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PROJECTS 3

IJP: An Introducti on Pe/er Car/ Six IJ P Projects Ceorge L Legendl'!!

8 The UJlHcnc' "r .IA FrI(), :He do:.:rileu from rh..:: :lCIII i!ic~ of till: :\rclil(CLlIlr:ll Ano('):ltion School 'l( ;\rdll(I:(\Urc Founded In I~LO.

In Conversation Ceorge L Legendre and Hmls U/rieh Ob,.i.f/

AA Diploma Honours 2006/2007 DOli Marks, lesse Saba/ier

(hl: AA is the l l K\onh

indqx:ndcfll

~('h"ol

In Conversation Ceolge L Legendre and Bemard Cache

of architecture.

offcrin!, IImkrgLIJIJ~tC . I'mtgr:IJu.lto: and rcso:arch degrees Hl

J,rchlln::tlHC '-Int! rdated ficld~ . In ;\(klltinn. Ihe :\rdlitc(lIIfJ.1 l"i)l.:IJlion I' an in!crn:lIionJI mCtnbCNhip or~.mi'.HI(ln, \Open 10

In:-onc with

,In lrHo.:ro.;\! 111 JrdlltC{"UHC.

TEXTS

For funher inf(>rma(l(ln \ i'iIl :1 J ,<:h(1( fl.at".1l k

"r cunt.lr! the

AJmi~slon~

Office

A:\ Sdl()ol nf i\ rdlltt:Uur\.:

James Stirling Reassembled C/aire Ziml!lerlJl{f1l

In the Academv's Garden: Robe rr \ 'c llturi, , the Grand Tour and the Revision of ~I()dern Architecture Mm/illo Srier/i

Photographs from the American Academy

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Ikdford Sqll:m~ I,ond"n \\'( :11'1 ,FS

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As~oci.Hion

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CO\ 'FR

LECTURES, EXHIBITIONS, BOOKS

RL"\cr~c

l'iUUTc "f the Sc tf l .m 0-t-(7). I Lmd-l' ut papcr .md cMd llloJd . (jeorge l~ t.q.,:cndrc fllr]Jt' S~'<': pp. 2-2.') Ph"w Sue R.IH Ii'. SIDE CO\"ER IIlfIHC!tlOll" Jt \":.trYlng Tre:ld COllnh (a.k.J. {he UP Zoul. 1I.1.r,hell1:lIirs by Gcorj.!,c I. L("gcndrc. (:onccpI "hcct t)\ "I'm\' · t·ho;rncn and (io;nrg:.e L Lq,:cndrc fur UP. SloC pp. 2-2.')

Books Reviews Tilllorhy Bri!lain-Carlill, DOllglas Spencer. Ralph Stem. Spvros Papape/lvs

Contributors

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3.3

I P: An Introduction PeterCarl

There is some question:ls

whether the

product ofGcorge Lcgcndre's ijp fcscan.:h should bca book ora w~lJI (or, in Lcgcndn.:'s terminology. 'a de\'dopcd ~urracc'). In oo[h. Lcgcndrc likc~ to take his readers and viewers thro ugh s imple matriCl:s , parametric surfaces and their archircCfllf:.l1 implications. Altholl~h technically sa\"y,

\\hi(:11 Ihc\ find

of the mathematics or code. The pursuit

exploring the 'inccrdisciplillUY' cilar,Kler

nf ri ,gof(lus complexity (surface) solicits

of Ih<.: prJ<:tic.d illlaJ!,irutio/l ,Ind

a ludic richness (depth) for the purposes

its (::lp~t eity for coll~lhorJrion in rno\ ing

of undemanding and illum ination.

hc{\\cen "y..,{(:m,nics :lnd poetic.." ijp

persona as much fond of nO{I.: -fil1cd ~taffs :IS music. He professes thc \'inlle~ of

configurallon m~pirc prolun~r.:d reficnion.

arduous wrestling with code, nf its intrinsic

~ilcnl'in~ rc~cn' ati un:-..

[he preferred surface-protilcs i~ thc offspring of a regime of ahstr:lCt. relentless ealc ubtion. Curvcs arc To-rely prescnled without evidencc of the sober pulses of computation. Remini scent of Duchamp 's infrathin more rh an Grcenhurg'" flamess,

dry mechanics of a technical manual.

Rather it offers a sequence of rncdiw(ions

upon our understanding of spatial order consequent to properly grasping rht: structure of such Stlrflccs. \\' hen Lcgcndrc simply declares ' I Love .\hmi(:cs路, J ,Itn with him. It seems co me chat the real -e ven uniqueachiCVl.:nH.:nt of his work lies in the poetic domain. He writes wdl, with urbane wit, enlhusiasm, intelligence; and the elegant economy o f hi ... drawing" and models

Legcndre's s urfaces see m to require:l

Sllbmis~i()n

beauty, and he lingers within the hoV(.:rs inw visibili ty. Onc sympathises

ordering, phenolllcn~l whieh gi\e birth

with hi s disdain for the form-merchants of

cre.lti\e insrght and ;t n:O llnl for ih rcco~nition.1 ... <;uch. Lan,l!.ua,l!.c i .. more: :l contc~t for being undcNood th:m for m~lking ... tatcments. A:"! much ,h I .ege ndre路~ 'book (lf~urLlce,' orChCSH,l{C, \'i~rral,

interference as possible from 'pasteurised,

surface offers

off-t h e-shel f sofl\varc', Accord i ngl y,

rigour. At t he same time , che reader/

the intcrlea\'ing of code, matrices and

\'ic\\cr is reminded of Kafka's hunger-

diagrams creatcs an experience analogous

ani"t. whose masterpiece coosi<;(s in

to studying qU:lnlUnl phenomena - (he

'Harving to death.

clo~cr

T he chaollagc of contemporary culwrc creates (he condit ions for hunger-a ni~ts who seek a moment of integrity without h:lving to abjure the COIHCXt within

the reader/viewer is ~lIhjccted. Legcndre

onc ge ts ro die fundament~lls.

the more mysteriolls things become and

the more onc is required to draw upon aspcct~ ofimaginarion Hnd thought that

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;\b~tr;lct di~l'rpline

depends (;lcirly upon the 'depth' of (ho ... c

prefers his computing with as little

openings of thc imagination ro which

anticipation before the \'olupruous surface

'hlob' architcctLlrc, rhc proselytes of formal combinatorics. rhc kitsch ofeA D! Phoroshop o r the incomplctt; thought nf d :uascapcs; and onc is amply persu:lded thac (he 'difficult, arid :tnd I.:IlIsi\'e'

are im-erscly related to the veniginou s

IIl<;tead of

;H.lhen: .. to Jrch ilel'ttJral dc .. rg.n ,1<; a nuner o f ... ct.:uring 'form'.llo\\c\cr. (here i, nl) qllc,tinn th;H the quile remarkahlt: ~md, to rnI..'. profound littk co rner in ;1 plan ~lt I hI.: r.:nd of Legendre', book IIr the Scroll, ,;i PJ\ ilion, pre~r.:ntcd here. eou ld only h.n c :lfi<;l'n from Ih e medit;niom \\hich pn..'ccde if. Like rjp It ...clf. the origlll.lIity and muhi\akm rich ncv) o f thi~

The comfoning, erotic smoothness of

his work is in no way imbued with rhe

thern~eln;~.

arc Jistam from the explicit decbr:ltions

poetics of wit, beaU[) and

tcxtu,ll. m,lthl:lll,Hiealllla[ricc~ cmbl:ddcd

\\ithin eac h other (thc dbqLlct male's h:tchclor-machinc), r.;\cn more it mancllou ... h r.:xempliiic-; the chrhonic, female de(ermin:uion of m:ltn~, .1<; womb, fulfilling Kirchcr '" project to c\ln~truct a met:lphOr-Ill,H,:hinc. ' J 'hl~

III

I, ,m (;\lCrp! from.1 rC \ le \1

tlf楼l.

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Of(j.!IIUIII

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7, no. 3:'4, .wn._

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Seroussi Pavillion PaIlS. 2007 aXIS

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George L Legendre in Conversation with Bernard Cache 21

September 200 7

arc no morc erroneous than the recent f:Jscination for Dcleul.c, who is often quotcd in relation to new design and medi .l but \\ ho liyed in a Oa[ filkd \\ ith old chairs and tablcs barely held together by ~{Ting and glue, So cxtcriority + mi~unt.Jcrstanuing are the funuamcntal ~uidc<; for my wo rking mcthodolo.l.'":-, (,'/. 1,: Tht.: embrace of your work by the

GU .: Bcrnard , since:: the cMly H)90S YOU ,

have bee n immense]\,. influential for

architects who deal with is~ucs of compuurional form and the marria~e of mathematics and architecture. What always

surprised me about this influence wa'" how widespread it is, despi te the complcxi~' of your own ideas and [he ovcrridin~ lack of compromise in the way you prc'icnt ,md discuss your archirccwTc . So to hegin. perhaps you could fir~t ~pcak about this Jpparcnt contrad it:tion. and your simultaneolls occupancy of both che mainsrrcMn and the tc(.'hni<:<llly specific.

BC: I have long pursued a position of exteriorit\' in relation to the architccrur31 profession, which has alway~ strllck me as bcmg inhabited by architect" who :m: married to other archi[ect~. and [;Ilk only,

ro Qthcr architecb. The

traj~e[Or:-'

of Ill\' own life has tried to break out of thi" cndo~u re, if only through my education. which started with ll13themarics .md thcn s\\i tcheu {Q engineering bcfon.: I mo\eu again into architccrure. E\en during rhese later sruuic" i became so bored b~ the gencral discourse thar (0 escape from (Ill; architccrural milieu I ~tJfrcd working with Gitles Dc!cuzc In philosop hy. which in turn \\'as followed b~ ~(UdiL:s ar business school. Sf) rhc whole cOllr~e of my educarion has been really broad, Thi~ means rh:n my understanding of ~()mcthing like digiral technology is not tieu w :.lTchitcuure but connects to ()(h~r medi,l. both rhilosophical and indwmial. For cxampk, T ()pSo iid. rhe softwan: I :lIn c urrently using. has no applic.uion uL:dica tcd to architecture, Bur it l:t lIsed by manufacturing companies. and ironicall~ also by a number of firms th :H ueal with archit~nura l produces - for inq:lnce. TeehnaL a French company who make facade systems, So in my appropri;Hion of chest: pro~mms I am "ticking to a position that. rYlV of extcriority, . I should al~o sa\' . lift: in architecture has e\'ol\'(.;u a~:l kind of collected stOTY of misundcr~t<llldin,g~ 足 {;onccpts. for instance, which I di"cu~,,{;J in rcbtion to a certain field suddenl\ bCC;Hl'le Elshionable in architecture, {;spcciall~ in t he l lS, But thc~e m is llnderst:Jnuinp

Amt.:rican 3\'ant-garde is sornethin~ th;H c<:;pecially interests mc, Producers and manufacturers ha\'c long recogni~c:d the significance of your resear{;h, but so tOO haye so-t.:alkd 'thinking arcbitect,':d..:signe rs who thcorisc more than they bui Id, How d o you explain {his beyond the immediatc nQ(ion of a mi su m.lcr..tJnding?

BC: E\'ery misunderstanding is na<;ed on somet hing, T he fact that I hone the ')p<lec and distanec in which to practi"e i.., realt\'. esscntial. I don't subscribe in In\'. \\ ,l\'. to the benefits of an cnd to theory in architecture. or even in "ociet~ in gt:n<.:ra.l. To have a thcorctic,ll structure to Wh;;H YOll arc doing is vital. And interestingly. if vou look at the history. of modern \\' e~r(;m , thought, is that a number of the most important thin kers developed idca~ that had a practical application, For exampk. Pascal de\'eJoped the first sys tem of public Ifansponation in Paris, He actua ll y founded a stagecoach company thnt introdm:t:d rhe idea of buying a tickc r so a~ to be I.ln\'cn from one place in the city to another, GLL: You arc talking abouc the philosopher?

BC: Yes. che

Blai~e P'I~eal.

sam ~

Pascal- philo<;opher, mathcmatician. ph ysicist and ,llso transport pioneer. \ 'cry fe w people kno\\ thi::., but it's true, (,'1./ .: Given this emphasis on prKticalities

and on the making of things, I \\'a~ really quite taken by the tWO part!' of~Ollr cuntribution (0 the '1\on Stanuaru !\rchirct:turc' exhibilion at thc Pompil.lou Centrc in 2003 - the fir<;{ was <l table you designed and manufacrurcl.l for the show. and the other. a [~x[ \'ou wrotc to accompany ir. In li"tening to a \']UCO of you spc:.lking at rhc exhibit. I unuerstol)(1 that in order to really appreciate the non -stand:lf(j character of your proposal. onc had (0 be familiar with the rc org;wis;ltion of geometry by the Gt.:rman m:uhem3ticians Felix Klein and I)a\'id Il ilhen, Bm :It thc S::lm c timc, nor knowing :ln~ of this didn 't ncccssarily take ;lnything :1\\ a~ frem the artistic rncrit of the artcfact,

So. gi \'cn that you r work is ~o rigorou!>I~' thc.,i~-minded, how dn you come to tcrm.;; with <I ct.:rt,lIn crit ical inabi lit\'. Iw. the public to appreciate the )penfi(', refercmi.!I wa\'i \our \\ork? . in which \"(llIioca(e . .

H(:: For me. thc key thing i~ not 10 rcpc.][ ,It (he thl: mi~take of the ,n;lnt-"arde M hcglnning of the twentieth eentllr:-'. wlH! \\ ith thl: lIl(roduccion of new teehnologlc:'i immcdi:HI.:ly Ji~mi~scd older techniquc.., :lnd ideas as outmoded <lnJ ;\nachroni~til". In looking:lt thi~ periou. rh..:re i~ .lb~oltJtely no link nen\'c..:n modern archilccture In th..: 192(h and the techn()l()gie;, '\\' .Iilahk :\1 thc time, I ~or e,' \ampk, in Chicago III the 20S. the indu..,triali..,alHlIl (lf the nlUuldll1g prnce".., \\ouIJ ha\e en,lhkd an ardHtecturt.: nch in ornament. hilt the Germa n MchiteetLlTal emigr6 \\ho \\ere thcn coming into the L'S cmphd..,i,,<.:d thc ~ty listic 'imgularity of m()dcrni ~m o\er chc multitude of po~sihilitic~ that the ccchnolo,gles of the time woulJ h3\ e ,11I!)\\ cd, :"\t.:\~ rcehnologics can actually en~lblc ~()u to produce old (hing~ in hetter \\ays, And ~o \\'..: mll::.tn'{ make the ~amc mi"take \\ ith information technologie, :I" thl: ;l\ant-garJe did \\ irh new indll~triah~ed IHoces'e<.;, Thi" i.., one of dIe rea~()n) wl1\ I dccideJ to look hack ward, to older idea~ in my theoretlc:J1 \\cuk , (;1 .1.: T he continu it\ of ar{;huc<."turJI

iUe.I'i from .IIHJquity to the pre..,ent U,1\ ]e;. for mc, rCdlly apparent in your \\ ork. .md \\ilh It, ~tJ toO the cightne,," anu ngour nf your argument. But jl1~ ( ro reiteratc. i.., :In\' of thi" lost on an :.luuiencc \\ h(1 . . CC \ our work imtcad unucr thc guise of "'(11111.: kind of su pcrfici,11 nO\'cltv? fir;: 'I'hl,: ne\\' ~ells, Cj'his

the gl:neri..: ..:ulrllral

ruk to which we ,Ill ha\'e to "uhll1ic. The media today really p~y'" no ,Hlcmion to the nature of your thinkin,g or why \Oll UO ct.:nain things and not other", Tht.: situatIOn ].., dearly. not ;] health,. onc, CI.I.: Blit \'our work still manJgc~ to h:l\C J. peu.lg()gica.1 clement to 11. regJrdlc .. ~ (If \\ hether you arc Icc(lJ ri ng ur ex h ibm ng,

lie: Ye s, .,UTe, Ju st because nu onc 'eeTll" to he li~tening i~ 110 rC:l~()n \\ Iw you ~hould stop talking, But thi~ 1'" not ju . . t ob..,tindcy, I like to be explicit "bOil[

that I do, And de~pite m~ pe s~ imi~m, there arc alway.., "'OI11C peork who :lfe recepti\'c to wh:.H you ha\'c to ~ay,

the

thing~

(;1.1.: [n rclation to this

recepti\'lt~

dut

comes and goe!>. or [0 tht..' rnisundcr..ralH.lmg'

\'\lllr ..

tlut YOll S.I~ h.l\·e long ')urrnunoed your "ee m ~

\\ nrk. it ,great

CHC

not

EI1c1 idcan,

that \'ou alw3vs ta ke , '

pok:J1lici~e

(;I. L: A" mllch

your \\ o rk . or

011

~<i

Eu chd and thl.! nnn -

that time you also wrote

Through

profc~~tJr~

like .'.I a llgr;!\'e,

m:my pt.:opJc in the L'S had

about othe r construc ts :Jnd o p ro<;i ti on\indc{ermini~(ic;

much deeper

h ismric:ll knowled ge of the Eu ro p~an

pro\ oke ullneeess;.try :lr!2:uOlent. F or

the deterministic and rhe

inst:mec. yo u mana,!.!;t.:d to kcep a ce nain

the pseudo*m nd om : hyper·~p ~lees . en:. -

hau in Europe. But unfortunately the t\\0

di~tance:

in cssence. the po"siblc amI rhe impos~iblc.

