#boston city hall

[docileeffects]

[coffinbutch]

I took this when we were downtown this weekend, I loved the way the light was falling over the entrance

[principiumindividuationis777]

[dlyarchitecture]

[irishsaints]

Y'all wanna talk about BRUTALISM?

OKAY!

Williams College, in Western Massachusetts had a CLASSIC example of brutalism when it came to their library- for YEARS. they only finally redesigned the horrid thing in 2016, but for EONS it looked like this:

It was built in the 70s and I remember my mother, father, AND brother all groaning about how terrible looking it was.

Here's another one for you: Trinity College Dublin's Eavan Boland Library is just a fkn CONCRETE BRICK.

Trinity recently (like just this year) finalized the process of renaming the library, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a horrendous concrete block, and the interior is no better. Swear on my life this was one of the most unwelcoming libraries I have ever been into in my LIFE. (No, this is not where the Book of Kells lives- that's the Old Library, in the Long Hall, and what most people think of when they think of TCD.)

More photos of the interior can be found here:

Another pretty well known example is one that I both love and hate in equal measure: Boston City Hall.

I mean, my god. Look at this hideous thing. But here's the deal- Boston City Hall was built this way because the purpose of the building is municipal, and the architects wanted there to be good flow for people to get around it. It's worth noting, by the way, this is a photo from 2012. These days there's a LOT more greenery around it, as part of significant efforts to improve green spaces in the city to help combat ongoing effects of climate change.

Despite it's ugliness, it continues to be regularly talked about when it comes to brutalist architecture, so if nothing else, it's made an impact.

A lot of the most popular or well known Brutalist architecture designs are located in North America, though some are across the Atlantic (as noted with TCD's Boland Library, above)- so have one WAY far from where I am, that I think is actually kinda slick, as the last little treat.

The Genex Tower, or Western City Gate, in Belgrade, Serbia!

Now, do I think covering the entire right side with a Fenty x Puma ad is a great idea? no of course not, but capitalism abounds.

This is a 36 story sky-scraper originally designed in the late 70s by Mihajlo Mitrović , and was meant to act as a sort of "welcoming gate" to visitors of Belgrade, as they arrived from the airport. The tower at the top is a revolving restaurant (apparently the revolving restaurant never become operational), and was the tallest building both in Belgrade, and in all of Serbia, from the time it was built in '79, right up until 2021. It has a sister gate, the Eastern City Gate, which is a set of three, but looks slightly different. The left handed one, the taller of the two towers, is residential, and according to a quick wikipedia search, the right side is now empty, hence the huge ad campaign on it. These days it's considered a cultural landmark in Serbia- but the majority of my info is coming from wikipedia, so if someone here happens to be Serbian themselves, or wants to chime in with more details on this one, please do by all means!

Anyway, thanks for coming to my brief ted talk on brutalist architecture. I think it's weird and mostly pretty ugly but it generally serves a purpose and overall isn't any worse than anything else out there so, you know. there's that!

i feel like we don't appreciate these days how much the twin towers sucked, like, design-wise

they were contemporarily hated for just being these giant grey monoliths

like there probably could've been an easier way to get rid of them, but they probably needed to go either way

[corvidist]

Beantown by night - summer 2024

[richwall101]

Boston City Hall & Council Chamber

Completed in 1968, City Hall is a leading example of Brutalist architecture in America, featuring exterior facades and interiors of exposed, cast-in-place concrete. Finegold Alexander strategically redesigned the Boston City Hall Council Chamber to enhance accessibility and upgrade the technology and building systems. To resolve code and access deficiencies, Finegold Alexander raised the council chamber floor, eliminating ramps and steps making accessibility in and round the space universal. Other key interventions include acoustical upgrades, technology and lighting improvements. It is a controversial and prominent example of Brutalist architecture, part of the modernist movement. It was designed by the architecture firms Kallmann McKinnell & Knowles and Campbell, Aldrich & Nulty, with LeMessurier Consultants as engineers.

Photo Credit - Raj Das Photography

[whales-are-gay]

just had to ragequit blue osp's brutalism video. he kept putting up pictures of beautiful structures and saying "wow so ugly amirite"

[jkbard]

Having grown up and lived most of my life in the GBA I can say it looks much, much worse in real life.

[rabbitcruiser]

Benjamin Franklin Day

Founding Father Benjamin Franklin was born on this day in 1706, in  Boston, making today Ben Franklin Day. He was a polymath, or expert in  many subjects. Some of the titles that could be given to him are  inventor, scientist, politician, diplomat, civic activist, printer,  author, postmaster, and mapmaker. He also founded or was a part of many  organizations and groups.

