How Brutalism Became The World S Most Hated Architecture

Born out of England’s need to quickly rebuild after World War II, Brutalist architecture is characterized by its divisive use of raw concrete and clunky design.

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1 of 35Briggs Hall at the the University of California, Davis, CA.u/Sky_Night_Lancer/Reddit 2 of 35"House," by Matteo Casari in Bergamo, Italy. u/exhaggerated_imagine/reddit 3 of 35A man practices parkour in the Brutalist Freeway Park in Seattle, Washington. Joe Mabel/Wikimedia Commons 4 of 35La Casa Del Portuale, Napoli, Italy, by Aldo Loris Ross.u/earthmoonsun/reddit 5 of 35Boston City Hall, designed by Kallmann McKinnell & Knowles. asoundtrackforeveryone/Flickr 6 of 35Geisel Library in LaJolla, California. It’s named in honor of Audrey and Theodor Seuss Geisel, who is popularly known as Dr. Suess, and houses over 8,500 pieces of Dr. Suess memorabilia. Antoine Taveneaux/Wikimedia Commons
7 of 35Church of the Holy Trinity, Vienna, Austria. 1964. Kramar/SOSBrutalism

8 of 35The Clock Tower Building at Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, California. Designed in 1972. u/archineering/reddit

9 of 35Church of the Holy Spirit in Emmerich, Germany. 1966. Raimond Spekking/SOSBrutalism

10 of 35Etoiles d’Ivry Apartments in Paris, France. Guilhem Vellut/Wikimedia Commons 11 of 35Habib Bank Plaza in Karachi, Pakistan. Designed by Leo A. Daly in 1963. It was briefly the tallest building in Asia.
Furqanlw/Wikimedia Commons 12 of 35Known by Geelong (a city southwest of Melbourne, Australia) locals as the “Upside-Down” building, this Brutalist icon is better known as the State Government Offices. Rob Deutscher/Wikimedia Commons 13 of 35Hotel International in Bucharest, Romania. Britchi Mirela/Wikimedia Commons 14 of 35Hubert H. Humphrey Building, located at the foot of Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. Picryl

15 of 35Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Rossi101/Wikimedia Commons

16 of 35Kuwait Embassy and Chancellery of Japan, at Mita Tokyo Japan, design by Kenzo Tange in 1970.
Wiiii/Wikimedia Commons 17 of 35London National Theater. Aurelien Guichard/Wikimedia Commons 18 of 35Maisons Jaoul are a celebrated pair of houses in the upmarket Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine, designed by Le Corbusier and built in 1954 to 56. seier+seier/Wikimedia

19 of 35Milwaukee County War Memorial Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Peter Alfred Hess/Wikimedia Commons 20 of 35Canada Ring in Lahr, Germany. Designed by Heinrich Doll, Hans Walter Henrich, and Klaus Humpert. 1959.
u/archineering/reddit 21 of 35National Library, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Phillip Capper/Wikimedia Commons

22 of 35Façade of Torres Blancas, a building in Madrid, Spain.
Luis García/Wikimedia Commons 23 of 35Palazzo di Giustizia in Florence, Italy. Freepenguin/Wikimedia Commons 24 of 35A residential compound known as the ATER near Triest, Italy. Webverbesserer/Wikimedia Commons 25 of 35Paul Rudolph’s Burroughs Wellcome Headquarters in New York, NY. Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation/Facebook 26 of 35Plac Grunwaldzki, Wrocław, Poland, 1982. Kramar/SOSBrutalism 27 of 35Brutalist government building in Portugal. Andrew Mcmillan/Wikimedia Commons

28 of 35Hydro-Québec Berri Station, an electrical sub-station in the Greater Montreal Area. Bouchecl/Wikimedia Commons 29 of 35The Viger Electrical Substation in Montreal. u/ProposMontreal/reddit

30 of 35River God Tyne Sculpture, Newcastle Civic Centre. This is a bronze sculpture by David Wynne. It was commissioned for the Civic Centre’s opening in 1968. Graham Robson/SOSBrutalism

31 of 35Robarts Library, University of Toronto. stu_spivack/Wikimedia Commons 32 of 35Robin Hood Gardens, Brutalist housing in East London. pixelhut/Flickr
33 of 35Saga Prefectural Museum, Saga, Japan. 1969. u/archineering/reddit 34 of 35Bell tower at University of Mary, Bismarck, North Dakota. Cecilia/Wikimedia Commons

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35 Photos Of Brutalism, The Architectural Style That Artists Love To Hate View Gallery

There’s probably no architectural style of the last century that is more controversial than Brutalism.

