August 9, 2014 “Mid-Century Remains,” Metropulse, 07 August 2014

Excerpt from Mike Gibson’s “Mid-Century Remains,” Metropulse, 07 August 2014

“For the record, Bruce McCarty admitted to Neely in 2010 that, “It’s a little dated-looking, I think.”

According to University of Tennessee architecture professor George Dodds, JWMCAC and other structures of its ilk represent “the last gasp of New Brutalism. The coliseum, the City County Building, Boston City Hall—these are buildings only a mother could love.

“There’s nothing very lyrical or pleasant about them—most of them are better suited to A Clockwork Orange. And they represent some of the least-loved buildings in Knoxville.”

Which isn’t to say that Dodds discounts McCarty’s work (he notes that the university’s own Art and Architecture Building, another modernist McCarty structure, is “remarkable,” its exterior marked by an almost Cubist artistic sensibility.)

“What really distinguishes McCarty’s work are his interiors,” Dodds says. “The first time I went into the Civic Auditorium, I was really struck by the interior. It’s a really great period piece, as elegant on the inside as it is clumsy on the outside.” For the complete article, click here

.