The Clarendon

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up close this building is ok now that they seemingly fixed the windows.....

from afar though it looks like a giant constipated turd...
 
Arborway said:
Unfortunately when architects attempt to pull off texture and exuberance it ends up being gimmicky, repetitive and "I'm trying so hard to be different and zany! Look at me!" and the structure suffers for it. See also: Deconstructivism, Postmodernism

This building would have worked better had the faux brick not looked like a low resolution texture tiled over the surface of the exterior. I didn't think you could find the uncanny valley in architecture, but apparently it's possible.
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Is that a material or execution issue though (both)?

I look back at "original" minimalist buildings, and even the sleekest is rich in subtle, beautiful detail when you get up close. The builders of central part of the 20th century apprenticed with a different generation of master craftsmen----I think this is lost today. We now hire union workers not craftsmen. They're just following the "fit slot A into joint 4" plan, which leads me to:

How does the shift to simply erecting pre-fab structures designed by computer to be cheap as possible impact today's design?
 
I look back at "original" minimalist buildings, and even the sleekest is rich in subtle, beautiful detail when you get up close. The builders of central part of the 20th century apprenticed with a different generation of master craftsmen----I think this is lost today. We now hire union workers not craftsmen.
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Most of those master craftsmen were union workers. Industrial labor unions sprang up first during the industrial revolutions (e.g., International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers founded in 1865) and again during the Great Depression / WWII (e.g., UAW in 1965). Union membership peaked in the 1950's and 60's - this coincides wonderfully with the timing when the "original" minimalist buildings went up.

Construction labor was far more unionized in in the middle of last century than it is today. 40% of contruction labor was unionized in 1973 (the earliest date for which I could find industry specific data). By 2006 that number had fallen to 13%. And that's even more true in states like New York and Illinois (where surprise, surprise some of the most architecturally-stunning and technologically-demanding structures are built).

"Subtle, beautiful detail" is more a product of the design phase than the construction phase.
 
Trippy.

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Shitty cameraphone, but I'd bet one of the camera pros on here could take a shot like this that would be pretty kick-ass.
 
The Hancock looks like a big blue ice cube slowly withering, melting and tilting in the summer heat.
 
Pelham: What kind of phone do you have? I have the Razr and I couldn't take a picture of my hand a foot away from the lens and have it come out that crisp.
 
Is the pool liner at the top going to always be exposed?

(j/k)
 
BostonSkyGuy said:
Pelham: What kind of phone do you have? I have the Razr and I couldn't take a picture of my hand a foot away from the lens and have it come out that crisp.
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iPhone 3G

I'd love for somebody with some real photo equipment to capture that same double Clarendon shot - looks like a medieval castle to me from that angle!
 
I was apprehensive at first but I'm beginning to like the way this turned out.
 
I like this building. I like that it isn't all ribbon windows or glass curtain wall. I like the smaller scale windows because they convey a sense of detail and height. I like that it neither competes with the Hancock, nor blends in with it. So there!
 
Not crazy about it, but it should look nice at night with the crown lit up. How is street level looking at this point? Don't think there are any recent pictures.
 
I apologize in advance for the pessimism...I agree that once the crown is lit it will probably look amazing, but the lights will probably only last until leasing is done. I mean the city can't even keep the Zakim lit...
 
pelhamhall said:
iPhone 3G

I'd love for somebody with some real photo equipment to capture that same double Clarendon shot - looks like a medieval castle to me from that angle!
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I tried but sun was at the wrong angle?
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some one asked about the base
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