Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by currymj on Saturday June 20, 2020 @05:39PM
(#23587550)
Habitat 67 in Montreal is a Brutalist concrete building (many cubes) that is generally well-liked and has been a desirable place to live for 50 years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Habitat_67#/media/File:Habitat...
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by dafoex on Saturday June 20, 2020 @07:03PM
(#23588179)
It does look fairly discordant and messy, and I'm not sure if I'd like to try navigating the structure, but there is a symmetry and level of detail that goes above and beyond the typical vision of a concrete cube that the word "brutalism" conjurs. From the top it looks really nice with the floor detail and the incorporated plantlife and greenery.
Its perhaps too large of a building for my liking, and it feels a little bit "minecraft" with seemingly unsupported cubic shapes, but it also has a nice focus on human scale details that make it actually interesting to be in and around.
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by thisiszilff on Saturday June 20, 2020 @06:30PM
(#23587952)
I love brutalism when it includes plantlife. Another example is the Barbican Estate in London. Without plant life though, I agree with the article, brutalism looks too bleak.
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by amiga_500 on Saturday June 20, 2020 @05:42PM
(#23587576)
The guided tour is excellent. This architect had a real vision around usage and bought one apartment to stop it being refurbished.
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by oldgradstudent on Saturday June 20, 2020 @04:41PM
(#23587108)
> Whereas it's not clear that any brutalist concrete cube will withstand the test of time.
Some brutalist buildings must be left standing as a warning for future generations.
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by rm445 on Saturday June 20, 2020 @04:45PM
(#23587142)
This place is not a place of honor... no highly esteemed deed is commemorated here... nothing valued is here.
What is here was dangerous and repulsive to us. This message is a warning about danger.
The danger is in a particular location... it increases towards a center... the center of danger is here... of a particular size and shape, and below us.
The danger is still present, in your time, as it was in ours.
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by marcosdumay on Saturday June 20, 2020 @11:05PM
(#23589405)
Maybe a few blocks of brutalist buildings would work better than the spikes.
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by DonHopkins on Saturday June 20, 2020 @06:42PM
(#23588043)
Just fill their insides up with solid concrete, to prevent people from entering them and having their souls sucked out.
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by WalterBright on Saturday June 20, 2020 @07:20PM
(#23588289)
I don't want to live in a building that looks like a bunker. At least put some arrow slits in and add a portcullis if you're going to do that.
Re:Why people hate contemporary architecture (2017)
by 0_gravitas on Saturday June 20, 2020 @10:53PM
(#23589367)
I adore concrete cubes, and they often look so similar, what luck!
Consider this view as a thought experiment: say every Norman cathedral was beautiful. Maybe some were inspired and some were pedestrian, some were less beautiful because of the locally-available stone, some had long delays in construction and ended up with a mishmash of styles. Or whatever. You could filter them by appeal, or randomly, or any other method, and still end up with a bunch of beautiful buildings. Whereas it's not clear that any brutalist concrete cube will withstand the test of time. GIGO.