Brutalist Architecture

Brutalist architecture is a strand of modern architecture, prominent from the 1950s to the 1970s, defined by exposed concrete, massive forms and a frank display of structure and services. Built for universities, civic institutions, churches and social housing on several continents, it remains among the most debated styles of the twentieth century. This page gathers the ArchEyes case studies of Brutalist buildings, with photographs, plans and sections.

Key Brutalist Buildings

Palace of the Assembly, Le CorbusierChandigarh, 1962Boston City HallBoston, 1968Trellick Tower, Ernő GoldfingerLondon, 1972Yale Art and Architecture Building, Paul RudolphNew Haven, 1963Geisel Library, William PereiraSan Diego, 1970SESC Pompeia, Lina Bo BardiSão Paulo, 1986Saint-Nicolas Church, Walter FördererHérémence, 1971Paulo Mendes da Rocha HouseSão Paulo, 1964

Understanding Brutalist Architecture

The term comes from béton brut, raw concrete, the phrase Le Corbusier used for concrete left with the marks of its timber formwork. His Unité d’habitation in Marseille and later the Capitol Complex at Chandigarh, including the Palace of the Assembly and the Secretariat, established the expressive possibilities of the material. In Britain, the critic Reyner Banham and the architects Alison and Peter Smithson gave the name New Brutalism to an ethic as much as a style: honesty to materials, legible structure and visible services.

Through the 1960s the approach spread widely. In the United States, Paul Rudolph’s Art and Architecture Building at Yale used bush-hammered concrete in a dense composition of interlocking levels, and Boston City Hall gave a city government a monumental concrete form above an open brick plaza. William Pereira’s Geisel Library in San Diego lifted its reading floors on angled concrete supports. In London, Ernő Goldfinger’s Trellick Tower separated its lift and service tower from the apartment slab, linked by bridges every three floors. Similar buildings appeared on university campuses across North America, where concrete offered durability and a strong civic image.

Brutalism took distinct forms in different regions. In Brazil, the Paulista school of Vilanova Artigas and Paulo Mendes da Rocha, whose own house in São Paulo raised the dwelling on a few concrete supports, and Lina Bo Bardi’s SESC Pompeia gave concrete a social and civic role. In Switzerland, Walter Förderer’s Saint-Nicolas Church in Hérémence treated the church as a sculptural concrete mass. Related work appears in India, Japan and Mexico City, where concrete housing and institutions were built on a large scale.

By the 1980s many Brutalist buildings were criticized as hostile and poorly maintained, and a number were demolished. Since then a strong reappraisal has led to listings, careful restorations and renewed interest from architects and photographers. For a broader introduction, read our guide to Brutalist architecture: history, ideas and buildings.

The Key Buildings above are chosen by significance; the full archive below follows publication date. Each case study includes technical information, drawings where available and links to related works.