Franklin was the tenth and youngest son of a soap and candle maker,  Josiah Franklin, and Josiah's second wife, Abiah Folger. The elder  Franklin wanted his son to follow the path of a preacher, but did not  have the money to send him to school. Benjamin only attended school up  until the age of ten, when he began working full-time in his father's  shop. At the age of twelve he was sent to apprentice his older brother  James, who was a printer. James started The New England Courant  in Boston when Benjamin was fifteen. Benjamin wanted to be printed in  the paper, but James would not allow it. So, he wrote letters under name  of Silence Dogood, a fictional widow, and slid them under the print  shop door at night. The fourteen letters he wrote were published; they  gave advice and were filled with critical observations of the world.  Benjamin eventually confessed to writing them, and James was not happy.  Later, after harassment and beating at the hands of his brother,  Benjamin ended up running away to New York, and then ended up in  Philadelphia in 1723.

In Philadelphia, Franklin found work as an apprentice printer. He  then went to England for several months of print work. He came back to  Philadelphia and helped out a printer, but eventually borrowed money and  set up his own printing business a few years later. Franklin bought the  Pennsylvania Gazette in 1729, which became the most widely read newspaper in the colonies. He printed it and contributed pieces under aliases.

In 1728, Franklin had a son, William; it is not known who the mother  was. In 1730, he married Deborah Read; it was a common-law marriage, as  Read's first husband had deserted her. The Franklin's had two children:  Francis, born in 1732, died at the age of four from smallpox. Sarah was  born in 1743.

The Library Company, the nation's first subscription library, was founded by Franklin in 1731. He started publishing Poor Richard's Almanack  in 1733, under the pseudonym of "Richard Saunders." Its lively writing  and witty aphorisms separated it from other Almanacs of the day, and it  was printed for twenty-five years. The first fire department of  Philadelphia, the Union Fire Company, was organized by Franklin in 1736.  Franklin also worked for environmental cleanup in the city, and  launched projects and advocated for paved and lit streets. The first  learned society in the country, the American Philosophical Society, was  launched with the help of Franklin. In 1751, he brought together another  group of people to form the Pennsylvania Hospital.

Franklin's bright mind came up with many inventions. His 1752 kite  and key experiment demonstrated that lightning was electricity, and he  also invented the lightning rod. He came up with other electricity  related terms that we still use today, such as "battery." He invented a  fireplace that became known as the "Franklin stove." Compared to the  popular fireplaces of its time, it gave off more heat and used less  fuel. Franklin refused to patent it, and wanted his invention to serve  others freely. Franklin invented bifocals, which could be used for both  distance and reading. He even invented a musical instrument, the  armonica, which Beethoven and Mozart wrote music for. He charted the  Gulf Stream and gave it its name, and suggested the idea for, and helped  design the first penny in the United States.

In 1757, Franklin went to England to represent the Penn family over  who should represent the colony. Until 1775 most of his time was spent  in England. He served as a Colonial representative for Pennsylvania,  Georgia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. His wife Deborah died in 1774,  while he was still in London.

Franklin was originally a loyalist, but after the 1765 Stamp Act his  views shifted. He testified before Parliament, helping persuade members  of that body to repeal the law. He later became embroiled in what became  known as the "Hutchinson Affair." Thomas Hutchinson, an English  appointed governor, had written letters that had called for the  lessening of liberties of colonists. Franklin got ahold of the letters  and sent them to America. He was condemned publicly, and soon came back  home.

He was elected to the Second Continental Congress, and was part of  the committee of five that drafted the Declaration of Independence. He  also was a signer of the Declaration. He was the first Postmaster  General of the United States; long after his death he was honored by  being put on the first US postage stamp.

He left America to become the first Ambassador to France. During this  time he helped secure a treaty with them in 1778. He also helped to  secure loans during the war. When the guns fell silent, he was present  at signing of Treaty of Paris in 1783, which formally ended the war.

Franklin returned to his home country, and became a delegate at the  Constitutional Convention; he signed the Constitution, being the oldest  person to do so. Although Franklin owned slaves early in his life, his  views changed over time, and in his last years he worked for the  abolition of slavery. After suffering from gout and other ailments, he  died on April 17, 1790, at his daughter Sarah's home. His funeral was  attended by 20,000 people.

It is fitting a day would be dedicated to Benjamin Franklin, as he is  so much more than just the man on the $100 bill. The breadth and scope  of his achievements are almost unparalleled, not only in his political  contributions to a fledgling country, but in his many other pursuits as  well.