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33 Stunning Photos Of Old Penn Station, Once An Architectural Marvel Before It Was Demolished

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8 of 35The Clock Tower Building at Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, California. Designed in 1972. u/archineering/reddit

9 of 35Church of the Holy Spirit in Emmerich, Germany. 1966. Raimond Spekking/SOSBrutalism

15 of 35Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Rossi101/Wikimedia Commons

28 of 35Hydro-Québec Berri Station, an electrical sub-station in the Greater Montreal Area. Bouchecl/Wikimedia Commons 29 of 35The Viger Electrical Substation in Montreal. u/ProposMontreal/reddit

30 of 35River God Tyne Sculpture, Newcastle Civic Centre. This is a bronze sculpture by David Wynne. It was commissioned for the Civic Centre’s opening in 1968. Graham Robson/SOSBrutalism

35 of 35Like this gallery?Share it:

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Like this gallery?Share it:

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And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts:

33 Stunning Photos Of Old Penn Station, Once An Architectural Marvel Before It Was Demolished

Old New York Before The Skyscrapers In 39 Vintage Photos

Four Architectural Wonders Of India

8 of 35The Clock Tower Building at Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, California. Designed in 1972. u/archineering/reddit

9 of 35Church of the Holy Spirit in Emmerich, Germany. 1966. Raimond Spekking/SOSBrutalism

15 of 35Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Rossi101/Wikimedia Commons

28 of 35Hydro-Québec Berri Station, an electrical sub-station in the Greater Montreal Area. Bouchecl/Wikimedia Commons 29 of 35The Viger Electrical Substation in Montreal. u/ProposMontreal/reddit

30 of 35River God Tyne Sculpture, Newcastle Civic Centre. This is a bronze sculpture by David Wynne. It was commissioned for the Civic Centre’s opening in 1968. Graham Robson/SOSBrutalism

35 of 35Like this gallery?Share it:

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Like this gallery?Share it:

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And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts:

33 Stunning Photos Of Old Penn Station, Once An Architectural Marvel Before It Was Demolished

Old New York Before The Skyscrapers In 39 Vintage Photos

Four Architectural Wonders Of India

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8 of 35The Clock Tower Building at Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, California. Designed in 1972. u/archineering/reddit

9 of 35Church of the Holy Spirit in Emmerich, Germany. 1966. Raimond Spekking/SOSBrutalism

15 of 35Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Rossi101/Wikimedia Commons

28 of 35Hydro-Québec Berri Station, an electrical sub-station in the Greater Montreal Area. Bouchecl/Wikimedia Commons 29 of 35The Viger Electrical Substation in Montreal. u/ProposMontreal/reddit

30 of 35River God Tyne Sculpture, Newcastle Civic Centre. This is a bronze sculpture by David Wynne. It was commissioned for the Civic Centre’s opening in 1968. Graham Robson/SOSBrutalism

35 of 35Like this gallery?Share it:

Flipboard

1 of 35Briggs Hall at the the University of California, Davis, CA.u/Sky_Night_Lancer/Reddit

2 of 35"House," by Matteo Casari in Bergamo, Italy. u/exhaggerated_imagine/reddit

3 of 35A man practices parkour in the Brutalist Freeway Park in Seattle, Washington. Joe Mabel/Wikimedia Commons

4 of 35La Casa Del Portuale, Napoli, Italy, by Aldo Loris Ross.u/earthmoonsun/reddit

5 of 35Boston City Hall, designed by Kallmann McKinnell & Knowles. asoundtrackforeveryone/Flickr

6 of 35Geisel Library in LaJolla, California. It’s named in honor of Audrey and Theodor Seuss Geisel, who is popularly known as Dr. Suess, and houses over 8,500 pieces of Dr. Suess memorabilia. Antoine Taveneaux/Wikimedia Commons

7 of 35Church of the Holy Trinity, Vienna, Austria. 1964. Kramar/SOSBrutalism

8 of 35The Clock Tower Building at Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, California. Designed in 1972. u/archineering/reddit

9 of 35Church of the Holy Spirit in Emmerich, Germany. 1966. Raimond Spekking/SOSBrutalism

10 of 35Etoiles d’Ivry Apartments in Paris, France. Guilhem Vellut/Wikimedia Commons

11 of 35Habib Bank Plaza in Karachi, Pakistan. Designed by Leo A. Daly in 1963. It was briefly the tallest building in Asia.
Furqanlw/Wikimedia Commons

