Ten unique vents that tell the story of Britain's underground industrial history

From an art nouveau column in Aberdeen to a slate-clad vent that blends into the Snowdonia landscape, authors Lucy Lavers, Judy Ovens and Suzanna Prizeman have selected 10 unique ventilation shafts from their book Adventurous Vents.

Published by Particular Books, Adventurous Vents: A Journey through the Ventilation Shafts of Britain documents one hundred vents, ranging from the 18th to the 21st century, which cool and ventilate underground tunnels, sewers, mines, car parks and energy stations.

Architect Lavers and art historians Ovens and Prizeman wanted to explore vents from around Britain following the success of their book Inventive Vents, which looked at ventilation structures in London.

Listed in the book from oldest to newest, the trio told Dezeen that the vents reveal a novel side of the country's industrial past.

"Presenting the vents in chronological order allows the book to tell the story of Britain's underground industrial and service history in an unusual way – from the first forays into mining, canal and railway tunnelling to the cleaner power solutions and high-speed railways of today," said Lavers, Ovens and Prizeman.

"The clustering of vents in towns and cities also gives us a picture of how the infrastructure of urban areas developed over time," they continued.

"It is fascinating to observe how the design of vents has evolved over time, reflecting the ambitions and artistic aspirations of each era, as well as advances in materials, construction, and safety practices."

The authors hope that Adventurous Vents will help draw attention to the important functions that ventilation shafts fulfil as well as their interesting designs, which vary from forms that stand out as ventilators to those disguised as buildings or monuments.

"Vents are endlessly intriguing, appearing in unexpected places and prompting us to wonder what lies beneath the ground that requires ventilation, while taking on countless forms that demand our attention," said Lavers, Ovens and Prizeman.

"All subterranean spaces require ventilation, and yet the shafts are largely overlooked," they continued. "The structures themselves, often disguised as statues, sculptures or small buildings, present a fascinating architectural typology where designers and architects have been able to find creative ways to make these vital structures an interesting part of the built environment."

Read on for Lavers, Ovens and Prizeman's 10 favourite vents featured in Adventurous Vents:

The Candlestick, Cumbria, by Sydney Smirke, 1838

"Part of the Lowther family's extensive coal-mining operation at Whitehaven, this ventilation shaft was modelled on the family's favourite candle holder by Sydney Smirke.

"It now serves as an elegant memorial to miners killed in the Wellington Pit disaster of 1910."

Kilsby Railway Tunnel, Northamptonshire, by Robert Stephenson, 1838

"Vents for a very early railway tunnel and magnificent in their medieval castle aesthetic.

"[They were] designed to be much bigger than actually needed by Robert Stephenson to reassure the worried public that they wouldn't suffocate in the tunnel."

Justice Mill Lane Ventilator, Aberdeen, by W MacFarlane and Co, 1905

"A wonderfully detailed and colourful art nouveau column made by W MacFarlane and Co at their Saracen Foundry in Glasgow.

"It used to ventilate Aberdeen's cable subway that houses electricity cables, bringing power to the city centre."

Big Pit Fan House, Torfaen, by Blaenavon Co, 1909

"The pit closed in 1980, but it is now part of the National Coal Mining Museum for Wales.

"The working fan house extracts poisonous gases in the tunnels below, enabling visitors to descend safely into an underground coal-mining experience."

Kingsway Tunnel, Liverpool, by Edmund Nuttal Sons and Co, 1971

"Huge and impressive rocket-like structures rising up on either side of the Mersey.

"Made of concrete and brutalist in style, they reflect the space-age preoccupations of the 1960s and 70s."

Camberwell Submarine, London, by Bill Jacoby and Michael Luffingham, 1979

"Often thought to be a Cold War bunker, the Camberwell Submarine in fact provides ventilation for a subterranean boiler room created in the 1970s to service the surrounding housing estate.

"Its intriguing shape has made it a firm favourite amongst vent connoisseurs."

Electric Mountain Hydro-Electric Power Station, Snowdonia, by James Williamson and Partners, 1984

"Perched on top of Elidir Fawr, or 'Electric Mountain', this vent has spectacular views across Snowdonia.

"With its slate cladding, it rather blends into the landscape, but looking down to the hydro-electric power station it services, far below, it is very impressive to think how deep the shaft must be."

Culling Road Jubilee Line Extension, London, by Ritchie Studio, 1999

"One of the group of mid-tunnel vents designed by Ian Ritchie Architects for the Jubilee Line Extension in the 1990s, [Culling Road is] a very original structure that emphasises the flow element of its purpose with circular and bulging forms, all covered in green patinated copper sheets."

Teesside University Campus, North Yorkshire, by Austin-Smith:Lord, 2016

"Six Corten steel vents looking like robotic sentries in Teesside University's central square, Campus Heart, serve a dual purpose of providing light for the square and ventilation for the new university building, the Curve."

Tower of Light, Manchester, by Tonkin Liu, 2022

"An ornate and very attractive tower designed by Tonkin Liu to house the flues for Manchester's new Civic Quarter Heat Network and Energy Centre.

"The pierced steel structure creates a lace effect that is animated by internal mirrors in the daylight and LED lights at night."

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