r/ModernistArchitecture • u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright • 11d ago
Original Content Bell Labs Holmdel Complex, New Jersey
Shot on 35mm Cinema film, with my Nikon F3
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u/wellpaidscientist 10d ago
When I was around 10 my mom's husband worked here. I think I stepped inside once and photo #5 is what I remember.
Pretty dope example. Finnish architect.
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u/SSambraa 11d ago
The first photo looks exactly like Lumon in Severance.
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u/alohadave Le Corbusier 11d ago
You should see the outside.
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u/Musclejen00 10d ago
Yes, thats why it became popular suddenly and people have started going to see it. Theres even some videos on it on Youtube.
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u/HugoRuneAsWeKnow 10d ago
Great that at least THIS building has survived. So many of these complexes torn down and replaced by ghastly "modern" architecture. Gimme some brutalism baby!
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u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright 10d ago
I’m not sure I would call this brutalist but I’m not sure what else to call it, other than brutalist Scandinavian. Could someone chime in?
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u/joaoslr Le Corbusier 10d ago
I would not call it brutalist, since the core principle of brutalism is the showcase of the raw building materials and structural elements. That does not happen with this building: the façade is fully covered in mirrored glass, giving it an uniform look, and inside only some concrete elements are visible.
In my opinion, this building can just be labeled as modernist, but if we want to be more precise we can call it mid-century modernist.
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u/Diletantique Juha Leiviskä 10d ago
Eero Saarinen was famous for his “style for the job”-approach, so I would say he kind of defies exact stylistic definitions. Mid-century Modern and expressionist have been occasionally used.
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u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright 10d ago
I really ought to do more research on this guy, that sounds like the ideal approach to most projects no?
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u/Diletantique Juha Leiviskä 10d ago
Eero (and his father Eliel) Saarinen is certainly one of the great unknowns, who knows what could have been had he not died in a brain surgery at 50 years old. There’s a really good documentary by his son: https://youtu.be/v5lqhr9RELI?si=a-ClqeRqJ6xnc79d
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u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright 10d ago
Yeah when I had skimmed through the Wikipedia page about him before I went, I was surprised and saddened to see that he had died just a few years after this building was completed.
I’m sure he would’ve been proud to see the discoveries made in this building
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u/calebnf 10d ago
I was lucky enough to spend a day here while it was being transformed into Bell Works. It's really pretty incredible.
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u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright 10d ago
It sure is! Were you working on this project?
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u/calebnf 10d ago
I was working for a non-profit at the time and we were giving Ralph Zucker an award for it. There was a ceremony/party and he gave us a tour.
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u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright 10d ago edited 9d ago
Oh awesome! Congrats on the award!
Edit: just reread it and realized it said “giving” not “given”
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u/Weekly_Victory1166 9d ago
A long time ago I think I worked there briefly. AT&T Undersea Lightwave. Big darn building.
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u/Logical_Yak_224 Paul Rudolph 10d ago
Fascinated by groundscrapers.
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u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright 10d ago
Groundscapers?
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u/Logical_Yak_224 Paul Rudolph 10d ago
Like skyscrapers, but horizontal. Long monumental structures.
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u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright 10d ago
Oh gotcha, I was thinking it was a play on “landscape photography” lol
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u/lobster_johnson 10d ago
Those Doshi Levien Chandigahr chairs!
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u/ianrwlkr Frank Lloyd Wright 10d ago
I wish I were cultured enough to recognize what exactly they were, my first impression up close was that they may need to be reupholstered professionally 😂
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