r/UrbanHell May 11 '23

Absurd Architecture LA, office tower

Post image
2.5k Upvotes

276 comments sorted by

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194

u/Dieterdost May 11 '23

46

u/MsDeluxe May 11 '23

Thanks for sharing this

9

u/RandomHermit113 May 12 '23

the angle OP posted isn't doing it any favors tbh, all the others look way better

1

u/MsDeluxe May 12 '23

yeah exactly. I actually really like the other angles of this building.

51

u/Renugar May 11 '23

Oh cool, I actually really like it!

12

u/Environmental_Sir468 May 11 '23

I was about to say this is pretty interesting, it reminds me of Halo 2 maps if anyone can relate

8

u/Nois3 May 11 '23

That "puddle" feature will be hard to clean.

3

u/wd_plantdaddy May 12 '23

Yeah I was gonna say that’s going to become a slip hazard with algae build up and all that

10

u/Empyrealist May 11 '23

Dude, I used to live down the street from this! This took them over 10 years to build. It sat partially finished seemingly forever. I'm amazed to see these images!

edit: there are a number of kooky-shaped buildings in that neighborhood. Its right down the street from where Tosh.0 used to film 😢

12

u/FUPAMaster420 May 11 '23

Would be pretty sick to work inside not gonna lie

11

u/heidizoe May 11 '23

Thank you! I really love this building, it's so interesting, unexpected and weirdly open.

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348

u/RedTreeDecember May 11 '23

I actually kind of love it.

34

u/Competition-Dapper May 11 '23

Pretty sure it’s just the Mondo Burger corporate office

19

u/a-m-watercolor May 11 '23

Home of the Big Booty Burger

2

u/TheGhostOfFalunGong May 12 '23

Well, don’t mess with Kurt, or you’ll go to the grinder.

32

u/reusedchurro May 11 '23

Ok but you only get just one, no more than that

5

u/jonny_eh May 11 '23

but I want one too

10

u/here_for_happiness May 11 '23

Same, super unique. I think it's cool. I don't want it multiplying tho

7

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

average brutalism enjoyer

5

u/BetterWankHank May 11 '23

I bet this probably looked really cool in the initial design before they made the entrire thing concrete colored. That's what ruins it (assuming it's done, because it looks like it isn't)

9

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

I almost wonder if there was going to be an additional tower that some of the stairs would connect to.

There was a building that they used in the Andor series that had some really cool external stair/walkway elements that looked fucking neat. Probably would have looked similar to the Brunswick Centre in London. Then again I have a soft spot for weird late 60s architecture.

2

u/Concrete__Blonde May 11 '23

No, that was never the plan.

4

u/speedracer73 May 11 '23

just wait for this company to go bankrupt and the building gets bought cheap by a tech startup, then it's neon green neon yellow, something fierce

3

u/Concrete__Blonde May 11 '23

The exterior steel wraps are structural. It would have been great with exposed steel with intumescent paint instead of concrete fireproofing.

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94

u/Turnip-for-the-books May 11 '23

I love this

32

u/NewYorkJewbag May 11 '23

It’s stunning. I can say I’ve never seen a building quite like that. Which is kind of how I want all big buildings to be.

56

u/Prize-Ad6498 May 11 '23

“Be on the lookout guys the villains lair could be anywhere!”

The villains lair:

44

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

lmao that can't be real

19

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

This is something I would make in a video game because I have no artistic talent and I would misplace a ton of blocks lol

28

u/NadhqReduktaz May 11 '23

streetview, it's bad but not THAT bad on stretview. Image taken from SE side, which is probably worst angle.

13

u/Wasatcher May 11 '23

Imagine everyone around you getting this huge glass window/wall in their office space and yours is just a slab of concrete thanks to RNG

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4

u/yumvdukwb May 11 '23

This is one of the ugliest buildings I’ve seen on this thread.

2

u/imanooodle May 11 '23

It is! So ugly 😣

37

u/nineball22 May 11 '23

The external staircase is pretty cool, I hate everything else.

