Ugliest Building In The World?

RJdxer · Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:15 am

I have to agree that this would come close but I have an eerie fascination to stay there, maybe with Scooby Doo and gang?

http://www.esquire.com/the-side/DESIGN/worst-hotel-ever-012808?kw=ist

Cavit Erginsoy

But if I were from Iceland I might protest since it comes dangerously close to Hallgrimskirkja Church in Reykjavik....

Although the statue to JGPH1A out in front more than makes up for any design flaws!!!

And there are a couple of buildings in Beijing that I saw but do not have photos of that would be in the running as well.
[Edited 2008-02-01 03:18:04]

[Edited 2008-02-01 03:19:05]

bill142 · Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:43 am

Quoting RJdxer (Thread starter):
I have to agree that this would come close but I have an eerie fascination to stay there, maybe with Scooby Doo and gang?

What large building??? You're seeing things!

Signed

North Korea.

Banco · Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:53 am

Couple of examples that are hideous more because of the location than anything else:

This monstrosity is right next to the Tower of London, and shouldn't have been allowed:

The utterly ghastly Hilton in the middle of the historic castle district in Budapest should be nuked, and the architect taken out and shot for putting such an anachronistic stain on the area up.

gkirk · Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:59 am

Signed, Qantasforever

RJdxer · Fri Feb 01, 2008 12:00 pm

In the video you can see there are like ramps that come down the ridge points. If it weren't for the lower wings think of the thrill ride you could put down the side of that thing!

ME AVN FAN · Fri Feb 01, 2008 12:15 pm

Quoting Banco (Reply 2):
ghastly Hilton in the middle of the historic castle district in Budapest should be nuked, and the architect taken out and shot for putting such an anachronistic stain on the area up.

-
Fully agree, except that when in Budapest, you should go into the Hilton and follow the signs to the "Wine Cellar". You have to get down many many many steps and then arrive in a kind of cloister of a medieval monastery halfway down to the Danube, and there you can find the Wine Cellar, where you can sample of the best wines of Hungary in an absolutely unique environment.
-
When I was in Budapest for the first time, it was hot and sunny, and I just hated that ugly building. When I was there a few years later, it started to rain quite heavily just when I was near the Hilton and then I decided to buy a newspaper there and take to the bar. There were no newspapers around and the bar not in sight, but I saw the sign "Wine Cellar" and decided to give it a chance. The wines I sampled were tremendous, and my hate for that building got reduced a bit .

mhodgson · Fri Feb 01, 2008 2:32 pm

Almost any 1960's shopping centre, bus station, or car park from the UK wins.

Braybuddy · Fri Feb 01, 2008 3:09 pm

Quoting RJdxer (Thread starter):
Ugliest Building In The World?

While it is, em, unusual, I have to say I've seen far, far worse. There are a lot of hideous, badly constructed office buildings fromt the '60s and '70s which would give it a run for its money.

Quoting RJdxer (Thread starter):
But if I were from Iceland I might protest since it comes dangerously close to Hallgrimskirkja Church in Reykjavik....

I was thinking more of this . . .

RJdxer · Fri Feb 01, 2008 3:12 pm

Quoting Braybuddy (Reply 7):
I was thinking more of this . . .

Superfly is going to be on you like stink on ......

airfoilsguy · Fri Feb 01, 2008 3:35 pm

http://www.settlesassoc.com/irsbldg.htm

DAL767400ER · Fri Feb 01, 2008 3:48 pm

Quoting RJdxer (Thread starter):
http://www.esquire.com/the-side/DESIGN/worst-hotel-ever-012808?kw=ist

Fugly as hell indeed, but it is somewhat fascinating, IMHO. Could be turned into an interesting Casino if it weren't located in the country it is in.