~enera(ions

with kt.:y fi~llfCS within co ntelllpor~II'y :Jnnt-

These kind ofsta tement ~ <lh\' ay~ scemed to

ideas - young architects with rheir t'OmplltCf'l

garde ~u(' h ite ctural thi/1kin~ in th~ I IS .

me re ally couragcous. and in this they

and older historians looking

BU[ then in 1f.J<.)9 YOll publi<;hed a key c~say.

reminded mc of\'cnruri and Scot( Bm\\ n's

backgrounds - didn't mix. I nstead YOLl h'1<.1

.:-\ P lc;1 fo r Eu r.:l id' . in :UT 22. F or Illt.:,

declarat ions in I Lflmillf!./mlll l,as I f?,fl.l', in

a si tu atio n in which old e r \\'r iter~ tried

appearing when it did, th is se emed

o pposi tion CO the wo rk of P'HT I Rudolph ,Hid

to mimic the young;. So wh;H happt:ned \\ ,1<;

to s~'mbolically concl llde the mi llennium,

rhe tenets of ;1 certain kind of moderni"tn .

that esreemed membcr~ of [he oldcr

e\cn whl.:-n you wcrc 'Iligncd

origins of modern .1rch itecrure than wc of pcople

l ookin~;1[

<11

tht:<ie

cu ltu r:ll

,ge neration like G eorge H ersc) - who hdd

in the :'C::Il:.e (h at it poinrcd ly (,Ind quite explicitly) h ighli gh ted a n um hcr o f

13C; I don'r think I wa<i so hravc. Th t.:

done \'cry intcre~{in~ work an :ll~ slllg

mi~under~t.\Odings

C[l\'lronment in which ,Ill mv architectural

the geometry of PalJadian \' il1;J~ - tried

in the ,lbsorptioll o f

\\'a~

complltation~11 idea ~ In ~Irc hite ctu re .

:lct ivitv was rh l.!ll embedded

You :1dopted a strong. critical Slance, and

full of ~oftw<l re de\dopcr~ \\'ho \\ ,,;re jlway~

o ne that ir(Jnicall~ appc;ued in a publication

demanding th .-It I be more: rational;

\\;I ~

mak e thcmsch'es :Ippt:ar yo uthfu l by

onc ~o

\\ riting books abo ut :.exu;I1 allure .md the l ncrcd ibk H ulk . Th e '):td thing ahmH i~

I was reall) m3king a plea o n bdlalf of the

thi s

people I \\,a., working with. But that

gene ration of pt:ople who <lll seem to ~ufkr

if you (,(Hlld 'ip:.:ak a linle about th i<; .utide.

rime in lht.: early 1990s wa~ "till imerc~t ine.

from a ct.:nain cuhural and historical

;tnd whcthcr it rcalh was the brcak

E vcry hody wa~ JUSt disco\'enng: the

a.mncsi;1. In th i" <ienst:, h y tlIrnll1g .i".t~

that it ;lppl.!;m.:d to rerrl.!scnt at thl.! time?

amuing possibi lities of com puter

from history. the mi s take s of th e old

tt.:chnologies in terms of the representation

ava nt -garde in the 19 20~ :.IrC bt:ing repeatt.:J.

that

ver, much ;1I the crest of th ar

particular

a\ant-~ardt:

wa\·e . I \\ onder

Hr:: Yo u ;Irt.: ahsolutdy right. Th oU ,Irm:le \\"as nl\" \'cr~ i on of DclcuJ:t: 's ·Scream·.

that it helped to nurtITrt.: ,\ nc\\

of comp kx cu f\'cs and <i urfaces - which ~oon

became ~t.:en not "Imply as im ages

GLL: In ligh t of(hi~

historici~m.

\0\1 ha\c

but as temphH c~ for actual phy~ical

referred to your \\ork:ls philo.w pllit

goi ng to :H th;H timt.:. li~tt:ning to architects

manu facture . Compuler technolog) in

pO"f'slIir.:;f prJrd't/utrts f!I()),ms (a philn~ophy

descrihing hon wc were hvio"0 in a non,

this .. e nse sudd e nl\', bet:amc

attained through other meam) . . .

EUl·lid e ;lll. \ irtual spact.:. 1 JUSt couldn'[

architectural P:lI1do ra '" Box . But earlier.

stand it any longt.:r ,Ind had to respond.

even as a stu<.knt. I wa~ alreauy interestcd

RC: D o

in the concept o f inflecti on ~m d the

from : It 's from Carl \'on Clauscwit/..

no s pace: nr computcr sofrwan.: that \\a ..

articu lati on of com p lex forms. \ \ 'hen I did

the great P russian gt.:l1cral Jnd \\ riter. \\ ho

nO{ m icrl y E uc lide ;~n. This prOtcs t Jc tu all~

my diploma in 1983. I wantcd to design

defined

hclped me look again

a building like Gehry\ Hilbao Guggcnhcim

by other mean s'. I\I~ architccture i'l;l

but therc wa s no way o f actually

kind o f !/It/(hine de ~/lfrt'l'. I like makmg

drawing it then. So I d id some principal

allusions a nd rcferencc~ like till .... Simibrly.

1l1,1ny cc)ntcmporary architectural theories

projections a nd made ;1 model ou t of

I am studying \' ifTll\ iu') bccJu')e he

;lnd inn()\ ;1tions. F rom thi s re~earch I

da y. It wa s vt:ry easy for m) tt:achers to

dcdica ted most of hi::. career tu rhe building,

lli,eO\'t: rcll the nincteenth-century G erman

ft.:JeCt it as a proposal, ar~uing that it was

of war machines. All of the,e things

nwhel1lat ician Felix 1\1 t.:;n. who see: med

not ratio nal becau"e it \\';1;;' not geomerri t:.

connt:ct and can ba\c a

really important in t t.:rms o f tht.: rcso nancc

'fh ey undcrstood geome try, like the

influ cnce on our

of hi~ idl!<l" in architecture. I\ lcin ,In;llysed

arehitect<; at tht.: beginning of the rwentil.!th

,md canH: out of tht:

.\ h u\\ n

')t.:c th;1[

'~crcam'

III

(:() nft:renct.:~

argued that therc c xi sted

;It

Euclid, ,md

(;reek mathematics and

.1" ;\ \\ hole t here

I \\ ~l~

exi~tell

:lIltiqui~'

the root idea!' for

kind of

)OU

\\<11'

know where [his quote CUint:\

'a continll<lti o n of

rc a ll~

politic~

IInp0rl;Ill[

c()n ternpor ar~'

\\ork.

century. on ly in terms of simp le form ~

Cl L In vour writin g vou ~ecm ;Ihle h) S \\ i[(:h , "

\\ hen geometry u<. a reference po int for

cubes. cones. s p heres. e te, In 1983,

scamk')sly bct\\een the')c kind~ of

r.ltionalit) "lIddenly became fragm e nted inw ~e\'eral pieces. At the timc, a number

th;\{ there \\'a,> in fact an underlying

culrural and phil o~o phical sourccs Jnd morl.!

rat ional it\' to C\lT\ed surfaces was to invite a

obvioush', architecwral ones - in

of these elements \\ere misinterpreted

huge amount o f criticism. Two years later.

ma int ai nin g a cO-l.:-xi')tt: ncc hctween

,l~

wh llc at

,gcomctl') at

critictl time in its history-

hein}:; co ntrad in ory or in oppos ition to

the: others -

es peL'i ,l1l~

nun- I ~lldjdt:a n

of m~ first

the so-called

geometries. But

:IS

bll si ne s~

I\ lc in

It)

,;IY

..chool. I sat in front

rc. plotting economic fo rcca~ts ,

but I also began experimt:lHing with

poilHt:d OUt, despite thei r namc. the 110n-

tht.: first-g:encrarion CAD so ftwa rc. ;I n d

E ueJidc ,H\ did not in am, wa\' contradict

immed ia tel y

or murp orht:r gcomet rie'i but rl.!m:.lined

,omething amazing to happe n in architccture.

h;Ist:d on the dc\c1oped

fiH':

axiom~

Hxturning

origina ll)

Euclid hllnsdf. So

ye~.

that

I;~tw

t()

discOllf'ie and praxi .... \\' hat

c:~~t:ncc

inrert:')[~

rhe cxte nt to \\'hich your ph iloso rhil'al inclinations have pl ayt.: d a fOie in your cri tical rt:cepti on in tht: l ·S. \\ here .1'> you said, Ddeule in p;lTtit'ular seemed to

it could allow for

your e:.lrl ier question

enjoy a ~ peci:.ll cu rreIH.:y. But ,IKil.in~t ~ Ollr J)cleuli:J1l allc.gianccs. did your IlHeresc in

W;IS an i mport~lnt artide and moment fur

1990s. in America n uni\'crsitit:s far more

reople like David H ilbt.:rt, Feli" I\kin and He nry f\ l all /!;ra \'e prt.:cirit;He ;1Il ~ kind

me (e\'l:n th ough no\\ I co nsider th at tt;Xt

than European ones, tht:re were a numbe r

of divor<.:t: from your AmcriclIl J ud )encc:

a li nk rudimt:mary in what it say,,). And

of rea lly significant and influcmial

~inee

.lTchiteerural historians. Among them was

BC: 'fh e whole of thi.;; hi~torical tidd \\ a~

h:.l.ckw;ml .. in to hi"rory to dee pcn my

th e mange and interesting figurc of H enI')'

s pl it long ago. a.. onc of (he more damdKing

knowledge and re~c:lrch rhe mathema tica l

Franc is .\I allgra\·e. who w a~ thc first

Icgaeie~

h:lst:~

dig up all the old te xts o n Gt:nnan acs[heric~.

(h;It time in 1999. I <llwa Y<i lik e to go

for what

is wc art: trying to <.10 today.

;1OOu l the l 'S. I al"o want to ,u.Id [hat in the

of the culwml tradition. I t

\\a~

Kanr in [ht: mid-eighteenth cenHlry who.

I think. wa" the fir'>c philo!>Ophcr \\ ho had

rotaring hronzc disk illustrating rhe; position

Euclid article.

nothing

of the plane (s, which allowed

fecl .. ;.J.t home \\ith theorie .. of prnjecci\c

'><)\. ahoU{ nlJ(hcmaric'>. Be forc

W)lI (()

(cll

arc someonc who clearly

him Descan.t:'s piom;cred m ;:nhenl;\t ica l

the time when thc sun wasn't s hining,

geometry and also. 11magme. with pnnting

con'itruct". as did Lcib(lil.. But "ant

So this tower was simultaneously (It'dijimli(;

dri\ crs and orher aspects of numerical

invcnted nothing. !-I egel didn't umkrsland

(a building, with an interior and c,\(cnor);

(ccbnolog~.

a singk word o f mathcmatics cithcr. So

g llomollicn (with its so lar clocks) and

i .. :lbout the relation .. h ip b et\\ccn

from I\.;lnt onwards wc became 10'>(. Ilurnan

mt'({lIIim (with its rotating planetarium) -

m:lrhematic~

the [hrec fields of architccrurc identified

and "pecifinlly ho\\ today i{ i'i reall~

c;llIcd 'rear science became permanently

in the first book of /)f .4rrhitf(/IIn1, On~

quite difficult to do math'> h~ h,md.

divorced. Sincc thcn. it has heen vcr,..

~ingle

Imtcad wc rei\' on

~cjcncc:s

difficult

(or rarhcr liberal arts) and

"0·

find anvone abk to discu~~

building in this w;.J.y rei tie s <1 whole

But the <llles(ion I want to a~k <lnd the COlllpl1t ,Hion ;~1 Idiolll,

~oftwarc

wh ich in rhc

thCOfY of architectUrc. And the fact chat

inl.:re asingly ergonomic n;llure nf ih

philosophy alongside not only 'h.ud'

thi" building functions as an information

intcrfacc~

science but also in tandem wuh i(ka~ aboU(

device i~ also significant. In the first

thc idiollu tic ch;H;lcter of those initial

manufacturing. ju"t as an a~ide. if you

of hi~ Ten Book5 (the onc mo~t commonly

opcr:l t ion~ .

look at Descancs' [)iscoIJrst' 011 thf .Hedu)d.

qUOlcd oy architects) \ 'itruvius expl:lim

(his i~ not to use softwan.: in the ~rJnd

that yo u always need a module on which

cechnnl()gical

the la .. t of (he ten discour"e~ explore~ the

to b;lsc :111 building propo rtions. T he

to the ;Ic (tl:ll cquatlon\ Jnd

manufacturc of telescope Icmes. So a'>

diame(cr of (he column bn-Jme [his moduli.:

- look ing at symbolic formulation,> and

much as ' } think therefore I <l1ll·. Descancs

- with the threc ordcrs of Doric. Ionic and

norat1on ... Sof(\I.lrc for

i.. really about grinding ~las~. l ie c\cn

Corinthian coming to define archlteerural

,omethlng \\ithou[ an Interface - it ha"I1'[

proportion. But if you go back a .. tep,

been chunkcd or wrapped \\'1thin command

all .\ha rcd [he same .. imp1c phy .. ic;ll

you will sec: that \'iuu\'ius was essentially

hu[(on\ and other

properties but wefe optically all different

a designer of war machines. panicularl~

the~c anxic[ie~

- (hat i", he produced a numerical

ca tapults, and like any other engincer in

toda~,

machine which produced non·standard

antiquity he knew that the djmen~ion

fcd ~o\J ha\~ to sirnilarl~ navigatc ;.J.TOund?

objects. IfWl": just go back to ,I riml: before

of the springs used in thc catapult~ h;.J.d to

Kant. thcreforc. wc quickly lind pl:ople

be the c ubic root of the weight of th(;

nr:: l 'hi" i~ a debate that again call bc craced

ston(;s you had to throw, And in ordcr tl)

;11] the \Iay hack to :HHiquity - Pl:lto

caleuhHc cubic roots at that time, you

comment'> in the; Pllflf'dm on the idea that

hich includes his essay on I)ioprric~.

designed a machine thar made

Icn5e ~

th.H

who Il;l\'iglltl: effortlessly hctwcl:1l the

Mr~,

philosophy and physical scienn:s. :\~ I

de\'l ce~

.\ I y own attem pc to circulll ,cri be sen~c,

but

ah\a\~ to ~o [ Cl \\

b:Kk

mmg

u" i.. thcrcfure

flln L' t ion~. 1)0 \ 'OU

.,h.lrc

;Ihou[ the nature of ~o ft\\ Jrc

and i" it something that ~ou

rite you \l'illcon~cqllentl~

alrcadv had mcchanical

immcdidtc pre.')ent. ~our life ~nd work

Eraws thene's m eSO/(I/Jillfll (a machine;

l(l~e ~ollr ll1ernof~.

::Ire rcall~ irnpo\·erished. But also, if you li\c

\ 'irruvl us memions in hi~ preface to book

complHe r in relation

onl~

LX of Df ..I "hitertlll'J). From \ ·itrll\'ius.

vcr.

not only poorer. hut !cS!! inn;nti\'c - mos t

tberefore. we can .\c:e chat already in

of different

of science's kc\', ill\ention .. deal with

antiqui ty there were de\iec<; [hat" ere

Icehnology'. I have ..cen \\ ithin

i,>~ ucs

csscneially ana logue computer'), and

practice th:H for

nnes capahle of solving complex problem ....

<,of('l\a rc rlMI1S more than ten ,"car" old.

in a world of ..cience, your life is

"lHrollnding aesthetics. the an s :lnd Yo u cannot. for example.

such

somchow ()b~curcs or di,,~cn1ble~

mcntioned earlier. ifvoulivc on", in thl:

mct;lphy.\ic~.

:I'i

think of Le ibniL and Dcsea rte\ \\ ithout

if you "tart to

d1\'cr~e

- the re \\,1\~

thl.~ IJ'iC

Buc 10

of the

afchneccurc i, really

:.HC

dearh a number

in ,dllch \\e call ~omc

lI .. e thl~

Ill\ U \\

problems \\ e IIse

(;oing back C\'cn fUflhcf. if \OU \\ant hi~tory

undcN,lllding their relationship to the

(,'1.,1.: So your reading of the

Idea of god. So thc thinklllg that qaneu

architccturc is essentiallv machinid

to dl:\'c1op an undllbting cur\'Cd "lIrf<1l.:e the bc, ~t

aroLlnd the timc of I\. ant. I feci. rcall\'

way to do it i" to

u~c hi-pu~lm ctrlcs

and to calculatc each of the cun·e ..

Hr:: W ell, I would defer to the ancients

indi\'idu:11I\', So in

thi~

by saying that I see no split. no sep:lT;.J.(ion-

p,lper <lnd a pen i..

cn()lI~h.

I don't "et.: architecture as machinic o\'cr

still necd {()

;lOything else. But of course, the maehini!.:

and ~o you ~till need the computer. After

(:/.1.: Blit thcn looking forward. [() your

is irnportant- I mean, cvcn P1::no, when

ha\'i ng de~igned somc{hing likc thi~.

ongoing \\ork and writing. what is

he explains cosmology in his dial og:ues,

the real

the epilogue

argues that you cannot understand the

hlllld it. Th e

~tcrilised

our pcrccption of antiqllity. :lnd

in the process fragmentcd SCiClll'C intO ,Ill thcse compcting

fidd~.

your ' P lea for Euclid '?

