From “As Found” to Bush-Hammered Concrete – Material and Texture in Brutalist Architecture

Brutalist architecture, characterized by its raw and often contradictory material textures, emerged as a deliberate rejection of the International Style's smooth precision. Key architects like Le Corbusier, who championed béton brut (concrete with wooden formwork imprints), and the Smithsons, who favored 'as found' materials reflecting everyday ordinariness, demonstrated that texture was both structural and expressive. Later brutalists such as Louis Kahn, Basil Spence, and Paul Rudolph further diversified techniques—combining brick and concrete for contrast or using bush-hammered concrete to create chiaroscuro effects. This evolution from primitive textures to sophisticated surfaces underscored brutalism's commitment to sincerity, truth, and craftsmanship over machine-aesthetic uniformity.

Niebrzydowski, W. (2019). From “As Found” to Bush-Hammered Concrete – Material and Texture in Brutalist Architecture. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 471, 72016. https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899x/471/7/072016