February 2016 | Eyesore

Commentary on architectural blunders in monthly serial.

Behold the Evolution Tower in Moscow, the clever DNA-themed behemoth joining the other bowling trophies in the Russian Capital’s jazzed-up Trade Center district skyline. It will be interesting to see how they clean all those curvey windows. Techno-narcissistic building stunts of this kind signal the end of an era. Civilizations always produce their largest and most bizarre monuments just before they collapse. It’s nature’s way. Case in point: the Baluchitherium of the the Central Asian Steppe, largest land animal that ever lived, coming in around 15 to 20 tons and 16 feet high at the shoulder. Must have had a dazzling DNA chain! Went extinct about 20 million years ago. (Sigh.)