COSI11O"

nr:: \rell.

without a mechanical model in fmm

"CC

.. cn\e,

;1 .. heet

But you

a \'isu:lli:-.<!tion of the

prohkm~ ke~

Cllf\C~,

come \\ hen you h;JIC to th ing for

LIS

is rh .1t

.t~

archi tects W~ arc nn longer p rodLlC1l1~ onc

of ~OU. It's a cliche and a falsificuion,

.. ing1c ohjcct hut rather a \ .Iri:lti{iIl of

in paniclIl;.J.r I wan! to "ho\\ [ha{ the ideas

therefore (and one that actllall~ began in

c,bJeu'>. And Jlthough ..oft\\are eiln help

of \ 'i tru\ im "ti ll offcr a model for modern

antiquity). to a5Stllne that P lato onJ~

lh de\c1op

:If(,; h itcc ts. If,'ou look at the \er\,, fir"t ,

understood ideas in an ideali!!ed. abstract

thc \\ hole proce" .. i" rcally

or so·c:J.lled P latonic sen sc, at the e>.pense

- nO( lea" t in building ,1<;sembh. which

of tangible, physical models.

i.. ~till fM from n.:ad,· to Jeal

I'm still looking at antiquity, and

bui lding he mentions [(J\\t:'f

hi~

m':'l(isc - the

of the winds in Athens - yOll will

find a machine dedicated to [he production

thc~e

\·;Hi:Hion". to :luUJmau"c J

hugc prohlem \1

ith a set

of ll1:Jchmcu and numbered componenb, ~p;iCC

of information. H e \\'as wa y <llwad of

Cl'!.: This revisionism seems to lead to the

BlIt:l

Le Corbusier here- not a machine for li\ ing

i~:-.ue

ofbo.x, In (his .,cnsc. the ('la .. .,ic.1I tool.,

in but onc for informing. Iklo\\ a we(Jthl:T

rhat you han: alrcady (Ouch~d upon,

\';:mc

:\t

(he rop. each o f its eight

co rH:lincd

YOll

~Llndial

sid~s

but i:-. aho, I think. onc of the

thing:~

that

of g:l:omctry and architectural drawing: movinl-!: onc point so a'> to deform thc box,

we ha\e in common - the importance

nr connect it or make; it int<:r.,cct \\ irh

:-.undials. Of a collection of nnn·scand::Hd

of the i n5trumc nt. or the' let 's-gct -back -(n-

Jnothcr box - arc much ll1orr: practical.

objec t~l.

te(:h niqllc' pica that you made

CI;I')~ical

(basically a family of

of instrumentality. which is something

in (hI.' cnd i, al wa\ s a kind

I\'hilc imide there wa ... ~I hlL~e

your

gcomct{\ ')till enahlc,

11"

to dp

\'\HLI\~6

thing~

(h,H still h:l\'t:n't been ~ccn in

nature::, they an.: offered today a~ <;OlllC

with Objectik. both the cst3blished

architecture. J7n r instance the theorem of

kind of architectural paradigm. Ham

rcsponse of a lay audience 3nu the cliched

Pascal and Brianchon uses configurlltions

l Tlrich Ohrist recently :I~ked me aboUt thi ...

response of an architectural critic would be

that would he done (Od;}". with ful.l.\· .

- the relationship of my \\()rk

~oftwarc.

and the natural - and I jusr want to pur

- a sand-dune, for examplc. or the.: bark

the sa llle question to you.

of a tree, 3S if these artificial objects had

There is plenty of material wc

Cln work with. What is also very important for me is that up

natUre

now the archite.:ctural

profession has alway<; be.:cn based all whal

I would call a kind of \'enical

sv nthe ~is

find "ome kind of natuT"Jlistic cqui\'3 lcnc~

been modelled bv natur<ll forces.

R(,; If human beings could live in harmony with nature then there would be no

Br:: Whcn Ihe Greeks st<lrted building

a projecl ~ 1<lrtS with a programme. and then

architecture. Throughout history (here h3ve

temples, producing a perfe ct flat surface

an analysis of the si te.:. followed by building

been all kinds of different sollltion~ to

was seen as really exrr:.lordinar~'. Nothing

rhe.: fOllndarion~. (he.: walls, rhe roof and

thc inserrion of man-rn ;~dc life into n3tllfc,

in their physi ca l environment at that

thcn puuinf.{ rhe:: flag on the tOp. Out orher

some of them morc antagonistic dun

time was flat and square. "\'od3Y, trying

models of synt hcsi .. c.m exist. There i'i

others.

an alternative wc are:: exploring, which

artefaC[. and so

involves the dL:sign of jusr onc component

really just a current-day delusion. The

especially in che

- like a panel - which we try to m<lkc

question of nature in architcnurc. rhough.

environment is so regular - grid ci tic~

work across many different scales and

ha~

huilding type~. The component it -.:cl f

si mply offer a glib ~Iogan in answer to it.

with another alwa,,~ at fOf{\"• -fi\'c de.:fYfec". . 0

is obvioll<;ly fundamental. and the ~()f[ware

Today, with nawral resources diminishing

Bm even when

that best impkrnents the design of these

so quickly, we have

curved or supposedly nawralislic forms. the

compo nents

the more 'primitive'

approach that both you and

And when :tfehitectural debate

BO( architecturc of <lnv kind (0

I~ ,.Ill

think it is organ it' i~

man y aspects, and I don·t wan! to

use technology

w make things that arc c urved is the next step. And nature is offered as.l model.

US. bccau.<.e their urbHn

in which onc street and block inter-,:ccr'i architc("( ~

introduce

to find a response that accords with nature.

city, and everything else around us. is still

privilege.

And perhaps thi s rcturn to nature is akin to

going to remain an arrifici:ll cn\·jrnnment.

rcache~

architecture's basc·l en:1 recognition of the

the stage where we look at the nuances

incvit:lble manuf3ewre of cubes. Bur again.

of these components. then, I think,

(here i" no direct rclationship between

wc will ha\"e made considerabk: prop;ress.

the shape of architecfUn.: 3nd dlC state of the

CLL: Should wc aspire to art i{jeia Iity?

100

per cent

art in technology. Technology can clcarly

BC: {('s not

allo\\ for a multiplicity of responses. There

abom. Th e artificial forces Ihal trigger

;l1ld new computational technique s. do you

is, then. a kind of indeterminacy in (he

human activity and our entire mode o f

not ~ee [he: increascd transparency of

very su bstance of our culture. Ultimately

existence arc so hu .e;e comparcd to

softwan: as obst:uring the insuull1encality

our relation to nature is some thing th3t is

naturalistic ones that the whole planet is an

uf rhe underlying madlt;matics?

ope n to debate and speculation.

artefacr. Ycs the sun still shines and the

(,'LL BUI in

~our

simultaneous use of old

so mcthin~

wc have Jny choice

wind still blows, bur more ,Hld more their

RC: If you approach ne\\ digiml architecture in relation to older ideas of geomcrry.

GLL: Bur you resist (he aesthetic attractions of thc look and feci of the natural.:

CLL: Given this

then you lun; ro hc aware of rhe tool in p:~r;lmetric ~oftware

forces arc determined bv. humiln aeli\·j[\. . progno si~,

in conclu~ion,

BC: rm living in an old city in an o ld

how would you ad .... ise:l young architect

'constnJCtinn tn;c: In essence it is an interface.

cO nlincnt. Culturall y, (he relationship of

as ro what is important in thi ~ discipline?

a de\·icc. which Instead of showin~ forms,

art to nature has been mediated for such a

11Iustratcs propenie~ or relations. You

long timc that it i~ rC;llly impossible for

BC: 'rhere are many

model by draggin~ and dropping properties

me to think of nature in it~clf - naturally,

and many types of architect~. 1 have no

as it werc. And more radically still, one

single answer that could work for all, but

cou ld argue that tod,lY the whole planer is

perhaps I would go baek again to the

OntO

known as the

a 'trec'. Thc more 'lOll master thi,;

tool. the beller and more incercsling you r de.,i~n~ will he. h ~ hullld Ix'something th at all designers ha\'e to learn as a piecc ofb,lsir knowledge. In <I way, it cons titlJte~ [he mental

a~pect

of any architectural

projecL J dre:lm of the day when ;If(;h itectura I rc\' icws will look. only at a "~mb() lic

'it udent· ~

·uee '. beca u~e Ihis is Ihe

;In

aHefact. I n a sc nse therc is no na[UTe

of :lrchitecrure

\ ·iuu\' ius. I lj " emphasl\

<lnymorc. Of course [here aTe physical

on both theory and praericc is essenri:ll.

force s jnd biological fo rces but these now

but I'm also aware chat \ 'i (fllv ius' text is Il(lt

serve: the ovcrriding artefact that is planc(

easy to rl.:ad wday. As \ 'i tri\"ius himself

I':nrt h. BlJl I'm alway ~ vcry sllspicio us

would sa\', , however. there is no :lTchileCI

aboul the dubious es("ape inlO politic~ and

who doe s not possess

social qucstions - I think the relation

literacy, and no archiret'l who cannot huild

is~ue.

cpisTemological (ra ther than matcri:1])

we hav(" wieh n;Hure is a political

hean of parametric archicceturc.

J ust look at how ccrtain countries havl.: nut

(;1,1.: DU[ after lookmg at the sy mbolic trec.

beginning and

type ~

s ub~cribed

or havc en:n withdrawn

cC rlain kind of

at least the most rudimentary ~trllctllrc. Everything rhen become~ a qucslion of balancc. And although I cons tantly return

from Ihe KyOlO PrOtocol.

to histOry and to Lalin 3nd Greek, the

think of the ("lIrrent trend in compu taTional

CLI,: You secm, thcrcfore. to sce nature ve(\',

real tool today not just for architects hlll for culture as a whole is sof{\\3re. Thi~ h<ls

design in whi c h. once a/!:ain, n:Hun.;

criricallv \vithin a 111lH..:h broader sct of

reached the stage in which you ca nnot be

~huws

environmental issues. but in the current

good at I "Hin and Greek without knowing a.t least 3 bil of so ftware. :\ <;o ftwarc

\\ ha! ahout [he natural onc? What do vou

us thL: way : An L:xtravagam variety

of plant form"

,HI': IW\\

being publi"IH.:d

a rdlilcctuf31 climatc. thl: scan.:h for an

undcr thc gcner<ll he3ding o f natllrali~tic

affinil) takcs place

h io-formalism ,md .Ilrhough rhe) refer back [() eighreenrh-ct:ntury ideas ;lboll{

levcl. Fo r example, with the daborate

I still stick to thi s. The

milled plywood board~ you recently produu..:d

paramctrics, in this \vay, rcally

.It

a much more ba~il.:

education I~ therefore really fundamental ~ym holi c i~

trcc of symbolIC.

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George L Legendre in Conversation with Hans Ulrich Obrist 13 AlIgflsl 2007

H { 0: (icorgc, I W'.l ~ fi rs[ introduced to your work in \ 'icnna where I was (;1king part in

a thesis rc\"iew jUf':o" for Zaha I-Iadid and Parrik Schumachcr at (he l Tni\"Crsiry of Applied Ans. After (he reViews wc ;111 went out in [he c\'cning, and it was Pauik

younge r architects - thcy like me for rhis. producing research that somehow sits under or pre-datcs the instrumentality that thcy <lfe interested in. This upcorning generation also seems to be more fixateu with the virtuaL whereas as YOIl can sce, I am working within the pragmatics of an architec{LJral officc and so am very keen on the practice of my work. Rill this is:Jn age issuc. The older you get, the more interested \'ou incvitablv become ill actuallv. building something,

over dinner who mentioned your briJgc.

H('O: Even though you talk of generations,

.\nd then after <;ccing your hook, !JP: I'll/' Hool: of SlIrja('fs. I soon realised chat your work was all to do with formulas.

with the younger of them being defined enough, as you mentioned, w have it!'; own exhibition, we arc living in a time \\ hen the whole avant-garde idea of mo\'ements and manifestos has becomt.: ~Iightly less present. Recently, with Rem Koolhaas, Kayoko Ota and Joseph Grima, I inre[yie\\'ed e\'el)' single Japanese t-.le(abolist architect becausc they are the only avant-g,lrde movcment in which the members are all still alive. From them J found out that their manifestos were purely pragmatic eeonomic strategies. Already by the lqhoS the manifesto was no longer an ideolugically driven tool bllt a marketing de\Âˇiee. Today, fony ye,lrs later. we have e\"en less of thesc kind of Imll1ifestos. and even ofrhe!,;l: groups. So, when you talk about being ~l bene\'olcnr cOt\!';in I' m intcrested to \vh:H extent you consider (/)ese peoplc a cohesive group or movement. 1)0 thcy havr: their own manifestos, or ,He we inclced really living in a post-manifesto agc in architecture?

As much

<1-.;

rhe ideas you cxplof\':, though,

[ would first like to a:-.k

VDU ~lhou{

context

- the art world is onc that functions vcry

lTluch :Iccording to diffcrcm gcncf<ltioos of ,mists. and ahhouc;h rhest.: ha\"c become ~01l1C\\ hat bluffed they arc still hHgel~ in place. But as an aKhitccr '"cry much part of a new youngcr generuion \\ h:H would

be your references or ruptllfeS (0 a \xe\'iou" generation and who rod ay of your own o"el1Crarion do VOIl fcel closest w? .

G/I: Age-wise I am pretty much in betwcen two distinct generations. The guys who werc all really acri\'e in the 19905 I would cun:.ider my dder.~ - pe(Jpk like Gre[!; Lynn, Jcsse Reiser, Sr3n Alien, basically thc group of architccts that gr~l\-itated around Colllmhia l lnivt.:rsiry and who had ,I genuine interest in computatiun, Ihek then I was marooned lit the GSD in Ilan'ard. where rhe whole notion of a computational architcC111Te wa~ regarded as li(cie more than a skill you could acquire a~ one of any numher of technical and dnah,tical tools. Because of this r developed my architeCHH<ll ideas in a bit of a vacuum. learning and teaching on my uwn, but not really interacting with this first gener~ltion. I am ne3ring nw late thinie:,.,:.o the architects \\-ho arc doing really interesting work arc all youngcr than me. Peuple like.: Philippc \lorcL Alisa Andrasek and \ larc Fornes, who is curremly org~lni~ing an exhibition of computatiorul architecture in Philadelphia. So I find Ilwsclf in the middle. like some kind of benCTo1cn( cousin. All of this \'ounger f,!:cm:r:ltion approach the prohlt:m from a pllf\.:I~ cumput:ltional 'lIlgle - they think uffurm~ a:. procedures and mechanisms :lnd c(ldes. For mc, it's ~llinle hit differenT. I camc to thi" rcsl:areh from mathematics

\\ hich in a ~ense is the raw material of computarion, and as a con .. equence I work al :1 slightly lower lcvel than these

GLL \Ye arc definitely living in a postmanifesto age and this is partly due to the fact that much of Whil{ thcse <lfchitccts :Ire theorising 3hout is happening rather ruthlcssly in the world of practice. The difference between doing something wild on the fringn of the rrofcs:.ion ~lr1d doing it within the context of an office i~ really quite tenuous, compared not only to the 196os. but e\"cn as recently as the IgKos, \Ye are all3s 3 eonsequcnce faced with the almost total extinction of shock Y:Jlue. This is because pretty much C\'CT\-'onc is interested in the S3me thing, and pcrhaps :'On1e uf those organisations and bodies rh:n might ha\'e been dismissed :-,omc tillle ago as bourgeois can actually thro\\ :I lor of resources at researching :-,imilar things. ()fcourse they sometimes do this with:1 kind of rllthless detachrnl:nt but this can <11"0 he hiahl\' o â&#x20AC;˘ effeCTive-

e\'Cn conceptually and theoretically, as Koolha3s ha" discusscd in relation to the L's architects (If the 1SlsoS and 60S. SO, onc of the \\ay<; in which my gt.:neration is uying to q3nd out is b: staking out its territoT\' - for eX~Hnplc. !\larc Fornes. in thi:. forthcoming t.:xhibition, is requiring all the exhibitors to pllhlish the source code of their experiments in an attempt to rCmO\T tht.: suspicions abollt thll~c architects who:-,e \\ork makes false algorithmic claims. The people who, in the \\'ord~ of computcr hacker". are not the real thing bur arc more likt.: script kiddit.:s - collagin ,g other forms ~lnd ideas together ,md pa:.sing them off as generati\'e prucesse,>. So i\larc i., asking (:':\'ef:'one to show ha\\' thcy produce the work that the\' do, which j" interesting hut :\]<..0 slightly Trouhling bCClme it f()rct.:~ :ou tn exp(J,>e your whole intellcctu31 blueprirH. 1-/('0: So that\ thc rule ofthc game, to

pro\ide the source cod!.: I)f the algorithms 3nd the proof of the architccture.

CII: Yc:., but the real conceptual hond for those exhibiting is that wc lu\'e all urunk from the :.Jllle source in our discO\'er\' and cnllt.:cti\'e cannibalis:Hion of the \\nrk of John i\[<leda. the comput!.:r ~cielHist and gr3phic de~igner. John was really the first to publi:.h the source or cngine of hi~ \\'ork, and he did it in :.llch a \\'3y that thc~e publications necame equally, ifnot more compt.:]Jing tlun the ;Ktual output. So for rn, onc particular inspiration W3S a sm<lll puhlic3tinn he produced in }lpan in tlie mid-l<)<)OS which unfolds out into a ~inglc piece of paper rhat on one side show~ the hand "ketche~ and proct.:dures and on thc other the actuJI eOrllpura(iOn~11 outpUT. H("U So John t-. [aecia i" a key inOtrence

for you. (;U,: John \ Iaeda ilwented !.:\'erytliing.

operating fifteen yens ahead ofe\'er:'onc else. I am Illore th:Jn happy en acknowledge the debt heca\J~e I feel that lohn is thc most important contributor to the field of comput;ltional (k<;ign , which ~lt that ci me mani festcd itse If pri marily in grap h ic~ but \~hieh \\c arc nu\\' ~truggling to bring into architecture. tle'~ a kind ofunclc figure to c\cr:,thing that I do. H("U So if John \beda is the bcnc\'olent

llncle and you 3re the cOll~in. who arc the parent'> in thi,., !.:mcrging famili:11 rclatinn~hip?

