‘If I had to say which was telling the truth about society, a speech by a minister of housing or the actual buildings put up in his time, I should believe the buildings.’
So said Kenneth Clark in his unsurpassed Civilisation. I haven’t listened to any speeches by India’s or Maharashtra state’s ministers of housing, but I hope the new terminal at Bombay’s international airport is telling the truth about their country. Opened in February, it is a triumph: not just the greatest airport building in the world, but a strong contender for the greatest of all buildings of the 21st century so far.
I’ve done quite a bit of travelling in the past few months, and have been inside my share of airports. At London City – which, given the price of any flight in or out, is supposed to be a treat – I found myself asking whether it was necessary for my surroundings to consist so exclusively of flat, grey plastic and metal.
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