Monogatari:
"Judging ugliness is a kind of reflection. This judging event is not a long-term and important event that makes people happy and quickly pass, but a long-term and important thing. ”
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In the eyes of the public, beauty and ugliness are subjective. But "beauty" is similar, while "ugly" is strange.
Every year, the people will select "China's top ten ugliest buildings", although this year has not yet produced results, but the process of netizen voting and comments is very interesting, but also let us think about the "ugly".
In addition to the "figurative ugly" buildings that have reached a consensus, there are also some buildings that are not even clear whether they are beautiful or ugly.
▲ 2020 One of the 11th China Top Ten Ugly Buildings (Chongqing Wulong Flying Kiss)
▲ One of the 9th China's Top Ten Ugly Buildings in 2018 (Bacheng Crab Culture Center, Kunshan City, Jiangsu Province)
There were voices in the voting comment section for ugly buildings this year, but the attack on some of them was surprisingly consistent.
Sichuan Mianyang Jiuhuang Mountain Scenic Area, at the end of 2019 built a glass bridge, the most eye-catching is the people on the suspension bridge tower. Four huge ethnic minority boys and girls stood by the bridge, welcoming visitors from all over with open hands. Tourists stand next to the huge statue and feel inexplicably horrified.
▲ Sichuan Mianyang Jiuhuangshan Glass Bridge Tower
Jiuzhou New World in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, also has two sculptures. The 15-meter-long giant, lying on the wall, looked out at the roof. At first glance, it looks very eye-catching and very tidey, but after the wind and sun, the face of the character becomes mottled and looks scary. Someone said: "I don't know if the occupants of the tall building opposite will have nightmares." ”
▲ Jiuzhou New World, Changzhou, Jiangsu Province
The Taiyuan Museum in Shanxi was inspired by Chinese red lanterns. But it enlarged the lantern and cut it in half, like five large buckets, and some people joked about "five buckets of instant noodles".
▲ Shanxi Taiyuan Museum
The park in Kunming, Yunnan Province, 1903, because it wanted to be built into a French style area. So in the park directly reproduced a 1:1 Paris "crystal" version of the Arc de Triomphe. But the park is not a "window of the world", displaying miniature places of interest. Neither creative nor beautiful, netizens said: "A rivet looks at the hand, it is recommended to push it down and change it to greenery." ”
▲ Yunnan Kunming Park 1903 "Triumphal Arch"
Among these buildings, there are figurative buildings and cottage buildings, but they are undoubtedly ugly. They simply make things huge, evoking people's fear of giants. Or just copy the imitation, without creativity. When they are abruptly placed in the city and become a landmark landscape, they simply cannot integrate into the environment.
In order to highlight the characteristics of ethnic minorities, two giants wearing ethnic minority clothes were directly placed. In order to create a French style, just copy a landmark.
Architect I.M. Pei said: "Architecture is alive, although it is solidified, but it contains humanistic ideas on it. ”
And "figurative ugliness" and "cottage ugliness" are aesthetic laziness without thinking and imagination, like concrete without a soul.
▲ Architect I.M. Pei
Are "figurative" and "uncreative" a sword to judge ugly architecture?
It seems that it is not, and netizens also have many different voices in the face of "figurative architecture".
There is a violin church in Yanbu, Foshan, Guangdong, and the main building is a realistic violin.
In the hearts of many people, the holy church and the elegant violin are very compatible, so some netizens sighed: "How classic and beautiful!" Very artistic. ”
Perhaps the reason for the selection is that the building is surrounded by the surrounding countryside, and although it seems out of place, it has become a popular photo spot because of its uniqueness.
▲ Guangdong Foshan Yanbu Violin Church
The Matryoshka Hotel looks like a giant matryoshka, which is a proper "figurative building".
It is currently at the top of the list, but it was named asia pacific (China) best cultural theme hotel of the year 2020.
Matryoshka Hotel is in Matryoshka Square, plus Manzhouli is the intersection city of China, Russia and Mongolia, so as a tourist building, many netizens are uneven for it: "Where is it ugly?" How cute is that! ”
▲ Inner Mongolia Manzhouli Matryoshka Hotel
Coincidentally, another "ugly building" that has received professional recognition but is on the list is the Xi'an International Children's Art Museum.
Some netizens feel very ironic, this art museum is the host place of the Paris Autumn Salon Xi'an Spring Exhibition, and has also been affirmed by many architects.
