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Brutalist architecture

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File:Trellictower.jpg
Trellick Tower, London
(Goldfinger 1972)
File:SFU 2.jpg
Simon Fraser University, British Columbia
(Erickson/Massey 1965)
File:SouthBankCentre02.jpg
Royal National Theatre, London
(Lasdun 1976)
File:Regenstein Library, University of Chicago.jpg
Regenstein Library, Chicago
(Netsch 1970)
File:Cameron Offices.jpg
Cameron Offices, Canberra
(Andrews 1972)
File:Trsunset.jpg
Tricorn Centre, Portsmouth UK
(Luder 1964)
Home Office building, London
(Spence 1976)
File:Rees memorial carillon.jpg
Thomas Rees Memorial Carillon, Springfield, Illinois
(Turley 1962)
File:Artmuseu.jpg
Indiana University Art Museum, Bloomington, Indiana (Pei 1972)

Brutalism is an architectural style that spawned from the Modernist architectural movement and which flourished from the 1950s to the 1970s. The early style was largely inspired by the work of Swiss architect, Le Corbusier (in particular his Unité d'Habitation building) and of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. The term originates from the French béton brut, or "raw concrete" - the style being characterised by exposed rough concrete often proudly revealing the textures of the wooden forms in which it had been poured, and large blockish designs. Poured concrete freed architecture from posts and beams, and the best brutalist architecture expressed this. At the same time, theories of Brutalism raised disregard for the social, historic, and architectural environment to a fashion statement; consequently Brutalism took a lot of heat for the decay of urban centres that accompanied this phase of Modernism.

Style

Boston City Hall, part of Government Center, Boston, Massachusetts
(Pei et. al. 1969)

Brutalism is related and similar to (and often confused with) the Modernist, Minimalist and Internationalist styles of architecture. All of these styles make heavy use of repetition and regularity in their features, but brutalist designs also often incorporate striking, abject irregularities as well.

Another common theme in brutalist designs is the exposition of the building's functions -- ranging from their structure and services to their actual human use -- in the exterior of the building. In the Boston City Hall (illustration, left), strikingly different and projected portions of the building indicate the special nature of the rooms behind those walls, such as the mayor's office or the city council chambers. From another perspective of this theme, the design of the Hunstanton Secondary School included placing the facility's water tank, a normally hidden service feature, in a prominently placed and visible tower. At the same time, critics noted that brutalism is often aggressively uncommunicative about how it should be negotiated by its visitor: the entrance for instance is rarely exhibited in an obvious way.

History

Brutalism gained large momentum in Britain during the middle 20th century, as economically depressed (and WWII-ravaged) communities sought inexpensive construction and design methods for low-cost housing, shopping centers, and government buildings. Combined with the socially progressive intentions behind brutalist "streets in the sky" housings like Corbusier's Unité, brutalism was promoted as a positive option for forward-moving, modern urban housing. In practice however, many of the buildings lacked many of the community-serving features of Corbusier's vision, and instead developed into claustrophobic, crime-ridden tenements. Some such buildings took decades to develop into positive communities. The rough coolness of concrete lost its appeal under a damp and gray northern sky, and its fortress-like material touted as vandalproof soon proved vulnerable to spray-can graffiti.

Brutalist designs were also often initially criticised as eyesores. the current Fodor's guide to london mentions the Home office structure as "hulking." Because the style is essentially that of poured concrete it tends to be inexpensive to build and maintain (but very difficult to modify). However, in the case of Trellick Tower, the design has ultimately proved very popular with both tenants and owner-occupier residents. In time, many brutalist structures become appreciated as landmarks by their communities for their uniqueness and eye-catching appearance.

In recent years, the bad memories of underserved Brutalist community structures have led to their eager demolition to make way for newer, more traditionally oriented community structures. Despite a nascent Modernist appreciation movement, and the identified success that some of this style's offspring have had, many others have been or are slated to be demolished.

Figures

Architects associated with the brutalist style include Erno Goldfinger, husband-and-wife pairing Peter and Alison Smithson, and, to a lesser extent perhaps, Sir Denys Lasdun. Outside of Britain, Louis Kahn's government buildings in Asia and John Andrews's government and institutional structures in Australia exhibit the creative height of the style. More recent Modernists such as I.M. Pei and Tadao Ando have also designed notable Brutalist works.

List of brutalist structures

(Structure name, location, architect(s), year built)

See also

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