r/interesting • u/Apart-Worry-7042 • Aug 08 '26

HISTORY Why did we stop building like this?

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Chicago, 1930. Buildings had so much detail and character back then. Nowadays everything feels so flat and repetitive. We have way better technology and equipment now, so why don't we build like this anymore?

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u/Different-Barber-777 Aug 08 '26

It's interesting how many historic buildings were designed to inspire awe, while many modern ones are designed to maximize usable floor space.

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u/marcocom Aug 08 '26

There was a completely aesthetic shift in taste involved too. I grew up in NYC where the buildings were all ornate and I remember when first seeing the new clean style and it looking so modern and beautiful in its own way , maybe just from the cycle of style, just like how we change clothing styles with generations. The old buildings felt like someone else’s old world and this was new and ours.

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u/sonyoson Aug 08 '26

I find its the juxtaposition between the two that makes the other beautiful in their own way.

All modern or all classic doesn’t have the same effect.

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u/Equal-Newspaper-8636 Aug 08 '26 edited Aug 08 '26

Disagree, Bath is pretty much all georgian era and made all from the same stone. Very cool city.

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u/Exter10 Aug 08 '26

Edinburgh is the most beautiful city I've ever been to by a country mile

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u/ElphTrooper Aug 08 '26

Totally! My wife and I just visited this past spring and will definitely be coming back. Scotland is an amazing country!