Amid the flurry of orders President Trump signed on his first day in office was a memorandum: “Promoting Beautiful Federal Civic Architecture.” It called for federal public buildings to respect “classical architectural heritage,” implicitly taking aim at a more recent stylistic addition to the landscape of the nation’s capital: Brutalism.

A Modernist subgenre popular in the United States especially in the 1960s and ’70s, Brutalism is typically defined by poured concrete, blockiness and a minimalist ethos, emphasizing functionality. Some call it austere, while others call it monumental. Some think it’s elitist, while others think it’s democratic. Some see it as enduring, while others see it as cheap. One characteristic, though, is universally agreed upon: Brutalism is polarizing. For decades, people have argued over the architectural style’s virtues or lack thereof, and whether Brutalist buildings are landmarks that should be preserved or eyesores that should be torn down.