What Makes Buildings Beautiful (And Why Beauty Does Matter)

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Should be shown to architectural students once a week

I have studied architecture and always felt like we are heading in the wrong direction for the sake of some ideology. The funny part is that here in my country of Austria in order to call himself an "architect" a person has to swear an oath to always serve the general public first. And still they ignore the obvious preferences of the normal people for their elitist ideology they are thaught in university that resembles more a kind of modern art than actually giving the people what they need.

I actually stopped attending architectural school because of this. I noticed it everywhere, and people would laugh at me for saying it. It seems like beauty is disappearing from human culture, and we are becoming ugly, primitive machines, slowly forgetting who we are and what we are made for. Thank you for posting! I cried while watching. I believe there is a coming renaissance in the form of authentic beauty that we have never seen before. I think AI will help bring more awareness to it, and we will become more aware of the patterns that make us feel good and see the difference between what is ugly and what is beautiful.

I totally agree with this! Urban architecture should not about self expression but the creation of buildings that appease the masses as they’re the people that’ll live in it. The power of beauty should not be underestimated!

Completely agree 100%! Most modern buildings have fantastic interiors with nicely appointed kitchens and bathrooms (for residential units) and other cool rooms. But most people don't get to see the inside of a building. All of us do get to see the outside of a building, and we residents of a city should have a voice in the design of such a building. We shouldn't say no to the construction of a building, but we should have a say on how it looks from the outside, because we have to walk by that thing every day.

I'm still a first year architecture student, I hope I never will grow to hate older architecture, as there is so much beauty to be found in it

As an architect, I completely agree with this, actually I just got confidence this will be seen and hopefully change a lot that is coming up in our built environments

Architects need to see this!!!! Historical buildings have been popular for decades yet modern buildings get bland fast.

Finally somebody mentions this topic! I am so sick of people saying, beauty is subjective.

I'm glad this is getting so much attention; there needs to be way more emphasis on the physical attractiveness of urban places, especially as we are starting to reconsider our built environment. Beauty matters.

Wholeheartedly agree! People underestimate the importance of beauty in architecture and infrastructure, thinking that only utility matters. There's a reason cities that have been around since before the modern era are popular with tourists.

I've noticed a similar phenomenon in bodybuilding as in architecture students. Most bodybuilders start because they want to improve their appearance, but somewhere along the way, they lose their sense of aesthetics. If you compare last year's Mr. Olympia winner, Hadi Choopan, with an old-school icon like Steve Reeves, it's clear that Reeves looks more aesthetically pleasing. If you were to ask 100 people outside of bodybuilding which of the two looks more aesthetically pleasing, I bet 90% would say Reeves. Yet, for some reason, many people in bodybuilding seem to have completely lost their sense of beauty.

Do I dare to hope for even a slight glimpse of beauty? I moved to nature because I can't stand the constant despair and feelings of absolute disgust in our cities.

When I went to architecture school (in the 80s), the word beauty was NEVER used. And the highest praise you'll hear from an architect about someone else's building is 'nice'. Well, psychopaths are 'nice' too, until they get what they want.

Many schools were built with reinforced concrete in the 20th century, but according to one study, there seems to be a research result that concrete schools have a higher incidence of school violence than wooden ones. I think this was research in Germany, France, Canada and Japan. If the beauty of appearance, the use of natural materials, and the harmony of the townscape keep people's minds at peace, this can be a very important study. Beauty is more than just decoration. Thank you for showing us the light of hope.

Thank god that someone still appreciates the traditional/ classic architecture… have you ever lived in an old beautiful building with rich ornaments and high ceilings versus a modern square building stripped of all ornamentation with low/ normal ceilings? Well, i do. It is another life! My heart sings every time I come home and see the generous and ornate space… it may cost more, but it is definitely worth it!

This is so important to our cities and our lives - great job outlining it all so clearly! I hope to see more videos in the future.

As a building designer, it all comes down to cost. I'd love to design an old fashioned building (and do my best to) but anything that can be taken off the design makes it cheaper, so it's a near-impissuble challenge to design a building that maximizes the client's budget and isn't ugly. I hate it.

I'm so delighted to find actual reasons, physical, evolutionary and psychological, why I (and obviously many others) prefer traditional architecture to modern, block-like structures! I also learned why my home is not "minimalist" and why I get so much more enjoyment and productivity from an office with places for my eye to focus on and rest, as opposed to an empty space with few details. Great video!