Speke Airport-Art Deco Architecture In Liverpool

Speke Airport, Liverpool.


Written by Wayne Colquhoun

Opened on the 1st July 1933 by The Marquis of Londonderry, K.G Secretary of State for Air.
There were 100,000 visitors on that day watching the display in which 246 aircraft took part.
There was a landing competition whereby the pilot who got nearest to the landing mark with propellers stopped won.
It was referred to as the greatest air pageant of all time.
A number of airlines were operating regular services after the successful opening. Blackpool and West CoastAir Services commenced operations in 1933.
The first scheduled flight was Liverpool to Blackpool and the cost was 18/- which is 90p in today’s money.

The traffic built up steadily and it was found to be necessary to expand the facilities to meet this.
It was 1937 that the present tower was completed, the same year that Hanger no 1 came into operation.
In 1939 the Terminal building was completed. Just in time for the war and at this period additional metal hangers were installed along with other less rigid structures.

A.J.Cobham with Sir J. Burnet designed the Terminal.

The simple functional style of this building is what now makes it so interesting, with its central observation tower and its convex flanks all designed for functional use.
The way the airside elevation curves gently shows what a little extra work can mean to overall kindness on the eye.

In 1936 the 611-west Lancs squadron had moved to Speke. Military activity now outstripped civilian use.
During the war it became an important destination with its close proximity to the strategically placed port of Liverpool.
Many aircraft were flown in, dismantled and shipped as far afield as the Middle East.
The 60s saw great images of the Beatles landing at Speke after conquering the world with their music.
From the time that the new terminal opened …the building was well past its best but with listed status and the active encouragement of many individuals, campaigning to have it restored, work finally got underway and it is now a hotel.
A major reconstruction took place.
Sadly the original windows had to go. It was altered slightly, as this new use was requiring a functional modern space for the comfort of the hotel guests.

The outside is magnificent with a replica plane outside the main public entrance, which helps to conjure up the spirit of its age.

Unfortunatly the interior is a sad pastiche and may as well be a modern hotel with an authentic exterior.
The decoration and fittings do not seem to conjure up any of its original style except to those who do not really understand the period and style known as Art Deco.
There has also been a very sad plastic looking building erected within the grounds.
This is a café or a diner of some sort and this has spoilt the overall look of the site.
There are some wonderful details on the main gateposts and the downspouts are reproduced to the original design with airplane motifs. The hangers now take on contemporary uses such as a gym.
Another of the hangers has been used for the performing arts. The whole area has now made a dramatic transformation and a business estate is thought to be growing along with the expansion of the Liverpool John Lennon Airport.
The best views are taken from the back of the building, as it is right to assume that the main entrance was originally made with an entrance from the airside. It is easy to lose yourself just standing there. Imagining a long journey on a De-Haviland plane in the late 30s, then picking up you’re your leather luggage and heading off to the terminal for passport checks.
There are some of the best sunsets from the Mersey Estuary and it is the best time with the changing light to sit and think about all those glamorous 30s planes that would have taxi-ed down the runway is dusk.

©Copyright Wayne Colquhoun 2012

Art Deco Panther-Piece of the Week

I love the way the French depicted animals in the inter war years, with their tradition of sculptors in the genre.
The noble beast lends itself to a stylised study and in the hands of a good sculptor it is amazing what can be done.
I have chosen a picture of one I currently have that is not too expensive, £300-400 would be a decent price to pay for such.
It is a spelter model, but the base is nice marble and the way it has been inlaid with sections of onyx just gives it a  little extra.
It has a bronze patina and this is everything when purchasing a spelter as a beautiful glow can hint that it is a bronze to most people.
Where do you go with the same equivalent in bronze well its going to set you back a thousand pounds and if it was by my favourite sculptor Rembrandt Bugatti, son of the furniture maker and brother of the car designer then you may be looking at half a million pounds.
This is a nice way to "buy in" to he at deco style. It may be said it is a touch on the masculine style but having sold scores of Art Deco Cats to ladies it seems that the beauty transcends the sexes.
 I don't know anyone could deny the beauty of a strident black leopard stalking its prey or just strident as in this pose.
Tradition:
Le Livre du Jungle  http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Livre_de_la_jungle that was published in France, or as we know it here Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling.
This animalier style was championed at the Salons and was maybe the continuation of a tradition that Antoine Louis Barye http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine-Louis_Barye came from in the 19th century.