PlymSpotter · Fri Feb 01, 2008 3:52 pm

I don't find many buildings ugly, but these are a few which I've thought look either poor or ugly;

Somewhere in Rotterdam, I dont remember where, or the name of the building;

Barcelona's giant penis, more of a sculpture really, but I still dislike it;

Scottish Parliament building - looks utterly dreadful in my mind from the outside, the right creative flair from it's architect Miralles, but the wrong materials;

Dan

ME AVN FAN · Fri Feb 01, 2008 3:57 pm

Quoting RJdxer (Reply 8):
Quoting Braybuddy (Reply 7):
I was thinking more of this . . .

Superfly is going to be on you like stink on ......

Is that the Bank of American in SFO ? It anyway is not really ugly, but in a way quite interesting
-

Quoting Airfoilsguy (Reply 9):

http://www.settlesassoc.com/irsbldg.htm

-
and this is NOT really ugly. Stylish even in a way but too bulky
-

FlyKev · Fri Feb 01, 2008 4:01 pm

Never liked the Gherkin.

Kev.

PlymSpotter · Fri Feb 01, 2008 4:01 pm

Quoting DAL767400ER (Reply 10):
Fugly as hell indeed, but it is somewhat fascinating, IMHO. Could be turned into an interesting Casino if it weren't located in the country it is in.

I seem to remember that it has also been condemned as unsafe due to the poor quality of concrete used and the lapse construction methods. Could mean that one day it becomes the world's largest slump test silly

airfoilsguy · Fri Feb 01, 2008 4:03 pm

Quoting ME AVN FAN (Reply 12):
-
and this is NOT really ugly. Stylish even in a way but too bulky
-

Go to the website and see what the building houses. Big grin

TSS · Fri Feb 01, 2008 4:04 pm

Speaking of buildings-that-look-like-giant-phalli, there's "The Gherkin" in London:

At best, it's a huge sore thumb sticking out of downtown London. yuck

EvilForce · Fri Feb 01, 2008 4:06 pm

Is that the new Homeland Security Building? Wink

We could call it the Cheney Coffin

ME AVN FAN · Fri Feb 01, 2008 4:27 pm

Quoting Airfoilsguy (Reply 15):
and this is NOT really ugly. Stylish even in a way but too bulky
-
Go to the website and see what the building houses.

-
Well, the I.R.S. of course has the money

Quoting EvilForce (Reply 17):
Cheney Coffin

-
at least call it the "Cheney Pyramid"

Quoting TSS (Reply 16):
a huge sore thumb

-
well, I when seeing these pictures, do NOT think about a thumb
- it would rather be a topic for RootsAir ! Big grin

TSS · Fri Feb 01, 2008 5:06 pm

Quoting ME AVN FAN (Reply 18):
well, I when seeing these pictures, do NOT think about a thumb
- it would rather be a topic for RootsAir ! :D

True, and it is in London after all...I wonder what the architect's inspiration was? Wink

steeler83 · Fri Feb 01, 2008 5:25 pm

Eventhough the design has been significantly modified, I would have to say the original design for the Freedom Tower. It was a 60-story building designed to look like a 120-story building, with the very top consisting of scaffolding. Not to mention, it had that twisted appearance, and looked like something that got run over by a truck! I saw that design and almost threw up!

Well in any event, that building has been modified, so I have no idea what would get my vote then. Maybe the Chicago Spire -- that ginormous thing just does not look right against the background of the Chicago Skyline IMO. It looks like a giant glass rope.

DfwRevolution · Fri Feb 01, 2008 5:32 pm

I can't believe MIT payed for this:

steeler83 · Fri Feb 01, 2008 5:33 pm

Quoting DfwRevolution (Reply 21):
I can't believe MIT payed for this:

So that's what a discarded cardboard box looks like from a cockroach's point of view? Wink

AverageUser · Fri Feb 01, 2008 6:03 pm

The hotel Olumpia in Tallinn, Estonia.

Banco · Fri Feb 01, 2008 6:40 pm

Quoting FlyKev (Reply 13):
Never liked the Gherkin.

