UHM! ZINES PRESENTS: TRELLICK TOWER - A BRUTALIST ICON IN NORTHWEST LONDON

TITLE - UHM! ZINES PRESENTS: TRELLICK TOWER - A BRUTALIST ICON IN NORTHWEST LONDON 

CREATED BY - STEPPP (STEFANO SAMA) 

GENRE - BRITISH BRUTALIST ARCHITCTURE/TRELLICK TOWER 

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN - UNITED KINGDOM 

A5/24 PAGES/BLACK & WHITE/PAMPHLET/CARD COVERS/LIMITED TO 50 COPIES 

PRICE - £10.00 + SHIPPING FROM UHMZINES ETSY STORE

In a departure from his usual publications, "Steppp", the prolific photographer and creator behind the brutalist zine "BRUTAL", has produced a special package focusing on just one building: that icon of British Brutalism, Trellick Tower in London. The zine ties in with Trellick's 50th anniversary and is the first in a new series of zines dedicated to notable Brutalist buildings.

Not quite as old as me, (I was born a year earlier in 1971) Trellick Tower was built by architect Erno Goldfinger and opened in 1972. The zine includes an introduction by EG himself in which he talks of "spatial order" and the sensations that can be experienced in buildings and is typical of the pretension often displayed by architects talking about their work. Such themes about the "sense of space" etc are important to Brutalism, and Trellick Tower is definitely an icon of the movement, but sadly it became more famous for its crime and lawlessness, before being gentrified, with the flats becoming highly desirable. The zine also includes a brief history of the tower, which is a welcome feature.

Steppp's photography is, as usual, starkly excellent. With its iconic separate lift-shaft, connecting walkways and monolithic appearance, Trellick Tower is shot from the ground up (bar a couple of long-shots) emphasising its size (98 metres) and geometric otherworldliness. The photos are crisp and detailed, unflinchingly capturing the graffiti and rubbish bins. Not quite as futuristic as some Brutalist buildings, Trellick emphasises function over form but remains a classic. 

In the deluxe package, you get the zine itself in black card covers, a "50th birthday card" containing a 7x5 monochrome photograph and a pop-art Trellick postcard. The whole package is very classy with high production values, and well worth the higher than usual price tag.