The American industrial look meets the English tradition

Dunstable, a quintessentially English town in the eastern county of Bedfordshire, stands out for its traditional red-brick houses with twin-chimneyed roofs and large decorative windows. Thanks to its proximity to Luton, London’s fourth airport, the town has become a popular destination over the last fifteen years for people who work in the capital but want to live life at a less hectic pace. But at the same time it has a lively sense of modernity that is particularly evident in its public spaces, especially the shopping centres where one can spend hours seeking out bargains.
The largest of these is the Quadrant Shopping Centre, which combines precise geometries and contemporary architecture with a clear reference to the English tradition of red bricks and large windows. One of its most popular attractions is the Burger King fast food restaurant, whose famously varied and tasty menu draws a large clientele. The restaurant consists of a large, welcoming open space which combines a uniquely English atmosphere with a modern, industrial style. This reference to both industrial culture and the English tradition is rendered masterfully by the Brick Generation collection, Bristol line from Rondine. Bricks in a 6×25 cm size and a range of colours from red through to brown and black have been set side-by-side to create a warm, intimate atmosphere. The furnishings and design solutions give the Burger King restaurant a modern, metropolitan feel, a kind of loft style that is ideal for this youthful, dynamic space.
The strong, bold colours of the walls create a unique atmosphere, a cross between the architecture of Victorian England and the modern industrial style that in the eighties and nineties dominated Europe’s most alternative cities such as London, Berlin and Barcelona. In recent years, this style has regained popularity for the interior design of public spaces and even homes. The underlying principle is a harmonious juxtaposition of modernity and vintage to create welcoming spaces with original and simple appeal.
True to its rural traditions and distinctive architecture, England retains a profound metropolitan identity that even outside the capital finds a valuable ally in the industrial style.