Roger Stevens Lecture Hall, University of Leeds


The Building

The Roger Stevens Building was built in 1970 as part of the development of the Leeds University South Campus by the architects Chamberlin Powell and Bon.

The CPB buildings at Leeds were constructed between 1964 and 1976. They are all recognisably by the same practice, although developments of its style can be seen in the later buildings, especially the Roger Stevens Building (1970). 

The west elevation, facing Chancellors Court, has four stepped sections descending from right to left, divided by narrow, vertical, external, semi-circular ventilation shafts. In the bay between the third and fourth sections there is an external staircase projecting in semi-circular bays from the façade. The two left sections are supported on pilotis of diminishing height as the levels of the building descend, with a broad staircase descending from left to right within.

The Photograph

I took this back in summer 2023, as part of the University Open Day tour with my daughter. Brutalist architecture dominates the campus, and this was one of the more prominent examples there.

I have had a couple of attempts to process this picture, but have always been disappointed with how things worked out. For this instance, I new I needed to give prominence to the external staircase whilst also featuring the unusual ventilation structures.

The original picture was taken in fairly bright sunlight, so my handling had to take the underlying shadows into account, which I hope I have managed.

This was taken using a Laowa 9mm f/2.8 lens on a Fuji X-T3.

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