You might have seen the title and thought, what is Brutalist Design? Here is a quick definition:
Brutalist interior design is a mid-20th-century design movement that really centres around raw materials and natural textures. It has a pretty strong attitude and personality and has some pretty heavyweight supporters (Le Corbusier, Carlo Scarpa, Marcel Breuer, anyone?). Though it’s not a favorite for all, the style has earned respect over the decades and we feel that it’s making a comeback!
The term Brutalist is an evolution of “béton brut”, which was coined by Le Corbusier as his definition of his favorite material; raw concrete.
The term was made popular by architecture critic Reyner Banham in the 1950s and 1960s and has grown in popularity and notoriety since then. With it, he hoped to encapsulate the newly emerging architectural style in Europe during the post-World-War-II years.
Some of the key components of this style are natural materials such as concrete, plaster or the concrete effect (as real concrete is often hard to mold and make attractive in smaller items), and metals. Metal is what helped add a true industrial feel to the Brutalist design style, and we must admit that without metal, it would seem awfully (or even more) cold.
In the Brutalist design style, we also see a lot of patina - not just a fun feature added on with age, but a true benefit and intention when designing brutalist homes, spaces and buildings. Paint was sometimes used in thin layers to create a patina style effect before time had gone to work, but ideally a patina would develop or be developed to achieve a well rounded Brutalist look.
And, you can’t forget the silhouettes that grace this design style. Lots of monolithic silhouettes complimented by jagged edges, spikes and other, well, brutal shapes. If warm and cozy is your end game, this design style might not be for you, but it sure is beautiful to observe.
So, we’d love to know, is this a look you’d rather admire from a far? Or one you’d love to live with? Sound off in the comments!