Why lamp posts matter

“The great artists of the past were aware that human life was full of chaos and suffering, but they had a remedy out of this situation and it was called beauty. “

This is a line by Roger Scruton in his documentary On Beauty. It is a nice discussion of the topics of beauty. I’ve watched it several times and return to it from time to time.

Sir Roger‘s criticism of Modern Architecture is near the first of the film, and he decries the concrete buildings of the 60s Brutalist style as a crime against civilization. Then he shows that they have been replaced by the glass and steel skyscrapers of today. He says that at some point Beauty was replaced by usefulness. He went on to say that once you build only for utility then you inadvertently lose the usefulness that you were seeking. If no one values the architecture it will not last. No one misses Brutalism, and no one cares for the glass jungle.

He went on to say that ornaments liberate us from the need for usefulness, and satisfy the need for harmony. The lamp post function is to provide light for pedestrians to navigate a street. So why do they need to do need to be anything other than a pole and a light? If they are ornate there must be a reason. That reason is to provide a feeling of beauty. Look at the lamp post, fence and building in the photo below. They do not need to be there to have the building function, but they do tell you that it is an important place, and the builders valued it. They wanted to create something that would out live them and be valued by the future occupants. Brutalism tells you we need it done quickly.