 So you may wonder what a cartoon in the sixties with songs such as the Bear necessities and lyrics such as "I wanna be like you..u..u, dooby doo, dooby doo, have got to do with this sculpture.
Well its my opinion that it is because Le Livre Du Jungle was illustrated by Paul Jouve with his beautiful stylised and characterful depictions of the beasts that Kipling made come to life from his memories in India, and this helped to inspire a generation of artists and sculptors that helped form the vision that made the cartoon come alive. To another generation. It does not disredit Paul Jouve t know that his amazing illustrations of Mowgli  lit up the eyes of Walt Disney for sure.
How now we take it for granted, we know almost every creature that has ever existed, but in the 1920's  you may not know what a Lion or a Tiger looked like.
These exotic creatures were to mesmerise a generation with a novel such as Edgar Rice Burroughs Tarzan of the Jungle, (it seems like only yesterday, watching the Johnny Weissmuller and seeing the 1960s cartoon on the flics).

Today these artists and sculptors from a tradition of craftsmanship that could not be recreated today, leave an affordable and stylistic legacy to a almost forgotten era.


But in the twenties and thirties you could discover their magnificence only in a zoo, but a sculpture could then be purchased in a posh department store and be placed be pride of place on your mantelpiece..............just as you can today.

Diana The Huntress by Lejan-Piece of the Week.

Sometimes the French craqelle glazed sculptures of the inter war years can be underrated.
This is an amazing piece of movement, it almost looks as if it has been designed in a wind tunnel.
LEJAN did some wonderful sculptures, and some not too good but there is a mystery surrounding the work of the sculptor who may have in fact been a group of sculptors which may go some way to explaining the inconsistency of the work.
I used this sculpture by LEJAN in a exhibition called The Age Of Jazz curated by Sue Lunt at the Walker Art Gallery, to which I was commissioned to put together a room setting.
The signature can be seen on several different craquelles sometimes signed JAN LE, JANLE and I have had a interesting black glazed Panther signed JEAN.
There was a sculpture and a Pate de Verre vase that went through a New York Christies sale in 1990 signed Walter Nancy Le Jan.
Almeric Walter (Sevres1859-1860) was a collaborator with Daum.
Some of the rare pieces have the mark Orchies or Moulin des Loups. There is also a theory that it may have been a woman and it is why the masculine style of some of the sculptures may not have suited being attributed to a lady but needed to be seen in a masculine manner. This piece is some 50cm long signed LEJAN looks as good from several different angles, and is pretty wonderful

Daum Acid Etched Vase-Piece of the Week

Sometimes simplicity is key to good design and Daum were usually quite good at simple art deco designs combined with craftsmanship. This vase is 31cm high.
see glass section of my website; http://www.classicartdeco.co.uk/glass.php


Founded in 1878 by Jean Daum[1] (1825–1885).
His sons, Auguste Daum (1853–1909) and Antonin Daum (1864–1931), ran the company during Art Nouveau period.
During the Universal Exhibition of 1900 Daum was awarded a ‘Grand Prix’ medal. Daum glass became more elaborate, acid etching (by Jacques Gruber) was often combined with carving, enamelling and engraving on a single piece of glass to produce creative glass master-pieces.
Daum creations also feature applied glass elements, such as handles and ornamental motifs in naturalistic forms.
The Daum brothers were one of the major forces in the Art Nouveau movement, seriously rivalling Gallé, so much so that when Émile Gallé died in 1904 they became the leaders in the field of decorative glass.
In 1906 Daum revived pâte de verre (glass paste), an ancient Egyptian method of glass casting, developing the method so that by the 1930s Daum's window panels used pâte de verre for richness instead of leaded or painted glass.

