The Ugly Canada Thread

[MolsonExport]

Yield to the Tire.

oldlady'ssnatch

[Nouvellecosse]

Originally Posted by O-tacular

From my admittedly limited experience visiting industrial Mississauga their city hall is in keeping with the character of the city.

Why is the clock tower so tall? Do they have public hangings? It's almost like a smokestack with a clock on it. It would be even better if it did emit a dark plume of smoke. The actual building is bizarre. Reminds me of a brick barn style NHL arena. It's girth contrasted with the tall skinny tower is bizarre.

I wonder if they were trying to go for some sort of tallest city halls record.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

That is a particular brand of hideousness. Did they hang, draw and quarter the architect responsible for this monstrosity?? If they didn't, they should have.

On the bright side, that clock tower seems to be leaning a bit. Maybe it'll fall over.

Actually, the building was widely praised when first built. I think it also won a GG's Award of Merit. PoMo is not everyone's cup of tea, obviously.

[Nouvellecosse]

I enjoy PoMo if it's not too kitschy. Scotia Plaza in Toronto, Manulife Place in Edmonton, and 1501 McGill College and Tour KPMG both in Montreal are great examples.

[WhipperSnapper]

Yeah, Mississauga's City Hall is one of the better examples of PoMo in the country. IMO, it's still appropriate for this thread as I'm not a fan of PoMo. Some of these comment express a lack of understanding ofcdifferent architectural styles.

[WhipperSnapper]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

I enjoy PoMo if it's not too kitschy. Scotia Plaza in Toronto, Manulife Place in Edmonton, and 1501 McGill College and Tour KPMG both in Montreal are great examples.

Graves' work exemplifies PoMo. PoMo is kitschy. Those examples are more reprsentative of mainstream commercial architecture of the period.

[WhipperSnapper]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Some droll comments:

The Ten Ugliest Buildings in Toronto (from 2010)

This poo-brown thing makes the list, naturally. Toronto's answer to Laval's Clocktower of Doom.

robford'srectum

Too short.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Do we have the world's ugliest city hall?



the design was chosen in 1982 in an international competition which drew 246 entries. The winning architect was James Kirkland, who returned to his creation just last year to help celebrate the building’s 25th anniversary.
Kirkland designed a tribute to Mississauga’s agricultural past: the main building represents a farmhouse, while the council chamber represents a grain silo and the clock tower a windmill.

You know even without seeing the finished product that such an overly-literal approach to design could only lead to a disaster.

[Nouvellecosse]

Originally Posted by WhipperSnapper

Graves' work exemplifies PoMo. PoMo is kitschy. Those examples are more reprsentative of mainstream commercial architecture of the period.

I'm afraid I have to disagree. The very apt use of the term "mainstream" signifies that my examples are equally representative of the style in practice. For every extreme kitsch example I can find a subtler more refined counter example.

There's nothing about PoMo in theory that requires it to be wild and tacky. It arose simply as a progression beyond modernist traditions. Instead of strictly adhering to the rigid form follows function ethos which avoided any superficial embellishment, architects gradually started incorporating playful, non-functional flourishes. Many were simple, clean and geometric in nature, but instead of the exterior being shaped by the interior function, the exterior appearance became a function or goal that dictated the interior's form. Just because some of the superficial decorative elements eventually got out of hand and began playing homage to classical architecture and such doesn't make this a fundamental aspect of PoMo.

[O-tacular]

I agree with NouvelleEcosse. PoMo doesn't have to be ugly. My favourite PoMo buildings in Calgary are the Banker's Hall twins. Nothing ridiculous there. I could hardly even connect Mississauga's city hall with post modern design at first because it was so utilitarian looking. The clock tower obviously is a ridiculous flourish but otherwise it's pretty bland.

Edit: on second glance I can see the PoMo elements but I still wouldn't condemn the entire movement for this building. Otherwise all modernist buildings should be represented by Boston's city hall.