Quoting TSS (Reply 16):
Speaking of buildings-that-look-like-giant-phalli, there's "The Gherkin" in London:

I think the Gherkin is a fantastic building, both that and the Lloyds building look great in the mix of new and old you get all around the Bishopsgate area of the City. And let's not forget that the old Baltic Exchange was basically wiped out by an IRA bomb, and the construction of the Gherkin and other buildings around St Mary Axe followed that.

Definitely wouldn't agree it's ugly. Endless dull highrises are ugly; creative architecture is welcome.

KPWM · Fri Feb 01, 2008 8:04 pm

I never liked the Aon center in Chicago. I has a striking resemblance to the World Trade Center. I just looks like someone plopped down a rectangular block in the Middle of Chicago.

AF340 · Fri Feb 01, 2008 8:17 pm

Either:

The Torre Velasca in Milan:

Hotel Sofitel in Tokyo:

The Russian Embassy Building in Havana:

or

Tuk Chang or Elephant Building in Bangkok:

Liam

Pyrex · Fri Feb 01, 2008 8:19 pm

Quoting DfwRevolution (Reply 21):
I can't believe MIT payed for this:

Come on, it's not that bad, for Frank Gehry standards at least. Granted the building was poorly designed, leaks when it rains and they have to basically cordon off the area beneath those metal ramps when it snows so people don't get hit in the head with huge chunks of ice but I've seen much worse. It is still better looking than a lot of buildings around MIT and the rest of Cambridge (I actually had a colleague of mine who passed on a great house because of its proximity to a huge grey and red eyesore nearby).

As for ugly buildings, that North Korean one is't that bad, in an eery kind of way (then again, I always had a strange fascination with North Korea). Try the Foxwoods Hotel and "Resort" Indian casino in Connecticut (allegedly the biggest casino in the world). Start with a beautiful, idillic New England countryside, apply liberal amounts of concrete and cheap paint and build three or four fugly, gigantic towers with mega-car parks in between. I don't even want to look the picture up afraid I will throw up my lunch.

The interior isn't much better, either.

steeler83 · Fri Feb 01, 2008 8:25 pm

Quoting KPWM (Reply 25):
I has a striking resemblance to the World Trade Center.

I like the building for that reason. It doesn't look like the Twin Towers will ever be rebuilt again, which is sad. Before 9-11, they were just like any other building to me, but now that they're gone, there is this void in the NY skyline.

Of course, for as big of a void that is, there are even larger voids in the 3000-plus families affected by that... My cousin's friend constantly has nightmares after that. He was fleeing the 30th floor of the South Tower and sustained an injury while running down those stairs. I was actually near Ground Zero back in 2004, and I heard either an FDNY fire truck or an NYPD siren goind down one of the streets -- eerie, and at the same time, sad... [shudders]

Pyrex · Fri Feb 01, 2008 8:30 pm

Quoting AF340 (Reply 26):

Oh my God, those buildings are hedious, I feel like throwing up.

Superfly · Fri Feb 01, 2008 9:02 pm

Quoting Braybuddy (Reply 7):
There are a lot of hideous, badly constructed office buildings fromt the '60s and '70s which would give it a run for its money.

That is my favorite era in architecture. At least in the 60s & 70s, most skyscrapers didn't have fake height like buildings today.
By the way, that is the Trans America building, not the Bank of America building. The Bank of America building is the tallest building in San Francisco because it has the most floors. 52 stories and every floor is occupiable. The Trans America building has unusable space at the very top and the highest floor is 48 stories.
The Trans America pyramid has fake height but it's frame is an uninterrupted line from the ground all the way to the top. Not some stupid spire stuck on top like that thing they're building in New York or those other hideous structures in Dubai.

Quoting KPWM (Reply 25):
I never liked the Aon center in Chicago. I has a striking resemblance to the World Trade Center. I just looks like someone plopped down a rectangular block in the Middle of Chicago.

I'll always refer to it as the Standard Oil Building (it's original name).
That is a beautiful building with straight uninterrupted vertical lines from ground level all the way to the very top.

