On January of 2018, Business Insider asked citizens of every state a question: what is the ugliest building in your state? The answers came swiftly flooding in and the list was published. Now I am here today to determine the answer to my own question: Are these buildings ugly? Or just misunderstood architectural treasures? Without further ado I give you, my thoughts on the ugliest building in every state.
Alabama - The Government Plaza in Mobile:
Modern government buildings historically are not the prettiest buildings, and Mobile's Government Plaza is no exception. The winning design in a competition hosted by the AIA, The Mobile Government Plaza was built in 1994 to the tune of $73 Million dollars. It is a massive pomo monolith that looks like three people designed it without being aware of what the other was doing. It has so many things going on that looking at a picture of it for too long is headache inducing. The twin spires, the odd diagonal portion in the middle that makes the building look like a hunchback, the generic-looking rear end, it's all too much! And it doesn't help that if the twin spires weren't there to ugly it up a little, the front end of the Government Plaza is bulky and generic. Despite the multiple sloppily stitched together architectural details, the Government Plaza somehow manages to look boring and sterile. Here's a picture of it from the back:
Kind of looks like every other generic 90's office building doesn't it? And if it was just that part, I would say that it isn't good but it gets the pass. But when you throw in the ridiculous looking front end, it becomes a giant argument for how Van Der Rohe was right when he said "Less is more". The other thing one must mention when talking about the Government Plaza is the constant battle the civic government of Mobile has waged to keep the roof from leaking. Since it opened in 1994, the atrium of the Government Plaza's roof has leaked every time a heavy rain graces the city of Mobile. They attempted to resolve this predicament in 2004, which failed. The leaks continued until 2013 when the city decided that the leaks were getting so bad that they spent 2.3 million dollars on fixing the roof, which seemingly worked....until 2016 when they hired an architect to fix the reemerging leaks. So not only is the Government Plaza a massive eyesore, but it also has a questionable design from an engineering perspective. If this was what the AIA thought was the best entry in their nationwide design competition, I would hate to see the other 191 entries.
Alaska - The Westmark Hotel in Anchorage:
Every single small city has a building like the Westmark Hotel. A big square 60's monolith that was built on the cheap by a developer that has wrecked the skyline ever since it topped off. I have nothing against 60's architecture and if I am going to give the Westmark credit for one thing, it could have easily turned out worse. It is big, square, beige, and devoid of anything resembling architectural creativity and flair. There's not much to even say about it, it's just your average everyday mediocre 60's building. Is it the ugliest building in Alaska? Yeah probably. The Hilton is also pretty bad, but at least it is somewhat unique. And yes, I know I spent a good two paragraphs railing on the Mobile Government Plaza for being too unique, but there's a balance in architecture between "boring" and "hot-mess". And while the Government Plaza may be one extreme, this is the other extreme. A building that could serve as a cure for insomnia.
Arizona- Tempe City Hall in Tempe:
Ah here we go, a building on this list that I actually like. Tempe's triangular city hall was designed by Rolf Osland, Michael Goodwin and Kemper Goodwin and was completed in 1971. Here is a building that's unique without being too much. Despite it's pyramid shape, Tempe City Hall is sleek looking and eye-catching without being overbearing. While the Government Plaza in Mobile tries to be way too much, Tempe City Hall picks one architectural theme and sticks with it. Also, architecture aside it just simply looks cool:
I mean look at this thing, it looks like the lair of a Bond villain! It has this very unique and sleek presence to it that gives it a futuristic vibe despite being a building built in the late 1960's. It is a product of it's time in the best way. In the 60's, this thing was the future. And quite frankly, it still looks that way in 2023. How this got on the list when Phoenix's entire skyline looks like it was designed by a committee whose only goal was to make the most boring city possible is mindboggling!
Arkansas- The John Paul Hammerschmidt Federal Building in Fayetteville:
This is going to be controversial with some of you and some of you will like this so here goes, I actually kind of like this building. Is it the greatest building that has ever been constructed? No, of course not. Is it a decent example of 1960's modernism? It sure is! But for the sake of the people who almost certainly hate this building, lets go through the one thing I do not like. The brick wall on the side of the building (pictured above) is monolithic and pretty ugly. Its for the elevator shaft, I get it. I also get that it is a federal courthouse and as a result has to be secure. But I would have liked to see a bit more fanfare, perhaps some unique brickwork or something, but it isn't the end of the world. Ok, now that all the traditionalists have winded down, lets get them ramped up again and talk about the parts I do like. I like the symmetry of the upper part of the building, I like the large windows, I like the concrete pillars that hold up the top of the building like an architectural Atlas, and I especially like the square concrete crown that surrounds the very top of thee building tying it all together. The John Paul Hammerschmidt Federal Building isn't a masterpiece of modern architecture, but it is pretty handsome, at least in my opinion.