[WhipperSnapper]

I think you're a little confused. I'm not saying PoMo has to be over to the top or tacky. However, there are always those that define a movement and then filler that is inspired by those that define it. I find Mississauga City Hall falls more in the former in its unmistakably PoMo aestethics. Bankers Hall, on the other hand, is more representative of mass produced, commercial architecture. That is not meant the latter is inferior as some of the most reknowned firms like SOM, KPF and now Foster produce high quality design. There just isn't anything particularly innovative/ artistic about them.

To be a true fan of PoMo, you gotta appreciate MCH.

[Nouvellecosse]

Originally Posted by O-tacular

I agree with NouvelleEcosse. PoMo doesn't have to be ugly. My favourite PoMo buildings in Calgary are the Banker's Hall twins. Nothing ridiculous there. I could hardly even connect Mississauga's city hall with post modern design at first because it was so utilitarian looking. The clock tower obviously is a ridiculous flourish but otherwise it's pretty bland.

Edit: on second glance I can see the PoMo elements but I still wouldn't condemn the entire movement for this building. Otherwise all modernist buildings should be represented by Boston's city hall.

Some people view Brutalism as being a separate style distinct from modernism, as modernism was typically obsessed with a light and airy character and high quality materials, whereas brutalism was often very overbearing and short on light. Others consider it a subset of modernism because it adheres to the other main tenants such as functionalism and structural honesty. I tend to lean toward the former, because although it main share the same basic principles, the character of the actual buildings is totally different and typically quite apparent. The difference between Modernism and some examples of PoMo is barely even perceptible, requiring a sharp eye for detail.

Originally Posted by WhipperSnapper

I think you're a little confused. I'm not saying PoMo has to be over to the top or tacky. However, there are always those that define a movement and then filler that is inspired by those that define it. I find Mississauga City Hall falls more in the former in its unmistakably PoMo aestethics. Bankers Hall, on the other hand, is more representative of mass produced, commercial architecture. That is not meant the latter is inferior as some of the most reknowned firms like SOM, KPF and now Foster produce high quality design. There just isn't anything particularly innovative/ artistic about them.

To be a true fan of PoMo, you gotta appreciate MCH.

Personally I find many examples of pure modernism too staid and too sterile. I like the subtle richness offered by some examples of PoMo, when they stray just enough from modernism to interrupt its rigid purity, but still retain a clean, sleek, semetric character. Am I not a true fan of it when there are so many buildings that fit this description? This represents the hight of the style IMO, with the wild and wacky stuff being decadence occurring as architects ran out of ideas and were increasingly desperate for something original and attention-grabbing.

[O-tacular]

Whatever official movement Mississauga's city hall belongs to I think it bears the strongest resemblance to a bowel movement.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by O-tacular

Whatever official movement Mississauga's city hall belongs to I think it bears the strongest resemblance to a bowel movement.

PoMo or POS. your choice........

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by O-tacular

Whatever official movement Mississauga's city hall belongs to I think it bears the strongest resemblance to a bowel movement.

Agreed. No matter what architectural style, it is a POS.

Hell there are buildings in the brutalism style that I like, and others that I can appreciate even if I find them completely out of scale with the surroundings.

But Mississauga's city hall is one fugly mother.

[MolsonExport]

Here is a beautiful specimen of PoMo, in my opinion:

skyscraperpage.com

Compared to POOMoo

urbantoronto

[O-tacular]

The only other time Sauron's tower has been interchangeable with a building since Laval's Residence Soleil!

[MolsonExport]

I can almost hear Gollum being tortured by Hazel McCallion: "Shire!!!! ... Baggins!!!"

[Nouvellecosse]

Btw, when I was talking about Brutalism, I was only talking about Boston's Brutalist City Hall, as someone mentioned it as an example of Modernism.

[Xelebes]

I get the sense that the specifications for the construction of the building doomed it to be one ugly building, no matter who the architect was. An administrative block segregated but connected to a building that requires it to be big and low to hold lots of people? A clock tower must be added because all city halls must have a clock tower? And that clock tower must be connected to the building?