Eric Lyons (1912-80)
Eric Lyons was born in Highbury, North London on October 2nd 1912. At 18 he went to work for architect J. Stanley Beard, whilst attending evening classes in architecture at Regent Street Polytechnic. In the 1930s he also worked in the office of Walter Gropius and Maxwell Fry during their brief partnership together. After the war he worked with Geoffrey Townsend until 1953, when Townsend set up a development company, Span (architects and developers had to be separate at that time), with Ivor Cunningham later joining Lyons as a designer. Span developments would become Lyons main client for the rest of his career, building over 2,000 homes for the company, mainly in London and the south of England.
The first big project together was Parkleys in Ham, Richmond, an estate of 169 flats arranged around mature trees and hedges. The style of the buildings was taken from Scandanavian modernism, small scale structures of brick and timber with tile hanging. The estate proved very popular, and many more followed, such as nearby Fielend, The Priory in Blackheath or New Ash Green in Kent. Whether the development was in the suburbs of London or the home counties, the landscaping of each estate was given the highest attention, with landscape designer Preben Jackobsen designing many of the layouts for the Span estates. Lyons also designed social housing for Camden, Hackney and Islington, as well as the World's End Estate in Chelsea with H.T. Cadbury-Brown. Lyons died in 1980 after a battle with motor neuron disease.
Featured Buildings: Box Corner, Cambridge Road, Fieldend, Foxes Dale, Highsett, Marsham Lodge, Parkleys, South Row, Spangate
The first big project together was Parkleys in Ham, Richmond, an estate of 169 flats arranged around mature trees and hedges. The style of the buildings was taken from Scandanavian modernism, small scale structures of brick and timber with tile hanging. The estate proved very popular, and many more followed, such as nearby Fielend, The Priory in Blackheath or New Ash Green in Kent. Whether the development was in the suburbs of London or the home counties, the landscaping of each estate was given the highest attention, with landscape designer Preben Jackobsen designing many of the layouts for the Span estates. Lyons also designed social housing for Camden, Hackney and Islington, as well as the World's End Estate in Chelsea with H.T. Cadbury-Brown. Lyons died in 1980 after a battle with motor neuron disease.
Featured Buildings: Box Corner, Cambridge Road, Fieldend, Foxes Dale, Highsett, Marsham Lodge, Parkleys, South Row, Spangate