Sir, - I am so astonished and horrified that a building of the calibre of Archer's Garage should have been demolished.
For me this building was one of an ever diminishing group which represented Ireland moving forward as a new Republic and throwing off the (imposed) style of other countries. The fluid style of the corner and the strong definition which it gave to the street are characteristics which are all too rare in today's sanitised building climate.
When you consider the strong dynamics of this building; the gas company buildings (gone); the glass bottle building; the GaelLinn tower at the top of Grafton Street; Michael Scott's house in Sandycove and his cinema in Athlone (sadly neglected) - all of these were strong buildings, representing an Ireland looking forward boldly and looking for an architecture to reflect this.
Now we have in 1999, at the turn of the century, so many buildings which are a total mishmash of styles - such as mock-Georgian, plastic, double-glazed windows where proportion doesn't seem to matter.
Why are we hiding in a past which is fake? Why can we not move forward and embrace new technologies and materials? If we are replicating existing building styles, should they not be faithfully constructed in the traditional manner - and there are a few companies who are still capable of this kind of work.
One of our students this year used Archer's as an interior project and while the interior did not have much to recommend it, her design solution provided an interesting and dynamic space.
Surely with a little imagination many of the buildings from this period can be reconverted to provide buildings of interest while maintaining an important link with this era. - Yours, etc,
Caitriona Shaffrey, Architect and Lecturer, DIT, Dartmouth Square, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.