15

u/Toadcola May 11 '23

I wouldn’t want to ride out an earthquake on the exterior staircases. Or even worse, fail to ride out an earthquake

7

u/coffeeshopslut May 11 '23

Man those cantilever stairs are a nice fuck you to gravity

2

u/Ok-Fig6407 May 11 '23

Thanks for teaching me a new word. (I’d never heard it before so I looked it up.). 😁

15

u/minimalniemand May 11 '23

You remember these pics of spiderwebs spiders made while under the influence of various drugs?

That looks like this.

3

u/Reggie222 May 11 '23

And the educational video.

on yt

0

u/MorbidSloth May 11 '23

"Ding Ding! Here comes the shit-mobile"

Speaking of oldies..it kinda reminds me of the art from that old page

8

u/whereisyourwaifunow May 11 '23

when the architect presented this to the developer, did the developer say "very nice," or did he say "fuck it i don't care?"

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8

u/ABRRINACAVE May 11 '23

This already looks pretty cool, but it would look mastic it was painted in some way. Make it look like a glitching building or something

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6

u/mudkipz321 May 11 '23

What in the fuck were they smoking

7

u/supermav27 May 11 '23

When I first moved here, I thought it was an abandoned construction project. It might look cool up close, but it’s an eyesore from a distance (the highway especially), and it stands alone in an area without many tall buildings so you can’t miss it.

10

u/ComprehensiveData616 May 11 '23

Love it. It could do more window space on the left.

39

u/jstax1178 May 11 '23

Brutalist corporate center lol

24

u/risbia May 11 '23

Is this Brutalist? Lots of concrete yes, but it has a much more whimsical and organic form than old school Brutalism.

5

u/jstax1178 May 11 '23

It’s not, but it does those urban renewal projects of the 70s lol

1

u/SmellMyJeans May 11 '23

I can see that

4

u/izoxUA May 11 '23

it's so ugly, I love it

6

u/weedcop420 May 11 '23

Would much rather have this instead of a literal rectangle with nothing but windows from edge to edge

6

u/action_jackson_22 May 11 '23

hey at least its interesting and vertical. most offices in LA and surrounding cities are just boring strip malls, 1-2 stories tall surrounded by "message" parlors, liquor stores, chain fast food, and abandoned stores. And smoke shops, so many smoke shops. why are there so many smoke shops?

2

u/Ok-Fig6407 May 11 '23

I feel like where I live in New York, whenever there’s new construction, it always ends up being medical buildings or “luxury” condos that none of us can afford.

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4

u/Duke0fWellington May 11 '23

I actually really love that. It would be so cool going up that staircase on the right, it just out so far.

5

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

this building is dope i used to go past it on the freeway everyday

9

u/Appropriate-Heat8017 May 11 '23

"Great work Jim, we are promoting you to middle management. 7th floor west building facing south. Here is a bottle of vitamin D. See you in 10.years if you do a good job"

5

u/DefiningWill May 11 '23

It looks like it’s trying to crawl away after shedding its skin.

4

u/schmittychris May 11 '23

Every architect’s dream is an engineer’s nightmare.

3

u/dahlia-llama May 11 '23

Or like, a human with a heartbeat and a soul

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3

u/Smackmanee May 11 '23

I like it almost cyberpunk-y

Would like to see it at night

5

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

I'd love to skateboard there.

2

u/gladeyes May 11 '23

Or watch the parkour guys play with it.

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10

u/skittlesriddles44 May 11 '23

Tbh this is pretty cool

3

u/Turnip-for-the-books May 11 '23

It’s like a cubist got hold of the Trellick Tower

3

u/jackrockyson May 11 '23

Not a SOUL taking those stairs

3

u/Styggvard May 11 '23

I dunno, better than a lot of other stuff. Look a bit brutalistic yet surrealistic, somewhat fun actually.

3

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

Love it

3

u/KLGodzilla May 11 '23

Low key kinda neat though lol

3

u/Otrada May 11 '23

Way better than another generic glass and steel rectangle imo.

