In the hurry to rebuild after World War II, Germany made a significant number of architectural missteps. But while many would like to see the ugliest edifices torn down, some architects say we are stuck with the buildings and that we should learn to embrace these eyesores to find hidden charms in the otherwise charmless. It isn't difficult to describe the plenary hall of the state parliament building in Lower Saxony. It is hideous. Heinous. Revolting. A boxy concrete abomination whose ugliness stands out even amid the abundant architectural putrescence that Hanover has to offer. And soon, if state representatives have their way, the not-quite-50-year-old-building is to be demolished. Good news, right? Not necessarily, say a growing number of architects. Germany, after all, is full of cringe-inducing concrete monoliths, monuments to the orgy of construction that swept the country in the hurry to rebuild after the destruction of World War II. Getting rid of them all would amount to a vast, and expensive, re-reconstruction project. Instead, even as many city renewal projects are marked by a nostalgia for the homey, constricted city centers of old, many architects are saying that ugliness has its virtues -- and it is time to begin recognizing that fact.
In the hurry to rebuild after World War II, Germany made a significant number of architectural missteps. But while many would like to see the ugliest edifices torn down, some architects say we are stuck with the buildings and that we should learn to embrace these eyesores to find hidden charms in the otherwise charmless.
It isn't difficult to describe the plenary hall of the state parliament building in Lower Saxony. It is hideous. Heinous. Revolting. A boxy concrete abomination whose ugliness stands out even amid the abundant architectural putrescence that Hanover has to offer. And soon, if state representatives have their way, the not-quite-50-year-old-building is to be demolished.
Good news, right?
Not necessarily, say a growing number of architects. Germany, after all, is full of cringe-inducing concrete monoliths, monuments to the orgy of construction that swept the country in the hurry to rebuild after the destruction of World War II. Getting rid of them all would amount to a vast, and expensive, re-reconstruction project. Instead, even as many city renewal projects are marked by a nostalgia for the homey, constricted city centers of old, many architects are saying that ugliness has its virtues -- and it is time to begin recognizing that fact.
many architects are saying that ugliness has its virtues
er, would that be german architects?
here in italy there is an inversely proportionsl relationship between how ugly a building is and how many geraniums it has sprouting from its balconies.
seriously, they should just plant ivy all over those loveboxes, that'll take the square-everything edges off pronto, as well as clean the air and provide wildlife habitat... roof gardens too! ~"When an inner situation is not made conscious, it appears outside as fate." Karl Jung~
