental manifesto that is a part of his candidature for election as mayor of London.
Cash Incentives for 'Green' Installations on August 28th, 2007
A recurring topic that has kept popping into my consciousness over the past few weeks has been that of financial incentives to encourage of adoption of green technology in buildings.
Transition Town Llandeilo on May 4th, 2008
Llandeilo has been grabbing headlines recently with talk of launching its own currency under the banner of being the first transition town in Wales.
Gothic Grand Designs Redemption? on February 12th, 2008
I'm determined not to keep going on about Grand Designs, so this is the last I'll say on it (at least for the moment), but it was nice to see Kevin find his old critical eye again - I guess he lost it somewhere on the way to .
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February 12th, 2008 at 11:15 pm
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