Here are just some of his accomplishments and activities: As writer/printer/publisher:

wrote as Silence Dogood in The New England Courant

published Poor Richard's Almanack for twenty-five years

owned the Pennsylvania Gazette

wrote an acclaimed autobiography

As an inventor:

"Franklin stove"

proved lightning is electricity and invented the lightning rod

bifocals

swim fins

carriage odometer

armonica

flexible catheter

As a founder:

The Library Company—the country's first subscription library

Union Fire Company of Philadelphia—the first fire department of Pennsylvania

American Philosophical Society

Pennsylvania Hospital

As a politician:

Colonial representative in England

member of Second Continental Congress

first Postmaster General of the United States

helped draft the Declaration of Independence and signed it

first ambassador to France

present at signing of Treaty of Paris

delegate to Constitutional Convention and signed Constitution

How to Observe

One way to celebrate the day is to follow the example he left of living a full life. Maybe you can start to do this by following his daily schedule.  Learning more about the man may be a good way to celebrate his birthday  and life as well. Why not read the man's own words in his Autobiography? You could also read his Silence Dogood letters, or some of Poor Richard's Almanack. Besides reading his own words, you could read books about him, or explore resources at the Library of Congress. Once you tire of reading you could find and watch the PBS mini-series on Franklin. Finally, you could plan a trip to visit his grave and the Benjamin Franklin Museum in Philadelphia.

Source

Benjamin Franklin, an American polymath and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, was born on January 17, 1706.

[thebowerypresents]

Ty Segall Shreds the Night Away at Webster Hall

Ty Segall – Webster Hall – April 29, 2024

The rock and roll polymath Ty Segall and his scintillating band came to Webster Hall Monday night and ran the crowd ragged with a 90-plus-minute workout. They opened with the pairing of “The Bell” and “Void,” just as his latest release, Three Bells, does, nearly 15 minutes of nonstop churning of guitars, organ, bass and drums, Segall singing, “To realize, to be alive” as red lights bathed the stage. That first stretch found them evoking at times Pearl Jam, Metallica, Pink Floyd and Yes, featuring everyone in the band and creating a singular amalgam of rock for the giddy crowd.

The new record would be featured prominently all night, heavy and heavier, boot-stomp rhythms, but also music to dance to. “I Hear” was drenched in squealer guitar with an extended two-guitar outro. “Hi Dee Dee” was both clean and dirty, serrated-edge melody with Segall’s voice turning almost sweet. And later in the set, “My Best Friend,” with a contrasting sweetness, nearly funky with bubbles of bass floating up into the crowd. 

Older Segall favorites found their place, fitting right into the setlist. “Love Fuzz,” off 2012’s Twins, was a highlight, the band exploring the limits with an extended section of depths-of-hell guitar dueling. “Looking at You,” off the more recent Hello, Hi album, was Segall at his most noodling, the band stopping on a dime and then restarted, finding a chaotic near-jazz that segued into the set-closing “Denée.” One more banger off the new record, a little more dancing, a spare two-guitar crescendo for those who hadn’t gotten their fill, just another night for Ty Segall. —A. Stein | @Neddyo

(Ty Segall plays Royale in Boston tomorrow night.)

Photos courtesy of Edwina Hay | thisisnotaphotograph.com

[eopederson]

Government Center, Boston, 1975.

From the days when I was young and enthusiastic about urban redevelopment and modern architecture.

[rainbowcoloredpalmtrees]

The last gift id give Boston City Hall is my own dick and balls smh. Hate that place

thankfully there are way better places to put your dick and balls. personally I’m headed straight to sagrada familia or even the las vegas courthouse to stick to theme (it’s not brutalist but I thought it’d be related). chicago would have to forcefully remove my dick and balls from most buildings.

[tumblasha]

i miss perú. especially the food from my dad's hometown, moyobamba. i want to eat the caldo de gallina from the restaurant by the tarapoto airport. i want to travel to the town an hour away from my grandparents' house to eat majás. i want to make juanes with my grandmother. i want to visit my aunts and uncles and eat around lima. i want to go to my mom's hometown, jauja, and eat cuy. i want to go to a random chicken chain restaurant (rocky's? roxy's? they're literally two different chains that are also the same). i want to eat at bembos where they put fries in the burgers. i'll even take going back to houston (where my mom's family is visiting now) and eat at a peruvian restaurant there. it's the first time Ever that i'm comfortable speaking spanish to all my relatives, none of that "i'm so young and they're so old" fear, none of that language insecurity. i want to go see my family :(

[aiiaiiiyo]

[postcardsfromwanderings]

Old City Hall, Boston