A Soviet-era airport, once the height of luxury, faces demolition in Armenia

Re:A Soviet-era airport, once the height of luxury, faces de... by Nursie on Friday September 21, 2018 @12:00PM (#18040635)

It's unlikely to be popular in the UK again any time soon, it reeks of depressing grey misery and inhuman, unfriendly architecture. It also reeks of crap 1960s city centres.

I hope this 'revival' is strangled in infancy.

I also disagree that it is function in form - brutalist buildings often fail to perform their function well, usually due to ignoring human factors like requiring light and air, or encouraging criminality and vandalism by having dark, semi-accessible corners.

I look at brutalist structures like the Heyward Gallery and despair that anyone could have thought inflicting that on the world was doing it good, when looking across the river at what else London has to offer.

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Re:A Soviet-era airport, once the height of luxury, faces de... by bopbop on Friday September 21, 2018 @03:51PM (#18042178)

Whether an individual building performs its function well or not, its still a central tenet of Brutalism to embed the function in the form.

I appreciate that if everything was Brutalist it would be an overwhelming sight, but I definitely think it has its place.

I'm also not keen on the Hayward personally, but places like Brunel University, the Barbican and the airport in the article have a really nice reduced functionalist style with interesting angles and use of glass.

Edit: Also in terms of popularity of Brutalism, the Barbican is constantly getting praise, and I think has or had architecture tours happening.

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Re:A Soviet-era airport, once the height of luxury, faces de... by Nursie on Monday September 24, 2018 @02:45AM (#18055530)

I also find this sort of thing very telling, about a residential estate many considered to be some of the finest the movement had to offer -

"The campaign to save Robin Hood Gardens drew very little support from those who actually had to live in the building, with more than 75% of residents supporting its demolition when consulted by the local authority."

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Re:A Soviet-era airport, once the height of luxury, faces de... by Nursie on Sunday September 23, 2018 @07:24AM (#18050562)

The Barbican does get praised.

To me it still looks violence, depression and poverty, summed up in miserable, grey-brown concrete.

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