What makes world's ugliest buildings ugly

The eye of the beholder 

The Guggenheim, the Chrysler building, the Empire State buildings are among countless New York City structures celebrated for their grace, style, and distinction.

But for every iconic structure there are just as many duds. 

Ten of the most unfortunate constructions were recently listed in a Reuter’s news ranking of the world’s ugliest buildings. Among them are several iconic American buildings (including, notably, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame),

a smattering of Asian sites, and a single location each in Australia and the UK. They range from the downright outrageous (Australia’s crazy-quilt Pixel building)

 to the terrifyingly cold (The Royal National Theatre in London). With a thin line dividing the campy from the simply catastrophic, architecture often blame a combination of unfortunate factors for the worst eyesores: excess, ego, and exceedingly bad judgment. 

Reuters proclaims the J. Edgar Hoover Building (FBI HQ) in Washington, D.C. as the worst among them.

The poured-concrete stalwart was imagined as a powerful structure, meant to appear as solid as the organization it housed. Since then, most of DC – including the majority of its own occupants- has deemed it destruction-worthy. In fact, the building’s demise is likely if and when the FBI relocates to another headquarters. 

Function, structure, and beauty 

While ugly comes in many and interesting varieties, though, truly exemplary architecture incorporates three essential qualities: function, structure, and beauty. 

Function describes the building’s ability to meet its original purpose (if it’s an airport terminal, for example, does it truly accommodate the planes and passengers well?) Structure is a matter of sheer physical soundness and durability. Beauty, clearly dependent on the beholder’s eye, is harder to pin down.  

I’ve always loved buildings that endure and delight – like the Chrysler Building. The pre-war skyscraper tastefully incorporates elements from the 1929 Chrysler (the hubcaps and hood ornaments), without veering into the realm of excess. Even today, almost 80 years after its debut, the Chrysler’s shiny Art Deco ornamentation is graceful and inviting rather than gaudy or garish.  

Interestingly, the Reuters list included only one New York City site: Trump Tower at 725 Fifth Avenue.

Once considered the signature building of its time (circa 1983), the Trump is, according to Reuters, “downright dull on the outside, dizzyingly gaudy on the inside,” and “generally only visited by tourists - as it is almost universally avoided by actual New Yorkers”. 

Do tell 

So if we hate the Trump, who do we love? What constitutes well-executed design – and why? And where, among out many streets and avenues, are the real architectural gems lurking? 

Leave us a comment below, and I’ll share some of our discoveries in the weeks ahead. Happy hunting!