Concrete

April 2006

Concrete

Cement has been around for at least 12,000,000 years. The earth created it naturally during her birth. People eventually learned to make it themselves.

The Egyptians, the Chinese, the Greeks and the Romans all used cementitious material in structures from the Great Wall to the Pyramids.

At Inscape we have already made the too easily overlooked point in these days where the lifetime skills of builders are clouded by the perception created by over reporting confidence tricksters masquerading as tradesmen, that builders built the world. None more dramatically than these great races.

The Romans even developed the use of admixtures to increase the properties of cement at least 300 years before the most famous carpenter of them all was born. And of course we don't need to remind anyone that many of these structures still stand.

The genius Brunel first used the modern incarnation of cement for engineering purposes in 1828 and by the end of the century the first concrete reinforced bridge was built followed shortly after by the first high rise buildings to use concrete. During the course of the twentieth century structure after structure continually impressed and inspired from the great Hoover Dam to the CN Tower in Canada.

However, concrete also became much maligned with its use in the high rise solutions to the so called slum clearances in Britain in the 1960's Ronan Point being a potent reminder of that period.

But such a timeless natural material rises above the limitations of its lesser proponents and modern examples of its use continue to inspire, astound and amaze.

Here are images of some of the best plus some less dramatic examples but as noteworthy.