California - The Western Avenue KFC in Los Angeles:
Here we have one of my great architectural guilty pleasures, the postmodernist KFC of Koreatown. This building is truly ridiculous and I love it. It's most notable feature is naturally its bucket-like shape. While I am unaware of who designed this building and why they decided to go full po-mo on a KFC of all things, it is pretty clearly meant to be an architectural interpretation of a bucket of fried chicken, and you know what the most hilarious part of this already hilarious building is? It doesn't do a half bad job! It is coherent while remaining fun, a thing which cannot be said for a lot of postmodernism. Like Tempe City Hall, this KFC knows what it is, and it is a giant postmodern bucket of chicken, nothing more and nothing less. The Western Avenue KFC is wacky, ridiculous, and just plain fun!
Colorado - Denver International Airport in Denver:
Ah, Denver International Airport. Home of the lizard people, freemasons, and the illuminati elite according to some. A good building according to me. Putting aside the nonsensical conspiracy theories and admittingly rather creepy artwork, America's largest airport is a very attractive structure. Denver International Airports architect Curtis Fentress has gone on record stating that the dramatic tent roofs that define DIA's design were meant to compliment the Rocky Mountains, and this effect works. Denver Airport's roof compliments the peaks of the mountains at the rear of the building, bridging the gap between the realms of man-made structures and peaks carved by Mother Nature. And this isn't even getting into how gorgeous this building looks at night or at sunset:
It looks almost fantasy-like in it's presentation, a series of tents shining bright in front of the Mountains. It reminds me a fair bit of Native American Tipi's, albeit on a much larger scale. If there is one thing I don't like about DIA's design however, it is that the base of it and the surrounding areas are typical uninspired airport architecture. But in my opinion, the unique tents more then make up for it.
Connecticut - The Pirelli Tire Building in New Haven:
Once again we have a building that I really really like. The Marcel Breuer designed Pirelli Tire Building (currently the Hotel Marcel at the time of writing, it is also net zero interestingly enough) is one of the most famous examples of brutalist architecture in the United States. The most notable thing about the Pirelli building is the fact that three quarters of it are suspended in the air by large concrete pillars, a slightly more extreme version of the Hammerschmidt Building in Arkansas. This gives it a striking, almost gravity defying, appearance. The concrete pillars are not the only reason I am fond of this imposing brutalist structure however, there are also the sculptural carvings on the top of the buildings front fascia:
These carvings add to the Pirelli Building's already distinctive and unique look. Instead of just being some generic brutalist slab like the Westmark Hotel in Anchorage, the Pirelli Building does unique things with the brutalist style and dares to be different in a way that makes sense architecturally, and that alone deserves respect.
Delaware - The Rollins Building in Wilmington
First of all, the list says this entry is for the "Rollins Building Heliport" but seeing as how the heliport is on top of the building, I am assuming that I am reviewing the Rollins Building itself. Now with that technicality out of the way, on to the building, it sucks! Unlike some of the other more solidly designed modernist and brutalist structures on this list, the Rollins Building looks like a giant bunker. Looking at this building is like looking at an architecture themed find it book entitled "Where Are The Windows?", not to mention the color scheme which was seemingly inspired by dog feces. I suppose if I were to give it credit for something, it would be that it is so generic and boring that I cannot truly lay into it like I did the Government Plaza in Mobile.
District of Columbia - The Watergate Complex:
When I think of the Watergate Complex, architecture doesn't really come to mind. However as this is an architecture blog, lets talk about the building itself. I have mixed feelings about the Watergate Complex. Let's talk about what i don't really like, I think there is a bit too much of it. What I mean by this is that the sprawling Watergate Complex, to me anyway, just looks quite bulky in places, especially the more wedge-like buildings on the left end of the complex. I much prefer the semi-circular building on the right, but when coupled with the building around the back of the complex even that overstays its welcome REALLY quickly:
This is not to say that the too-muchness of the Watergate Complex discounts from its architectural significance. It is one of the most famous (or infamous if you think about the scandal) buildings designed by the late futurist architect Luigi Moretti who in my opinion has designed many attractive buildings, and due to this it should be preserved. But alas, the Watergate is just not my cup of tea.