There are also architectural professionals who say that this art museum is very in line with children's psychological cognition, the design concept is derived from the fairy tale "Arabian magic carpet", full of imagination, and the distance from ugliness is 108,000 miles.
But there are still many people who do not eat the set of professional masters, because of the "dense phobia", can not accept such a building.
▲ Shaanxi Xi'an International Children's Art Museum
In this way, the idea that figuration equals ugliness is somewhat biased, and there is a gap between professional aesthetics and mass aesthetics.
Some netizens were indignant: "Why judge the beauty of architecture, art is not completely understood by the general public, and it is the ideas and ideas that drive the world." ”
But good architecture is full of care for people, and if art is always high, then architecture is getting farther and farther away from life.
But beauty and ugliness are not determined by anyone, and aesthetics are not hegemony. A benign discussion of beauty and ugliness is more meaningful than a few standards. Every time we collide and get a consensus, we may become the design inspiration of future architects.
▲ One of the 8th China Top Ten Ugly Buildings in 2017 (Guangzhou Yuan Building)
I thought that the top of the list would definitely be a "figurative ugly" building. However, the current ranking is the main gate of Zhejiang University's Zijingang Campus, and together with the humanoid sculpture mentioned at the beginning, it ranks first and second with the "advantage" of the fault.
From the photos, it looks very grand, so it is surprising that such a ranking is amazing, and there are more than four hundred reviews of this building.
A netizen who may have been an alumnus said that there is no road in front of the school, which cannot be opened to traffic and cannot be walked, which is very laborious and hurtful. At that time, as soon as the design plan came out, the teachers and students on the campus were all opposed, but the school gate was still repaired. The school motto "Seeking Truth" engraved on the middle two pillars is like a joke.
The "ugliness" of the school gate does not lie in the shape of the building itself, but in the fact that there is almost no practicality, and it lies in the disregard for public opinion. The anger that was once covered up turned into today's votes, and the momentum slammed into the school gate.
▲ The south gate of Zhejiang University Zijingang Campus
The voices of the public criticizing ugliness cannot be concealed, and if they are suppressed, they will surely break out of control like a flood and move their anger to other places.
That's why there is a strange phenomenon: buildings that no longer exist are actually on this year's ugly building list.
Chongqing's "upside down house" was demolished several years ago. Originally, it was intended to imitate the upside-down houses in Taipei and Kaohsiung to provide everyone with a strange place to play, and the core idea lies in the interior of the house, where everyone can experience the illusion of challenging gravity.
And the shape is also like the Burrow in "Harry Potter", this fantasy feeling is not ugly.
▲ Chongqing Daping "Upside Down House"
Another "ugly building" that nearly entered the top ten is the Ma Xu Wenbo Art Center in Harbin. Although the building itself is not beautiful enough, it is not obtrusive compared to the surrounding environment.
In addition to the building itself, this is the first generation of female paratroopers in China, and Mr. Ma Xu and her wife donated all their savings to build it.
▲ Heilongjiang Harbin Ma Xu Wenbo Art Center
Regardless of whether the building still exists, and whether there is a special meaning behind it, such "ugly judgment" makes the truth go further, become cold and mean, and lose its human touch.
However, going back to the source of such extremes is, in the final analysis, because ugly buildings hurt people too much, beyond the year of completion, and even beyond the time of the existence of buildings. Since it is useless to speak out, vote to make these ugly buildings that have been completed for several years on the list and be seen by more people.
China's Top Ten Ugly Buildings of the Year has been held for 12 years. After so many years of hard work, many people have known about "figurative ugliness", but the "greedy, flattering, and strange" building still exists, and it has not been mentioned enough.
Picture | lazy
Gu Mengchao, a review expert and architectural critic, said: "Judging ugliness is a kind of reflection. This judging event is not a long-term and important event that makes people happy and quickly pass, but a long-term and important thing. ”
In the selection, we can see everyone's awakened aesthetic consciousness and strong desire to express themselves when criticizing ugliness, which is progress. But it is still difficult for us to have a consensus on aesthetics and ugliness.
Therefore, our attention and comment on aesthetics will make more designers motivated and responsible for designing beautiful buildings.
We will eventually pass away, but the building will remain and the design concept will be passed on from generation to generation. Looking back at the future, architecture leaves not only beauty, but also the imprint of civilization.
Resources:
2021 The 12th Top Ten Ugly Buildings in China . Architectural Talk Network
Why the selection of "hot eyes" ugly architecture is a meaningful thing . Oriental Weekly, No. 822
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