The Resurrection of Cold ArchitectureHaving fallen out of favor by the end of the last century, brutalist architecture is back with a vengeance.
The Resurrection of Cold ArchitectureHaving fallen out of favor by the end of the last century, brutalist architecture is back with a vengeance.
Why has there been a renewed interest in brutalism?
One reason is that 40 to 60 years after something has gone out of fashion, it tends to come back again. But I think the appeal for architects is that brutalism is full of thrilling taboos—things you’re not allowed to do now for environmental reasons. Brutalism is the architecture of the beautiful cold bridge—the same material inside and out—which was fine when nobody knew that using so much heating was doing any harm. Now that we know what a disaster that is, architects can no longer have that pure structural expression. It’s a bit of a fantasy, when you spend your time detailing insulation and cladding.
So, it’s more a revival of brutalism’s aesthetics than its social values?
Brutalism didn’t have any intrinsic social values...
