Owen Hopkins’s The Brutalists is an A-to-Z encyclopedia of blocky concrete and utopian ideals.
Architecture
NYC’s Flatiron Building Sells for a Whopping $190M
The sale to outsider bidder Jacob Garlick puts an end to the protracted legal battle between the iconic skyscraper’s five former owners.
Artist’s Tiny Home in a Dumpster Goes Viral on TikTok
Harrison Marshall’s 25-square-foot house cost him just $4,000, but some question its sustainability as the housing crisis continues.
The Contentious History of Frank Lloyd Wright’s First LA Home
In their exhibition at the Hollyhock House, Louise Bonnet and Adam Silverman engage with the building’s peculiarities — and its origin story.
NYC’s Iconic Flatiron Building Is … Headed to Auction?
The sale is a last-resort move to resolve a bitter dispute between the building’s owners.
Roman Concrete Had “Self-Healing” Properties, Study Finds
Researchers say the presence of mineral deposits known as “lime clasts” could explain why these ancient structures remain standing.
Tokyo Public Toilet Puts On a Mesmerizing Light Show
Tomohito Ushiro’s design features billions of shifting lighting patterns and encourages people to use the restroom without “feeling stress.”
Nazafarin Lotfi Dreams Up a Borderless Future
The artist wedges a sharp critique, and in many ways, erodes the foundations on which borders are built.
How One Woman Built a Famous Male Architect’s Legacy
Eva Hagberg’s new book sheds light on the relationship between critic and publicist Aline Louchheim and architect Eero Saarinen.
Critics Rebuke “Climate-Killer” Museum in Germany
Herzog and de Meuron’s design for the Museum of the 20th Century in Berlin has been accused of poor energy efficiency and called a “structural nightmare.”
Alain George’s Detailed View of Art, Faith, and Empire in Syria
Borrowing the model of the palimpsest, George’s The Umayyad Mosque of Damascus: Art, Faith and Empire in Early Islam takes the reader on a vivid tour of the renowned mosque’s history, meaning, and significance.
The Contentious History of a Lost Cave House in Mexico City
The destruction of “Casa Cueva,” one of Juan O’Gorman’s last architectural works, pitted two great artists against each other in one of the most divisive episodes in Mexican contemporary art history.