Architecture let down by the politics of envy
I WAS quite excited when I saw the photograph in WalesOnline recently of the planned replacement building for HMS Cambria in Cardiff Bay, until I read the narrative and saw the dreadful box that was actually built. What a let-down!
However, I’m not surprised. Every time I see on tv the iconic shape of Sydney Opera House, designed by Jørn Utzon, which is so famous no-one needs to be told what or where it is, I am reminded of the fiasco surrounding the building of the Millennium Centre.
Unfortunately, our building is not exactly awe-inspiring nor, as far as I am concerned, particularly memorable. However, had the original design by the late Zaha Hadid been built around 30 years ago, as originally planned, I wonder whether its image would now also be instantly recognisable all over the world too? Just as Christopher Wren is usually mentioned in conjunction with St Paul’s, it is highly likely that allusions to the wonderful legacy of Zaha Hadid would have included our own building in Cardiff Bay. Sadly, we’ll never know.
My recollection is that the campaign to reject Ms Hadid’s glorious design was centred on the premise that the building of an “opera house” was elitist and would not serve the majority of our countrymen. Sadly, the crusade to overturn this project quickly gained momentum in a country which is determined to always be seen as the underdog, biting at the heels of its oppressors. Consequently, despite the fact that the WNO was acclaimed in its field and performances have always quickly and regularly sold out, “opera” was claimed to be an upperclass pastime which had no place in the lives of the vast majority of our citizens. I’m sure that many will say this was not the only reason for throwing out this particular baby with the bathwater, but after around 30 years, it is the only reason that I now recall. Unfortunately, the politics of envy have infiltrated every aspect of Welsh life and will continue to do so unless the voters wake up and realise that it doesn’t have to be this way. We deserve better.
Eileen Pohl Coedkernew, Newport
... a country determined to always be seen as the underdog, biting at the heels of its oppressors
Eileen Pohl Coedkernew, Newport