As a part of my Context of Practice research, I spoke to the admin of the page @brutal_architecture mentioned int he previous post, Steve Hodgson:
1. What sparked your interest in Brutalist architecture?
As an amateur architectural photographer I realised that the buildings that interested me most and offered the most exciting external façades to photograph were brutalist ones. The repetitive geometry, the recesses, jutting projections and overhangs are very dramatic, often with a dystopian feel and offer opportunities to shoot exciting images. The fluted or bush-hammered exteriors also provide far greater texture and drama than smooth modern glass and aluminium-clad architecture. I decided to create a feed dedicated to these buildings, originally based purely around their visual aesthetics, and so created @brutal_architecture.
2. If you had to list your top three buildings, what would they be, and why?
1. Buzludzha, Bulgaria: completed in 1981 (relatively recently by brutalist standards) this incredible, breathtaking concrete UFO is a monument built by the Bulgarian communist regime to commemorate a battle that took place in 1861 between Bulgarian rebels and the Ottoman Empire. Sadly now abandoned and fallen into disrepair, the images of it still take my breath away.
2. Robert H. Goddard Library, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA, designed by John MacLane Johansen, built 1969: built predominantly from brick, the extremely complex exterior of this building with its numerous recesses and projections are fantastic. Libraries are often great examples of brutalist architecture as the heavy loadings of the books are dealt with by strong concrete structural frames and the architect's struggle to provide natural light but restrict glare and solar intrusion often leads to very exciting buildings. The need for small reading and study rooms often results in exciting pod forms expressed on the outside of the buildings which look very dramatic.
3. Welbeck Street NCP, London, designed by Michael Blampied, built 1969: the building I use for the logo of my feed, the pre-cast concrete repetitive façade typifies the brutalist ethic. Its load-bearing façade reduces internal structure making car parking easier to integrate and the perforated panels let in natural light. Sadly Historic England consider this ingenious form of construction not to be sufficiently pioneering and have refused to list this building. Therefore also in keeping with lots of brutalist architecture around the world this building is unfortunately in serious threat of demolition.
3. What was your original premise for starting the account?
It was originally created to showcase the aesthetics of these buildings, primarily because they look good and make a good photograph.. However the feed now has far more substance and it is important to understand not just how these buildings look but to consider the construction methods behind them as well as the social, economic, political and even geographical reasons for them taking the forms they do. Architecture is a very complex art form and I feel it is important to understand all aspects that influenced the design of these buildings and the reasons for them being created in the first place.
4. Did you expect it to grow as fast as it did?
The feed is nearly three years old, whilst it now has 100K Followers it's taken a lot of time and commitment to get this far. I didn't don't really know how many or how fast the feed would gain in popularity, I think that maybe just as my interest in Brutalist Architecture was awakened so it was for lots of other people at a similar time and so the interest and Follower numbers has grown in tandem.
I try to make the feed informative, without being pompous or over-bearing. I like debate and love discussing different opinions as to why these buildings were created and if/when/why they should be retained and saved. I also sometimes get things wrong! Occasionally my sources of information (particularly for lesser-known buildings) is wrong and I am happy to be corrected by folk more knowledgable than I. I also like to keep the feed fun and try to create interest through debate, competitions and different features. The format seems to be working but I always like trying new things.
5. Do you think the attitude towards this type of architecture has improved since starting the account?
The awareness of these buildings has certainly increased, though I wouldn't claim it's because of my account, I think these are increasing in tandem. There are other feeds and forums for information that combine to increase people's awareness, knowledge and love of these buildings. One of the reasons these buildings are starting to enter people's awareness is that a lot of them are now reaching the end of their original economic lives, meaning that unless someone has a lot of money to spend on their upkeep or they are Listed, there is a good chance they may be demolished, hence some of these buildings and the campaigns to save them are hitting the news.
6. Is your interest in the buildings more of an aesthetic one, or are you more interested in the ideology the architects had behind them?
I feel it is extremely important to try to understand what the architects were trying to achieve when they were designing these buildings; the briefs they were given by their clients, the budgets available, the constraints they were put under, even the social, economic & political issues at the time can all influence how these buildings were built, maintained and have matured and aged over the years.
There is a huge difference between a building commissioned by a pioneering University with a large budget intent on having a ground-breaking new piece of architecture to attract new students and a struggling local council needing to home needy residents in a cheap and cost-effective form of construction that can be built quickly and repetitively . Both these scenarios were catalysts for brutalist architecture but you can then appreciate why different examples of this form of architecture were built differently and some have stood the test of time better than others.
Conclusion
This interview was conducted on the 4/12/16 via a series of emails.
This data can very much assist in informing the typographic outcomes, gaining an opinion from a person who appreciates this style of architecture but is not directly a part of the profession itself, this is the exact target audience that will be concerned when this becomes more than just a research brief.
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