Although Brutalism is not my favourite architectural style, I still appreciate it done well. This particular building is It would look better with more maintenance, less graffiti, the absence of litter, and more uncluttered space around it.
Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
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Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#32Absolutely hideous, alienating, and inhuman. Not everything in cities needs to very preserved.
It is actually one of the most alive and welcoming spaces in London.
Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#33hand drawn architectural cross section from the 1960s https://shop.barbican.org.uk/products/pod1049390 edit: misread the title, thought we were talking about the barbican again
That’s of the Barbican, not the Southbank Centre. Still an amazing building, but not the right amazing building!
Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#34Is there something wrong with me that I love Brutalist buildings? The Barbican in London is my favourite building and it feels so futuristic to me for some reason.
Futuristic in a Bladerunner way, not a Star Trek way. The kind of future where it always rains, it’s always nighttime, and people hide themselves away in fear.
I’m sure it would rain all the time in Star Trek were it not for the fact that it’s set on a space ship.
Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#35Always loved the Royal Festival Hall, nice views and things to do.
That whole stretch of the south bank really benefits from the ban on advertising.
Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#36Meanwhile, Anglia Square in Norwich, which looks basically the same, is being demolished. Annoyingly, if you search for Anglia Square, most of the pictures are actually of adjacent Sovereign House. This is what I'm talking about: https://www.edp24.co.uk/resources/images/19194299.jpg/
The car park there has been falling down on it's own for years and the office spaces vacant for decades. If they could knock the flyover down too it would be a boon in my opinion.
The flyover is the real reason the area went to shit. I doubt the Anglia Square gentri^H^H^H^H^H^Hregeneration will make much difference. In London I can't think of any "nice" road flyovers. Railway bridges don't seem to have the same effect.
Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#37A shame. It's a huge complex of fairly sparse buildings right in the centre of the capital city. Listing it just puts big obstacles in front of changing it, which I really wish we could do. People just like how it looks but actually it's not a very useful space for society and I wish it could be changed.
I lived locally for 10 years and visited only a handful of times. Mostly it was just an obstacle in itself: it creates a lot of level changes (read: steps) and moving around it on foot or by bike is annoying.
Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#38Is there something wrong with me that I love Brutalist buildings? The Barbican in London is my favourite building and it feels so futuristic to me for some reason.
Futuristic in a Bladerunner way, not a Star Trek way. The kind of future where it always rains, it’s always nighttime, and people hide themselves away in fear.
The word you're looking for is dystopia (Star Trek being mostly utopia, at least in the original timeline and as far as Earth/the Federation is concerned).
Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#39Absolutely hideous, alienating, and inhuman. Not everything in cities needs to very preserved.
Your username is very similar to mine.
Re: Brutalist Southbank Centre Listed
#40Is there something wrong with me that I love Brutalist buildings? The Barbican in London is my favourite building and it feels so futuristic to me for some reason.
I like them for two reasons:
1. They go really well with greenery. There is a book and social media account that covers this called Brutalist Plants. The contrast works exceptionally well and reminds me of nature-integrated architecture. I’d almost even say that brutalist buildings without the exterior greenery are incomplete.
2. They are buildings created with a visually coherent philosophy, even if we might disagree with it. That makes them more interesting than most contemporary buildings, which are basically just generic shells made for the smallest budget possible.