HAIF PotD: Moody Towers

[editor]

Moody Towers, originally uploaded by b2tse.

I'm not a fan of this type of architecture, but I know a lot of HAIFers are. Usually, the better trained you are at architecture the more forms you appreciate.

These are the Moody Towers at the University of Houston, as shot by b2tse.

What's the proper term for these? Brutalist?

Amateur or professional, all are welcome to join the HAIF Flickr photo group.

[infinite_jim]

Brutal in that they've been spalding for years, instead of remedying the problem they simply roped off the ground level around the base of the bldg's

(I used to live in the south tower).

[telwink]

Brutal in that they've been spalding for years, instead of remedying the problem they simply roped off the ground level around the base of the bldg's

(I used to live in the south tower).

Hey what do you mean by 'spalding?', just curious.

This is a cool shot of the towers. I live in the South Tower, 2nd floor from 2000 ~ 2001. Even though the buildings are not my favorite flavor of architecture, I enjoyed living there more than I could possibly describe. It was my first year out on my own, @ 18 yrs old, lots of fun ppl lived around me. While the buildings are sort of a dump & the rooms are tiny, I rather enjoyed living there.

[Stephen]

Hey what do you mean by 'spalding?', just curious.

This is a cool shot of the towers. I live in the South Tower, 2nd floor from 2000 ~ 2001. Even though the buildings are not my favorite flavor of architecture, I enjoyed living there more than I could possibly describe. It was my first year out on my own, @ 18 yrs old, lots of fun ppl lived around me. While the buildings are sort of a dump & the rooms are tiny, I rather enjoyed living there.

the word should be "spalling"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spall

there's a section in that article about mechanical weathering; that's the type of spalling in play here.

[infinite_jim]

^Thanks for the clarification, I hear a great many things more than I write of. If you look at the photo closely you'll see the safety orange construction fence that keeps people from being in that area. A real waste of space and really only the most superficial problem of the facility.

To further recall the living experience of Brutualism, many architectural opportunities were not taken advantage of, or more sinisterly, they were restrictive if not Draconian in spatial composition. The elevator lobby was a narrow point of contention where coming from a relatively nice portico space that wraps from the central entry; the lobby was a cell like space with a 7-8' ceiling of masticated grey plaster.

The HVAC indoor air quality was so bad I got sick at least twice a semester, my roommate did aswell, and I can testify that bathroom situation was something even 3rd world conditions would consider funk nastification. If not for meeting such nice folks, the place would be condemned for such a dreadful living situation. I did have a nice jail window aspect of the coal glowing Pasadena refineries at 1010South Tower.

What kids will suffer for freedom from parents...