Silly Structures

In the USA, April 1 is "April Fools' Day," when pranksters have a field day playing tricks and telling jokes. In keeping with the tradition, I've been thinking about foolishness in architecture. Even the most famous architects have designed some bloopers - buildings that are impractical, absurd, or just plain silly-looking. For Richard Rogers, it was the Millennium Dome.

And then, too, there are those buildings that look wonderful, but just aren't practical. Not many people could live comfortably in the glass-walled house Mies van de Rohe designed for long-suffering Edith Farnsworth.

Out of all the buildings that get attention in newspapers, magazines, and books, which are the silliest? Tell us what's dumb, and see what other readers think.

^{Photos:
The Millennium Dome: National Audit Office Press Photo
The Farnsworth House © Steve Estes}