Originally Posted by
darthbimmer
I agree, this sentence was the heart of the essay accompanying a beautiful set of pictures.
That sentiment is often expressed when considering beautiful public architecture from decades ago. In the mid 20th century a lot of marquee architecture reflected pride and optimism. Not to mention, a great willingness to invest in infrastructure for the future.
And that's how a lot of architecture from the 1970s on comes up short. We, as a society, started focusing more on containing total cost and cost efficiency (cost per passenger, visitors per hour, revenue per square foot, etc.) than building spaces that were beautiful to behold and a pleasure to use.
A lot of old architecture has outlived its usefulness and needs to be put out to pasture. Those terminals were great but there is no need to be living in the past. Take a look at SFO and their new terminal 2. Stunning design and yet still meets the needs of modern day traffic. Great design and great functionality aren't mutually exclusive. I say bulldoze the Saarinen terminal and build something far grander and far more majestic in its place and far more functional! It's 2014, time to start living in the future!