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Are we talking best ie "overall classiest/highest quality" architecture or, our favorite city for architecture?
I believe it is the first, correct? Because in that case I'm pretty sure no one can deny that NYC is number 1, with Chicago or Boston or SF as number 2.
It's like asking which city has the most beautiful women. Obviously NYC. Does that mean everyone finds NYC women the most appealing? Of course not. But c'mon. NYC has objectively the most beautiful women in the US. And it also has objectively the best architecture. (I am of course using "objectively" sarcastically here, but in every era there are aesthetic standards and in the current moment NYC has the best architecture and the most beautiful women).
As for my personal favorites for architecture, its LA, SF, Miami, NYC, and Philly, in that order, and for different reasons.
Boston should be winning this poll or some other northeastern City. Chicago is nice but almost all of their archetecture was made after 1880's many of it is just 1920s after.
Sorry but that is a read dumb statement. Just because a city has more modern architecture than another does not mean it's less of quality.
Via your theory Baghdad and Cairo have much better architecture than Paris and Barcelona. Yeah ok.
LA gets such a bad rap on here, but some of THE best distinctly american early modern architecture in the USA came out of, and is found in LA.
Charles & Ray Eames, Richard Neutra, Rudolph Schindler, etc...
Nearly all of the iconic Case Study houses are there. These things heavily impacted architecture around the world to this day.
Plus there are many fine examples of Arts & Crafts architecture in LA, most famously Greene & Greene's Gamble House.
Like it or not, LA is home to a wealth of Architectural masterworks. And lots of prominent contemporary architecture, which may go down in history as being quite important, comes out of LA. eg: Frank Gehry, Morphosis/Thom Mayne, Neil Denari, etc...
Not saying its necessarily THE best place for architecture in the USA, but it's no slouch whatsoever.
Also, I put San Francisco low because it doesn't have much architectural variety either. The modern buildings tend to be bland (although there are exceptions)... and the highrises are extremely uninspired. Washington D.C. on the other hand, has some of the best lowrise and midrise modern architecture in the country.
I actually agree with you on san Francisco. I think that the city does have some great Victorian stuff, but in my opinion, all of the good stuff has been gone foe 106 years now. Also, for the most part, the city is filled with these way too pale Styrofoam and plaster Spanish and modern stuff (I find Spanish colonial, and Adobe VERY boring) .
(I find Spanish colonial, and Adobe VERY boring) .
I know plenty people find spanish colonial not to their taste... but I've never heard "boring" before. Do you just not like boring spanish colonial, or do you find it all boring? Some of the most romantic buildings I can think of are spanish colonial (the Santa Barbara courthouse comes to mind).
LA gets such a bad rap on here, but some of THE best distinctly american early modern architecture in the USA came out of, and is found in LA.
....
This brings up another interpretation of the question--which cities have had the best local architecture movements that have produced the greatest buildings?
I would think that LA, NYC, and Chicago would then easily stand out from the crowd.
In other words, are we averaging all buildings in a city (NYC, Boston, SF)? Or are we judging only based on the "important" architecture (LA, Chicago)?
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