(,'If: Well. dUT

wa~

onc question thar

Phil ip pe r.. Ion:: I W ~l S trying to an~ w cr in "how in

\\ :I S

f\lar~eillc

in Fenruary Ih is year.

an cxhihitiun called 'Architecture

Beyond Forms - the ComplH'Hio nal Turn' that hc cmated and whose idea cX~l etly

wa~

as yt)U ::ill,!l;ge<; t, co uncover the

pan.:nt", or f;lIhcr th e theo risl s of the l<)jOS

who i ntroducc:: d the syntac li<.' and

at ho\\ these concept~ d<'::\'elopcd in tbe

project. I laI'e their idc,l

fir:-.r place. \Oy'i th many o f them

techn ology meeti ng extreme vernacular,

Slln

i\'ing

throug h long peri ods when they were written about and disctJs'ied in discllr~i\'c,

hiJ!hl~

rather than j ll ~ t tech01cal.

excreme

Bur in stead of carryi ng out my projecr in th e fores t ~ of L igu ria, or wherever it \\:I~ thc v. \\,cnt, I want to site

. version in

111\'

ways. For example, I ofte n point Ollt chat

the Swiss Alps, where the rc is an inen.:diblc

sOl11e de sc ription s of ou r project~

vernacular th at could work ha nu in h<lnu

are comple tely verbal, with a numher of

with a son ofma th ema ti cal3u lh enticity.

the equations u<icd CO d e~cribe rhem fir.\t appeari ng:l<; paragr Jp h~ of tex t.

wd"3y'~

() f

And si milarl\'. , if vou louk at th e \\,a\'. dur

Ht '0 JUSt (0 stil)' with Oulipo :llitt le longe r, when I mer I larry r.. la nh e w') wc discu'i~ed

c lass ic algebra actually de\'Clopcd. you

constraint as bcinf,!; some :\Ort of medium,

Cunbridge P h D thesis on T c::rrJg ni a n d

will find endless pa ge'i or medic\ al

and so perhaps you could

orh er people who \\orkcd in

Arab ic prose which de<;cribe [/le p roce"'.,e ...

more 3bout how cunstraint works \\ithin

\el n, In the en d ir wa<; a rather fam il iar list

in\'ohcd in solvi ng ,In equation, 'lh\a~:-.

[he context of you r :lrehiteculf<d practi<.'c.

(If names, hut in E ise nman in particl/lar

referrinf,!; to chc unknown as '(he thing'.

he pre seIHt..:J somt..:one who ha'> bet.:n n::r~

Our ~ur faccs interpret:trion was th c n.:fore a

GLL:

influe nrial on mc, :\ ~ my tut or at I br\'ard.

"cry Qucncall-csquc idea. T ake <;omething

bm ic is its absence that :uchilecb typically

P ctcr s howed that yu u cou ld teach ,md

.lnd then cOllch it in fifreen di fferent

cdebr:He. F or e xa mple , l\ oolh:"I'" wrotc

think at rhe same time. H is rcaching \\,a ...

l a n~ ll<l ~t:'i

a ramoll s linc that has no\\ hecome:1 kinu

lin g u i<; li c g rOll"d\\ ork for

com putati onal archilccTs. For cxam pl e . he dug out Pete r

ne\'er

rcmedi ~d

E i~enm an' s

original ,ymaclic

but ah\ avs had

ft..:all\'

a nd for e\ er~ onc rn'cI in the

differences. I t is bectlll~e of this commirmcnt

I discuss UP, the

Con~lraint

~reak

a linle

is 'Ibsohw..:ly fllnuamental

o f ar110ri sm - '\\ here the re i, nothing,

to d iffer ence that

nude u<; UlH.krst.1nd that form i'i centra l

namc of my practi ce and my book, a') 3n

has lon~ been a source o r lerror for me

t.:Xercisc in srvle in relation to (he

because it

s u rf.lce as op posed

mctaphorical plia ncy or ~uprlenc.~s

;lrc hiT c('w rc lnd not JUSt

rad, ur something Ih;1I

~OU

~o m e pas~ing

ha\'e to ,Iddn:: ...s

jUq plain narrati\'e,

everythin.e; is poss ible'

-:~ .~uggesti()n

open-ended re<;eareh agenda. And hc also

everythin~

on (Op o f progr;Jrnme o r struc ture .

~u~gcSb

that

(hat in ;Ifehllecttm.:·>;

is possible: anytlu ng can be bcnt

H( '(): But rhi s notion o f variahles

or formed into somcthing e lse. T o counter

III '(J-. But in wlkingabout herocs ~lI1d f<lthers

seellls coun ter (() I' ''' rc I·'ornes' pur<iui t of

th is secmi ng multiplicity of choice,

an d mothers Jnd gr:lndrathers and

the proof. tracing idea" back to a single

in my Q\\ n work, and ag3in returning

g r.mdmorhcr!>, it clluld also be inreresting

Struc ture, You seem 10 he leaning towards

lo w-le\cI idea. I ha\'c ah,a y... hecn kecn

to look at field ... o u ts ide o r arch ilectu re

The Ill ore whimsica l idea o f d ifferen ce.

or de~ign. \ \ 'c touched upon thi!'! the

Thi s in a way appcar~ to co ntrad ict ccrr;lin

thin gs, So for exam ple , tht: P C<; that I

fir :-.t time we met, but onc of the things

ll1;!tht:matical tr3dieio/1 :\, couched as they

work with hen:: do nor om the hue ... t Soft\\;He;

li e share is:In inr c re'ir in the Oulipo

arc

mm'Clllent of Gcorge<; Perec. Ibymond

clement.

th e s rcp -bY - ~lcp return to a ~ingular

till:

re (llrn [() the most prinum'c approach 10

r.nher I go back to the base Il);lterials that software is made from - the ra\\ cquatloll\

(j ucne:l u and H a rr ~ :\btthc \\ s, the onl~ Arneric~ln

that we tak c for gr-an ted and that cxi,t

member of the group.

(;/./.: That'., true. t\nd your use of (he

under the hood. So in thi') 'en~c I am

The whole idea with Oulipo that it was

word wh ims\' is ke \', - the idea that

manufactUrin~

the consr rai nts th~11 produced thc literatu re

c\'e ~'t hin g

my self. metaphoricall~, to type wearin .~

could be inte rest ing to discus'i in rclallon

in turn ti e s us back to rhe

~ ynta ctic ,

a nd

boxi ng gloves. I n thi s en rorced lack someho\\ circllm~crihe

ax iollul il,' aspect of our rnea rch - (h;l( as

of dextcrity you

much:1<; practical demonstrations or the

a series of issues th~lt C3n thcn he really

('L/,: Ouli po has been;! major intluence

instruIl"II.:ntal fixinl4 of speci fi c rrobJcm5,

fruitfull y den:loped. So comparcu to

both on thi:-. cmerging group of

our resc~lfc h is ,1 game in the noblest

architect!! likc Zaha H"uid <lnJ P:luik

<;ensc. That i<;, it is someth ing that is self-

Schum3chcr \\C arc really qu itc ·p rimitiH:·.

contalncd. that h:l<; ir~

W e do not pu rsue a dav::ling rechnologica l

.ifchi recrure.

is somehow a kind or game, Thi s

my own co nsrr;linr,. forcing

comp utational architects and e"'rec iall ~

011

rnyc;elf,

a, !lomeone who is inte rested in

n complex ru le'i,

I) "

\\ ntlng - \\ rinng not only in terms orirs

and yet can open up

content b ut abo it .. technique. Q llene :lU's

de\'elopment~

J::.If'nisfs in S()'le in particular ha" been

out. \\'hilmicality i<; th erefore extremely

all SO rtS or

if you allow it to pla y it... clf

I,- dn

agenda o f form -ma k ing through th e \'cr~ btes t ra cili ti es. hut work instC:ld at a kinu of infra lc \'el- tht.: mfra-Icchnological.

'icem to be someone who JUSt fixes Ihings,

which :lgain i~ the common lang uage of [he symbolic resolution on which ;1 lot or

cxplor"t ion:) i n to the ide:l of ... urfaee,

or proposes soIUli on~. Thi<; playfulncs~

thcsc proce'ise'i arc ba!leu, So in p rac t icc

\\ 11II.:h J prescrHcO through fift een different

is "gain something I got from John ,\ l aeda,

thi~ me~lIl~

il1lcrprt..:tation~. c~leh u~ing

wh o <l lways combin c:-> a depth of

cannOt understand. Bu( it abo

though t with an al most unbearable, even

I am forccd to rein\'cnc th l: whec::1 at

re;dh· m'err influence on

Ill\'

.Ind jr formed the model for m\

exprc~sion'i

work. 0\'

important for me

n fi rst

differenT

and \'crnaculars. Th c'\(; indlHkd

the languages of computation .md o f mathematics bu t also (in an Ou lipo-ian

unimdlccHl31. wa~')

hecall~c

li~htncss.

I d o not want tu

The othe r

playfu l inspiration. of course. ha!'! been the

turn, which

that I don't d o

thing~

Qbvio u~l y imp()<;c~

that I

mcan~

th:l1

e\er~

lim it, .. , to

what I can do,

the language o f hngua!'!:e - in which

Supcr'irudio grou p . From t hem I \c

I wrote a recipe a';l kind of literary pr;mk.

bo rrowed the idea o f the ~lJ per -surface

Hl'O: Tholt wa s the

describing rh l: mechanics of ceHain

every ~ in g lc cducational experiment I

al,gorilhms:l.'i if they we re:1 list of cookmg

ha\e done ha:-. been n umbered a....1 ,upe r-

th at the \\ork you did

mgredient'" T he>;c differenl itc f;1ti nns

... urface. one thrnugh to four. .\1\ ncxt

rnOM

were al l rhe more importanl wh en you look

:-.tlIdy :ll .~o refcrcnec\ their g lob allUol~

th e ne \\ est orthc new, B ut thcn whcn \\e

fir~t

met \ou

<;urrri:-.in~ thing \\h cn

bccau~c::

I had

\\,1,

;1'I~lImed

reliant u pon the

au\'aneeu tcehoologic'l r()~ . . ihk,

The exhibition and catalogue, .\'al"re

naturalistic hanner hut I do it with a

work more closcl\' with obsolete or

Desi;::tl: FI"OIlI Itlspimlio!l/o hlllf/L'fllio!l,

cert~lin sccptici~m

apP:.lrently reduncbnt technologies. Brucc Sterling has wrirten about the: whole :uchaeologv of forgotten technologies, and

which features these texts, both ends and begins with the idea of the computer-

my nature to be more Oulipo-likc

he speaks about hO\v useful and productive much of the technology that we abandon can be. So is your return

with people like Greg Lynn. F ranc;ois Roche, Zaha H adid and Peter Eisenm,m: and so I was wondering, what would

Simibrly, I w<\nt to ht: all culture. 1 want

to the primitivism that you speak :.lbout

be your take on the synthesis of nature , ,

to be a machine.

also a protest against forgcrting?

and design partieularlv in relation to these

met

~nd

spoke I soon realised that you

than shell-likc. I think it important to be [00 per cent artificial. Robert f l ughc~ once \\·rote Ihan Ruthko\ p~linting was ~\ll

nature and \\':lfhol\ :Ill culwre,

computer-generated technologies,

Hl'{J: But in terms of hcin~ collected together as P,lft of a wider comrnunirv,

CLL I've followed the whole debate ,1bout

you ha\·c spoken before about how happy

momencs when the obsolescence of a technology can create something

nature and design with interest but also with a certain scepticism, When I st<lrtt.:d

,·ou were

memor3ble, For cXllmpk, thc drawing

teaching in [995 everyone was reading the bible of zoomorphology, f)'Arcy

there arc no more nunifesto~ and no more g,rou p~, (ht:re afC ne\ ·eT(helc~~ cOlllexts

Thompson's book 011 Gro'll.."th alld Form, which was incredibly intluential and in

of arehitcctllral /.!:roup" in which VOll seem to feel comfortable.

into which you h<ld to fit an ink pen. As

many ways still is. Eisenman was explicit about his close reading of it, and Greg

(,'f,1-:

a techn()lo~,:<· it has compktely disappeared. But in the resulting plots you have

Lynn too would lecture on the text. I looked at it too, and the interesting thing about

the trace of ~1 moment. which is Jlso compounded by the materi<ll deeay of the

it is that in the opening chapter of this

CLI.:

~\ot

necessarily. But where 1 agree

with Bruce Sterling

that there arc

that 1 havc herc framed on mv wall \\as produced llsing the first-gener:Hion digital pen-plotter. It was literally nude up of a series of mechanical hands

yellowing paper. So this is one instance when the obsolescence of a technology does

pretry indigestible 800 to 900 page book, Thompson lays out the basic questions in

create a suhstratum or lllemorv of a

an epistemological sense. The key onc relates to how we can mimic nature,

process. But in every other W:1Y, what I :ltn incerested in is the lowest common

producing an artificial model that coincides with the naturaL but wh:1t does this

denominator of certain technologies, the

signify: in other words, what is the meaning of that coincidence? For example, is it descriptive, or generative, or analytical? Th ompson's line is that we don't knO\v

lingufI !mnm of computational th inki ng,

that is 1l13thernatics. t\lathematies is the t:n~int:,

and it is onc that will not only never be outmoded but will always remain

at the cort: uf these processes. The

p,lradox, though, is that <lS someone who deals wilh these lower-level issues, I am as a conscquenCt: bOlh more primiti\'e and more advanced in Ill\" thinking, Through mathematics I have 'the Knowledge' (in the \·ernacular of the L ondon cab driver)

and that it's perhaps inappropriate to know. Th is caveat is always skipped because we, the fecund readers of O'Arcy 1l1Ompson,

l·eriJ

be fcarured \\"ithin Actar\ .\"(flflTe.> publication, and "0 although to

Am kind of

arti~t

It's always difficult preachin/.!: in the de:-,eTt and so for me that affiliation W3.\ feally prict:k~~. Bu t the title '.'-.:atures' that headed

th~lt

publicltion

really

III "a: But with Oulipo \\"t: had a mO\etnent who mct ont:e a l110nth m·er a period of decade~. b the siw:uion with comput:ltional ,lrchitectllre completeh· Jtnmi~ed or i., therc something that links its praetitionefs together? For cxampk, in contemporary <lft in the 1990\ there wa~ a \cry ~trnng glue that bound certain Jrti-.a" togelher, \\·hcn:as no"·, but for a fe\\ microscopic ~llliances,

contemporary art i" much morc

atomised.

transformations. So rather than the n,ltural I am interested in the cultural side of

(;1.1.: Architecture tod:l\

sen~e

\\"a~

editorial ~lfterth()ught f<lther than a thenrctic:d point of ~olidarit\·.

always go straight to the conclusion and his highly formalised theory of

tcchnolog;.. . and mathematics - in rhe

needs comfort.

~eem"

to den\" :1ny communal group" but wc rH;\·t:r

{hat there is a cultural history that Ius w do with people's whims and fears and

re<llly had the equi\·alcnt of those '970s h,lppeninp Ihat brought so m:my yisual artisr~

H("O: In relation to the kinds of things

anxieties. The obvious example of this is in the late seventeenth century· when there was ,1 shift from thinking about figures to

you ha\·e already spoken about I am reminded of two texts: the first OY, Barry BergdolL who is now a curator at \l oI\ IA, de~cribes the idc3 of how gt:nerati\·e 1<.\\,,·s arc studied which underline the diversitY",

thinking about things in a symbolic way, basically substituting text for images, This is a cultural problem that has had a tremendous consequence on the way we think about form toda\' because the

of natural forms. T his is something that olwiously playcd a significant role in ::lft and architecture not only in the twentieth century but also in the eighteenth and nineteenth. And secondly, another curator, Philip l Trsprung, has described how

computational paradigm comes straight out of the birth of algebra and its di\'orce from geometry. There is, then, a certain artificiality to mathem:1tical thought which I feel is as important as its associations to ruture and the natural world. And the

it is no longer a question arart and architecture dcpictin.c n~Hure but of nature and design ~tarting to shape each other.

naturalistic preoccupations of much

but I :.1111 also 'backward' in to

JlW

refusal

use lOoh chat are not home-grown or

entirelv understood.

/!:ene:r:ned modelling of organic shapes,

3nd hesitanc\'. I want

together. I rememher 100king;H thc work of l:l uxu~ in Bel,gium in the 70s and c\eryhody was there working collectively. [n :lrchiteCtllfc hut for a \\eekend conferencc, 1 cannot imaginc a group of architects of a ~imilar stature sharing idea~ like chi ..,. The cl(}sc~1 thing wc now have this comrlllrnalit~ ,Ire on line forllms which sprout lip around certain e\·enh

~lnd

projects. ~\lch:.1" Fornc~' exhibition in Ph iladelphia. Fornes himself i~ the kind of Andre Hreton to thi~ p~Hticubr debate. but I wouldn't ot: ~urpri~ed ife\·cr;. ~in~lc project re-appe<lrt:d a/!:ain under a {'omplctcl~'

l -rsprung quott:s Smithson m saying that

of the computer-generated projects you mention I fed gets in the way; or at least represents a somewhat superficial

different guise in a completely differt:nt forum three wet:ks later. '1 'hi~ i~ wh\' it i~ difficult to talk :lbullt ~ch()ol~ :lnd :lffiliations within <lrchitccture

nature is an eighteenth-century fiction.

coincidcnce. So J do put myself under the

bccause so oflen wc

~ee

the

eX~lct ~'Jme

projl:cts migrate from contl:xt to con{l:xt

tht:ir work built. Rut J ha vc ncver "'1.:(;n it

time. <llthough (he bridge;,l s you said h<l5

~l:~lmlcs"ly

like that - it's much morc of a CQIlSral1l

becn a bridge between con,trul.:tion and

back and forth. in which I treat the book

t hinking, it occupies the edge of that

as seriollsly as a piece of infrastruelUrt.:,

world , 'rhe core or mainland has been the

- from a di~ital Llbric~ltion

't.:minar to:ln ex hihition of projec t" mt.:moriali<;ing the \\ TC ~itt.:, Thi ,> kind of JediclIc:li 1:Ick of :Jlkgiancc both

house - or rather a hou se projc{'( wc

Jdint.:5 and unliie:-. t:omput:Jrional projens

NCO: Can you talk abolll the bridge ,1

have recent!) done for tht: Parisian art

tOl\;Jy and at the 5:1IW': time ~tands in

little: fkcause as vou ~aid. in it we ha'·t: a

collc(:tnr Natalie

rhe \\'~Iy of attt.:rnpt' to LTeatc a real school

kin d of paraJlel reality. anu in

io\"ited to rake part alongsidc a !lumber

o r rIlmcmcnl. But

~i\cn

your imcre')t

in grnUr'i and 1l)(H'emenls. tht:

onl~

time

I experienced <.,ueh a collccti\e feeling was in the earh

20(lOS

I):t\

:.l

Scrou:-.~i.

