The Ugliest Building In Raleigh
This is the Bath Building. I’m not sure what state business or research takes place here, but it is pretty dreadful looking from the outside. If it had more windows then it would probably blend in with the rest of the bland state government buildings around it.
What do you think is the ugliest building in Raleigh?
UPDATE: Karl has provided the following photo of the bath building when it was new in 1972:
Posted in: Architecture on Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 - Permalink
I agree that this building needs some natural light, but I don’t think it’s lack of fenestration makes it ugly. This white monolith sports a very rigorous, classic modernist composition; it is strongly expressive of structure and volume, and has a nice, clean, unspoiled surface. While I would never, ever want to work inside this building, I think it’s an interesting piece of 70’s late modernism, but is unfortunately characteristic of the type of architecture that postmodernism revolted against. Thank you, John, for so beautifully documenting this building; as it will undoubtedly be altered or replaced in the years to come.
Comment by Mark — June 25, 2008 @ 1:25 pm
I still go with NCSU’s Harrelson Hall.
Comment by M. Lail — June 25, 2008 @ 3:41 pm
I’ll put my 2 cents worth in…It’s a tie >> between the Albemarle Building (@ the north end of the mall) and the Bath Building.
Comment by Karl — June 25, 2008 @ 5:41 pm
Ugliest buildings in Raleigh? Easy: all the Wal-Marts.
Comment by RaleighRob — June 25, 2008 @ 5:46 pm
mark - thank you for your thoughtful and insightful response. I agree it is quite expressive of its structure and volume, but sometimes less is more. It seems to shout out “look at how large and geometric I am!” I also agree it is an interesting artifact of that era of modernism.
While I may think it ugly, it is nonetheless a part of Raleigh–much like a sibling or child who may not be much to look at.
m. lail - I can share your sentiment somewhat with Harrelson Hall, but much of its ugliness lies on the inside rather than the outside.
raleighrob - yes, you got me. In posing the question I certainly was not factoring in the structures built by corporations/chain stores located outside of Raleigh. I also was vague about “Raleigh” and not specifically mentioning the downtown area.
So, if you had to chose the ugliest building in downtown Raleigh, what would it be?
Comment by John — June 25, 2008 @ 10:03 pm
Downtown? Hmmmm….
How about those high-rise dorms on Shaw University’s campus (between Blount & Person Streets) that look like a 1960’s mental hospital? You know the ones? Hideous!
Comment by RaleighRob — June 26, 2008 @ 3:30 pm
John, it definitely does shout “look at how large and geometric I am!” I Stumbled! this blog post, a good read which may be relevant to this discussion. Perhaps some day this building could be rehabilitated. I think it would be nice to perforate the surface and reskin it with glass. Makes me think of that Duda/Paine project on Glenwood Ave or Cameron Village Library — both great adaptive reuse projects, while I’m sure this building would be much more difficult to rehabilitate than the others, it could yield much more interesting results.
Comment by Mark — June 27, 2008 @ 3:03 pm
I nominate the Dobbs Building:
http://www.consultwebs.com/ncphotos/images/images/dodd_6037_550_dropwm.jpg
Comment by Anonymous — July 3, 2008 @ 3:54 pm
An old UNC English professor, describing Greenlaw, the English Department building, called it a “waffle ice cream cone,” and that’s what this building looks like to me. ( I live 3 blocks away).
Comment by John Dancy-Jones — July 5, 2008 @ 11:40 pm
The First Citizen’s bank building on Fayetteville Street. Ugh.
Comment by Matt K. — July 6, 2008 @ 1:03 am
While I don’t love the Bath Building, it is easily surpassed in ugliness by thousands of stores and houses across Wake County made of cinder blocks and fake stucco and vinyl and styrofoam.
The Bath Building is worthy of preservation as perhaps Raleigh’s best example of the Brutalist style of architecture. This style was founded by Le Corbusier, and became popular in the 1950s and 1960s. The term “brutalist” derives from the French word for raw, as in raw concrete, a material favored by Le Corbusier and other architects of the style. Many of the buildings in the style do have a brutal aspect, so the term stuck.
I don’t like the Bath building’s unfriendly relationship with the finely detailed historic houses facing Blount St. But it is actually a much better building than the plain white box across Lane St. The Bath Building is ugly in its own handsome way.
Comment by Matthew Brown — July 7, 2008 @ 10:19 pm
I believe the Bath Building is where one would send the head of an animal who bit you so it can be tested for rabies
Someone please correct me if I am wrong.
Comment by Kate — July 28, 2008 @ 1:09 pm
I have to agree with Matt Brown about the redeeming features of the Brutalist design. The empty lots next to it just need some infill to give it better context. A number of government buildings near it look worse.
The windowless AT&T box beats everything downtown by a mile.
Comment by anonymous — August 10, 2008 @ 4:18 pm
I’m surprised no one mentioned the News and Observer Building in downtown and the ugliest building in Raleigh is the Aeroglide building on Hillsborough St. on the way to Cary. Doug
Comment by Doug Van de Zande — October 5, 2008 @ 5:40 pm