khristopher said:
I don't know if I would call either of those two buildings brutalist.
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I wouldn't consider Crystal-Blu a brutalist building (maybe just a typical condo with glass spandrel), however Uptown would definitely qualify IMO given all its plain beige precast with no architectural details
 
Solaris said:
I wouldn't consider Crystal-Blu a brutalist building (maybe just a typical condo with glass spandrel), however Uptown would definitely qualify IMO given all its plain beige precast with no architectural details
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I don't think that's a feature of brutalist architecture... just cheap architecture.
 
CITY_LOVER said:
Just like people, age usually works the other way!

With Crystal-Grey.....errr I mean....Crystal-Blu turning out to be disappointing in its cladding (I do like the slimness though), I'm hoping that this one turns at least decent (i.e. eye-catching in whatever way possible) so that this area will be more pleasing to the eye.

So, for all you highly knowledgeable people out there: How many of you would want to see the grey brutalist Manulife Building and the grey BMO building (on Bloor) changed to a different color (if possible), and if so, what would your color preferences be? I want the Bloor-Yorkville corridor to look a little less grey. (My disclaimer: I know a bit about the brutalist history of toronto buildings but am curious regardless and am therefore using this forum to express this; please limit the 'hate' mails.) Thanks. :)
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I don't believe CITY_LOVER is referring to Uptown or Blu.
I always considered the Manulife Apartments and the BMO office building at the north end of the Manulife Centre on Bloor Brutalist but I think they're quite fine left well enough alone.
 
Sir Novelty Fashion said:
I think he meant either Uptown or CrystalBlu...
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I was referring to CITY LOVER's post in which they referred to the Manulife and BMO buildings as brutalist.
Just because a building uses a lot of concrete, does not make it brutalist. The design does. Also, I don't think I've ever seen precast used for brutalism.
I guess they are somewhat brutalist, just not the first buildings I think of when I think of the term brutalist.
However, this is way off topic, and has nothing to do with Uptown, so I'll stop here.
 
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khristopher said:
I was referring to CITY LOVER's post in which they referred to the Manulife and BMO buildings as brutalist.
Just because a building uses a lot of concrete, does not make it brutalist. The design does. Also, I don't think I've ever seen precast used for brutalism.
I guess they are somewhat brutalist, just not the first buildings I think of when I think of the term brutalist.
However, this is way off topic, and has nothing to do with Uptown, so I'll stop here.
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Manulife seems still highly influenced by the international style and wouldn't be the best representative of Brutalism, though it can't be said that it isn't.

Brutalism being a product of modernism emphasizes the material used, whereas precast panels on condos build right now tend to be coloured to evoke stucco or some other material, which excludes the building from the Brutalist category. But you're right in saying that Brutalism is more than just the cladding material, there are crucial architectural details that define the style, like the emphasis of hinting at the inner functional components of the interior (like stairwells) on the exterior, and geometrical motifs like Robarts Library's repetitive triangular sequence.

To say that Uptown is Brutalist like someone else did is ignorant of what the term even refers to.
 
I think that without splitting hairs over concrete construction methods, the consensus tends t/w Manulife being some form of Brutalism--heck, anything from the Hudson's Bay Centre to the Colonnade in the vicinity can be so categorized without squirming...
 
Nov 8

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Great shots!... I just can't imagine how tall Uptown will be when complete... Right now it looks rather.. chunky? .... i dunno :D
 
As you say, "almost anything"


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photo by mlinksva at flickr


that wall is just awful
 
That above is a great concept ruined by incompetent planning or a total lack of funds.
 
steveve said:
Great shots!... I just can't imagine how tall Uptown will be when complete... Right now it looks rather.. chunky? .... i dunno :D
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Good it's chunky, it can support Crystal Blue when tips over from a strong South wind
 
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