We \\ere

Dcutse h-like \\ay {talking about qtlancum

of my younger cousin .. - architc=us like

phy sics) the bridge really is a brid~c

!\ Iorcl :tnd Andrasck. Altho llgh \\(:

lo~f.

bt.:twct:n two different worlds.

the house Was the orportllnity to

foi~t

at the AA. I stJncd

thc

methodologies \Vt.: h:H'e dt:\'clopt.:d onto

tt.:Jching along:-.ide other unit m<l'itcr:-. like

0'1.1 ; When I lenure on my work I pre,>enr

this different building type and to

eim Kajle . .\ 11Ch::lcl I knscl. and

both in parallel. and I t~· and tap thi~

confront the ambition of an IIldi\'idual

affinitie~,

strateg~ with thc intt:norit~ and

ft.:w other diplorn:l Wtor:-.. and for rhe first

pMallel rea lity through s pecific

time felt likl: I was p~lrt of a rt.:al 'ichool-

So. for example. I lI se che ... ame word to

subjectivity of a hou:-.c. In (ht.: project

de~cribe

we also tricd to sce how ynll could

not in an :H":iidt.:rnic 'it.:/1se. but in the

(.k~irc

C\"Cf\'onc 'Iel.:llled to sh are in w,lntin" . 0 10

ueb:lte and really orlorc certain

Thi.') l::Istcu k:-.s th,lIl a ye ar anu

idt: J.~.

h:llf bur

it wa, dIe clo,cs( I ha\"C been 10 an ,l rchitec t ural m()vt:01cnt.

the structure of the

brid~t: ,

he.lms

the paginnion of the bonk. T here IS

a mJterl:,l1 affinit\ het\\ t:t.:n thc two. Blit the ve~·

\" ::1"

phy ... icaliry of the hr i d ~e on ~ irc

~till

shocking at first - huge 500kg pieL'~~ of metal hovering lOin above the ground,

~ran

the iipparem simplicity needt.:u to pliin a house of tillS typt:

- 1ar~e \\all~

on which

\\orks of:\rt eOllld be hun~ - with the complexity of trying to mak c th<: \\ ork rcco~ni~ahly

()ur own.

But jU'>t rect:ntly. whilt:: I was laSI ,"isiting

III '(): But fl)r theif \·arious grouping" one of tht: ob, iou :-. di'>rinctions between

the ,ire. I saw that the workers who

HCO; Yo u mentiont:d (hal YOll h;I\"e

were ha\'ing to bolt completely con(u:.ing

recently "iet up th is office. and nO{ ("oming

tht: art and art:hltt:ewf<ll world:-. i., that for

sdf·:.imila r parrs of the hridge together

from the archJlcelllral world l \e alwa\' ..

~Irti,ts

wcrc

exhibitions rt.:main tht: thing: that

~oing

through tht: S::I IllC

pain~

had a n:fl\·e interest in the uffiee spaces Ihat

I did when I \I as trying to makt: a model of

architects inhabit. Officc:-. JII ~eclll to

For architt:t:t:-.. howe \t:r. tht:re :.t.:em., to be

tht.: s tru<.:!ure. lfn~urc a~ to \\ hich

work sliglllly difkrcntly, and al~o ...it .1 ccrt..llll

,m ,1I11biguiry :Hollnd their relationship

piece goes whl.:r<.;. So the material realities

point, they act in a wa) that i<; de'>igncd

to bui lding. Blit from what you ha'·e alrt.:<ld~

of the bridge were {here but somehow

to prevent you from ch inking. I remember

~p(lkl:n

the workers wcre dealing with

th(;~

do throughout their \\orking livt.:,.

abollt. huilding is obviollsly

th~

samt:

spt:akin~

to Oscar Niemeyer \\ hill: he

\t:ry imporl:.Jnt to you: th:H architecture is

dibnmas iiS I had in designing it.

was working on the Scrpenrint: p<ivilion,

not just about 1dt.:a~. Simil:uly you ",aiu

I found rhi'i really encouraging because:ls

who mentioned that he iMd rcceotl\'

a )()ung architect I alway, im:lgincd that

had to e\',ll.:uate

crt.::lting a kllld of pop-up in deVeloping

building. Ot eng:lgin~ with a built reality.

because hc couldn't t'onct:lltnl te any

L'Ornpuration:ll form:-. in 31),

more in favour ofa new ~p;Jet.: in which he

~ou

rh.lt

\\ :lnt to

~() be~'ond

\ Iac<hl's 21),

'iomcthing that only ~ro\\'n-up pt.:op!t:

hi~

own arch itt.:ctur:tl office

did, and {hat in ordt:r to build I would be

sits iilonc accomranied by the only two

(,'I,/.: I had :1111':1,"", hoped to un for ~pace

faced with a brt:ak or changc in my

people hc= needs - a cook ~1I1J

\\ h:u \ bed,1 had done for the pagt.:,

\\ orking life. Buttht.: hridge has :.ho\\cd

A-' I O /O~ I A

th ill {be proccsses ;He pretty much the:

onc office IIf ideas. the otht.:r of building',

:1' radical a~ f\bedJ W:l S back then Within

s~lIne.

Your

the conrext of ~r;\phic design. AS;.In

clll1eeptlla lising cht: projC=Ct a nd buildin~

beginnings arc still impurt:.t.nc so could ynu

it has really astounded mc.

pcrhaps dt:seribe your ufficl.:

hur

is dC~Hly exut:rndy difficult to be

:Hchi r(;(;[.

tholl~h.

nect.: ~:-.ity,

and in tr:ln<;h!tin?; lD concept ..

I ,t:C building:l:- a

into 3 D form onc of tht.: thingo; 1 ;lIn

T he: lack of friction between

and as

t:ompleting. Both arc surf:lt:e". onc (:os-tin/!: £ ,~. ooo.

the ntht.:r 5x million. but thc~

\\ ert.: both pl.lIlnt.:d .1nd nrp;anisc=d in~ trllmentalh

II( i();

T ht.:~

offc.:r .. another model-

n office is in an early ~t:lgt:. hut

)OU

.1' il

i.. mm

hopc it will be?

CLL: The office :-.tructure re;111\ CI.I.: I am going to regrct Ihis for the re<;t of my career bll{ hone"tly I ha\"!.: found nonc. I am {he fir!l t to be completely h:lfOed by this.

around the same iuc=a~.

arc parallel realitie s.

'\ecrctary.

III '0; So there really is no resis tance:

pro1lut:sr of i:-. Ihe similarity betwee n my book anu tht: h ridge ,\ c arc now just

0\\

co my

ped,lgo~ical

(}\\t:~

a lot

world. in the ,ense

thac whne'·er is working with me is part Of;l collcnj"c experiment. '\.10 ucci~ion i, madc n; aJlltrdm bur the model i, to th ink th rou~h

Issues and rC:l I I~ di"cll'~ IdeJ~

flCO: Blit now thal the bridge is bUllt I am C l1riou~ about the ~tatus of your

as you would in a pcdagogi t:al c=n\ iranment.

unhuih projects.

a block to thinking is an inrert:sting onl.:

But your co mment about the office as because for people of my ~cncrJtion the

(,'11 .; .-\b"ohHd~ . Anu they ,Irc cqllall~

important. Thi", i, \\ hy in my prat:tice

(,'1.1.: After the bridge the practice suudcnly

office was not nece ssaril~ the fir"l dlOiL'c.

turncd vef\· real beeau:-.e

Through ou t tht: last tiftet:n \car~ it

;10l

keen to ;",oiu any kind of p1lbrit\"

\\c=

irnmedi:Hclv•

hc=twc=en the ht:/!,inning (plJhli~hing

,caned losing compc[itiom. A common

has bcen very easy to work online. tu be

:tnd thinking :lhout Mchircctllft.: ) and rhe

arrhite(tuf<ll rhvthm of opcimi'itic

cnd ( building) . Tht: diche ll bollr

euphoria follc)\\cd b~ pt.:!I!limi.')tic ueJl.:ctjon

publishcd online and to communic:ltc o nlinc. And so the idea 1)( re:-.rricting the<,e

lll(J'Cnlt:nt:. i, dlllt e\e~onc j:-. dC!lpcr<ltcly

has set in . In thi, 'en,(; , I~ a practict: \\e

apparent freedoms and limiting you rself

Inokin~ 10 eSt':1re tht.: ~roup b~ ~ettill.g

ha\·c had to learn to

lo~e,

But

,J(

rht: ';Hnt.:

to a fixed location \\":l ~ alrcad\ ,1 chJllcnge

2' .)

that never re:all~' e x istcd for previous

(,'U.: Scruple, yes. and also doubt ~lnd

generations. I can understand t h,l[

guilt in all its forms -

\licmevcr just needs a cook. but that is

instant or fashionable. These would all

prob:a bly because he h<1s had sixry people

be Ollr meta-media in the K rallss sense.

working alongside him since 1964.

But I like to think that thcy arc all

For m it is obviously different. As soon

productive because we live in an age of

boundless enthusiasm for a lot of things,

dlC

too easy, the

realist: chat vou can actualh', , produce a project with five friends , one

and so going back to thc constraints idea,

of whom is in Oslo and the ochers in

working with scruples and a ct:rtain

N t:w York, Paris ;lIld Amsterdam, paying

amount of guilt - which partly comes from

rent on a space in Bermondsey seems

G rumbach, who felt rhat building

really quite radical.

<-I tenement house for 3 ,000 people was a

\OU

crime - is difficult but rcally viralw Ollr

HI'O: So art: you carrying out a shift aW<ly

w(Hking mt:thodology.

from the idea chat an office is a purely informal strunure?

H I 0: As some kind of cnd to this dialogue

GLL: Informal, dispnsed and polyvalent arc all good, but for mc, in a slighrly

I just wanted to go back to t he beginning of our own working relationship and a project of minc callcd ' O ut of E quations',

prolcst ant mind-set, we ha\'e to also show

which \vas inspired by Roger Penrose's

a little penance and rctrcat

The Roar/lo Rl'fIlil)路. T he project qaned

<1 space

alongside people who "olunrcer to be there

from two con versations I had, firstly

too , :.lIld who collec t ively pay the price

w ith Bcno it :\ I andclbrot (who drafted the

for that s;Krifice.

fraetal formula) and thell with Alben H ofm ann (who invented the formula for

HCO: \\"c have talked ahout your bridge,

LSD ); ,wd dcveloped into an invitation

<1nd Your housc. and :lbout

150

YOUT

oscill<1tion

people from all kinds of fields to

between 2D and -"D. but through your

submit their own formulas chat ultimately

office here, and perhaps by Icarning

will be col leered together into book. As

from Bcrrnondsey, we haven't really talked

onc of the 150 you contributed your own

abuut

formula, but you also recommended I

YOU

as ;In urbanis e. \Yhat is the

mbanistic dimension of your practicc?

Do you . for instance. do

ma~terplans?

spc,lk to John P ickcring. And so I wanted to <1sk you about both these things your formula and your relationship \\ ith

(;1-1.: No wc don '(. We never re3liy take

John P ickering.

on the large scale. which is ironic in a sense heeallst: I was taught by Antoine

G rurnbach , who ' I'as deeply committed

0'1-1.: 'r he equation that I sent to you i:-. for a brush stroke. Given mv interest

the citv. lie is in a wa\" the mmt

in writing, the equation reproduced a kind

American of French architcets in that

of mathematical alia prima - an idiomatic

<-Irehiteeturc for him didn't have to invoh'e

sign deri\'ed from the brush strokes of

building. and certainly not just a si t e,

a Japanest: calligraphie character. I liked ib

but it always . ir1\"olved the cit\". , T his in effect is what I took from him, but [\'e

clegancc but also, in a way, its futility (as any act of writing is. in the Ihnhcs un

replaced the imperative for the city

Cy Twombly sense). I

with onc for computational ma t hematics. Su I'm faithful to his model without

to introduct: J ohn Pickt:ring as someone who is perhaps a lot more serious about

actually taking on urbanism per SI'. But in

equations than I am. John is a disabled

/!:eneral I am very sceptical <1bout making

anist in his 70S who makes all his art-

(Cl

the jump into \trbanism without

an~'

wa~

also happy

pieces by hand, and so thcrc is something

kind offorrn,ll adaptation. It would be

heroic abuu t thc production of his

\'e~'

anehcts. \ Vc have discll!:ised our working

hard for mc, for cxample. to takc one

clement of

work , increase the scalc

togcther on reproducing his pit.:ees

and simply place it in an urb:w COntext.

mechanic111v. with la!:ier-cllt models

Intellectually it would be unscrupulolls.

purging the work of its personal touch.

111\" ,

Onc of these mudels will feature

lICO: Rosalind !-\rauss describes art as

in a

ha\'ing entered a post-medium condition.

Gallery in i':overnber. And so to

~h()\\'

of his work at the W alsal1

wit h someone like EJ R uscha's work

conclude rhc generational Cenor of this

experienced no longer in canus bll[ fmm

eon\ er~~ltion. after tht: nit:ces and

the \-ie\\ from the ur window. So for

nephews. cousins. fathers and uncle:-..

you. in these post-medium terms, is scruple

John sits henevolently at the top of the

vou r medium:

tree a:-. gr:lndf:1ther to us all.

O Ut o f the F q U:H\nn" {2 L For llan~ \ 路Irlt.:h Ob r i~t " llh gratiIlH.k: 00 fnlb - only qlli\"er~. Looping line~ m,HJe bv:.t few ,ym bnlic ,c ra{chc\. On ly nn..: ~trO)kc. (llltI pnl!ltl - Il k\.: f..: a njl l'a lli.L';r:lph~ . A~a ;-': l ls~on, ]I n i-Chi )\."g, OmJr Al-OmJrl JnJ (;corgc r, [ ,cgc nd rc f l )r IJ I' 1200."\-07 r (Jf)rt...路路/Sf fmm lOp n;:h/".

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flO:--JOl ' R<'; 2()()f'l/201) 7

Storm atershed DanMarks Diploll/a [filiI [6, 7iJIOrs: Sln;r !-lard\'. JOllas Llllldberg Glotx;dly, \'latcr usage h,l ~ incre~l.scd sixfold ovcr the laSt hundred ycar~ and will double ag,lin by 20:;0, ori\"(:n largely hy irrigation and the dCIll~nd~ of agriculture, Effcni\'cly. we :Ire now dealing with a water crisis generated by popubtion growth and dec:lde . . of grms mismctnJgcmellt of rC!-.OlrrCC\, Jf \\c are (() avoid drough t and \\ ide~prcad <;ociaiunresL new wat cr.=>~l\"ing technologies must be comb in ed with a bener man:.lgement of water by government and bu'!incss alike, The problem is vcr:.' real in l ndi::t - a coumry that has en sustain nearly twt:nty per ccm or the c::trth's population \\ ith JUSt four pe r cent or its w<Iter. i\ l umbai, the country's finJnc ial capirJI, eominllcs to :.Inract huge numbers nf rurJI migrants, posing serious c h a llengl: ~ to the ciry's rcsourn:s a nd infrJ<;uucrure, Ovc r hal f of i\ [umh;) i's popu [;11 ion of ciglHccn million li\"C in slum dwclling~ with inadequate \\ ater :lnd sanitation provision, YC t the cit y rccci\·e . . ~I qa~gcring 2.1 oomm ;jvcr;Jge r~linf;)1I per annu m, conccnmned in the rainy sca~on of June - September. Each yeilr for:.l few days during rhe peak of rhe Illomoon, the city ~rinds (() a sr,lndsrill as intense rains \vTeak havoc, It i~ this dualitv between oYt:rabund<tllcc and scarcity, oetwt:en flood :md drought,

that is the main driver of thi:-. projc(t. Focusing on rhe development of an altcrnative hydrological infrastructure for i\llImbai, the project is sCTllCcured a~ an 'insiue out' str<lte~y that hcgin, in thc s lum , directly henefiting it=> OCCllp:.lnts, and then cxtcnds out over rhc wider cit v a .. a wholc. Rath cr than "ceing thc slums a~ parasite'! on the cit~ ,md it . . infraSfrllCtllfC. it seeks opportunities to de\'e!o p infra ~rruclllf(,; whilst assimibting the slu ms into the city, Can wc imagine a new model of local. sustainable water provi . . ion ? And could this model also mode r:nt: the: effects of storm-water floodin,g acro.<;~ <l wider area? A sire to test the Srorm\r arershed pilot project was iJcntifieu on the borde r bctwcen Lowt: r Part:! ,lnd Prabhadcvi in Central .\Iumbai. Large parts of Prabhade\'i <Ire affectcd by floods during the lllonsoon . . ca ..on, as \\:atcr flows down into rhe rdati\ ch' lo\\"·I~'ing site from the surround ing areas. J\ losr vulnerable LO the'it.: flood . . i'i the community of Sri ' ·inayak Na,gar - a ~e ll1i-pcrmanent slum c()I()I)~ otTlIpying; the banks of an opcn :-.wrmWJter drainage channel prone co o\'crflowing during the rain~ sC:I~on. From the olltset it was cle<lr that a large part of the proje<.:t would need ClJ be cornmunitv·drivcn and hence 10\\ ,

cost. The projccr \\ ~I~ :d~o . . hapt.:d b~ other rt.:~llitio ;l~~oci:!(t:d with conscru<.:tion in Inui:\. ~uch ;1 ... rht.: rt:liance on modc . . of proullction that :Irc highl~ lahour·intcn~i\"(,.: anu dcpendent on !tl\\-... killeu manual workcr." This llnder.. tandinc; led to.1Il t.:xplor:.ltion of long·c...tahli ... hcd brick-m:lking LKt(lrie . . :lnd tll.I'ofHln. eon .... trucrion . . \. <;It:m .... ' I'hrou/.!h th I. . rne:lf(.'h it heC:llllt.: ;1 pp.lrt.:IH that with a limitcu set of huilding l:Olllponenr . . (hricb. blocb)'lIl un . . killed \\orkforce could erect . . irnpk comprc" . . i,,: . . cnlCtltrc~ quickly ,mu \\ith n.:bti\'c case. The aim \\"~~<; to dc\ clop ~l 'iinglc, ~tn.lctur.ll huilding cc)mp<Jnent embedded \\ ith a lkgrcc of wlcrancc in its geol1)crr:.· . . uch that it could ~lrtiClll:ltt: ~l cOl1lpkx I <lulting strltctllfl:. Tht: t'omponent j~ formed anu fired on :-.itc allll ....... cmbkd b\' a lOCI I \\orh:fon.: c. T he cOl1\trltction of tht' \',wlring !o.tructurc follo\\ .. thc cxca\ ~l(ion ;Ind c:\pan~i()n of the !loou pbin. It form~ an inhahitable surbcc :lho\ I..' [he flood plain while :Ibo channelling r~lin\\ J(er to point\ \\ hcrt.: it i. . ;lh<;orbcd inro the ~crllt'tur:ll <;llpportS. which ;Iho ;ll"t ;1' rc~en ' ()ir"" 1n rh i, wa\, \\ att:r a b:-.orbt:u by tht.: ~trucrlJre CHl be It\cd for growing cr(lp~ on ih upper surface. \\ hik the space:-. creatni hdo\\" accommodatc ll1arkt:t acti\'iries Juring rhc dr:.· ~C~IS()n,