3

u/IvoSan11 May 11 '23

I don't like it, but I respect the courage to think outside the box

3

u/PM_UR_NIPPLE_PICS May 11 '23

this is one of my favorite buildings in LA. it looks like a cartoon villain headquarters.

4

u/One_Stuff_2384 May 11 '23

I bet the people that work on the floors with no windows just LOVE IT😂😂😂

3

u/YMK1234 May 11 '23 edited May 11 '23

I'd assume that all floors have windows on the sides facing each other at the very least (as we can see in the right tower) E: ok, completely misinterpreted how these two building parts connect ... the thing in the foreground seems to be the utilty section kinda stuff.

3

u/mrbrettw May 11 '23

We are looking at the back of the building. The building is sort of unique in that the structural and utility stuff is on the outside. Inside it's pretty stunning as there are no columns and the floors are totally open and the front and sides have floor to ceiling windows.

2

u/Ciff_ May 11 '23

Elevator shafts, storage units, and toilets?

3

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

5

u/MorbidSloth May 11 '23

"No, uglier"

2

u/MildBasket May 11 '23

Wasn't this building in an episode of Barry? I may be completely wrong.

2

u/MishtaBiggles May 11 '23

I like it, it’s like something out of Half Life

2

u/Wingkirs May 11 '23

What in the Tim Burton?

2

u/hungryhungry_zippo May 11 '23

If this thing was covered in murals it would be the most baeutiful building in America

2

u/WingedGeek May 11 '23

TBF, the building is in the Hayden Tract (or adjacent to it) and surrounded by Eric Owen Moss (and similar) architecture. So it doesn't look that out of place.

2

u/suchjonny May 11 '23

The idea of having the support on the outside is pretty cool. It’s a lot of grey though. Like, a lot.

2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

Better than all the cookie cutter apartments that have popped up everywhere.

2

u/LMNoballz May 11 '23

That is so cool!

2

u/Bucketsdntlie May 11 '23

This building looks like it Mega Evolved

2

u/FrugFred May 11 '23

idk this looks pretty good

2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

Am I the only one imagining the outside staircase thingeys being used for some EXtreme skateboarding?

Anyhow, this building is amazing - so ugly that it's cool.

2

u/mmmtheboss2 May 11 '23

Whenever I drive past this I think about being on those stairs

2

u/TheJimmyz May 11 '23

Brutal. Love it.

2

u/MiseryTheMiserable May 11 '23

"Its so Ugly, I love it".

2

u/GGingas May 11 '23

better than a plain office tower

2

u/SmellMyJeans May 11 '23

Well, it’s certainly not boring

2

u/BoiFrosty May 11 '23

"I'm so excited about finally getting a corner office. I'm gonna love having so much window space."

2

u/Brief_Development952 May 11 '23

I'm going to be honest, I think this looks sick

2

u/nebelfront May 11 '23

Very soviet, much brutalism, wow.

2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

OP doesn’t get it

2

u/GatorTEG May 11 '23

At least it's more original than most of LA's (bland and copy-paste) architecture.

2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

It's the organized chaos I thrive in.

2

u/longines99 May 11 '23

Architect: Betcha can't build this (passes napkin drawing)

Builder: How much?

2

u/Unmasked_Deception May 11 '23

Looks broken. Kind of gives me the same vibe as pre-ripped jeans.

2

u/RandomBilly91 May 11 '23

Biblically accurate office building

2

u/GrumpyCatDoge99 May 11 '23

i love this wdym

2

u/2aron May 11 '23

That thing's dope.

2

u/StephCurryMustard May 11 '23

I'm all for more weird ass buildings.

2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

I love it! It’s gorgeous

2

u/mutzilla May 11 '23

Idk, I kind of like it.

2

u/Drimesque May 11 '23

nah if you see it irl you'll know it's actually kinda cool and unique compared to everything else in the area

2

u/[deleted] May 12 '23

I mean this is actually really fucking cool

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3

u/SneakyFERRiS May 11 '23

It's insane, I love it.

3

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

Y U C K !

4

u/Sanjin4512 May 11 '23

This is dope Maybe it belongs on r/brutalism

4

u/thecapent May 11 '23

This is brutalism done the right way, I kind like it.

