The Problem With L.A.'s 'Starchitects'

This is “starchitecture” that pushes the aesthetic frontier but also evidences the self-indulgence that can result from the cult of celebrity and genius. And there’s a strain of machismo running through these trophy buildings, as cocky and detached as they are from the surrounding neighborhoods... Nor do these architects or buildings really address one of the central challenges posed by L.A.’s built environment... This is architecture dominated by aesthetic considerations — let the client buy the land and the community serve as blank canvas. What about urbanism? What about architecture that acknowledges context and history and is knit into the urban fabric?... Part of the problem is the estrangement between architecture and urban planning."

Thanks to The Practice of New Urbanism