April 2013 | Eyesore

Architectural Abortions from the USA and Around the World (And Sometimes Other Miscellany Infecting the Landscape)

Behold, the proposed new San Francisco Trans-Bay Transit Center at First and Fremont Streets.

Just What the world needs: another "Blob" building designed like a rampaging one-celled organism -- a microphage or a man-eating amoeba. The architecture world feels compelled to come up with some new novelty stunt for every proposed new public building. (Notice how many of them look the same! So much for originality.) Here's one thing you can count on: these experiments, with their "innovative" (read: untested) claddings, gaskets, connectors, and other modular materials, will probably never be renovated. Do not be surprised if one consequence of Peak Oil, Peak Debt, and capital scarcity means that we will have neither the money nor the materials to fix these buildings over time. And don't assume we'll continue to be able to do advanced computerized fabrication of things like each of those curvy window panels. Hence, a building like this has no capacity for adaptive re-use -- which is the stupidest thing you can "build-in" to public investment. As an asthetic matter, I suppose the idea is to "wow" the casual visitor with strangeness and novelty. My guess is that the overhanging skirt of blob-glass will only make people uncomfortable. Further proof here that the architecture profession has its head completely up its ass.

Thanks to reader Kevin Dole for sending it in.