Quoting DfwRevolution (Reply 21):
I can't believe MIT payed for this:

I thought MIT people were smart?!?! Wow!

That is just wrong!

My vote goes to just about every building that's gone up in the last 15 years in Dubai.
What a collection of some of the world's ugliest designs. vomit

These buildings scream new money, no class, no culture, no substance, no soul and I am sure that bubble will burst.

The worst culprit has to be this pile of garbage.

jetblueguy22 · Fri Feb 01, 2008 9:06 pm

The ugliest building in the world. My school! Try seeing that every morning bright and early!
Blue

steeler83 · Fri Feb 01, 2008 9:18 pm

Quoting Jetblueguy22 (Reply 31):
The ugliest building in the world. My school! Try seeing that every morning bright and early!

I'd like to see how your school stacks up against my high school. Baldwin High is almost literally falling down (walls crumbling etc.), but at least it's under construction (rennovation/new construction)

My other vote would go to a tie between Main Hall and the FHG Library at West Chester University! All of the other buildings for the most part are gothic-turn of the century and/or victorian style, and then there are these two large modern 1950s style monstrosities. I wish I had pics of them, but if you want buildings with no character what soever... these are it!

Main Hall is even referred to the ugliest building on campus!

Oh, and I forgot about the university's power/heat station. It's basically one coal burning powerplant with a large smoke stack sticking out like a sore smogg-emitting thumb!

If you ever walk out, short of breath around West Chester, PA, that is why!! vomit

Toast · Fri Feb 01, 2008 9:23 pm

Funny that the building you guys posted aren't actually that bad. I'll certainly agree though that the Scottish Parliament building is dreadful, not because there aren't worse eyesores, but because Scotland frankly deserves much better than that.

I abhor almost everything that was built in Europe in the 60s and 70s. Le Corbusier should have been shot when his twisted little mind came up with the idea that prefab concrete towers were fit for human settlement. Yeah sure

aa61hvy · Fri Feb 01, 2008 9:52 pm

Quoting KPWM (Reply 25):
I never liked the Aon center in Chicago. I has a striking resemblance to the World Trade Center. I just looks like someone plopped down a rectangular block in the Middle of Chicago.

It looks very similar to the 707 Wilshire in Downtown LA-also an AON building.

My vote goes to that awful building in N.Korea.....

andessmf · Fri Feb 01, 2008 9:59 pm

Quoting FlyKev (Reply 13):
Gherkin.

That does not look phallic at all to me...it just looks like a giant suppository...

searpqx · Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:07 pm

Quoting Superfly (Reply 30):
That is my favorite era in architecture. At least in the 60s & 70s, most skyscrapers didn't have fake height like buildings today.

Is there anything that was made/built/constructed/written/sung/recorded/etc., after 12/31/79 that you do like? Wink

Anything round made to look like unadorned concrete is appalling. My (least) favorite local example:

swiftski · Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:08 pm

Quoting FlyKev (Reply 13):
Never liked the Gherkin.

Don't mind it myself.

What about this badboy, at the Bullring in Birmingham?

gamps · Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:22 pm

Ponte City Apartments Johannesburg - not only ugly but said to be most dangerous area in J'Burg. There are/were talks about making this a high rise prison. Building is tallest residential building in Africa and sign at the top of the building is highest/brightest in Southern Hemisphere.

Read more about it here - http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19980517/ai_n14156263

Superfly · Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:23 pm

Quoting Searpqx (Reply 36):
Is there anything that was made/built/constructed/written/sung/recorded/etc., after 12/31/79 that you do like?

My girlfriend. Smile

LOL!

As far as buildings go, very few.
The Library Tower in Los Angeles and the Baiyoke Sky Hotel in Bangkok would be some of my favorite newer buildings.
Technically Embarcadero 4 could count as that went up in 1982 but the design is the same as 1,2 & 3 which went up in 1972.

Quoting Swiftski (Reply 37):
What about this badboy, at the Bullring in Birmingham?

