Byker Wall

The Byker Wall is the name given to a long unbroken block of 620 maisonettes in the Byker district of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. They were designed by architect Ralph Erskine and constructed in the 1970s. The wall is just part of the estate which covers 200 acres. Design and constructionThe Wall, along with the low rise dwellings built to its south, replaced Victorian slum terraced housing. There were nearly 1200 houses on the site at Byker. They had been condemned as unfit for human habitation in 1953, but demolition did not begin until 1966. The new housing block was designed by the notable architect Ralph Erskine assisted by executive architect Vernon Gracie. Design began in 1968 and construction took place between 1969 and 1982. The architects opened an office on site to develop communication and trust between the existing residents. Existing buildings were to be demolished as the new accommodation was built. The new high-rise block was designed to shield the site from an intended motorway (which eventually was never built). Construction materials for Byker Wall were relatively cheap, concrete, brick and timber. Surfaces were treated with bright colours, while brick bandings were used on the 'Wall' to indicate floor levels. Its Functionalist Romantic styling with textured, complex facades, colourful brick, wood and plastic panels, attention to context and relatively low-rise construction represented a major break with the Brutalist high-rise architectural orthodoxy of the time.

The Byker Wall is the name given to a long unbroken block of 620 maisonettes in the Byker district of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. They were designed by architect Ralph Erskine and constructed in the 1970s. The wall is just part of the estate which covers 200 acres. Design and constructionThe Wall, along with the low rise dwellings built to its south, replaced Victorian slum terraced housing. There were nearly 1200 houses on the site at Byker. They had been condemned as unfit for human habitation in 1953, but demolition did not begin until 1966. The new housing block was designed by the notable architect Ralph Erskine assisted by executive architect Vernon Gracie. Design began in 1968 and construction took place between 1969 and 1982. The architects opened an office on site to develop communication and trust between the existing residents. Existing buildings were to be demolished as the new accommodation was built. The new high-rise block was designed to shield the site from an intended motorway (which eventually was never built). Construction materials for Byker Wall were relatively cheap, concrete, brick and timber. Surfaces were treated with bright colours, while brick bandings were used on the 'Wall' to indicate floor levels. Its Functionalist Romantic styling with textured, complex facades, colourful brick, wood and plastic panels, attention to context and relatively low-rise construction represented a major break with the Brutalist high-rise architectural orthodoxy of the time.