12 of 35Known by Geelong (a city southwest of Melbourne, Australia) locals as the “Upside-Down” building, this Brutalist icon is better known as the State Government Offices. Rob Deutscher/Wikimedia Commons

13 of 35Hotel International in Bucharest, Romania. Britchi Mirela/Wikimedia Commons

14 of 35Hubert H. Humphrey Building, located at the foot of Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. Picryl

15 of 35Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Rossi101/Wikimedia Commons

16 of 35Kuwait Embassy and Chancellery of Japan, at Mita Tokyo Japan, design by Kenzo Tange in 1970.
Wiiii/Wikimedia Commons

17 of 35London National Theater. Aurelien Guichard/Wikimedia Commons

18 of 35Maisons Jaoul are a celebrated pair of houses in the upmarket Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine, designed by Le Corbusier and built in 1954 to 56. seier+seier/Wikimedia

19 of 35Milwaukee County War Memorial Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Peter Alfred Hess/Wikimedia Commons

20 of 35Canada Ring in Lahr, Germany. Designed by Heinrich Doll, Hans Walter Henrich, and Klaus Humpert. 1959.
u/archineering/reddit

21 of 35National Library, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Phillip Capper/Wikimedia Commons

22 of 35Façade of Torres Blancas, a building in Madrid, Spain.
Luis García/Wikimedia Commons

23 of 35Palazzo di Giustizia in Florence, Italy. Freepenguin/Wikimedia Commons

24 of 35A residential compound known as the ATER near Triest, Italy. Webverbesserer/Wikimedia Commons

25 of 35Paul Rudolph’s Burroughs Wellcome Headquarters in New York, NY. Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation/Facebook

26 of 35Plac Grunwaldzki, Wrocław, Poland, 1982. Kramar/SOSBrutalism

27 of 35Brutalist government building in Portugal. Andrew Mcmillan/Wikimedia Commons

28 of 35Hydro-Québec Berri Station, an electrical sub-station in the Greater Montreal Area. Bouchecl/Wikimedia Commons

29 of 35The Viger Electrical Substation in Montreal. u/ProposMontreal/reddit

30 of 35River God Tyne Sculpture, Newcastle Civic Centre. This is a bronze sculpture by David Wynne. It was commissioned for the Civic Centre’s opening in 1968. Graham Robson/SOSBrutalism

31 of 35Robarts Library, University of Toronto. stu_spivack/Wikimedia Commons

32 of 35Robin Hood Gardens, Brutalist housing in East London. pixelhut/Flickr

33 of 35Saga Prefectural Museum, Saga, Japan. 1969. u/archineering/reddit

34 of 35Bell tower at University of Mary, Bismarck, North Dakota. Cecilia/Wikimedia Commons

35 of 35Like this gallery?Share it:

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35 Photos Of Brutalism, The Architectural Style That Artists Love To Hate View Gallery

35 Photos Of Brutalism, The Architectural Style That Artists Love To Hate

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Brutalist art started out as the practice of function over form and was viewed as a quick way to rebuild urban areas of Great Britain after World War II. It was primarily used for low-cost social housing, but it soon spread to institutional buildings, universities, government buildings, and libraries as well.

The name and style stem from the phrase “beton brut,” which is French for “raw concrete.” Despite its sparse, clunky design, Brutalism was introduced as a modern take on architecture — though few people welcomed its existence.

Brutalism Was Born Out Of Necessity

Iantomferry/Wikimedia CommonsEast elevation of Unité d’habitation, in Marseille, France, is built in the style of Brutalism.

Brutalist art was a form born out of necessity. Material shortages in the post-World War II period demanded that concrete and brick, along with timber, were used in the majority of urban rebuilding. These elements would remain as they were found: unfinished and raw. This lack of material ultimately helped to define the style of Brutalist art.

The style is also based on the ideas of a Swiss-French architect named Le Corbusier, who believed that style should follow function.

A watchmaker-turned-artist, Le Corbusier (born Charles-Edouard Jeanneret) published the book Vers une Architecture in 1923, in which he famously declares, “A house is a machine for living in” and “a curved street is a donkey track; a straight street, a road for men.”

Le Corbusier’s articles proposed a new kind of architecture, one that would satisfy the demands of the post-war industry. Of course, there are many designers who contributed to the movement, such as British architects like Alison and Peter Smithson.

Joop van Bilsen / Anefo/Wikimedia Commons A portrait of Le Corbusier.

Described as cold and soulless, heavy and imposing, Brutalism is often associated with totalitarianism. In fact, many Brutalist structures do appear similar to buildings in Stalin’s Soviet Union.

