Addy Carter, AEC News Staff
It’s a common scene in my household: my mom laughs and says “Addy, you gotta come see this meme I saw on Facebook!” This time when I walk over she shows me a picture of a McDonald's from years ago with a bright red exterior and happy hamburger stools next to a present-day McDonald’s with both a grey interior and exterior. The picture is captioned “When did McDonald’s get depressed?” I gave a light laugh for my mom, but this sparked a question in my mind: why is everything so ugly these days?
My family and I just went through a house-buying process for our Grandma that is moving to Ohio from Arkansas. I spent hours and hours on Zillow scrolling through houses upon houses. What surprised me was how almost all of the houses had the same characteristics: grey flooring, a lighter hue of grey for the walls, and plain white cabinets. A more famous example of this is Kim Kardashian’s Beverly Hills mansion. Her house is entirely shades of white, beige, and grey. These feel so generic, bland, and unlived in.
Akron grew and developed during the 1920s when Art Deco was all the rage. The buildings have geometric shapes like fans and arches. Even the Polsky building has these aspects. These buildings are all so unique and visually interesting. These complex architectural details are in such stark contrast to the basic rectangle building of more recent times. The new buildings are so devoid of character which is just another example of modern design’s ugliness.
Many people point to our desire for calmness and peace as the reason for the desaturated color palette. This was especially true during the pandemic when many people were spending time at home and were overwhelmed with the stress of COVID-19. This may be true for some, but I personally find that the neutrals can be depressing, and opt for colors that make me happy. As far as architecture goes, it seems to just be because of money. Cookie-cutter buildings will always be cheaper and easier to build than unique buildings with character.
In the end, we can only control how we live our lives. If you want to paint your house every color of the rainbow, go for it! If you want to take inspiration from Kim Kardashian and paint your entire house and everything in it beige, go for it! Seek out happiness and find your joy in whatever way you can, even though McDonald’s, for the time being, will still be depressed.
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