St. Peters Seminary.
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St. Peters Seminary was a Roman Catholic Seminary located in Cardross Scotland, the seminary was built to house 100 priests and was commissioned by architects Gillespie Kidd and Coia, building work commenced in 1961 but the building wasnt opened to the church until 1966 and fully completed until 1968.
What made St. Peters stand out was its brutalist 60s concrete architecture and something the Roman Catholic church wouldnt usually go for, the building compramised of a five-storey accommodation block, which employed a stepped cross section, where the upper bedroom floors defined the communal spaces of the refectory and the chapel below.
The building was a complex composition; strong horizontal in-situ concrete floor planes, with timber and glass infill walls contrasted with tall, curved and heavily rendered walls.
The building was never fully occupied, the result of falling numbers of priests and changing attitudes to their training; only half full on completion, by 1979 there were only 21 trainee priests, and the seminary finally closed in 1980.
During the time it was inhabited it constantly suffered with water ingress and constant maintenance problems due to its complex design.
Shortly after the church vacated the seminary it was converted into a drug rehabilitation centre until this to closed in the late 80s.
Since then its fell prey to severe neglect and vandalism, and was set fire to in 1995 the resulting attack completely gutted the building and nearly everything was destroyed, all that remains now is and empty shell which in parts is rather dangerous.
The building is actually Grade 1 listed now and has been described as one of Scotland's greatest post-WWII buildings, its also been included in the World Monuments Fund's '100 Most Endangered Sites' list.
Despite it only being a shell it really is and imposing and impressive site, and very atmospheric, the clean minimal lines that flow through the building are superb, and the abundance of concrete is eye catching, everything about the place is striking and demands you to admire it.
From its simplistic layout to its complex design and shape St. Peters really is superb in every way, its just a shame its in such poor condition now.
Putting it on the listed status though will ensure it stays around for a long time to come.
A truly magnificent structure.
Date : July 2008 : Location : Scotland : Explorers : Havoc : Lawrence : Bungle
