Piers Gough accused me yesterday of being more interested in old buildings than new. I’m not convinced this is true. So, in his honour I am posting pictures of one of the many buildings he has done in Bermondsey and Southwark, the yellow Bankside building which he did in 1999 for the Manhattan Loft Corporation just before the opening of Tate Modern:-
| Charles | Saumarez | Smith | 
Your blogs read carefully would certainly suggest that you have a keen appreciation of good modern architecture
That really is neither fair nor accurate, Piers. That Charles has a brilliant eye for historic architectural detail is correct but he has a keen appreciation of contemporary architecture too – Rogers, Lasdun, Grimshaw, Chipperfield, you.
Piers called me a ‘little bean counter’ when I presented the Burlington Project plans and activities to Council- so you got off lightly! Despite this I am very fond of his work!
I am glad we have in you a heritage champion at the RA though too .. not everything can be created anew.. and, many great recent architectural interventions (e.g. Neues Museum) would be nothing without the past architecture alongside them