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© English Heritage |
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Noah's Boathouse hits troubled waters |
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A pioneering example of Modern Movement architecture in Britain or an ugly eyesore? Listed buildings may have historical importance but that doesn't mean they are always attractive or easy to live with.
Noah's Boathouse in Cookham is a grade II* listed building, but that wasn't the case when it was acquired by its current owners, who originally intended to demolish it.
The boathouse is not in the best of condition and attracts many comments from those who sail past it. Fed up with this, its current owners have even considered growing a hedge round it to block it from view!
So just what is the significance of this building?
Colin Lucas and Noah's Boathouse
Noah's Boathouse is one of the oldest surviving works by architect Colin Lucas, a pioneer of reinforced concrete construction in Britain.
Lucas studied architecture at the University of Cambridge from 1925-8. He became interested in the use of concrete but mistrusted the conservatism and inexperience of many builders when faced with this new material.
Lucas designed Noah's House and Boathouse for his father on a site overlooking the Thames 
© English Heritage
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To overcome this he formed his own building company, Lucas Lloyd and Co, rather than completing his formal training. It was with this company that he built Noah's Boathouse in 1930.
They were the first monolithic reinforced concrete buildings in Britain in the Modern Movement style.
The boathouse is comprised of a long rectangular block with a curved workshop at the landward end, and a rectangular music room above it at the other, reached by an external flight of steps.
The windows form a strip running the whole length of the boathouse. Lucas puttied the glazing directly into the concrete mullions, which separate each pane - an innovative method much repeated in the 1950's and '60s.
The building was painted white and has a flat roof, which forms an overhanging hood. These features, together with the large expanse of glass used and the building's undecorated surface, reflect some of the main characteristics of the Modern Movement style.
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