Editing Brutalist architecture (section)

{{Short description|Architectural style}}
{{Redirect2|Brutalist|Brutalism|the 2024 film|The Brutalist|other uses|Brutalism (disambiguation)}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox art movement
|name         = Brutalist architecture
|image        = {{photomontage
  |photo1a      = Park Hill Samarkanda.JPG
  |photo1b      = Talnakh.jpg
  |photo1c      = Vista Teatro teresa carreño.jpg
  |photo2a      = The National Theatre, South Bank, London (3).jpg
  |photo2b      = 1981 BostonCityHall byLebovich8 HABS MA1176.jpg
  |photo2c      = Soviet apartment.jpg
  |photo3a      = Guajolote.jpg
  |photo3b      = Barbican-arts-centre-large.jpg
  |photo3c      = Alexandra Road Estate.jpg
  |size         = 300
  |color_border = #AAAAAA
  |color        = #F9F9F9
  |caption      =
  |foot_montage =
  }}
|alt          = 
|caption      = '''Top row''': [[Park Hill, Sheffield|Park Hill]] flats in [[Sheffield]], England; [[Soviet Union|Soviet]]-era housing in [[Talnakh]], Russia; [[Teresa Carreño Cultural Complex]] in [[Caracas]], Venezuela. '''Middle row''': [[Royal National Theatre]] in London; [[Boston City Hall]]; Soviet-era housing in [[Saint Petersburg]]. '''Bottom row''': [[Robarts Library]] in [[Toronto]], Canada; [[Barbican Centre]] in the [[City of London]]; [[Alexandra Road Estate]] in London.
|yearsactive  = 1950s – early 1980s
|country      = International
|major figures= 
|influences=
|influenced=
}}

'''Brutalist architecture''' is an [[architectural style]] that emerged during the 1950s in the [[United Kingdom]], among the reconstruction projects of the [[post-war]] era.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 October 2018 |title=Reclaiming Polish Brutalism: Discover the Emblems of Communism |url=https://www.archdaily.com/904788/reclaiming-polish-brutalism-discover-the-emblems-of-communism |access-date=18 October 2023|website=ArchDaily |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Larsson |first=Naomi |date=6 August 2023 |title=Socialist modernism: remembering the architecture of the eastern bloc |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/aug/06/socialist-modernism-remembering-the-architecture-of-the-eastern-bloc |access-date=18 October 2023 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Definition of BRUTALISM|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brutalism|website=www.merriam-webster.com|language=en|access-date=2019-07-11}}</ref><ref name=":12">{{Citation|last=Bull|first=Alun|title=What is Brutalism?|date=8 November 2013|url=https://vimeo.com/78931268|access-date=10 October 2018}}</ref><ref>Đorđe, Alfirević & Simonović Alfirević, Sanja: [https://www.academia.edu/31574816/Brutalism_in_Serbian_Architecture_Style_or_Necessity_Brutalizam_u_srpskoj_arhitekturi_stil_ili_nu%C5%BEnost_ Brutalism in Serbian Architecture: Style or Necessity?] ''Facta Universitatis: Architecture and Civil Engineering'' (Niš), Vol. 15, No. 3 (2017), pp. 317–331.</ref> Brutalist buildings are characterised by [[Minimalism (art)|minimalist]] constructions that showcase the bare [[building materials]] and [[Structural engineering|structural elements]] over decorative design.<ref name="Dezeen2">{{cite web|title=The Dezeen guide to Brutalist architecture|url=https://www.dezeen.com/2014/09/10/dezeen-guide-to-brutalist-architecture-owen-hopkins/|last1=Hopkins|first1=Owen|website=[[Dezeen]]|date=10 September 2014|access-date=19 April 2020}}</ref><ref name="AD2">{{cite web|title=Brutalist architecture – a retrospective|url=https://www.architectureanddesign.com.au/features/list/a-look-at-brutalist-architecture|last1=Editorial Staff|website=Architecture and Design|access-date=19 April 2020}}</ref> The style commonly makes use of exposed, unpainted [[concrete]] or [[brick]], angular [[geometric]] shapes and a predominantly [[monochrome]] colour palette;<ref name="AD2" /><ref name=":4">{{Cite web|title=Brutalist Architecture London {{!}} A Guide To Brutalism|url=https://20bedfordway.com/news/guide-to-brutalist-architecture-london/|date=2014-06-23|website=20 Bedford Way|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-05-11}}</ref> other materials, such as [[steel]], [[timber]], and [[glass]], are also featured.<ref name="bbcarts">{{cite web |last1=Harwood |first1=Elain |title=The concrete truth? Brutalism can be beautiful |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/2KYNVdPBLTYC99f18wsZPQy/the-concrete-truth-brutalism-can-be-beautiful |website=BBC Arts |access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref>

