Archinect - News

"Great brutalist buildings, it turns out, have soul"

2016-09-29T13:27:00-04:00

In this thoughtful ode to the unexpected charms of brutalism, Felix Salmon explores why the formerly nightmarish architectural style is experiencing a renaissance, or at least a renewed appreciation. Salmon's observation that ubiquitous, unimaginative glass towers have replaced brutalism as the new hated icon of class strife is ace:

"The international style evolved, and not well. What used to be aspirational started becoming an in-your-face statement of conspicuous consumption. The gauche gaudiness of was embraced not only where you might expect it (the Wynn towers of Las Vegas, say), but also in places with real history, such as New York City. Go to Columbus Circle today, for instance, and you’ll see Christian de Portzamparc’s billionaire condos at One57 face off against 'a 1950s international style glass skyscraper in a 1980s gold lame party dress,' as Muschamp described the Trump International Hotel. Such erections generate almost as much hatred today as the worst mistakes of brut...

San Francisco could face "class warfare" if it doesn't fix its economic inequality

2016-06-27T15:31:00-04:00

If causal factors leading to housing unaffordability are not resolved over multiple generations, the social stratification will start to resemble countries like Russia, where a small elite control a vast share of the country’s total wealth. The result? A society where the threat of class warfare would loom large. [...] San Francisco and the Bay Area have long been committed to values which embrace inclusivity and counterculture. To see these values fraying so publicly adds insult to injury

More from San Francisco's housing crisis on Archinect:

Designing "a dystopian edge" into the 1970s consumerism of J.G. Ballard's "High-Rise"

2016-03-10T05:10:00-05:00

graphic artists Michael Eaton and Felicity Hickson designed a wide range of props, from books and cigarette packs to the entire contents of a supermarket ... to help cement the look and feel of 1970s apartment living [...] the film follows Dr Robert Laing ... as he adjusts to his new life as a tenant on the 25th floor and explores the relationships between the building’s various social groups and the tribal mentalities that emerge as the tower gradually descends into chaos.

In any discussion of poor doors, newly urbanized class structures, or gentrification, there's a spot for J.G. Ballard's "High-Rise" (1975). Check out the trailer for the film adaptation, directed by Ben Wheatley, below.