Ffllm!: pm!,r. ,\ \ "u:III,.lflo n Hf {hl'

pn'Jl:t'!" ruo ),t ;IPt.·. '1IppuH<.:d

11\ ,trll\;turJl \\,ttl.'r t.'ollllTln, Jnd pllnrw:u<.:d hI op<':rl ,I!rI,rlh,lt :11101'\ fllr fhc nOl' of h~ht ,Ind 31r. JlriJ p/lJ!.1". Tl·~t model, c\"plnrl: Ihl: ,Hllnd.Hlon o f dll: l:;lIlOlP", 'lIl,gk 'Iruefur:rl hUlldin,g l"IlIllpOnCnl. .m.! It~ IIlndulMI11

within the nll:I;111 co mpJl:\ \ ;HIIt In.l.: 'li IKt 11 rl:

• 28

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Drpr.O'\ r A.I-JO~Ol · R S

zoo6/zooi

Excess Materials Jesse Sabatier Diploma Ulli!lI, 7il!or: Shi" Lf{(lshim T akc <1 look at any nCw s p<lper~ w<ltc h the news on T V, listen to tht.: r:ldio or rl:atl <:Jrrides on the imcrnct and \ O U \\ill he sure to find pcople di<i c u ~.,.i n g shihing weathe r p;l[(Crn <;, cncr~y co n') umption or resource tle::plerion. There see ms no way of a\oiding rhc implication<; of prediC[l;d an d perceived climate change. TIH:: ~e anticipated changes are affecting the n;lClHe a nd long-term thinking of, ari ou <; indll~tfies. T ran sportation "'y<; (em ~, for example. are moving row<Hd.,. lowenergy. low-emission solu tion s. Simii:.Jrly. alrernativc ~tra(cgjc<; are being sought in the manufacture of textiles and consumable ~(Jods. Bur rather rhan researching individu:11 <lnu isolated ~llternati"e~ to h o \\ wc cum:nrly uo thing~ , it ~ecms rh.1f ,111 integrated .,.olurion would be a more effcct!\"(: stra tegy. Thi ... inrcgnuion can he fou nd :H many scale) of energy com.ump(ion and resource de plet io n. from rhe large-scal c indu "t riOlI to the smaller domc:-- ri c )t;tr ing. Btu onc thing is for sure - as we conti nue (0 cons um e anti rhr()\\ a\\" a~ <,:\ · cr~th in g. that passe~ through our indu . . trie . . ,

home:-. and bodies, we will b<.: fa ced with a scenario in which th c re ",,·ill bc ;l dimini:--hing abuntlancc of nOltural res()Urce') and an overabundance of rubbi~h. Quite pos~ibly fubhi )h \\ ill be:: ollr ncxt available resource. Situate::d \\ ithin !l1\;; pos t-indu"uial lan tJ<icape of Banersea, a "m:11I ove n hOll se incinerator gather:>. rCII~C~ anti tran sform s cxc<.:ss produce from ;l wholesale fruit and n;ge t<lhl c marker. This infrastrlJuural dcvice operates as an 'appliance housc·. i.<.: .. a facilit y that se rv e~ ;l~ an appliance for the city, A kc~ fearurt.:: of the oven house is its horizontal chimney which, in conjunction with d1C thermal mass of the building ':-. foundations, rcdi stributc s hcar to the local community throu gh the burning of surplus organic produ ct:. Additional. and largely man -made. ull\\anted mat e rial (wood . paper. pb ~ric) collccred from exi<;t in g m:lrkn operations is used to c reatc ne w ccmelH com posi tes from which thc 0\ en house is (:omrructed. Thc.,.e new marc ri ;lls :lrc e mplo ~ ed acc ording ro their a b il i t~, to hol d and

relea~c

hea r. \\, ithin the :..tructUTe it~eJf. a nc\\" public :-.pacc i<; formed through rhe u.,.e of a <;Iiding g la~" en vc lope that hOIl<;c s a small planl ntlr"cry and compos ting facilitie.,.. fudkd b) decom po....ing fruit and ,'cgc tahlc ... co l1ccrcd from the marker. Opportun itie:.. tf) incrc3<;e <I commu nity ;J\\ar<.:rH::"""" of t he ~e ino u:--trial procc')... e" can he found in thc prm·i..,ion of pl;](form<, that allow for the ob . . <.:n·ation of thc sh ifting inr<.: rior hIlHl . . cape,> of accumularion. Th e men hou'ie i~ thu:.. integrated into it'i envirolllllc nt by utilising exi<; tin g industrial by-products and rramforming the.,.e Burerial:-- in a wav that can be directly expcriencetl by it'i neighbourhood population. Through thc l1ur . . ery. greenhou 'i<':'>, rccy<.:ling :I nd compo . . ting, rhe warm walls of the:: 0\ en home and thcrmal malic, flJlJntla tinn ... of rhe <.:himney, and through a Ratc into t hc markct ..,irua tcu ;H rh e cnd of the ch imn c~, in dll <;trial opera[i0l1<; and rhcir <.:on~equence . . arc con'iidercd beyond rh<.: limited 'iCOpC of a t~ pica I pri\a ri "ed 'ien Ice pro' .""lOn.

j··aallgpa/(t': \ l l)d(;l~ Jnd rc"rure~

of the lI1('1nefJtor\ hOrl/"m:ll l·hul\nI,;\. ,Iitirllj(, grccnh()u"r.: Cm,lp\ .m.! hc ;olcd tl(~'rll1L: elo.::mc1l1' Ihi( p(/Kf : SClltOn rhH)u,E!h tlu;: hOfl/.orltJI c hiIllIlC\. I()t ,tled \\ nhtn rhe pu, r- mdll\lrr ,11 l.. tHl'l'Jpc o f H"tler'c.l

'-\ FIl FS ,56

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ames Stirling Reassembled Claire Zimmerman

Despite thc staturc hI: achieved before his early death in [992, james Stirling has been nearly :lbsent from the consciollsness of architecture in recent 'years, relegatcd to the sort of ~lIlon~' mity n:scn'cd for dlOSC who a rc not only deceased but also, it seerns, outmoded. The 'end' of any architectural "Ityle, though , often tllrn~ out to be no more than the death of a sct of its authors. Thus the first brandished end of modernism coincided quite neatly with the deaths of Le Corbusi<.:r, Gropius and i\lies, just as the <.:nd of postmoclernism \\'as I:qually connected with the deaths of Stirling, Aldo Rossi and Charks I\ loore, regardless of how little the ITHJnikcr pleased them - leaving Rob crt Vcnturi, Rob ert Stcrn and orhl:rs as prociuccive isbnds in a shrinking archipelago. And although \ 'enturi and Stern ha\'c exposed these stylistic 'deaths' as nothing more than temporar:-' historical markers, many toda~' would also admit that the outer limits of architectural modernism are vet to he defined, Stirling consistenrly re sisted the tenT) 'postmodern ism' , but the tag has stuck to his \\'ork with !\Iichacl \\·ilford in an age of resolutc neo-moderni s ms of \'ariolls kinds. It is lip to a new gt:neration of :lrch itccts and scholars to reconsider Stirling's \\-ork within the heterogeneous contexts in which it was executed, and to come to ,I 1110rc sustained unders tanding of the range of issues that suc h a reconsidt:rarion brings in its wake. These issllcs include that of ,uchitectural postmodernism, :l term which was evidently more carcfully s trategic than historically descripti\'e. ' The extent to which Stirling is now ignored stands in irwerse relation to the degree to which he was revered little mon; than fifteen years a§;~o, p:lrriculariy in the United Stares, Such a dramatic shift is itself pron)(::ati\'e. \\ 'hy did he disappear after 1993? \\·hat is it in Srirling\ work that \\'e have found so difficult to acknO\dedge in recent years? Some ne"· studies seem to suggest that his g reatest projects were execmed during his partnership with jallles (Jo\\'an, and th,l( a re -e\'aluation of thi s period of the architect's career, together with a ne\" as sessment ofG owan·s pi\'oul role in the practice, could set the record stra iglH. Bur this appro ach elides the sticky qu<.:stion of postmodcrnism altogether, and mi ss es a host of ocher impon~lrH questions as \\ell. !\Iark Crinson rightly points out. in an :.Hticle in Arrhi/tf/IIIYJ/ His/Of)', that the question of auth(lria l credit between t\\'O t<llcnted young architects i'i considerably less interesting than questions raised by thc extremely productive syncrgy bet\\'een two \Tr~ ' opinionated figures. Similarly, various colbborators ha\'e claimed rt:spunsibilities for projects that bear Stirling's narT)C, citing a working method in which he phlyed the role of ed iror after the fact rather than designer before it. This occasionalh' results in authorial counter-claims from \'ariolts individuals, which cannot be verified, ;md \\'hieh miss an e<;sential continuity of method from career beginning to cnd. Stirling's seeming lack of fussiness about sole amhorship, but insi~tenee on authorial credit. nuy in d icate an implicit acceptance of the idea of an 'author-function' in both his work and his name; altcrnatelv, , it may be ~lJ) index to hi s aCllte \'isual editing, which SCCI1lS to ha\e been il1lpres.:-i\'e indeed , Durin g the years in which the single nam e defined his office idemity, Stirling frequently entered into collahor<lti\'e working rt:lationships with younger architects: the question of productive syncrgy e\' idcntl~ ClIlnot be confined to his relationship with (; ow<ln, Leon f\ri er is perh,lp~ the most rcnowned of t he collJborator~ within the jame~ Stirling uffice. but he was by nu means the onl~' onc. For the longest ..rretch of his professJon all ife. Stirling ~h<lred thc work a nd the officc name \\ 'ith

the one person who might legitirncttely claim more credit for all the major projects of Stirling's career, and app'-lH.:ntly nc\'e r doe s: l\ lich ae l \Vilford, Yet, even knowing that Stirling's working method was inherently and perhaps unconventionally collaborati\'c doe s not affect (he original question: why ha\'e we ignored this figure in recent years? Does his work reveal so methin,~ ahout the mechanisms of architectural production that ~HC still in operation, and nor adequately confronred ? Or is there a residual effect in the work itself, from the days when Stirling had a rt:gular hahit of saying and doing things people did not particubrl y \\ 'Jnt to hear o r see?"

Architecture as i\lass i\ledium There is ample evidence of Stirlin ,~ ·s commitment to the publicising of his work and of his awareness of the importJnct: of \' isual communication. Krier attt:s[s to this commitment when noting that what he learned from his years in Stirling'., office wa s how to publish architecture, and he is not the only onc to make SLtch a point, 'rhe monograph that Stirling published in [975, \\'ith Krier's ctssistance , copied the format and size of the Ont,--'!! mmp/t'/t' - the si re of his first and most enduring encounter with Le C:orbusier's work. ; Stirling \·isited the Villa Srein at (iarches and other important buildings by Le Corbusier for the first tirrle in [c)S-l, nearly ten years after committing his life to architectLlre, ~ The inren.,ity of effort in documenting work for publication shows (hat Stirling undcr~ro()d that projects ha d to be presented to ~1Il architectural public through innovative drawing tec hniques, which in his case included Choi~y esque worm's-eyc views and perspecti\'cs animated \\'ith cartoons of himself and his colleagues (also courtesy of J\rier) a~ wcll as photographs with dramatic fIliSf'S-f'I/ -sdl/f' th:H take inspiration from Nigel Henderson '$ (courtesy of both Sti rl i n~ ~l1ld (io,,',m). I n addition, the international architecture elite to which Stirling belonged in the latter half of his career, and which he embraced wholeheartedly, wa s itself the creatio n of an emerging media's intersection with architecture. It was nO( only an obvious affiliation of objects and goals [hat drew' Stirling together with a figure like Peter Ei senman in the early 1960s, for instance, It was. rather. architl:ctufe as a n1ediurn of modernity circulating fredy over the ~urLrcc of the globe in countless monographs and journal articles, and celebrity culture itself (the architect as public intellectual and star. first challenged and inevitably reinstated hy the In stitme for Architecture and ( -r ba n Studies in Ncw York , [967-S-l), \Yhat emerges most clearly from a look at Stirling's work i~ how asnrrely he understood the difference between picrurcs and buildings, with all that th:lt entailed . If on the one hand \\'C find an architect with a clear understanding oftbe importance of print circulation in architecture, on the other we encounter a set of constructed ohjects that .,CCIl1 to play g'lme.., with reproductive media at the outset, Thi.., ILl'! nothing to do with deficiency; Stirling's lIse of drawing and phot()gra ph~' i.., extremel~' so phi sticated, \Vith its serious engagement \\-ith both representation and construction, this \vork render s tht: gap ht:twcen printed matter and physical spac<.: (an esst:nri,1I aspect of modt:rn architecture) newly visible. At thc assembly hall in the London borough of Camherwcl1 ([9SH- 6z), for example, a \'e r~' modest building ~naps into focus on sire thank~ to:l set of charactcristio tiut arc scarcely modest, ~Incl might even be called monulllental. :\'eirhcr the publishcd drawings nor the many compelling photograph., capture the ghost~

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ofgeon1t:.:tric purity and English hi ... rory that ddine thi~ ",mall building, Ins tead. the narrmi\'c potential of pho(()graph~' is dt:.:ploycd to tell <I srory <tho U[ Occllp;1( ion, about care fret:.: child ren dancing in sunlit interiors (actually (;o\\'an\ o\\'n children, playing Lip for their fathe r behind tht.: \'iewfinder). and aboLlt the engaging picrori:.ll P()(t:.:nti;ll\; of;} genl1lt.:trically dni\ed architcc[Ure (with Eldred Evans. in Hi t.:hard Einzig's phorograph, looking li ke a recumbent \I icsian st<ltut:.:), These e;Hl~' photograph'), almost all taken b~' the architects. appear to rad i<'Hc t he aspircuio ns of their gT<lndiosc yet uns ulTc')sful r:hurchi lJ College competition emry of 1958. T IH':y arc \\ ish images par tXt'('/lellCf. In contrast. site \"isi ts convey a group ()f ~imultaneous n:::iH,lings impos,ible to deploy in the sen'icc of a ~ingk compelling na rrati\'c. The strengths of many of the project ... on ,ite lie in the si mll lullei ty of secmi ngly cuntmd ictory fI.:ad i ngs operati ng at ono..: ...lnd in thL: pJrticlIlardaboration of unexpected construction derai ls. Such subtleties of detail. construction method. o\erall fOrmi.ll d isposition <lnd 1l10,t of all. scale. etude ptu)[ographic rcprcscntJtion:' T he phorogmphs ~rc generally t.:ngagcd in te lling;1 different kind of srory. (lnt.: whose final goal is \'isual pcrslIJ\ion, T ht::' distJllcC hct\\'cen image <lnd object emerges with panicuiar clarity throughoU[ Srirling'~ work :lnd Clreer, pro\'id ing tantalising glimpse~ of analysis (0 cumt.:.

