Christ Church, Spitalfields has featured often in my blog before, but never, I think, in black-and-white, which shows off its full Roman monumentality. What is impressive is Hawksmoor’s extraordinarily free use of architectural form, the piling up of different architectural vocabularies, made possible by his deep knowledge of antique precedent, not from travel (so far as is known he had never crossed the Channel), but from the books in his architectural library. His architectural philosophy self-confessedly involved ‘Strong Reason and Good Fancy, joyn’d with Experience and Tryalls’:-
| Charles | Saumarez | Smith | 
Wonderful monumental photographs. The brilliance of Black and White.
I met a group of RA Friends outside Christ Church last Friday for a tour of Spitalfields and we visited the Mosque and a very rare treat, the inside of the Charnel House with the Inspector for Ancient Monuments (London).
Wish I could have joined you ! Charles
A truly wonderful place – have enjoyed visiting there since my first trip to London in 1995.
I remember Jonathan Balkind (/ spelling) who ran the Spitalsfield Festival getting us to move lots of the insides of CCS into a cellar in the market basement.
And then being up on a scary gantry at the top of a column in the church and hearing Gustav Leonhardt playing.
Extraordinary experience.
c.1982?
What happened to Gustav and Jonathan?
Pass. Charles
Another thought about CCS: your photos are perfect for the next cover of Peter’s ‘Hawksmoor’
How is PA btw?
He wrote a very nice puff for my book. Charles
Nice to meet you always in beautiful and interesting place!
Consolata
Dear Consolata, Hope you’re well ! Love from us both, Charles