Modernist architecture has been one of the most influential forms of architecture to consider societal change and social well-being – or at least in theory. Modernism was not exclusively an architectural movement but developed across essentially all artistic fields, responding to technological advances and its effect on society. One of the major principles of Modernism was that ‘form follows function’, meaning that design should develop from its purpose. Another clear belief was that a Modernist building’s form should have a simplicity and clarity, eliminating unnecessary decoration.

Through this came the concept of ‘truth to materials’, which meant that instead of concealing or altering the natural look of a material, it ought to be visible and celebrated. So, materials like concrete, glass and steel tend to dominate Modernist architecture.

Although a movement that began in Europe, its creations and influences can be seen globally. Britain’s Modernism was unique, initially combining aspects of Tudor revivalism and the Arts and Crafts movement. In the 1920s, Art Deco style became fashionable across Britain, especially in the designs of newly popular cinemas palaces. Peter Behrens’ 1925 ‘New Ways’ house in Northampton was one of the UK’s first Modernist buildings, but buildings like this were considered ‘exercises in modernity’ rather than being a genuine part of this new kind of urban design.

Before World War II, most of the Art Deco and Modernist buildings that had been built in Central London tended to be high-status offices or apartment blocks, by firms such as Sir John Burnet, Tait & Lorne. The architect Maxwell Fry saw reinforced concrete as "the revolutionary material par excellence" and put it to use in a 1937 Ladbroke Grove housing scheme called ‘Kensal House’. He intended it to be "no ordinary block of flats but a community in action".

These buildings were not without their critics. Author Evelyn Waugh complained about these Modernist buildings having the appearance of "villas like sewage farms, mansions like half-submerged Channel steamers, offices like vast beehives".

A major element of British interior design that remained during this period was about being cosy, which was hard in open-plan buildings with stark white fronts. As the 1930s progressed, British architecture and design moved away from the cold abstraction of high Modernism to something more accessible and familiar for Britons, with white concrete boxes often being clad in brick and timber.

Following the war and the emigration of several leading European architects to the UK – like the Bauhaus architects – Modernist buildings began to proliferated London’s social housing estates, churches, schools and other civic buildings. Architects like Alison and Peter Smithson aimed to banish cosiness in what came to be known as Brutalism, having created part of Alton Estate in Roehampton.

Architecture had become uncomfortable again, but continually in the service of the community. Brutalist blocks of flats created Le Corbusier-inspired "streets in the sky", intended to mirror the roads in the slums they had replaced. This style has become most famous through Erno Goldfinger's 1968 Trellick Tower in North Kensington.