January 2016 | Eyesore

Commentary on architectural blunders in monthly serial.

Behold, the renovated exterior of the Peterson Automotive Museum under construction in Los Angeles. We build these horrifying objects because we can. They are enabled by computer aided design (CAD) and the computer aided fabrication of modular construction materials. Sounds like a good deal, huh? Except the diminishing returns of technology never sleep, and in this case they result in the degradation and diminishment of public space. Public space in America mostly comes in the form of the street, and of course the street in America is almost always the tyrannical realm of cars. Hence, it is fitting that a car museum should add to the despotic abasement of public space. Take a gander at the earlier facade of the Peterson Automotive Museum, and below that a rendering of the completed renovation.

                                                   Earlier iteration of the Peterson

Rendering of the completed renovation below: building as car!
With visible aerodynamics!