May 2016 | Eyesore

Commentary on architectural blunders in monthly serial.

Behold the new addition to San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art by the Norwegian architecture firm, Snøhetta, opening in two weeks. Thanks for yet another mystical geniusinnovation in building form, lending the institution the look of a collapsed Japanese paper lantern with moth holes. Note that the genius crumpled fiberglass cladding is guaranteed to trap auto emissions in the final decade of Happy Motoring. You can also be sure that the exterior will resist renovation and perhaps even basic maintenance — the sad fate of untested novelties in construction materials. Observe the now utterly clichéd canonical horizontal windows and their arbitrary placement, betraying the fact that buildings are now designed from the inside out, since the public realm has value only for marketing the design firm’s availability for new commissions. The PR bullshit heralding the official debut says that the design scheme is supposed to express “the waters and fog of the San Francisco Bay.” In other words, it’s a force of nature. No it’s not. It’s a force of egomania and techno-narcissism.