Not really. Slander is spoken word. What you’re talking about is libel.
At any rate, it doesn’t matter, since its quite obvious to anyone who passed sixth grade reading comprehension that everyone who has posted thus far has expressed his opinion on the rather obnoxious excuses for good architecture that your pal has built. Expressions of opinions are not slander or libel.
And yes, the website is awful as well.
So, I get it, this board is about being as idiotic as you can be riding on the back of some unsuspecting randomly picked architect? Where’s your work for us to see? None? I thought so. Come back when you have at least something to offer.
I take it that your efforts at communication are what the architect is referring to when he states that he is bringing ferociousness to architecture?
fort, just because one is not an architect does not mean that one does not have cultivated taste, and certainly does not give any arthitect the right to subject one to that architect’s public display of a failed abortion without expecting an honest reply.
Please provide us with your list of degrees, and consider changing your name to Alamo.
Y’know, fort ignorance and elitism don’t go together very well…
Uh, you did notice that there are several thousand other threads on this message board, right?
I’m pretty sure that we’ve all done that before as well. But really, why confine oneself to only trashing the crap in the immediate vicinity? If you want, though, here in Boston, the following buildings are incredibly ugly:
State Services Building
JFK Federal Building
Harvard School of Public Health
McCormack State Office Building
Saltonstall Building
One Boston Place
One Beacon Street
The Prudential Tower
101 Huntington Street
The entire Charles River Park complex
100 Summer Street
the Radisson Hotel
As far as your first post goes, you seem to be setting up a false dichotomy between bland, imitative, boring houses and Neal’s work. You conveniently leave out the existence of anything that isn’t bland, yet also doesn’t look like anything designed by Neal. In the real world, buildings that don’t look like certain other buildings which are crap is no guarantee that they aren’t also crap.
I noticed all your posts are on this thread. Welcome dude. Not to kill any anonymity, but are you Mr. Kolenda?
I did get a better look at some of his stuff. I actually like what he did to the restaraunt. The elevated house has potential. Interiors of modernist structures often are quite beautiful. Is the furniture bolted to the ground (ala-Frank Lloyd Wright), or is there room for individual expression?
I would like a better look, but the website absolutely reeks of fancy-schmancy bullshit. This is not a subjective analysis.
I have also learned, the hard way, to accept the pit for what it is. Slander. Libel. Go for it! I have been called things that simply are not true, but we are one happy bitchfest.
Time will tell whether the structure becomes classic, or just a forgotten fad.
Just because some of us are not architects and have not designed anything does not mean we cannot have opinions. From what I have seen, the particular projects in question seemed to have been designed in an office, without the location and community being looked at or considered. The buildings seem foreign to the location, they do not fit. Now I am not saying everything has to look the same, whether it is from the 1920’s or 2002. Cars have changed a great deal, but they are still recognizable as a car. When a new building or house is built it should have some cohesion with the rest of the commnity.
Here is a story I think illustrates what most of us are talking about. Several years ago I had a project for school and worked in a law firm library for a few months. The head law librarian told me about a fairly large architectural firm (can’t remember which one) that designed a law library. They won all kinds of architectural awards and praise. However it was unusable as a library. The rows, doorways etc. were to small to get a book cart through. Also, they built unneeded levels which made parts of it impossible to get a book cart to. While it was a fine building, the needs of the who was going to use the area was obviously not a consideration.
THe ramp house does look like part of the Borg collective.
Hey Zap. How ya doin.
Great, how about you.
Road Rash,
Maybe when you actually see the ramp house and the towers you will like them like most of the thousands of people that have come by them. I’m not exagerating. The place can be a zoo. Maybe you won’t like them, and that’s fine, but what is amazing to me is these are just 3 houses, I see stuff all over this extremely provincial town that is actually horrid to me and no-one says a word. This guy designs something that a lot of us like very much and enjoy and have fun with and some people go bezerk. There’re huge amounts of praise and recognition as well. So these are just 3 houses, no big deal. I’m just intrigued why the people who don’t like them are so vicious… You may not like them, I don’t like a lot of stuff, but I don’t go around calling names to the architects, owners, or builders.
No, I’m not Mr. Kolenda, but a good friend of his.
Muffin and the other out of towners I’m still doubting your opinions when you are miles away and haven’t even seen the things. And lay off the fucking personal attacks.
Great RR, how about you.
Great (except for the snail paced computer) RR, how about you.
Road Rash,
Maybe when you actually see the ramp house and the towers you will like them like most of the thousands* of people that have come by them. I’m not exagerating. The place can be a zoo. Maybe you won’t like them, and that’s fine by me. What is amazing is that these are just 3 houses… I see stuff all over this nice but provincial town that is actually horrid to me and no-one says a word. This guy designs something that a lot of us like very much and enjoy and have fun with and some people go bezerk. There’re huge amounts of praise and recognition as well. So these are just 3 houses, no big deal. I’m just intrigued why the people who don’t like them are so vicious… As I say, I don’t like a lot of stuff, but I don’t go around calling names to the architects, owners, or builders.
No, I’m not Mr. Kolenda, but a good friend of his.
Muffin and the other out of towners I’m still doubting your opinions when you are miles away and haven’t even seen the things. And lay off the fucking personal attacks.
Zap, you don’t know this neighborhood. there are many modernist (old and new) houses and buildings in it. there’re also many funky, delightful structures. this is not some turn of the century gem we are speaking of. there are some nicer 30’s and 40’s bungalows that people renovate with love and care. but also a lot of just shacks. Some nemesis of ours is bringing turn of the century farm houses from out of town into the neigborhood, and planting them into tiny lots; they are massive and out of place (this is no fam land or even an old neigborhood), but they are wood, have pitched roofs and they are old so people love them.
Even if this were a historic neigborhood, I will still advocate modern structures instead of this kitch, pathetic imitations of the old things. I’m so tired of these dark houses built for some other people that had nothing to do with me. I happen to love good modern I find it warm and playful and elegant and full of light and energy. When you live in a well designed house like that your mood is different, there’s room above your head, there are nice surfaces and special details to look at. You guys are missing out big time. So sorry.
Dont’ cha just love juxtaposition. It helps keep things in perspective.
Fair enough ** fort** next time I bicycle in the Austin area I will plan to stop and see the neighborhood. However, just by seeing some of the junk they are building here in Houston in historic neigborhoods, I still feel that much modern architecture will not be fondly looked at years down the line.
So some poor bastard is sitting on his front porch when the Borg Collective lands in the lot beside him, with those pesky Borg looking down into his privacy, and then thousands of Touroids pour into the area. Is that good architecture, bad zoning, or an alien invasion into a neighbourhood? Whatever it is, it ain’t for me. Give me a design which integrates into the neighbourhood, maintains privacy from my neighbours, and preserves tranquillity on the street. Leave the ramp for urban infill or landfill or whatever.
Looks like I got out of Austin just in time.
If M.J. Neal had any design sense at all, he would have long since fired the acid-gobbling, sadistic art students that designed that mess of a website.
When you move into one of his houses does it take you two weeks to figure out where the hidden button to flush the toilet is?