Miscellaneous desk
< May 3	<< Apr \| May \| Jun >>	May 5 >

Welcome to the Wikipedia Miscellaneous Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

May 4

Attempts to "Beautify" industrial structures in a landscape?

Hello,

I am curious to know if there have ever been situations where some industrial structures were in locations otherwise known for natural beauty, eg: gardens or other scenic situations. Specifically i am thinking about large towers to hold some kind of fluids, but i suppose the question applies to any industrial structure. The question is, has there been a situation like this, where a massive tower in the middle of scenery would normally be an eye sore, but people somehow designed things so that the industrial components blended a little more into the landscape.... as if to say "Yeah, this tower is also a thing of beauty! (Which we happen to NEED to have RIGHT HERE for x y z reason)" ?

I have tried to google for things like this in Google Images, and the best thing i got was photographs of rooftop farming in an urban landscape..... which..... isn't TOO far off. I would like to know if this has been done, and if so, how was it achieved? Plants growing on the industrial structure? Some sort of pretty wall around it that matches other parts of the area? etc...

Has anyone seen this and can offer links to photographs and other information? Perhaps there is a landscaping or city design name for this situation?

Thanks!

216.173.144.188 (talk) 17:12, 4 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Efforts have often been made to camouflage cellular towers in various ways (see the "Camouflage" section near the end of that article). Here is one company that specializes in such things. Deor (talk) 17:35, 4 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

(edit conflict) You mean like cell phone towers that looks like trees: [1] or pumping stations disguised as houses or the disguised oil wells of Los Angeles? --Jayron 32 17:39, 4 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

(edit conflict)This is an example that's surrounded by other urban buildings rather than by landscaping, but you might look at Terminal Tower#External lighting. This is in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. It lights up at night in a variety of colors. There are sometimes multiple colors at the same time, and sometimes only one. The color scheme often changes from day to day. Some nearby buildings also have colored lights shining on the exterior. Albuquerque, New Mexico has something similar. Santa Fe, New Mexico has a building code that buildings should blend in with the desert setting. I suppose that in a more rural setting you could use colored lighting using the natural surrounding colors. Loraof (talk) 17:47, 4 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

(edit conflict)Most redundant gasholders get demolished, but see what they did with the one at King's Cross: [2]. Battersea Power Station has been transformed into apartments. Picking up on Jayron’s point, when the Metropolitan Railway was built it involved the demolition of two houses. Rather than leave a gap in the terrace, two fake facades were built to blend in. 86.171.242.107 (talk) 17:51, 4 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

See also Gasometer, Vienna. ([A gasometer is a form of gasholder.) --76.71.6.254 (talk) 21:17, 4 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

See Leinster Gardens and House in the clouds. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.38.221.49 (talk) 20:15, 4 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Also in London, see Tower Bridge. --76.71.6.254 (talk) 21:18, 4 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

See also Category:Water towers in the United Kingdom. The disguising of water towers in the UK is very common. Like many others, this one has been converted to a private residence.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 08:33, 5 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

The Industrial Revolution left Britain with thousands of structures which were built for a function no longer needed: factories, towers, warehouses, windmills, watermills, etc. The heritage movement especially over the past few decades, has preserved many of them from destruction; those that are not abandoned have had to find a new use. Many of these have been turned into attractive or compelling places to visit, if you like that sort of thing. See Category:Listed industrial buildings by grade. That an edifice is "listed" refers to the Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, so yes, many people consider these structures to be things of beauty. As for blending into the landscape, even a slag heap (Spoil tip) can become ecologically rich and beautiful. Carbon Caryatid (talk) 12:47, 5 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

The UK firm Urban Splash is mainly concerned with converting former industrial structures, or office blocks or even ugly 50s housing schemes into something that fits better with the modern landscape. --TammyMoet (talk) 16:15, 6 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]