In an interview with Atlas Obscura, photographer and Brutalist enthusiast Ty Cole described the style’s history in this way:

Le Corbusier’s social ideals and structural theories soon became reality. He designed Unité d’habitation buildings, which were modernist residential apartments that contained shops, restaurants, and even schools. He envisioned a whole city under one roof, surrounded by a park-like setting.

The most popular of these are the Unité d’habitation in Marseille, France, la Cité Radieuse, (also in Marseille) and Berlin’s Unité.

The Style Divides Tastes

u/CJ105/redditTricorn Shopping Center in Portsmouth, U.K.

Because Brutalism was something altogether different from previous architectural styles, it was polarizing when it was first introduced.

Prince Charles of Wales, for example, was Brutalist enemy number one. When he paid a visit to the Brutalist Birmingham Library over three decades ago, he purportedly likened it to a place where books are burned rather than put on loan. He also described the Brutalist Tricorn shopping center in Portsmouth, England designed by architect Rodney Gordon in the ’60s as “a mildewed lump of elephant droppings.”

Those who were fans of the style expressed their feelings just as strongly as those who were against it. Fans said of the Tricorn building, “There are as many ideas in a single Gordon building as there are in the entire careers of most architects,” and that to behold the building was to feel oneself “in the presence of genius.”

Tricorn was razed in 2004.

Polarizing, indeed. However, there are many examples of beauty and creativity within the style, and this is likely what has sparked its revival.

It’s important to note that Brutalism and the “New Brutalism” of today resist a singular stylistic definition, as the term has come to be used for anything concrete. Brutalist buildings are not always concrete, but they do blatantly place the focus on their materials or forms.

The revival appears to be rooted in an appreciation (and the preservation of) still-standing Brutalist buildings.

Preservation Efforts Today

Fred Romero/Wikimedia CommonsCité radieuse, in Marseille, France.

In New York, Brutalist enthusiasts battled to save architect Paul Rudolph’s Orange County Government Center from demolition — to limited success.

The city decided to only partially remove the eye-popping jumbled pile of blocks, whose “aesthetically lacking” exterior was countered by a politically consequential interior. Rudolph’s atrium design forced government officials to interact with citizens, which the former often found to be an impediment to their work.

Meanwhile, in Boston, many administrative and academic buildings have been characterized as Brutalist, and a group of architects has attempted to reposition Brutalism through a discursive shift. The group aims to rebrand these structures as “Heroic” and reestablish the utilitarian ethos behind the style.

Now, there is #SOSBrutalism, a burgeoning campaign to save what supporters call our “beloved concrete monsters.” The campaign is anchored to a growing database that currently contains over 1,900 Brutalist buildings. If you tag a building photo with #SOSBrutalism on social media, it will be checked to see if it’s already included in the database.

Will Brutalist Architecture See A Revival?

Inside Germany’s #SOSBRutalism effort to save the controversial architectural style.

Beyond physical preservation efforts, fans of Brutalism are attempting to cement the style into pop culture. They hope these efforts will help rebuild an appreciation of the style critics love to hate.

Inside Germany’s #SOSBRutalism effort to save the controversial architectural style.

One way people have preserved Brutalist structures is through compromise. In the ’90s, Ivor Smith’s Brutalist Park Hill apartment block avoided destruction by having its interiors renovated. In addition, others have been granted UNESCO Heritage Site honors as standing tributes to Brutalism.

Builders are now softening many defining aspects of the style in both existing buildings and new construction. Concrete façades are sandblasted to create a more stone-like look or covered in stucco.

While no one knows exactly why the popularity of Brutalism has risen in recent years, GQ’s Brad Dunning has a theory:

Instead of destroying what may be easy to dislike on a superficial level, perhaps we should construct a deeper understanding of what the style attempted — and succeeded in — doing.

After this look at Brutalist art and architecture, check out the Ecuadorian cemetery in Tulcán that’s decorated with life-sized whimsical topiaries. Then, explore some stunning examples of ancient architecture from around the world.

Born out of England’s need to quickly rebuild after World War II, Brutalist architecture is characterized by its divisive use of raw concrete and clunky design.#

Brutalism Was Born Out Of Necessity#

The Style Divides Tastes#

Preservation Efforts Today#

Will Brutalist Architecture See A Revival?#

Born out of England’s need to quickly rebuild after World War II, Brutalist architecture is characterized by its divisive use of raw concrete and clunky design.

Brutalism Was Born Out Of Necessity

The Style Divides Tastes

Preservation Efforts Today

Will Brutalist Architecture See A Revival?