Daum gradually moved into the Art Deco period. The creations in this new style are some of the best of its period. Glass became a tool with which to create good design and Daum began to use the skills learnt during the Art Nouveau time to move with the times.
On the art deco pieces they produced it can be seen how the craftsmen worked.
Bevels were arranged in cubist form, planes were cut deep into a crystallised or frosted  aspect, leaving parts of a pattern rough and other parts polished. Geometric patterns were arranged and motifs employed that were fresh and vibrant for the jazz age.
Always tactile to hold and feel. The differing textures were copied and imitated but very rarely equalled.
The Exposition International des Art Decoratif et Industrial held in Paris in 1925 gave them an opportunity to show their wares off to buyers all over the word and with the skill of its craftsman the Daum company had years of prosperity leaving us today with some of the finest examples of Art Deco.
They don't come cheap quality never does this one is over £500 but where can you find something with such sophistication for less.

Lalique Coquilles Bowl-Piece of the Week

Lalique always did simple design well.

Here is a version of a bowl that is often overlooked by Lalique collectors because its not the rarest or the most expensive.

For that reason its a really good way to start off a collection.

Expect to pay a couple of hundred pounds for a small  frosted version and about £3-400 for an opalescent version. 

http://www.classicartdeco.co.uk/

René Jules Lalique

René Jules Lalique was born in Ay, Marne, France on April 6, 1860, and died May 5, 1945.
He was a glass designer, renowned for his stunning creations of perfume In 1882 he became a freelance designer for several top jewelry houses in Paris and four years later established his own jewelry workshop. By 1890, Lalique was recognized as one of France's foremost Art Nouveau jewelry designers; creating innovative pieces for Samuel Bing's new Paris shop, La Maison de l'Art Nouveau. He went on to be one of the most famous in his field, his name synonymous with creativity and quality.

In the 1920s he also became famous for his work in the Art Deco style. Among other things he was responsible for the walls of lighted glass and the elegant glass columns which filled the dining room and grand salon of the SS Normandie.

René Lalique is buried in Le Père Lachaise Cemetery, Paris, France.

Recognised as one of the world's greatest glass makers and jewellery designers of the art Nouveau and art Deco periods, Rene Jules Lalique was an imaginative and creative artist in all his work. Lalique's early life was spent in many different types of artistic businesses, acting as apprentice and assistant. This heavily influenced the designs he used in his later life, including his emphasis on glass. He used the most modern and innovative manufacturing techniques and equipment available, allowing more than one glass piece to be made at a time while still looking hand made, which meant his quality jewellery was available to the general public.

Rene Jules Lalique's early life was spent learning the methods of design and art he would use in his later life. He was born on the 6th of April, 1860, in the town of Ay, France. At the age of two his family moved to a suburb of Paris due to his fathers work, but travelled to Ay for summer holidays. These trips to Ay influenced Lalique's later naturalistic glasswork. When he was twelve, he entered the Collège Turgot where he started drawing and sketching. With the death of his father two years later, Lalique began working as an apprentice to the goldsmith Louis Aucoq in Paris, and attending evening classes at the Ecole des Arts Décoratifs. He worked here for two years and then moved to London to attend the Sydenham Art College for two years. At the Sydenham art college, his skills for graphic design were improved, and his naturalistic approach to art was further developed. When he returned from England, he worked as a freelance artist, designing pieces of jewellery for French jewellers. Following this, he opened a business in 1885, and designed and made his own jewellery and other glass pieces for the rest of his life.

Many things influenced Lalique's work, including the natural environment, and the art Nouveau and art Deco periods.. The summer holidays Lalique spent at Ay, in France, and the time he spent at the Sydenham college of Art in London, heavily influenced Lalique's naturalistic work. As a result, many of his jewellery pieces and vases showcase plants, flowers and flowing lines.