I’ve been getting nostalgic about old malls lately. All the malls that I used to go to have been remodeled in the current sleek, “minimalist” style and they all look so boring and sterile. It’s a very fine line between minimalist and boring and these places all cross it. I look at these photos of the Plaza Pasadena from 1981 and it looks so warm and inviting with the brick and indoor trees and fountains. And those indoor streetlamps — gorgeous! This mall had a huge central atrium with these massive murals of the surrounding landscape and it looked so cool. Even the food court looks like a nice place to have a meal and hang out. Maybe I’m just looking at these photos with rose-tinted glasses but I do miss the 80s mall aesthetic. The Plaza Pasadena was turned into an outdoor mall in 2001 and it doesn’t look nearly as cool. I wish I’d been into photography when I was a kid so I could’ve taken photos before things changed.
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