In architectural circles, concrete was and still is considered to be a controversial material. In recent years, it seems that the most versatile (and therefore often used without much thought in the past) modern trend in building materials has become presentable. In fact it is downright chic to be surrounded by buildings and objects made from concrete.
New concrete compounds which make it possible to create ever flatter surfaces and ever narrower components have contributed in part to the popularity of this material, which Frank Lloyd Wright described in 1928 as follows, ”...aesthetically it has neither song nor story. Nor is it easy to see in this conglomerate a high aesthetic property, because it is an amalgam ... cement, the binding medium, is characterless in itself. The net result is, usually, an artificial stone at best, or a petrified sand heap at worst.”
It was not only Wright who later changed his attitude towards concrete. The author Catherine Croft, director of the Twentieth Century Society, refers to her book in the first sentence as ”a celebration of concrete”. She commences with a detailed essay on the history of concrete, in which she never makes the development of concrete technology and construction into the sole focal point, and instead chooses to also deal with the material’s cultural significance.
In the subsequent chapters (entitled Home, Work, Play and Landscape), which are arranged typologically and depict a total of 44 projects, the author always provides an insight into the design philosophy of the respective architects alongside a description of the buildings.
The examples in the final chapter, which fluctuate between landscape architecture and land art, underground cemetery complexes and the layout of urban areas clarify the fact that, in our constructed environment, concrete is by no means only significant when it comes to pure building construction.
The book lends itself to being extended to deal more closely with the field of civil engineering. However, even in its current form, it impressively documents the functional and artistic diversity of concrete, with the use of fascinating colour photographs and illustrations. 100 years ago, William Lethaby wrote that concrete should only be used ’in highly civilized buildings’ if it is covered by marble, gold mosaics or paint. 50 years ago, Louis Kahn claimed that it should be possible to visualise every step in the construction of a concrete building. Nowadays, architects who work with concrete engage in the whole spectrum between both extremes.
The rigid dogmas seem to have been abolished and it is left to the creativity of each individual to make the best out of the conglomerate of sand, gravel, cement and water and an increasing proportion of chemical additives. It is presumably the variety of things resulting from it which have restored concrete to its current popularity.