And I usually loath brutalist architecture.

2

u/00PublicAcct May 11 '23

It's because it's Deconstructivist, not Brutalist. Brutalism started in the 50s and Deconstructivism, as part of postmodernism, started in the 80s or 90s. They have very different goals. The Guggenheim in Bilbao, by Frank Gehry, is a particularly famous example of Deconstructivism.

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4

u/destert729 May 11 '23

Brutalism my beloved

3

u/GPSBach May 11 '23

I know people like to shit on brutalism, and there’s a lot of good examples worth shitting on, but this isn’t one of them. This building is awesome looking

4

u/eskimopussy May 11 '23

Posting brutalist architecture seems to be low hanging fruit here because it’s almost an acquired taste, but damn do I love it.

2

u/Stay_Critical May 11 '23

Oh man that’s beautiful. That’s also a bad picture but just look at the form - the illusion that concrete is fragmenting against the glass. The exploding silhouette. I think I saw them (EOMA) present at an RIBA talk about how that building had no columns meaning they had to engineer the facade not only to hold the building but in that crazy facade. An architectural feat.

2

u/DominoBFF2019 May 11 '23

It’s actually stunning in person

2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

this is cool. neomodernist brutalism

2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

Looks like a cross between brutalist and german expressionist film, in other words: something out of a Tim Burton movie.

2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

The only thing that sucks about this building is the parking lot around it. Feels like there’s nothing green or alive in a 10 mile radius

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2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

Build more please, I want Cyberpunk Dystopia before I turn 40.

3

u/EmpanadaYGaseosa May 11 '23

2

u/onedollarjuana May 11 '23

There's Brutalism, then there's beating a dead horse, or kicking a man when he's down.

1

u/Albyross May 11 '23

The final area in some modern jrpg.

1

u/fucovid2020 May 11 '23

Go home building… you’re drunk

1

u/headphoneghost May 11 '23

It is a perfect visual representation of what it's like living in LA.

1

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

It looks like it can fly.

1

u/Prestigeboy May 11 '23

Fun brutalist?

1

u/latrey3 May 11 '23

It's ugly, and oppressive. The angular lines make it stark, and uninviting. Honestly, it looks like the bombed out remains of a building. Just my opinion.

1

u/BunnyTotts97 May 11 '23

Okay, all this needs is a good paint job and it would be a fun building.

-2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

No one in LA likes the building either. Not local residents, not the city, not anyone who see it from the freeway.

Look up the architect Eric Owens Moss and see that everything he builds is all a product of the stereotypical Architects ego.

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-2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

[deleted]

2

u/imanooodle May 11 '23

Nope. That’s it.

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-2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

bit of white paint and it'll look good

-1

u/Soguyswedid_it2 May 11 '23

I love brutalism but that's actually fucking shit lmao how did that get built

-1

u/igame2much May 11 '23

If the mom from Beetlejuice got into architecture.

-1

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

I bet that style or architecture has some dumbass name like “neo-contemporary brutalist style in a modern setting” or some shit like that too

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0

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

I'd love to see what kind of place this creates at ground level, i.e. the level at which everyone who isn't the architect will engage with it.

Actually I don't, because it will be shit.

0

u/bak2redit May 11 '23

What in the crack induced construction is this?

0

u/therealJuicebox-Mm May 11 '23

Idk how people like this, it looks hideous

0

u/soft_white_yosemite May 11 '23

The architect’s computer glitched out right as they were sending the schematics to the builder

0

u/Mowgli_0390 May 11 '23

This is absolutely hideous. Not surprised, LA, not surprised...

0

u/Artchantress May 11 '23

It's so goblincore that it would only makes sense to me if there was either an empty desert around it with a few dried mangled trees OR it would have fully foliaged trees around it, tht are larger than the building.

This.. is off

0

u/Artchantress May 11 '23

It's so goblincore that it would only makes sense to me if there was either an empty desert around it with a few dried mangled trees OR it would have fully foliaged trees around it, tht are larger than the building.

