Yes, and in the United States, every traffic exit on a highway looks the same because of the same cookie-cutter shops and fast food places that are repeated everywhere you turn.
Fortunately, it's possible to avoid that kind of tedium in Europe. Individuality creates a soul of place, while uniformity destroys it.
Depressingly, the same is true of fashion in clothing, music, art, motor vehicle design, food, interiors, hairstyles, music, religion, law, appliances, social structures, road design, books, education, sport…
To such an extent, that travel is now largely pointless.
The big deception, a lie in fact, about ‘diversity’, is that it is actually about homogenenisation.
Thus each traditional culture is dissolved.
Traditional cultures evolved over centuries in relative isolation. Throwing them together dissolves them, too often creating social conflict.
Everything & everybody becomes the same these days losing its/their personality with social media & internet. You're so right about isolation. Before it was about local practicality & means & your fantasy was your biggest inspiration. Now it became a race & copying of copies
I think there's so much more to the Simon story that meets the eye. Some not as mysterious as the Pyramids.
But think about how is it possible that the same shape more or less of a Pyramid can be found in Mexico, the Amazon and Egypt over millenia 😉🤔
Something is traveling around if we want it or not. Nowadays they are getting just more and more suffisticated to catch the creation, with AI mass producing and copying..
I never would have guesses the city pictured was in Europe. I guess I am not well traveled, but I am not used to seeing clusters of sky scrapers in Europe, outside of Canary Wharf in London and La Defense in Paris.
Yes, and in the United States, every traffic exit on a highway looks the same because of the same cookie-cutter shops and fast food places that are repeated everywhere you turn.
Fortunately, it's possible to avoid that kind of tedium in Europe. Individuality creates a soul of place, while uniformity destroys it.
Thank you for sharing this!
Depressingly, the same is true of fashion in clothing, music, art, motor vehicle design, food, interiors, hairstyles, music, religion, law, appliances, social structures, road design, books, education, sport…
To such an extent, that travel is now largely pointless.
The big deception, a lie in fact, about ‘diversity’, is that it is actually about homogenenisation.
Thus each traditional culture is dissolved.
Traditional cultures evolved over centuries in relative isolation. Throwing them together dissolves them, too often creating social conflict.
Everything & everybody becomes the same these days losing its/their personality with social media & internet. You're so right about isolation. Before it was about local practicality & means & your fantasy was your biggest inspiration. Now it became a race & copying of copies
Very well said! Modern architecture is a crime actually... It's an assault on us all.
I recently came back from visiting family in Prague, where I constantly felt: this is how you build a truly stunning city!
I write about family, culture and bilingualism in Prague Revisited:
https://substack.com/@theculturalmuse/note/c-135832993
This article immediately had me googling “vernacular architecture in Virginia” where I live. Really interesting from a historical perspective
Great observation 👍 but I think even in the past we had conformity.
Nowadays with the internet we can see more of that and compare.
As a former Flight Attendant ✈️ I saw many corners of the world 🌎 and I was surprised how everything fits together well like a big old puzzle.
Very enlightening thank you
Great read; your perspective is such a breath of fresh air in a world where all architecture has adopted a technocratic brutalist chic.
Yep. Simon says Simon does. Who will build up the biggest anthill just to show off. Silly but human nature.
I think there's so much more to the Simon story that meets the eye. Some not as mysterious as the Pyramids.
But think about how is it possible that the same shape more or less of a Pyramid can be found in Mexico, the Amazon and Egypt over millenia 😉🤔
Something is traveling around if we want it or not. Nowadays they are getting just more and more suffisticated to catch the creation, with AI mass producing and copying..
Also art and cultural traditions give way to profit. When economics dictate what gets built and how it’s built.
It's not just architecture, it's the people. Largely, we humans dress very similarly now in western dress across the world: sweats, jeans, t-shirts
Really great post!
I think all major architectural projects have now become "brutalist." They claim "cheaper" but I think the purpose is "demoralization."
I never would have guesses the city pictured was in Europe. I guess I am not well traveled, but I am not used to seeing clusters of sky scrapers in Europe, outside of Canary Wharf in London and La Defense in Paris.
Homogenous architecture especially modern architecture is terrible. Where did all of the oppressive gray structures come from.
In the USA, our public architecture and street even is an Exxon station with a Wendy’s next door. Same. In Montana and Florida.
Ugly.
I prefer smaller traditional buildings not soulless monotone blocks. Modernism is not always great or beautiful.