Dezeen Magazine

Opinion: Trumpitecture
Photograph by Tony Webster

"Better to keep bad taste in skyscrapers than bad politics"

Ahead of the US presidential election result tomorrow, readers have been giving their two cents on the architectural legacy of Republican candidate Donald Trump in our comments section this week.

Trump card: before joining the race for the White House, Donald Trump was a prolific real-estate developer. But are the tycoon's buildings as controversial as his presidential campaign?

"Form follows wig," said Gianluca Croce, referring to Trump's distinctive combed-over hairstyle.

"Better keeping bad taste in skyscrapers than a bad taste of political views," said Wing Stan.

Some readers had more positive reactions. "Great buildings, no mediocre slabs of concrete and steel," said SN Ebbert. "A lot of billionaires have infinitely worse taste than Trump does," added regular commenter Spadestick.

One reader referred to controversial comments made by Trump in a leaked 2005 recording:

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Tear gun by Yi Fei Chen

Tears for fears: Yi-Fei Chen's brass gun that shoots frozen tears has been praised by readers, who could relate to the Design Academy Eindhoven graduate's struggle to speak her mind.

"I think it's fantastic – more art than design," said BPoss. "Effective in its clarity and originality."

Some felt the design was counter-intuitive. "It's cowardice, not courage. If she had courage she would challenge her tutors," said Concerned Citizen.

"She should be able to load that up pretty quick come assessment time," wrote a user called Hog.

One commenter felt the design was a refreshing change from what they believed to be Design Academy Eindhoven's typical output:

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Herzog & de Meuron new gallery

Mies no! readers weren't impressed with Herzog & de Meuron's competition-winning plans to extend the Mies van der Rohe-designed Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin.

"If ever a building was meant to stand completely alone, it is Mies' Neue," wrote a guest user. "Not these two. The Neue Nationalgalerie is too precious," agreed GabrielVP.

"Maybe it's not as bad as it looks at first sight. Hard to tell, still shocked," said Davide.

One reader tried to look on the bright side:

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Zaha Hadid Forest Green Rovers stadium

Wood you rather: Zaha Hadid Architects has unveiled its design for a 5,000-seat football stadium built entirely from wood, prompting reads to praise the firm's sustainability credentials.

"Probably one of the best Zaha projects I have seen," said Michael Ramirez. "While curved and sexy, it is not super obvious that it's a ZHA-designed project and I think that's a good thing."

"An eco design by ZHA – you don't see that very often! I really like it!" wrote a user called Micbean.

Even readers who aren't the usual fans of Zaha Hadid Architects found themselves complimenting the design:

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