The UW-Madison Brutalist Walking Tour

First of all, a little background -- or what I learned by Googling.

Brutalism is a style of architecture of the 1950s and 1960s (The Free Dictionary by Farlex). Or is it one that flourished from the 1950s to the mid-1970s (Wikipedia)?

In 1954, Alison and Peter Smithson, English architects, coined the term from the French béton brut, or "raw concrete" (Wikipedia). Or is it French for "rough concrete"? (New York Architecture Images)

The UW-Madison campus has two imposing examples of the style standing side-by-side: the George L. Mosse Humanities Building (1968) and Vilas Hall (1969). They're even connected by a pedestrian bridge over University Avenue. Both buildings are typically blocky, geometric designs of poured concrete that are not particularly pleasing to the eye, especially from afar. But once I explored the interior open spaces, I gradually experienced a sense of awe. I'm still not a fan of the style, though.