Does Montreal have architectophobia?
Marie-Claude Lortie inquires on her La Presse blog (what’s with the New Yorker lettering? Oh let it pass) why, with many well-regarded architects in town, so many of our new buildings are mundane. She suggests that we’re all afraid of major projects since we got so burned by the Olympic stadium and its problems.
Blork 12:57 on 2011/05/31 Permalink
It’s an interesting perspective, and I tend to agree. Along with the burn scars from the Stadium there’s also the general malaise and lack of confidence in big projects that comes from the construction industry in general (all that “alleged” corruption) plus the fact that every single public works project comes in at 3X the original budget and 2X the schedule. The result is that everyone shies away from big projects.
On a personal note, I wish Montreal architects (which is to say, architects building in Montreal — or maybe it’s the people who approve the projects that get built in Montreal) would get over the green glass thing. Enough with the goddam green glass! There are other materials for pete’s sake!
qatzelok 15:09 on 2011/05/31 Permalink
The Turcot is a perfect example of a Big Project, and why they suck.
Freezerburn 08:47 on 2011/06/01 Permalink
I agree about the Turcot project. They should just fix the existing structure. This new idea is bogus.