Barbican Estate, Chamberlin, Powell and Bon (1965-76)

There are two Barbicans, we soon learn on a tour of the East London council estate: the multi-purpose arts centre; and the mysterious residential units which sell for seven figure sums. Most visits to the former involve passing beneath the latter. But there is so much more to this brutalist…

Rachael Champion, Naturally Occurring  Brutalist Structure (2013)

An observation: spheres of Perspex and pea shingle have gravity in the same way that planets do. This piece by Rachael Champion has neither colour nor much visual stimuli, yet it has pull. Taken in isolation, gravel, pebbledash, and industrial tiling are unlovely things. And no one could argue this sculpture…