Et Tu, Brute?

Brutalism, The Long-Underappreciated Architectural Style, Is Attempting A Comeback. Can Ed ’s New Aesthetic Detective Save It Before It’s Too Late?

- Kate Bolick

IT WAS A SLOW FRIDAY. I WAS SNEAKING a nap when the call came in.

“Aesthetic Investigations,” I barked, a little too loudly. “You got the crime, we got the time.” The voice on the line was low and muffled. An anonymous tipster. Apparently, some guy at the White House was ranting about tearing down the J. Edgar Hoover Building on Pennsylvania Avenue. The poor FBI can’t catch a break this year.

I opened up a new case file, poured myself another snifter of Cognac, and leaned back in my chair.

It’s a funny thing, Brutalism. People either love it or hate it, like cilantro. But I’ve been tracking the beat since it first came on the scene in the 1950s, and I’m here to tell you that Brutalism is an acquired taste, like Cognac.