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Architectural style · c. 1950–1975

Brutalism

Raw materials and honest construction. And the word may have been coined as a joke – in Uppsala.

How to spot it Find it in the app

The style in timeDrag to travel in time

  1. Zigguratc. 2200–500 BC
  2. Ancient Greek architecturec. 700–30 BC
  3. Roman architecturec. 500 BC–AD 400
  4. Nabataean architecturec. 300 BC–AD 106
  5. Byzantine architecturec. 330–1453 in the Eastern Roman Empire
  6. Moorish architecture8th–15th century in al-Andalus and North Africa
  7. Carolingian architecturec. 780–900 in the Frankish Empire
  8. Novgorod and Pskovc. 1045–1600 in north-western Russia
  9. Norman architecturec. 1050–1200
  10. Romanesquec. 1050–1250
  11. Mudéjarc. 1100–1600
  12. Gothicc. 1235–1530
  13. Brick Gothicc. 1250–1530
  14. Late Gothicc. 1400–1530
  15. Manuelinec. 1490–1530
  16. Renaissancec. 1520–1650
  17. Palladian architecturec. 1550–1800
  18. Dutch Renaissancec. 1560–1650 in the Netherlands and Flanders
  19. Baroquec. 1640–1730
  20. Carolean Baroquec. 1680–1720
  21. Georgian architecture1714–1830
  22. Rocococ. 1730–1775
  23. Neoclassicismc. 1750–1850
  24. Gustavianc. 1772–1810
  25. Karl Johan stylec. 1810–1850
  26. Victorian architecture1837–1901
  27. Gothic Revivalc. 1840–1910
  28. Historicismc. 1840–1900
  29. Industrial architecturec. 1850–1950
  30. Neo-Renaissancec. 1850–1900
  31. Swiss chalet stylec. 1850–1900
  32. Landshövdingehus1875–1945
  33. Neo-Baroquec. 1880–1910
  34. Beaux-Artsc. 1830–1920
  35. National Romanticismc. 1890–1920
  36. Art Nouveauc. 1896–1914
  37. Art Decoc. 1910–1940
  38. 1910s Neoclassicismc. 1910–1920
  39. Bauhaus1919–1933
  40. Swedish Gracec. 1920–1930
  41. Functionalismc. 1930–1950
  42. Socialist classicismc. 1933–1955
  43. Post-war Swedish modernismc. 1940–1960
  44. Brutalismc. 1950–1975
  45. The Record Yearsc. 1955–1975
  46. The Million Programme1965–1974
  47. DeconstructivismFrom the 1980s
  48. Postmodernismc. 1980–1995
  49. LonghouseStone Age to Viking Age
  50. Log houseThe Middle Ages onwards
  51. Raised storehouseIron Age to 20th century
  52. Swedish vernacularc. 1600–1900
  53. Croft and cottagec. 1700–1900
  54. Decorated farmhouses of Hälsinglandc. 1700–1900
  55. Half-timberingThe Middle Ages to the 19th century
  56. Sámi goahtiFrom prehistory to the present day
  57. Seljuk architecturec. 1040–1300
  58. Persian architectureIran
  59. British Colonialc. 1700–1950 in the British Empire

01. A joke in Uppsala

Brutalism wants to show a building as it is: raw concrete and brick, exposed structure and services, heavy volumes. The name is usually linked to the French béton brut, "raw concrete". But according to another account, Hans Asplund coins the phrase "new brutalism" in 1950 as a joke about Villa Göth in Uppsala, designed by Bengt Edman and Lennart Holm. British architects then carry the word out into the world.

In Sweden most Brutalist buildings are built in the 1960s. The Lund architects Klas Anshelm, Bengt Edman and Bernt Nyberg are considered its leading figures, and Peter Celsing, Léonie Geisendorf and Sigurd Lewerentz design individual key works. Lewerentz's St Peter's Church in Klippan from 1966 is today an international pilgrimage site for architects.

02. How to spot it

  • 1.Raw, untreated concrete – often with the imprint of the formwork
  • 2.Exposed structure and services
  • 3.Heavy, sculptural volumes
  • 4.Brick laid without anything cut or hidden
  • 5.Few, deeply recessed windows

03. The giveaway

The board marks. If the grain of the wood shows in the concrete, cast from the formwork boards, the architect wanted you to see how the building was made.

Read the façade

  1. Raw concrete in heavy volumes
  2. Exposed structure
  3. A deeply recessed entrance

04. Architects and builders

  • Klas Anshelm
  • Bengt Edman
  • Bernt Nyberg
  • Peter Celsing
  • Léonie Geisendorf
  • Sigurd Lewerentz

05. Where to see it

  • Villa Göth, Uppsala1950
  • Lund University Faculty of EngineeringKlas Anshelm, 1960–1975
  • Filmhuset, StockholmPeter Celsing, 1968–1970
  • St Peter's Church, KlippanSigurd Lewerentz, 1966
  • Norrköping City Library1971–1972

06. Often confused with

The Million Programme. Not all concrete is Brutalism. Brutalism is a deliberate architectural statement; Million Programme buildings are industrial series.

Sources

  • lex.dk (Den Store Danske): "Sverige – arkitektur – 1850 til i dag"
  • Swedish Wikipedia: "Brutalism" (bygger bl.a. på Reyner Banham: The New Brutalism, 1966)

Text: Pontus Bovin · Last updated 9 November 2026

Brutalism around the corner

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