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[vagel7]

Those buildings look like the building where I currently live in.

As do I

[Guardian G.I.]

Damn Owl, those pictures look like something from Eastern Europe, because that is pretty much soviet architecture over there.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

We have a lot of those things in some parts of the cities/towns from our past soviet overlords.

Well, Scottish Labour were almost Socialist back then so it does make sense that they would draw inspiration from somewhere.

Similarly, some Soviet architects were inspired by British brutalist architecture.

Spoiler: Blocks of flats in the Vostok district of Brest, Belarus, built in 1993 - the construction began in late 1980s, so they are technically Soviet buildings (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Regina Point and Columbia Point, Canada Estate, London, built in 1964 (click to show/hide)

[Loud Whispers]

That's actually a rather recent photo of Canada Water, taken probably around 2013 considering the shard isn't finished in the background. Also the photo missed out the several rows of new flats:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

They look all right. The flats you see in the previous photo with the shard are also a lot dirtier than they look in the photo. They also look much nicer from the other side of the bloody lake than looking up at them close.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

We also have council flats that are hidden out of sight. Screams emanate that way.

[Helgoland]

Hey, no brutalism-bashing! I wouldn't exactly build my own home in that style, but it's a legitimate aesthetic...

[MetalSlimeHunt]

No, brutalism is absolutely awful. It has no redeeming qualities and ruins all sorts of places that could otherwise have good architecture.

[palsch]

That's actually a rather recent photo of Canada Water, taken probably around 2013 considering the shard isn't finished in the background.

Early 2012 is my guess, given the Shard was topped off at the end of March and that looks close to that point.

Would have been between going in to see what the hell was up with the Occupy thing and wandering in to see this display at the Tate Modern. Neither the sole reasons for the trips, but the two seemed somehow relevant and pegged the dates.

[Owlbread]

Some typical Glasgow Labour-built housing from the 60s and 70s:

Spoiler: The infamous Red Road High Flats - 1 (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: The diabolical Red Road High Flats - 2 (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: The Fountainwell High Flats (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: High Flats near Springburn - 1 (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: High Flats near Springburn - 2 (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Some iconic Red Road buildings (I think) (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Some high flats in the Gorbals (a nice day) (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Some high flats in the Gorbals (a not-so-nice day) (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Some high flats getting demolished in Foxbar, a part of my home-town not far from Glasgow (click to show/hide)

May I add that these are the houses people were moved into after their slum-communities (tightly packed tenement houses) were completely destroyed and demolished with bulldozers by Labour because they were considered unsafe and unclean. When the people moved into the High Flats, they were greeted with these horrible constructions with very poor build quality. You can put your arm through the walls in places and they're coming apart. They were extremely susceptible to damp which is not helpful in the Strathclyde area considering it is probably one of the wettest places in Scotland.

In 2014 they have reverted back to slum conditions and are now so terrible we are just blowing them up whenever we get the chance. Thank you Labour, the people of Glasgow are indebted to you forever.

[Descan]

They should tear them down and replace them with structures reminiscent of the Celtic roundhouses.

[Owlbread]

They should tear them down and replace them with structures reminiscent of the Celtic roundhouses.

Or, indeed, go a bit more recent and take a look at what the High-flat residents' ancestors probably lived in:

Spoiler: Blackhouses (click to show/hide)

In the slums in Govan and places like that, I'm tempted to say the majority of people had Highland ancestry. When people were cleared from the Highlands, they were cleared to the cities like Glasgow, but then they were cleared from the slums to the high rises. Of course in other slums, such as the one my grandfather grew up in, they were predominantly Irish Catholic.

[Descan]

Well the idea is to instead of just a big blocky apartment building, something more like the Monroe towers in Mississauga.

I don't particularly LIKE the Monroe towers, but even the rough idea of round rooms and beds in a circle around the central hearth would be nice, even in a high-rise.

[Mech#4]

I remember one building, I think it was in London, that had curved window glass that was melting car windows because it was focusing the light shining on it. Did they end up solving that issue in a permanent manner or did they cover it with blankets?

[Loud Whispers]

I remember one building, I think it was in London, that had curved window glass that was melting car windows because it was focusing the light shining on it. Did they end up solving that issue in a permanent manner or did they cover it with blankets?

The walkie talkie was given a permanent awning, it is still a giant death ray but it won't kill londoners and melt their cars. The architect blames global warming as he planned the walkie talkie for a time where Britain was forever cloudy and raining.

Of course, this wouldn't be a problem if he didn't go full postmo.

[10ebbor10]

I remember one building, I think it was in London, that had curved window glass that was melting car windows because it was focusing the light shining on it. Did they end up solving that issue in a permanent manner or did they cover it with blankets?

Worst thing is, the architect had build a similar building, with similar problems before. I think it was in LA.

[scrdest]

No, brutalism is absolutely awful. It has no redeeming qualities and ruins all sorts of places that could otherwise have good architecture.

Brutalism is basically opposite-day modernism, in terms of space. And I LIKE modernism (well, when it's done well, not cookie-cutter 'I have no idea what to do, so I'll just make a plain glass rectangle' modernism).

Even if concrete was a miracle material that weathered in reverse, becoming more white and pretty over time, the way space is managed - buildings that manage to be simultaneously squat and hundreds of meters tall, thick-ass walls, low ceilings... you'd think they were built by ex-soldiers who fell in love with bunkers.

[Sergarr]

No, brutalism is absolutely awful. It has no redeeming qualities and ruins all sorts of places that could otherwise have good architecture.

Brutalism is basically opposite-day modernism, in terms of space. And I LIKE modernism (well, when it's done well, not cookie-cutter 'I have no idea what to do, so I'll just make a plain glass rectangle' modernism).

Even if concrete was a miracle material that weathered in reverse, becoming more white and pretty over time, the way space is managed - buildings that manage to be simultaneously squat and hundreds of meters tall, thick-ass walls, low ceilings... you'd think they were built by ex-soldiers who fell in love with bunkers.

Cold war aesthetic?