Stirling\; bui lding\ high light the gap bt.:n\'cen architecture and its mt:dia thank~ to their \'c ry panieuhl rity - their str<ln~L: juxt:l positions, gamcs of \cale and combinati\ e format logics arc \\ hat make (hem interesti ng in the lirst place. '路 And it is thc~c S,lITle juxuposirions and combinations th~H r~' pic~dly rc,ist reproduct ion. or are tmnsforrned into something completely diffe rent in the process of hcing trJn~p()rted from building to dra\\" i ng~ or build ing ro photograph. ' ,~\ t thei r bcst, the parti cularities of the buildings arc utterly unexpected. a~ much in their proport ion and scak <1\ in the di"position of their parts .lnl! their imp lied temporal uynami<"Ill, \\' hat is onc to make of rhe.: F lo re~' H lIildin,~ ( 1l)66--il) at Oxfo rd. for example? An impossibly skinny wall sr:1ggering lJ<lcb\'<lfd~ as it break') inw \'Crt ic,tl segments (hen bend ... into ~In <lmp hirhe<1tral shape propped lip on ang led legs? T he projeu has a n;'lrrati\'c dimcnsion: it i... ,I quasi-litt.:r~I r:.路 exercise, the con!':ltfuction of a fable d or fiet iol1<ll arc hitccrure \\'ith the vakncc of a psyc hedelic drt:.:am, T he building re,embles, ilnd is likdy ;1 riff on :\Iison and Peler Smithson \ unbuilr terrace hous ing project published in Tllf . ~ rrhi/('("/lIr(l1 RrC;fv.!.: in 19.17 (for Stirling. it i" ~1 one~()ff: for the Smirhsons. a system). rCGI~ r in hyper holic ITHlde. with ty pically Sr irlingesque humour. ' \\'hat is rhis ratht:.:r impro \'iscd crC;l(Urc but a ,'cr:.' per')oll<ll elaboration on rhe tht:arn.: of architecture. on spectacle. on communal sociJI life. on Oxbri d ge culture (sce Stirling" rendering: p u nt poles in thL: fo reground. punt poks ' "p porting the architccture) and o n gla'i'i arc hirecrure? \\'h at bu t a 'red brick' l rFO plantcd \\ ithin the most well fortified aC<ldemic precinct on earth? \\'hat bur ,\ Trojan J-I ()r~e within the gates? The Florey Building in per ... on holds many sllrprise~ fo r rllO ... e \\'ho h:nc come upon it fi rse in phowgrap hs and dra\\"in,gs, Bur jn moving hackwards in time (() the equally contro\'(;r~ial (and murc infa molls) C Jmbrid~e H istory Facu l t~, (1964- 66), \\'~ mo\'e from rh e 'pherc...: ofStirling\ LTearin.: intention., and the controlled nH..:dia representation of hi, \\'ork. to <I di\cu ... ",jon of thl: huildin.g... a ... Ilegotiated with dic[l{\. <i'i built and a:-, li\ed in me.:r timc. ,\nd \0

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hL:rt:.:. what are we to make of an indu'iuiJI gn..:enhou.,e ,1\ :1 reading room. :IS at the.: l-l is(Of\. Faeul{\'. librM"': . ,\ nu in rhe Ch<.: of th is bu ilding. how could \ \'C po ... sibly concentrate on rht.: architccr's intentions. when t he buil di ng is primMily knowll thrOll,l.!;h its conuO\'ersies and the loud hroadca\t:-- of i[", nUIl\'. failinl!.'-.? . The imp lausible f:1C[ is thut Stirl ing \\ :IS compelled. due {(J;t hrcakJo\\ n of rcal estate negot iiltions at the \Ini\'C[siry, to turn a building ninct~ deg rees on its sitc so {hat its glas~ rcading room LlCeJ the.: ri'iing rather than (he setring sun. with dubiou ... retrofitting and rcl ~l[i\(.: ly little ,1(.1 d irio na I <11 te ra ri on, The quest ion of :Hch i tt:.:c(U re"" i ntt:.: r... el't ion \\ ith its pll b l i c~ (of which the client io.; [hc \'t:.:r~ fir ... t) hccomc ... pre ... sing at rh is juncture. \\'e must then accept [he in,i ... tt:.:nt pm.~ihility of an archircC( concenrnHi ng ilHelHl~ on onL: hal f of hi ... job <lnd nor rhe other, possibly as <I direct re;.,ulr of client inrr:.lJ1 ... igcnce. Sti rl ing e\'idently cared deepl') about till: arricuLnion and de\'elopme/lt of the I-l i... tory Far.:ulty, hut \\ a ... perhap\ more phi losophical abo ut it.., many functionalitie ... 0\ er time. :lnd ir... likel~' recep tion. gi\'cn thL: climate in \\ hich the c0Il1111i"'sion h~ld been cxecuted, \\ 'hile the ghost ofa \pecific<lll~ I': nglish past (ofgla:-.s architccture from Sm'thson to \\ 'ren to Pa:-.wn Jnd he\ond) . . again play ... \\ ith the hi\[Ory of contine.:ntal llloderni\1ll in h:luntin!!, ye.:t hU lll orou:-i w~~ys in {hi ... bu ilding, the grandcur of thL: whole scht:me is drowned out hy the noi..,c of clielH opprobrium, ,\nd \\ hile the fun ction<ll p roblcm'i ha\c dearl: hecn ,ub ... [anrial. onc i ... ten1p recl to wondcr about the end effect of the building\ conflined cl ients on the architecture :lS con ... tructed. :-":e\'e r in unilateral ag reeme n t about their cho ice of archirect in rhe fir ... t place. :lnd utterly cu lpable in the ir I~lilurc to procure the prollli ... ed building ... itc. h<lvc the clients also failed ro in\' c~t in their architecture in the years since <:ons tr uuio n? A single con\cr ... ation with the current cll')tod i<ln is eno ugh {O sugge\t th,u C\'cr:.' (Jprorrunit~ ha\ been t~tkcn to am pl ify the bui ld ing\ illi.Hkqlldeie'i \\ henc\'er humanly possi ble, po ... sibly as part of a campaign aimed at its ultimate demolition (to tea r it down, you ha\'c to \\ reck ir fir ... r)." These anecdotal hi~toric<11 faC{s - our,idc the architcct\ :lpparclH control. and equally ourside the i.lCce pt<lble limits of contemp()rar~ architcC{ur;ll criticism have nc\'enhcless been critical for the life of thi\ huilding. e\'en lip to the current d::1Y. T hus rhe C:1mhrid~c Il i\[ory F;lc\llr~ narrate'" the two sid(.;s of the archirec[Urc coin: on the onc ,idc. the architcct absorbed in the largt:r conceptLl,tI task of architecture. Tnaimaining absolute control of the media repre\cnt:ltioJ) of his \\ork: Oil thc other. {he thi ng as it get'" built . in an crn ironment th ~lt run\; from client~ dri\"C n (0 elienr-plaguc..:d. Archi{ec[~ ignore thi ... hItter a"pect <It [heir peri l. for ir invaria bly concribure'i [() rhe suh ... L:qucllt hi ... rorics of their work. And here a fllndalllent~ll qllt.:stioll ~lh()lIr po ... t\ur ~lrchitcctl/rc emerges: ho\\' muc h ha\'c the internal delll:llHh of profe\ ... ional cultu re (practice and aCldel1le) di\'crged from the e\.(ernal clc/ll~tnd'i of pu blic construction? fl o\\' milny public'i no\\' exi\t for architecture and ho\\' arc they all to be ~ari\linl?

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T he Lcice ... tcr Enginecring Building ( 1<).1y- 6.)) illu ... tr:lto the !':lame point from rhe otht:.:r ,ielL:: 1. L:iccster professor I':d\\,ard Parkc., m<ly possibly go do\\'n :1'> the ide:Il client for modern :lrl'hireCfure in po~(\\'ar Britain, GO\\ all. a critical force ill rhi\ projecL h.h rehired a:::. much in his de~criprioll of the ~UCCL:s..,e\ (;lnd failure.; ) of the

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building" It is striking, nor only for its l1l<lIlifesto-like qualities" but :liso for its 1ll1cx(1ccted proportion\, the humour of ih assernhlagt: of d iscontinlloll"'" fr:l/!;rllCI1(\ and the persua . . iycllcss flf ITl:I""'-produccd clerncnts, all adding up to;~ simultaneous cngagement \\"ith a range ofbisrorical :lIld autobiographical objects. It is difficult to dismis.., these sLlsuined references to his({)ry. indu"rnal and popular cul(lJrc :l1ld :Iurobiography as 'formalist'. although much of the di"cussion re'its preciscl~" on rhe compositiorul analysis of builLling parts Jnd their spatial rebrioll\hips. ,n P:Ht of Stirling's taicnt lay in his infu ... ion of nun-formal qualities inro familiar forms that were :1150 . . omerime . . ,m"k\\",lrd or unexpet:ted in their juxtapo,>itions" L,eice ... rcr may \\"t:1I be the best example of this strategy of infusing the p:Irticul:Ir into dIe familiar or generic. but thcre arc many others in Stirling"s \york. Ill:ln~ of them concerned with eructing or recording building process or te1l1por:tlit~ " in architcctural form" R:Hher than discu\sillg :Irchitectural formalism" wc mi"ght turn to an expanded notion of context. \\"herein different . . orts of context merit different Ji ... cussion..," 'I"he referential context of Stirling and (,O\\":lll 's :Jfchitecture at Leice . . ter. \\"hich nods to Ru . . sian con ... trllcti\"islll. to Corbllsian mo<..krni . . m" to H annes .\lcyer. (() Pcrer Elli . . , to British indllstrial :lnd greenhouse architecture (to name jll . . r a fe\\ of its referenu..":\) is sclf-e\"identIY:l Ycr~" different sort of context from the physic:d onc that surrounds the building at I.eiccster l lni\ cr\in" . And both of the . . e contexts differ markedlY . :t~:lin from the largcr politiGlI and sociologic:ti en\"ironment of British TlHH.krni . . m in the I<)SOS, :lnd again frolll the still-huger sphere of European J11oderni~1ll in the twentieth cenrur:-"" T he linked ideas of "implicit" ,Ind "cxplicit' contcxt might be applied hc:re, from both litcrary theory :lIld:l \Jricty of biological and compuutional :Ipplicltions" An :In:ll~"sis of Stirling":; architccwre seeTllS to beg for consider:ltion \\ ithin this expanded frallle\,"ork, in which the huildings gi\"C up SOIllt.:: of their ab:l\hed secrecy for Illore re!e\"::lI1ce and puhlic :lgenc~" Communication ,,"itll a lay public \\"as. after all, an explicit L'oncern of this ;Jrchi[cct. In L'ontra:',( to Stirling\. acutely progressi\"c engagemeIH \\"ith rr:ln:--.ienr media Illech:lnisllls, hi ... equal ill\"Cstlllem in the . . ingular object hoth :lfchitecrural :lnd represent:ltion,lI scelR. . hupelessly tf:ldition:tI - :.trchiteerurc with a capital A, in the tradition of I LI\\"ksmoor :1I1U SO:lIle" And ill <;pite of ine\'it:'lblc cl:lslles with those interested in . . ~ ... tem ... thcor:-" in the post\\"ar ycars, Stirling's im"estment in the singul:tr work of :Ht is surely ,ti<;o r:nher Illodern. in the ill:llll1er of'rTl<lster' architect<; like I . e Corhus ler and Frank 1"lonl \Yright. Thi~ fact is only . . underlined by . these architects' own qu:dificd attempts to iJl\"l':J1t architectural ~ystcms that rnight haye widespre:ld applic:.ltion" calibrated ag<lin ... t the unqualified failllfc ofhorh 'system ... ' (the domino- fi,"e point . . nexus :lnd rhe Talicsin fcJlo\\ ship) to m:lSS produce thc sort of archireC(ure th~l( cmerged from the -;wdiu ... of both men" These efforts \\"ere thcll followed b\ rell1:lfk:lhly din:r'>c \\ork that had little to do with industrial proce ....... Stirling apparenrly accepted the Llilure of attempts [0 systemarise the production ()f~lrchitcetllrc. C\'CIl in his own preLlbricatcd buildings - which dO:.l1l they can to contradict the notion of industrii.llised as\emblagc. c\"(.:;n :\s they put it on displ~I~" This fJbleu contrariness in Stirling\ architecture is rem:'lfk:Ibly potcnt" disarmin,e; the e . . \cntialist \'Jlues of old modernists like \Iies (,,"hose \\"{Jrk Stirling explicitly opposed)" I Lld he coppcd out,:b .\Iison and Pcrer Smith ... on implied, or did he just astutciy recognisc the self-imposed limit'> uf

a post-C f A~ 1 world, in which 1920S rnodernism retained the power of potent myth together with:l set of distinctly prc-Illodern h;:lbits? In referencing En,glish architecture ofrhe past three ccnrurie:::" and the recent histor~" of modern art, Stirling 1110\"ed quickly beyond the question ofarchitecture\ \ociali..,t IJropia . . to a different set of questions about the role of an in the larrer half of the rw(mieth century, He combined dense architectural quotation \\ ith po..,n\"<lr amhivalencc (solTlcrin1cs callcd ambiguity), From his adoption of the Queen Anne style window that adorn') the front of hi . . house in Belsize Park, to the same motif deployed at the Clore G:lllcry ;Ind at \:0" 1 Poultry, as well as in countless mhcr project. . , Stirling copied" repeated and recomhined motifs " At I . eiccster" :1 ';tair motif that it;IS been linked to (,ropius's factory buildin ,r; in Cologne in [<)[..j. is merged with its antipode. the r:tther modest. hidden and hi ,f2:hl~ functional stair in Peter Ellis's Cook Street office building in Stirling's home t()\\"n of Li\"crpool; in <liccrure of 1<)74, it \\":IS Elli.,\ building that Stirling cited as precedent for the Leicoter stair. Other architectural references multiply ~lJ1d soon become so numerous and contradictory as to constitute the tools of a rhctorieJI method" The means of assembling the ... c \";'Hied references rescmbles that of the !lJon/mf"()r c{)lla,~e arri"t" But like his C()mparri()( and friend Eduardo Paolozzi, Stirling disciplined the eicments of:l collage aesthecic within <.l single object. largely through the use of continuous surface" Furthermore" Stirling',) comments Oil the facrure of the \ Iaisons Jaoul prm"ide important hint . . into his (J\\1l P<.\olol'.zi-e...,quc aesthetic: he found the houses (0 be regrettably 1:1cking in tr:lCC'" of industrial process " His OWIl buildings procns the indi\"idll:ll object..., of which they are combined, much <1<; 1\lOlozl'.i\ work (both [\\"0,md three路dimcnsional) renders up the Ilorsam and jcrS;11ll of indu\tri:ll culture within the singular surface of <.\ ne\\ I~ eon...,tructed thing" The montage artist is no longer assembling found object~, like KlIrt Schwitters; rather, the found object . . of inclu ... trial Tllodernity arc fed through the processing machine of:\ production :le~thetic" They represent montage r,-Hher than enact it. In thi . . both Stirling and Paolozzi refmmc the \\"ork nfan earlier <.\\":lIH-g:lrde into ~l \\orkin,f2: procedure absolutely retlecti\"C of thcir 0\\ n ... itll:ltion; it may be their single most important :lCt.

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Stirling's process of mOIHage sub"eC]LJentl~ grc\\ inro:l highly selective working method deplo~"ing referential de\ ice\ un surface ... and through \"olumes" \ Iaking p:tinsuking effort ... to knit hi . . Clore Gallery extension (1<)8u-86) to the origin;tI T:lte C;allery with archaeological precision, Stirling went to equal pains to break if'-, \\"all surface into disconrinuou<., but contiguous clement'> and, tin<.tlly. to attach these eicments to one :mother \\"ith the eqlli\":llenr of architectural rubber bands, Thus the \\"indo\\"\ and cornices tic discontinuolls fragrnems together. The changing fabric of the exterior wall only nlgllcly references function:ti conditiOn<; within the building; the transitions bet\\"een zones ::He kcpt fOu"e;h and abrupt. Thus the \\'indO\\"/cornice ehlboration :H the point \\ here the Clare rurns the corner and recedes ffl)m its ceremonial front to its industrial rear marks a rather extraordinary collision of \\"indo\\'" cornice and "":Ill detail. The sense of :1I1Y base condition here i. . elusi\"e; the built object is just a bo'\ of space \\ itll a ... kin affixed to its