Descended from [[Modernism]], brutalism is said to be a reaction against the [[nostalgia]] of architecture in the 1940s.<ref name=":32">{{cite book|author=Rasmus Wærn|title=Guide till Sveriges Arkitektur : Byggnadskonst Under 1000 År|publisher=Arkitektur Förlag|year=2001|isbn=9789186050559|location=Stockholm}}</ref> Derived from the Swedish phrase ''nybrutalism'', the term "new brutalism" was first used by British architects [[Alison and Peter Smithson]] for their pioneering approach to design.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /><ref name="The NB p10" /> The style was further popularised in a 1955 essay by architectural critic [[Reyner Banham]], who also associated the movement with the French phrases ''[[béton brut]]'' ("raw concrete") and ''[[art brut]]'' ("raw art").<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Snyder |first1=Michael |title=The Unexpectedly Tropical History of Brutalism |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/15/t-magazine/tropical-brutalism.html |website=[[The New York Times]] |date=15 August 2019 |access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref> The style, as developed by architects such as the Smithsons, Hungarian-born [[Ernő Goldfinger]], and the British firm [[Chamberlin, Powell and Bon|Chamberlin, Powell & Bon]], was partly foreshadowed by the modernist work of other architects such as French-Swiss [[Le Corbusier]], Estonian-American [[Louis Kahn]], German-American [[Mies van der Rohe]], and Finnish [[Alvar Aalto]].<ref name="AD2" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=A Movement in a Moment: Brutalism {{!}} Architecture {{!}} Agenda|url=https://www.phaidon.com/agenda/architecture/articles/2016/march/23/a-movement-in-a-moment-brutalism/|website=Phaidon|access-date=2020-05-11}}</ref>

In the United Kingdom, brutalism was featured in the design of utilitarian, low-cost [[social housing]] influenced by [[socialist]] principles and soon spread to other regions around the world, while being echoed by similar styles like in [[Eastern Europe]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Andrei |first=Mihai |date=15 May 2022|title=Brutalist architecture and its unusual, raw appeal |url=https://www.zmescience.com/feature-post/culture/culture-society/brutalist-architecture-and-its-unusual-raw-appeal/ |access-date=18 October 2023 |website=ZME Science |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="Dezeen2" /><ref name="AD2" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=The history of Brutalist architecture in NYC affordable housing|url=https://ny.curbed.com/2019/11/11/20959515/nyc-architecture-brutalism-affordable-housing-mitchell-lama|last=Plitt|first=Amy|date=11 November 2019|website=Curbed NY|language=en|access-date=30 April 2020}}</ref> Brutalist designs became most commonly used in the design of institutional buildings, such as provincial legislatures, public works projects, [[University|universities]], [[Library|libraries]], [[court]]s, and [[city hall]]s. The popularity of the movement began to decline in the late 1970s, with some associating the style with [[urban decay]] and [[totalitarianism]].<ref name="AD2" /> Brutalism's popularity in socialist and communist nations owed to traditional styles being associated with the [[bourgeoisie]], whereas concrete emphasized equality.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Levanier |first=Johnny |title=Brutalism in design: its history and evolution in modern websites |url=https://99designs.com/blog/design-history-movements/brutalism/ |website=[[99designs]]|date=30 June 2021 }}</ref>

Brutalism has been polarising historically; specific buildings, as well as the movement as a whole, have drawn a range of criticism (often being described as "cold"). There are often public-led campaigns to demolish brutalist buildings. Some people are favourable to the style, and in the United Kingdom some buildings have been preserved.