Anti-Icons

In his latest Slate slideshow, Witold Rybczynski compares some recent starchitecture with more modest building goals. An example of used was the Gehry/Olin collaboration we saw at MIT on our 2005 Boston Field Trip - Gehry was hired to create an icon more than a useful building. He points out that:

In architecture, a little excitement goes a long way, and the problem with iconic buildings is that they are generally too exciting, which detracts from their primary function.

Vitruvius wrote that designers should strive for durability, utility and beauty. Rybczynski's commentary suggests that (at best) some of the starchitecture of today is only shooting for 2 of the 3. But it seems that some of it comes up short on most or all of that as a goal.