Stuttgart in bleek winter monochrome

I recently had the opportunity to spend 24 hours in Stuttgart and although it is not the prettiest city, I was pleasantly surprised, maybe because my expectations were not so great. And this was mid winter, with only a trace of sun and a little drizzle.

Stuttgart has of course repeated the common mistakes of most post-war European cities, replacing trees with cars, forgetting the bike and bringing motorway architecture into the inner city. The lack of color and texture, when there is little tradition of exposed brick, adds to the bleakness of city, especially where glass and polished stone is allowed to reign.

However, the city is stunningly located in a valley, surrounded by hills in most directions and is fortunate to have many early twentieth century buildings with local stone details. And the center is full of an endless number of shops in a series of pedestrianized streets, concentrating the commercial heart within the center.

I was also fortunate to swim in a beautiful thirties pool and had then the opportunity to walk through the city by night, when the darkness hides the the worst excess of modern architects. The lack of color is less obvious when the city presents itself in monochrome, lit by orange street lights. And the awkward 1950s concert hall appears almost beautiful, with stunning details that looks almost 1970s.

And no, i did not see the Haus am Weinberg, the Mercedes Benz Museum, the Porche Museum, the  Stadtbibliothek or the Neue Messe, all stunningly twenty-first century buildings. But at the University in the middle of the city, it looks almost as if someone forgot to put up half the buildings.

So my advice to urban planners of Europe, is to:
i) Plant more trees, bigger trees, closer together
ii) Add more depth to facades by requiring windows and walls to have different depth
iii) Add more texture to facades by encouraging the use of bricks in part of the facade
iv) Encourage the use of color, avoiding 'soft colors only'