1959

Following its destruction by bombing during the Second World War, Spence was awarded the commission to rebuild Coventry Cathedral. He was chosen from over 200 architects who had entered a competition to design the new cathedral. Coventry Cathedral was to become Spence’s most famous design. The building work started in 1955 and was completed by 1962.

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1998

Mortonhall Crematorium was one of the many commissions which Spence received following the success of Coventry Cathedral. The building comprises a main structure with two large chapels, the crematorium and services block, a separate private chapel, a garden of remembrance and staff residencies.

All interior fixtures and fittings were kept simple to allow for quiet reflection. The interior of the chapel is lit naturally with the only colour coming from stained glass windows, which project coloured patterns onto the white interior.

• © RCAHMS

1968

In 1964 Spence began work on the University of Edinburgh main library. He had been involved with the university development programme since 1954 and he was finally offered the post of Planning Consultant.

The core requirement of the brief given to Spence and his practice, Glover and Ferguson, was that the new building would meet the demands of a modern academic building. The library would accommodate 8 floors and had to serve the daily needs of 6,000 students and researchers.

It also had to accommodate 2,000,000 books, 2,500 reading spaces, photographic services and book binding departments. When completed it was the largest university library in Britain.

Spence received the commission to plan and design a new campus for the University of Sussex in 1959. The brief required the campus to be built on a rural 94 hectare site approximately 4 miles from the city of Brighton over a 15-year period.

By 1971, the practice had designed 17 buildings for the new university and had won several prestigious awards for their work.

To ensure that students and staff felt happy during the long construction period, Spence ensured that he ‘created pockets of completeness’ by finishing each building phase before starting another.

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1962

Scottish Widows Fund and Life Assurance Society wanted to create a prestigious new headquarters in the heart of Edinburgh’s financial district and were keen to shed their Victorian image in the process.

The original Victorian office block was demolished to make way for the new building. The architects wanted to achieve a simplistic design. The resulting seven-storey building is almost square in plan, with the lower level clad in polished black granite to complement the office block directly opposite. The main face of the building is made up of window units and marble slabs, giving a grid-like appearance.

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1965

Spence was approached in 1964 to advise on the design of the Parliament extension. The Parliament was occupied from 1918 but had become too small to house the government by the 1960s.

Spence’s controversial design proposed demolishing part of the building known as the Bellamys. This caused heated debate, but Spence responded by pointing out that the circular design was serious, considered and practical. He also rationalised that it was a symbol of unity and had a historical context, citing other government buildings such as the Capitol in Washington.

Popularly known as The Beehive, the extension was built between 1969 and 1979 has become an iconic emblem for New Zealand, illustrated on the country’s banknotes.

1938

Spence’s best known building at the 1938 Glasgow Empire Exhibition was the ICI Pavilion, which was to reflect ICI’s position as the largest chemical producers in the Empire.

Spence produced a striking modernist building consisting of three triangular pylons, with applied sculptures that represented earth, air and water. In the centre was a 200ft beam of light representing fire and a fountain coloured with light that represented the company’s dyestuffs.

Spence also undertook a commission for the Council of Art and Industry. Spence’s remit was to design an ideal Scottish house and to promote Scottish manufacturing and craftsmanship.

1966

The Expo 67 - Man and his World was held in Montréal, Canada to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Confederation. Spence was announced as the designer of the British Pavilion.

Spence’s design comprised a huge white pavilion made up of two cantilevered halls and a monumental 200ft tower set out on a stepped concourse.

The tower was the entrance to the concourse and was topped off with a 3D sculpture based on the Union Jack designed by Frederic Henri Kay Henrion whilst a sculpture by Henry Moore was located in a pool outside the pavilion.

1964

To combat some of the worst housing conditions existing in Europe, the Glasgow Corporation created the Hutchesontown/Gorbals Comprehensive Development Area.

The aim was to replace 62 acres of slums with new low and high density housing, schools and shops. The development consisted of Hutchesontown A, B and C – each designed by a different architect.

Hutchesontown C was Spence’s commission and comprised 400 individual homes. The design was inspired by Le Corbusier’s giant maisonette blocks in Marseille and was described as The Hanging Gardens of the Gorbals – a direct reference to the large balconies arranged in groups of four throughout the building.

The building was poorly maintained and gradually deteriorated over the next three decades, before being finally demolished in 1993.

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1965

During the late 1950s the 18th and 19th-century slum tenements on the Royal Mile were demolished to make way for better housing. In 1959 Spence was awarded a commission to create a new housing development at the bottom of the Royal Mile in place of these tenements. 

Spence ensured that a good amount of open space on the site was available so that residents could appreciate the historic views.  The resulting development consists of three blocks containing one and two bedroom flats, two of which face onto the Royal Mile.