Rudolph's Frog. Lindemann Building northern facade.
Architect
Paul Rudolph's Government Service Center consists of two separate, but connected buildings: the Hurley Building and the Lindemann Mental Health Center. It's the most misunderstood building in Boston. Many consider it (wrongly, IMHO) to be
the ugliest building in Boston. However, brutism is resurgent; interest among architects and architectural historians or enthusiasts has been picking up and gaining speed in recent years, and even popular sentiment has softened, at least to some extent. See this NY Times piece,
Brutalism is Back, and
Why Boston’s Brutalism Is Back in a Big Way from Boston Magazine.
One of Rudolph's masterpieces, Boston's Government Services Center ranks high among the best examples of
Brutalist architecture in the United States (perhaps even eclipsing Boston City Hall). Designed and constructed after Rudolph's
Yale Art and Architecture Building tour de force, the Hurley/Lindermann building was never completed according to Rudolph's original design and vision. Construction of this
high rise portion was never realized.
