About the Book
"A lively journey around the worlds brutalist buildings" - FRIEZE.COM
"A dazzlingly shot whistle-stop of the much-maligned styles greatest hits ... the book showcases confidence, clarity and the historical importance of the movement" - MONOCLE
No modern architectural movement has aroused so much awe and so much ire as Brutalism. This is architecture at its most assertive: compelling, distinctive, sometimes terrifying. But, as Concrete Concept shows, Brutalism can be about love as well as hate. This inspiring and informative photographic survey profiles 50 brutalist buildings from around the world. Travelling the globe - from Le Corbusiers Unite d'Habitation (Marseille, France), to the Former Whitney Museum (New York City, USA), to Preston Bus Station (Preston, UK) - this book covers concrete architecture in its most extraordinary forms, demonstrating how Brutalism has changed our landscapes and infected popular culture.
Now in a stylish mini format, this is the perfect tour of Brutalisms biggest hits.
Table of Contents:
Introduction An A-Z of brutalist architecture 01 Unit d'Habitation, Marseille, France 02 University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia 03 MASP art museum and SESC Pompia, So Paulo, Brazil 04 33 Thomas Street (formerly AT&T Long Lines Building), New York City, USA 05 Habitat 67, Montreal, Canada 06 La Pyramide, Abidjan, Ivory Coast 07 Torres Blancas, Madrid, Spain 08 Cultural Centre of The Philippines, Manila, The Philippines 09 Couvent Sainte-Marie de la Tourette, Eveux, France 10 Nathan Phillips Square and Toronto City Hall, Toronto, Canada 11 Hayward Gallery, Queen Elizabeth Hall and National Theatre, London, England 12 CCSS, San Jos, Costa Rica 13 Banco de Londres y Amrica del Sur, Buenos Aires, Argentina 14 The 9 (formerly the Cleveland Trust Tower), Cleveland, USA 15 Birmingham Central Library, Birmingham, England 16 Wotruba Church, Vienna, Austria 17 Marina City, Chicago, USA 18 Palcio da Justia, Brasilia, Brazil 19 Flaine ski resort, Haute-Savoie, France 20 British Embassy, Rome, Italy 21 Munich Olympic Village and Park, Munich, Germany 22 Skopje Post Office, Skopje, Macedonia 23 Preston Bus Station, Preston, England 24 Washington DC Metro, Washington, DC, USA 25 Aula at Delft University, Delft, The Netherlands 26 Centre Jean Hachette, Ivry-sur-Seine, Paris, France 27 Pilgrimage Church, Velbert-Neviges, Germany 28 Government Service Center, Boston, USA 29 Soviet Embassy, Havana, Cuba 30 Geisel Library, UC San Diego, San Diego, USA 31 Palace of Assembly, Chandigarh, India 32 Orange County Government Center, Goshen, USA 33 Carlton Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa 34 Birmingham New Street Signal Box, Birmingham, England 35 The Beehive, Wellington, New Zealand 36 Ulster Museum 1972 Extension, Belfast, Northern Ireland 37 Moore Street Electricity Substation and Park Hill Estate, Sheffield, England 38 Nichinan Cultural Centre, Nichinan, Japan 39 Balfron Tower and Trellick Tower, London, England 40 Palcio de Justia, Lisbon, Portugal 41 Busto Arsizio Technical College, Busto Arsizio, Italy 42 Spaghetti Junction, Birmingham, England 43 University of East Anglia, Norwich, England 44 The Barbican, London, England 45 The Former Whitney Museum, New York City, USA 46 Leeds University, Leeds, England 47 Robin Hood Gardens, London, England 48 Bank of Georgia (formerly Ministry of Transport), Tbilisi, Georgia 49 Yale Art & Architecture Building, New Haven, USA 50 Maria-Magdalena Church, Freiburg, GermanyMaps Photo credits Index Further reading Acknowledgements
About the Author :
Christopher Beanland lives in London and is the author of Lido and Unbuilt. He has also written the novels The Wall in The Head and Spinning Out of Control. He writes about architecture, culture and the arts for newspapers including The Independent, Guardian, Telegraph and various global magazines.
Review :
'"A lively journey around the world's brutalist buildings." Frieze.com"An almanac of fashionably extreme concrete" Financial Times"A surprisingly light-weight book that provides us a visual world-tour of tortured edifices." Wallpaper*"The text of this book, which profiles 50 brutalist beasts, is witty, lively and informative. The numerous photographs are first class. Concrete Concept gave me new eyes." Roger Lewis, The Times"A dazzlingly shot whistle-stop of the much-maligned styles greatest hits ... the book showcases the confidence, clarity and historical importance of the movement." Monocle"Concrete Conceptreinforces our love for all things grey, textured and modern." ELLE Decoration"A wholesome first introduction to the wonderful world of concrete brutes for those yet uninitiated" Icon"Brick-like new tome Concrete Concept demonstrates the unexpected serenity of some of the worlds greatest Brutalist buildings ... Open the pages up and you'll be greeted by light, cheerful photographs and an accessible, tongue-and-cheek commentary." AnOther magazine"A snappy and surprising read. The expansive selection of buildings and waggish commentary help take apart tired definitions and break open the prematurely closed canon of brutalist architecture." Michael Abrahamson, curator of F*ck Yeah Brutalism"A breathless love letter to a disappearing epoch. This funny, smart and beguiling book will make you want to jump on a plane before it's too late." Elizabeth Hopkirk, Building Design magazine"This is not a worthy but dull architecture book. This is not a coffee table statement. Yes, it looks beautiful. Yes, you'll seem sophisticated for owning it. But shockingly, it's also insanely engaging. Beanland's commentary is fast-flowing, smart and very funny. Exactly what you want from a book about concrete." Catherine OFlynn, author of What Was Lost"A witty, high-adrenalin, concrete-fuelled mega-tour of some of the world's unfairly maligned monstrosities'. Concrete Concept is a gutsy, bombastic love song." Catherine Croft, Twentieth Century Society"This tour around some of the world's great buildings is a treat for any brutalist architecture fan." John Grindrod, author of Concretopia"The buildings chosen by Beanland truly evoke their period and each have something to say to us today." The Birmingham Press"A fine slab of brutalism... its a belter." @Brutal_Architecture"A simply must have book for any fan of Brutalist architecture." @ThisBrutalLife"Concrete Concept ... celebrates so-called brutalist buildings across the world." John Harris, The Guardian"Its a fascinating glimpse into an area of architecture where abstraction seems to solidify into cold, hard - and sometimes beautiful - reality." Bespoke Living (City AM)' -
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