1960s urban planning ideals
A01=Brian M. Sirman
American architectural heritage
architectural criticism
architectural failures and triumphs
architectural innovation and public perception
architectural legacy of the 1960s
architectural monuments and meaning
architectural movements in the 20th century
architectural storytelling
architectural symbolism
architecture and civic pride
architecture as social commentary
architecture controversies
Author_Brian M. Sirman
avant-garde architecture
Boston history and politics
Boston political history
Boston redevelopment
Boston's architectural evolution
Brutalism in America
building public trust through design
Category=AMC
Category=AMG
Category=AMX
Category=NHTB
city hall design history
city identity and architecture
city planning history
civic architecture
concrete architecture
controversial public architecture
cultural impact of Brutalist design
design and democracy
design as a symbol of progress
eq_art-fashion-photography
eq_bestseller
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
evolution of city skylines
government architecture
history of Boston development
metropolitan change in postwar America
mid-twentieth-century design
midcentury modernism
modern architecture debates
modern civic spaces
modernist landmarks
modernist public buildings
modernization of Boston
municipal architecture in context
political transformation through architecture
postindustrial city evolution
postwar urban renewal
reimagining civic spaces
renewal of urban centers
the rise of new urban leadership
transformation of American cities
urban architecture
urban design experiments
Product details
- ISBN 9781625343574
- Weight: 398g
- Dimensions: 152 x 226mm
- Publication Date: 30 Mar 2018
- Publisher: University of Massachusetts Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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From the 1950s to the end of the twentieth century, Boston transformed from a city in freefall into a thriving metropolis, as modern glass skyscrapers sprouted up in the midst of iconic brick rowhouses. After decades of corruption and graft, a new generation of politicians swept into office, seeking to revitalize Boston through large-scale urban renewal projects. The most important of these was a new city hall, which they hoped would project a bold vision of civic participation. The massive Brutalist building that was unveiled in 1962 stands apart - emblematic of the city's rebirth through avant-garde design.
And yet Boston City Hall frequently ranks among the country's ugliest buildings. Concrete Changes seeks to answer a common question for contemporary viewers: How did this happen? In a lively narrative filled with big personalities and newspaper accounts, Brian M. Sirman argues that this structure is more than a symbol of Boston's modernization; it acted as a catalyst for political, social, and economic change.
And yet Boston City Hall frequently ranks among the country's ugliest buildings. Concrete Changes seeks to answer a common question for contemporary viewers: How did this happen? In a lively narrative filled with big personalities and newspaper accounts, Brian M. Sirman argues that this structure is more than a symbol of Boston's modernization; it acted as a catalyst for political, social, and economic change.
Brian M. Sirman teaches history, architecture, and writing at Boston University and the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.