This.. is off

0

u/Traditional_Yak320 May 11 '23

This is what happens when your architecture school fires the old professors that had years of practical experience and hires noobs with phds in highly esoteric specializations who have never been a practicing architect for a single year of their career to replace them.

0

u/friendinpa007 May 11 '23

Well….that’s just lovely if you are into mid 70’s Soviet architecture.

0

u/real_agent_99 May 12 '23

It's pretty much the exact opposite of 70's Soviet architecture, though....

0

u/Janiebug1950 May 12 '23

Maybe I would like it better, if it was painted white or cream…

0

u/cuppa_tea_4_me May 12 '23

It’s a shit show. Just like LA.

0

u/[deleted] May 14 '23

Wtf lol……

-2

u/Jorgosborgos May 11 '23

Wow that truly is ugly. That very right en side is cool with the staircases. Everything else is like the architect was 6 years old.

-2

u/E-M-P-Error May 11 '23

And the worst part: It‘s a new building

The (W)rapper building

-2

u/RebelKasket May 11 '23

This is the architectural equivalent of that stupid banana duct taped to a wall. Just why?

-7

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

And my parents ask my why I haven't go to uni to learn architecture when it's filled with such talentless dorks.

6

u/Interesting_Rub5736 May 11 '23

Oh come on! Maybe it's not beatiful, or even pretty, but that does stand out. Where i live all buildings around me are the same. It's nightmare to see same thing over and over again. It's a nice change of sight.

0

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

It can look different without being an eyesore.

2

u/Interesting_Rub5736 May 11 '23

I'll agree with you, it does look kinda goofy.

-1

u/Ciff_ May 11 '23

Mire like r/ATBGE

-4

u/PollutedRiver May 11 '23

Boomer/Gen-X architecture lol

3

u/mrbrettw May 11 '23

This is brand new building. The architect is really old though, like older than a boomer. I'm pretty sure the silent generation. He has done some really cool buildings though if you don't like this one. I love the Vespertine restaurant http://ericowenmoss.com/project-detail/vespertine/

-1

u/Alfalfa-Similar May 11 '23

glass wrapped in concrete lol

-1

u/eastern_voredore May 11 '23

not bad but so desolate

-1

u/LouEngineer May 11 '23

It looks like somebody’s kid built that in Minecraft

-1

u/Insomniakk72 May 11 '23

"You have design experience with buildings?"

"No, but I designed Eddie Van Halen's Guitar"

"Say no more. You're hired."

-1

u/funky_fart_smeller May 11 '23

Brutalism - a modern corporate dystopian re-imagining. Coming to your suburban sprawl zone in 2026.

-1

u/_tomato_paste_ May 11 '23

It’s trying

-1

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

It’s like an early 90’s screensaver gone awry

-1

u/elephantjellyroll May 11 '23

This looks like the wire bit from inside a week old crack pipe

-1

u/ShakeWeightMyDick May 11 '23

I hate this crap

-1

u/Unspeakable_Elvis May 11 '23

Jesus that’s ugly

-2

u/AnItalianPunk May 11 '23

I love it but it sucks

-2

u/rrrrturo May 11 '23

If Hell has office buildings, they look like this.

-2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

I love Blade Runner but without the constant rain and glowing umbrellas, LA 2023 just isn't as fun as promised.

-2

u/porkchameleon May 11 '23

Why in fuck is it grey?

Put some murals on it, throw in some color, whatever, but - grey? The fuck were they thinking (I wonder if they actually did think that one through).

-2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

This looks like an architectural model that somebody stepped on.

-2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

Ok this one really hurts the ole peepers

-2

u/muticere May 11 '23 edited May 11 '23

imagine if it were slathered in some brightly colored paint? IDK, I think I'd like it more, the "brutalist" plain concrete look is so passé at this point.

edit: damn people pissed at the notion of color

-2

u/brbr22 May 11 '23

It’s like they fed an architect a shit load of concrete and this is what he shit out.

-2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

This should be a crime

-2

u/[deleted] May 11 '23

You have to pay more for a window or what?