Yikes!
That is awful!

SBBRTech · Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:50 pm

Quoting Toast (Reply 33):
Le Corbusier should have been shot when his twisted little mind came up with the idea that prefab concrete towers were fit for human settlement.

I know what you mean. I live in one of his crime partner's conception of a city. Yeah sure

As ugly as a shopping mall can get.

PlymSpotter · Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:58 pm

Quoting Swiftski (Reply 37):
What about this badboy, at the Bullring in Birmingham?

It's certainly a lot better than what was there before it! I like it, although from above it looks an absolute mess - good designs, they just appear a little disjointed in some respects. The hub caps on the outside of Selfridges though are very cool, especially when it's illuminated at night.

Dan Smile

Duff44 · Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:27 pm

This thing is now in an IKEA parking lot... they never tore it down

Big version: Width: 700 Height: 525 File size: 83kb

Pirelli building -- New Haven, CT

Superfly · Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:42 pm

Quoting Duff44 (Reply 42):
Pirelli building -- New Haven, CT

That is one beautiful building! Cool

mdsh00 · Sat Feb 02, 2008 12:11 am

The first one isn't even that bad. It gives a very dark, authoritarian, and North Korean feel.

If you want to see a bunch of ugly buildings, check out this thread on another forum:

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=119127

PlymSpotter · Sat Feb 02, 2008 12:16 am

Quoting Superfly (Reply 43):
That is one beautiful building!

I do so agree! It could do with a face-lift; blast the grime off it, then you have a stunning piece of 1960's Marcel Breur design. To just demolish something like that would be a crime.

Dan Smile

IH8BY · Sat Feb 02, 2008 12:24 am

If you're up for dreadful buildings, here are a few:

Derwent Tower, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, UK.
Newcastle/Gateshead's tallest tower block, known locally as the Dunston Rocket. The area was a victim of Owen Luder's brutalist experiments:
http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/owenluder/page5.html

Park Hill estate, Sheffield, UK
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_Hill%2C_Sheffield

Dunelm House, Durham, County Durham, UK
The student union building for the University of Durham; such a beautiful city - how could they do this?

and worst in my book:
Trinity Centre (Get Carter) car park, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, UK.
I did some research here; for the locals this is an emblem of the neglect that has plagued Gateshead for decades, and it's truly ugly. Those who live outside the area want it listed, but those who live there just want to see the end of it. Watching it fall will symbolise a new beginning for the people of Gateshead.

steeler83 · Sat Feb 02, 2008 12:38 am

Quoting Mdsh00 (Reply 44):
If you want to see a bunch of ugly buildings, check out this thread on another forum:

I am a frequent visitor to that site. I am also an architecture enthusiast, ever since 9-11. I think there are a number of really neat buildings over in Asia, especially in Hong Kong and Shanghai, absolutely breathtaking to me.

I am happy to see that none of the buildings from Pittsburgh made the list, although there are some there that should make it. (There's this one building on Smithfield St that is about 2 or 3 stories high, and has absolutely no windows! Why doesn't someone just paing a gigantic "A" or "B" or something of the sort on one of the sides -- it looks like a giant block!!

GuitrThree · Sat Feb 02, 2008 12:51 am

Well, my vote goes for the Kaden Tower, in Louisville KY, it holds the local Ruth's Chris Steak house...

It looks even worse in person...

RJdxer · Sat Feb 02, 2008 12:56 am

Quoting GuitrThree (Reply 48):
Well, my vote goes for the Kaden Tower, in Louisville KY, it holds the local Ruth's Chris Steak house...

I've driven past that building before on my way to and from Nashville/Houston to Cleveland. You're right, I've noticed it every time and wondered who would design somethig so ugly. Of course I also get chuckle at the billboard south of town on I65 for the tatoo parlor that offers tatoos, "while you wait"! Like you're going to drop off your arm? And a little farther south on I65 there is a sign saying "used cows for sale". Always wondered if they would take some magic beans in trade?

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