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exterior in collagL segments, lined anti fill ed up inside in simi lar fashion . Hardware. such as windows and srone dctail. is mounte d 0 11(0 rhis blank. The architect's job comes down ro a great dea l of highl y l'feari\'<; o\·crwriting. editing and affix ing, and ro a full conn :lti on ofmonla gc (; D) and collage (2D) praccices. In rh is. Stirling apparentl y mounted h is own \'ersion of {he critique artieuhHed by figures like Peter BUrger; the fate ofehe early twentieth-century :!\',uH-gardc5 \Vas nor to succeed in the effort to integrate an and life (<I dubiolls cbim anYWly, it is now gene rall y agreed), bur rather to fund amentall y re-cast the rd at ionship of art to socicty for th e world to come. 'rhus Stirling launches a sim ilar project from within the hi g hl ~ determincd limits of conventional archi tectural practice, and within the enn;lope of single building commissions. Unl ike the Smithsons, Arehigral1l and Ccdric Price, he ultimatel y bypa ~sed uropia in f<l \'our of <.:o nstfucti on. at the sa me rime reabsorbin g lHopian traces into constructed objects. Subsequ e nt critique~ of BUrger's 1'11('0 1'), 0/ lilt' A f.N1II/-C(lrde (1974/ 1984) qucstion his vision of rh e entire projecL But Burger'S inrerprctation was, like Stirling\. a function of his own con text in POstW;:lr Europe. BUrge r's book was first published as Stirling mourw.;J his mo nographi c cxhibition at rhe RIBA, cclebratcd from within the precincts ofrhe neo-avanr-garde by Reyncr Ban ham in rhe exhibition caralo~ue. Stirling intcrnalist:u the \\'orkofthe 1920S avant-gardes in these Yl'a rs through close ,,{udy of the likes of I.e Co rbus ier, and by absorbing rhe achic\,cments of Schwit tcr'i, Ra oul I-Iauss mann and Hann ah r Weh. ju st as Paolozz i and Henderson had a)so do ne in different media. Stirling [hen deployed relate d strategies in an architecture that see ks no ma rc than its own physical and disciplinary limits - at least on thc si re uf rh e constru cted object. This srands in contrast to [he amhitions of systems building architects on th e o nc hand and fi gures like the Smithsons on th e other. It is this project that Stirling's singular buildin gs carry forw ard so well , standing on thl.:ir sites like mobile provoc:Hions . .:\ cxt ro them, rh e unbuilt pape r architecture of many of Stirling's contemporaries takes on th e appearan ce of, ro quote Banham ve ry unfairly, 'i nfamilc regressio n'." But Stirling always has the lasr I<lugh: rather than projectin g fururi stic ideas 0 11(0 paper. hi s work transfers collage O ntO a bui lding site, tf<msforming pape r inro mu ((er. s uhjt:eting rcprelicnt<lr ion (0:1 reverse transformation into substance dut puts rhe mechanisms of mcdi :l culture to a new usc, and upsets established hierarchic", bC(\\'CLn bu ilt and depicted. He went o n in later projects {O continue parsing rht; notion of montage <l nd continuous s urfa ce in a cont illuously self-critica l method that resulted in the ala rmi n~ " -issenschaftszenrrum Berl in, with its discontinuolls fl oor plan and unifying extern:!1 wrapper: (h ~ disjunction between plan and elevarinn constru cte d. " But aJt this talk of individual objects brings onc back to the starting question . I., it prec i ~c l y the close affiliarion ro particular, no n-rypiea l object\ that makes Stirling unfashionable? In a rime when architccturc is promming tyPl' as ,1 means to individual particularity, unc won(kr~ how rh is might be. Th e recen t intercst in custom fa brication implies th at singuklr, non-rypiral objects ha\'e some sort of intrinsic \\ ort h. And yet, with all rh e hype ofcomemporary fa shio n, individuali!><:d OOjcClS are now to be markcwd I ~Hgcl y on their validity as mass commoditi...:s. Aga inst this langu,lge of mass-produced indiyiduality, Stirling offered indi\'idual assemblages of mass products - perhaps

the heart of th e modernist projcct. recoIlCL:i\'cd within thc limir,; of a postwar wo rld . At the same time. he infu ~cd hi s huilding\ with (he tool~ of se lf-critique , with \\'hat Crin~on has rcccnrly called a 'principle of contrariness " and what f\ lanfredo Tafuri equally referred to as a kind of ' cruel disintegration' in hi , 11.)74 cs . . ay. ' L'ArchitcclUrc dans le Boudoir'. \Ve might rather scc thi~ intcrnal i ~cd critique a. . a funct ion of constrllctivc and scmantic logics within the world of I:lt<.: modern architccture. If\\'c begin ro do so, Stirling\ work . . [art . . {(I offer \'ery significant IJrO\'ocations to the future, It is no longe r the notion of indust rial prm;es . . that mori\ ate., today'.;;; lll.lSS cllsrornisation but the rath cr differcnr notion of bmh/and borh mass-produced and singul ar ar the ~ame time. Tlli . . i. . preci . . cl~ th e q uality thar characterises a huilding like Andrew i\ kh'ille Hall at St Andrews University in Scotland. This dedic:!tion to c()mplcxit~ is also worthy of another grcat IY70S figure:, for .,omething "irTliiar fi g ured prornin cnr ly in Robcn \ 'enruri'\ (.'f)lIlpirxi/r IInd (-'oll/mdi[/;oll whe n he e:xplicirl~' :.1d\'ocated thL laye ring of reference..: and fun cti onality widl preci sely dlf.;sl' \\'ords - and tht:r!.;in lic:-. ;l clue. Could i{ be th:lt what ha ~ srruuUfl:d mueh ofarchitecture\ e ngage ment with its ow n hi sto r~ in recent yC~If'~ hcar........ triking conri nuiti cs with th e very discour\cs it lo\'(.:~ ((j hate? \\';..1\ Stirling\ method uninteresting W :lrchitecb and critics of the 1l)l)OS bec<lU~<':, lla\'ing jeniso ned rhe rhetorical specificitic.;;; of 'postmodcrn hi storici sm '. {hey we re loath to ad m it th<lt nothing much had reall~ changed in {he way architecture is produ<.:ed and undcr . . wod? In this case, instead of <I rather m 'err l'ngagL:lllenr \\'irh historic,tI languagcs reso nant of Schinkcl and SOJne, :1 rcnewed interest in [he styli stic \'ocabul:Hics of modcrni~m I:l1lcrged in rhe 1l)l)O 'l to dominate a senor of the proft.:ssio n :lnd it\ ;lpologist . . in mu se um s and publi shing house .... Bur the re\'i\'"li\r impul\c, {he dc-sire to invoke specific hi<.;wrical rLfe rcTlce (rhe Han.:c\on;] Pavilion, not (he Aires i\ l useum) h:l . . oftLi1 remained. Colin Rowe\ cffort, for e xample, to reconnect thc thre~H.b of the past ~lnJ present through fi g ure\ :.1'; rc mott: :1<; Pall adio i... nor unrelated to recenr cfforts {O exhume the ghost\ of the 1<)20\ and 1<).10\ Jlld to reconnect the abruptl y trullcated effort ... of dcdicated moc/Lrnist\ ro new buildin g produ ctio n. l\ But go nt.: from contempo ra ry criti cis m is Ro\\'c's parodic tone, he<l\'ily laced \\'ith iron~' and Oedipal desire. The re\·j,·al of the (moderni'it) past ha . . r:Hile r Ix:cn undertaken in Je(ldly carneS[Jles~. Arou nd the time of Stirling' ... dc:uh (or a little bl'fore) We plunged headlong into this age of re\·i\·alism. Bur thi., modernist re\·i\·al has apparently ig nored the troubling conclus ions of Stirling\ ge neration in its embrace of rh e utOpia of Illodernisr :luronomy . At a tinK when pluralism is perhaps Ie ~s <l conce rn than a . . ort of '\ofr-hcadcd ideological proprie ty, modernism has been taken lip by rhe PO'\{-( :old \V ar world in rhe extent to whi ch it has becolllc a hOu . . 1: .... {yle. Paradoxica ll y, 19705 architectural po~tlllodernism ll1a~' rurn out to hold rhe last Oedipal thread of a continlloll ... ll1odcrni\t dialu.' {ic in its rad icall y reactioll;:lf':-' grasp - utopian or nor. For po:-.tllloderni~rn. <lr it . . best. \\' ;~s no so rt of rt.'\ i"alisrTI ,l{ all. bur rarhu <.I n ,Hternpt to go on in\'l:ming with whatever lay still to hand: among ot her thi ngo.;, t he materia b of {cxwa I refere nce <J nd rcprC\<.:' nCHion rhellhc he ..... Ifits rhetori<.: was rebellious. its goals wcre full~ in lin e with thL :J\'anr-ga rdc project framed n1<ln ~ years before - in corHrast to many recc nt ne o-mo dcrni ~m!>. which ha\c ciec[cd HI rhro\\ (Hit rhl' ba h ~, but hold onto the tep id h<lth\\,;Hcr.

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Cone! u "ion .lam es Stirling had heen \\'imcss to a difft:rent hisrorical phase in England :li'tcr the \\";H. one that "<l\\" [lJ20S modernism as proximate and untini .. hed. i.I project waiting for its \'indication on English ~o il. \Yhik embracin.!4 rhi\ belief himself. he also quickly l1lo\'cd to a pChiriOIl (hat differed quite significamly from those of hi s conremporarie 'l in interpreting 1920S modernism nO{ as dogma bur as an 'open \\ork' (quoting {"mberto Eco) with a i1<.:xiblc \ ocabular: - a proCl.:dure r,lt lll.:r rh~1Jl a st: le. Stirling. ITwre so than others, re:1Ii..,<..:d:.l critical cJiffert"ncc between the 1920S ilnd the 1t)::;OS; not onl: \\'a'i there no .going back, bur going fom'ard in the \\,<lk~ of c<ltach's . lll did nm allo\\ fur unilateral certainty. in soci:1l and culru r<ll ",-dllo formubted after thc \"(,.. ry different re\'olurion of 191 7. And from the distann: of postwar I ,ondo n. Stirling unders(Qod right away th:t[ :1 ... en!)c of irony \\ .1:-' essential (0 any u'Ie of modernist dogll1a. th~1[ deploying tht.: bngll:lp;c of the 1920~ \\ollld irnrncdi:ltcly il1\oh'e an c1emcnr o f qllor:ltion. a... Tafuri so astutel: nmiccd, He W:lS not opcr~Hing in a \'ae llllm hur rather in a \\ orld in \\'hich rhe een~~inric .. prm id cd hy pre-\\'ar '1ullcturali .. m were gradually being replaced by the fi..,..,ure~ rh :H defined postwar post-~[rllcrLJrali"m; the replaeemclH of implicit helief \\ ith a rene\\'cd s~n . . c of rhe relativc n;HLlfC of all pracriec<.; of faith. of \\ hieh modernism includcdthe 1ll0~t :lHul'li\'e .lIlll. in thc cnd. the most pernicious, Tafuri identified thc~c iS~lIt.:'1 in Stirling's work, but infused then) wirh his own centrifugal .-\d ornian pathos. dpparcntly rcjcctin,t!, or ignoring dlC irrc\'(..:rL~nt nptimi.'illl implicit in Stirlin g's own hard-headed 'contrarinL''1S', Hc:ond an:' other impres:-.iol1 cOl1\e:'ed by bllilding~ or illl:lgt.: .... ht.:re wa ... someone \\-ho lo\'ed the positi\ c porenrials or the \\'ork that he did, Rerurn ing {() Stirling\ rc1atioll'lhip with the prc\elH. \\e can ')ce rhe desire to a\ pid looking ar hi'l work as morc than jU')t ~t reaction ({) the diffic.:uhy of rbe gil!;:lnr ic ~o, 1 Poultry, completed after the ,lrchitec{\ death (() rcpbn: ~fic,,·.;; unbllilt \lansion llollsc Square projeer in I.ondon. Th e current unpopularity from \\'hich both Srirling :lno \'enruri suffer bears more rclarion to an unrc<)oh 'cd paradox of Ollr 0\\ n time. '1'h;.I( p~Had(Jx rc~ts on recent desire ... w ... ce !l1()derni~r11 :1'; if it were really still therc. c\ en when there i~ ample e\'idencc [hat the notion of a unified modernislll \\'a ... a 1\\'<3\. :-. illusory. . ;lnd when it is equally e\'ident th~lt many of it .. pre..,uppositions helol1g to:l differcnt l'f.;ntllry.'~ T o this dt:sire for cOl1(inuity with the rcligiou.., flith ofscclIlar 111Odt:rnislll. the nujor figures of ly60s :1I1d 1Y7()S "rchi rCl'turc prn\'idc an un welCOIl1t: remi nda of the fact that not ont: \\ as rhere no continuity in the \\ ay things looked. but c\'en IllI)re di:,turhingl:. there \\ ',1'" possibly grear continu it y in thc h:l ... ic heterogeneity of a 'modern' \\ ay of huilding - and thar it could fc')crnhlc :\0. 1 Pouhry or rhe Swttgan Stilarsg:llcrie . IS \\ell :lS the Smilh'lons' ... chool ;lt HlIllstanron. In fact. the gradua l incorporation of J);lda and Sllrre<lli~111 into rhc Ill<limueam of modern ;1\ ant-g:udblll from IHirgcr to the present day h<l .. lJlso carried po..,rmodern eoll;lgc pranicc into rhe he~1f( of the ,o-callcd modernist project. In the end. it W<IS that 'lame pO"it\\'ar gener<ltion - ha\ ' in,~ growll up in tht.: iI11J1ledi~l(i.,: \\aKe of c<1LlclYSIll. on 1l)20" collage (J\'(..:rlaid \\ ith rhe efllprions of postwar consu1l1cri..,m - rh:u h:lIlded U'I rhe rooh wc use to consrruct the semantic <Ippara{LJse'l of ;Hehitt.:c[Un.: rod;\\. Thc ulc of lim Stirlin!!; cannot be dTectin:h'. di..,tilkd to thar of ;1 mi'wnder...rood geniu'i whose ")taf ha'.; temporarily falkn, at le<l\r nut

hLfe. Other le..,son:-. about moderni(\ <lrC emitted b\ hi'i \\ Ilrk chief among them the paradox of ~I n <trehitcct \\ ho fund :lI11enrall: realigned []lC projeCt of architecrure for profc'l..,ioJlJI.., .lIld their crirics. hur whose aehic\'emcnt\ wcnt ncarly unreco,t!,ni..,ed h: the pllhlic thar u'.;ed [he bllildin~~. at lca .. r until the la'Ir decl<,k of hi\ e~Heer. In addition to thi . . important c~le .. ura between :Iudienct.:.., ;lnd object. other problems croded Srirling\ Rriti..,h clrecr. The prohlt.:m.., included building'! [har lc:Jkt.:d. rh;t[ \\cre too hot. or that <lppearcd to pay little ~lttention to the local ell\ ironlllcll{'" in \\ hich (lie: h:ld to function. or the '1ociologie.., of rheir clicnrek:. l..-ike 111:111: of " 'right\ buildin.u;s, they needed ~ll~tained rinkering. thank... to the 1)«1\ LJr~l of man: of their technical ~()Iution.." l'erll<lp'l 111O ... t difficIJ!r for hi.., brer e<lrccr \\;h Stirling's alie narion from c1it.:nr... ~It (hford ~lI1d C;ll11hridg<..: \\'ithin the ~p:ln of ju..,r a fl:\\ \ ear') - ;1 hi..,toriciI bct \\ ith ..,i!!.nificlIlt elas .. illlrlic<ltion~ [hat '1t.:cm to h:l\c impin ged direcrl: on rht.: proce ...... of de:-.ign and consrrtlCrion :It both loc:niol1'1. ,lIl d c\en more profoundl: nn the ..,uh .. cquclH hi..,rorie.., ;li1 d hl'lrori()gr~l phil"'" of the t\\O bllilding~, The eonrnJ\cr..,ic..:.., ti1;I[ '1urroundcd rhe..,e ill")rirurion:11 comllli~siun., foll(l\\ed Stirling :lnd intl"rruptcd thc 'UC:11ll oh\llrk thar he fully e~pee[cd :1'1 hi.., ri ,ght. Ir i.., ..,mall \\ oll der th ;lt , heginning " 'itll Franccsco Dal ( :0 , he turned \\ith \lIch Cnthll..,i;hlll to the international arehitecrurc '1ccne that admirc..:d him..,o fcf\Cllth, Thu~ ~lI1other colltelllporar: lllechani'll1l i.., narr.ltcd b: Stirling .... hi . . rory: the ~c1f-ghe[toi..,ation of Ic:H.lin,!.!; \\ Dtem :lfchitcCh inro the small c..:ncl<l\·c<" that protected academic" ;Ind fostLfed practitioner.., IIntil Rem l\.oo lhaa'! (and others) u'Icd th,lt "'~\[llC TlllTh:lIli..,m (0 make the architect a f:l~hi()n :l ble figure in a lar,gLf ... pht.:re, \\ 'hik: rhL: form~lrjon of the profc"':iion:il cldre long l1fnLuc" tht.: Sccond \\ 'orld \\·ar. the current pht.:nomenon of the inrern:Hional .Irchirecwrc elitl..' probably on ly dare'l lO {hI.: earl: rnceting.., 01'( : IA~1. It certainl: acquired ne\\' force in the 1f.)7(h :tnd 11)Ho'i in rill" {'n ired St:HC..,. \\hCll Ph iJip Jo hn:-.on :lnd the 1.\( 'S identified;l ..,ekct group rm in .~ from conference to conft.:rcncc. eelcbr:l{cd in thc pa~c.., of ()ppo.'JI;OJl.>'. ,Luem/JIagrand .l.\')'. rf:ln:thing ui..,[in ,~ lli'lhc.., thi.., elite from rhl: loc;lli~eJ profe..,..,ional elire ... that inrcr'icLT \\ irh a \\ ider pOPlIl.Hioll of potential clients and journali..,r ... (er. Le..,lie \bnin in po..,t\\:u Brit.linl. it i~ the ~lfchi{(:ct..,· dislocation from thc..,l: IOClli ... cd p:Hronage mechanisms in £<1\ our of morc inrcrn~lri(Jnallllle\ huch ;1'" imcrnational competition,). \\'here :In architec(\ (rack record depend.., 1llml~ Oil publication th:ln on building. Stirling \\;1'1 a rre~el1ce in thi" Ilt.:\\ clique. :1 kgend of hignc~'" and .!!;ood-Il:ltmed ..,elf~";Hire, \\ irh hi . . purple socks and ,grL'Cn pLI ... ric briefca~e - lc,~acie'" of;\ 1{no<" <.,arrori:il aesthetic ,Inci a u<..:t<..:rmin:.lrion nor ro hc pu"hed around. The eelcbrity architect'! did nOI re.ill: can.: \\ lut the (:alllbrid~(.: popul:nioJl made of the Il i:::,ror: Faeulr: - [hey kllC\\ it.., b . . ring \:i1uc .]') both cxprcs~ion :lJ1d polemic. And thc: knc" rlut ir \\ould conrinuc to li\'e ;\11 aurollOIl10lh t:\i\tcllcc linch :ll1en~cd h\ rhc rHcfied . shon-li\·ec..l .. ite \ I..,il of the architecwrt.: pilgrim, 'i 'he pf(,blem.., of thi'l defl:lhi\ e <lpprl);lch Clllle (0 the I/Jrc rhrcHl gh the l'Ontempo(:lneou'" criri{llIC ()f'I'afuri. \\·ht) nl)tcd rh:lt I): rhe mid1t)7o" ~elf-ghe([(li")ation had produced .1 bolltiqllt.: of undcrt.:lllplmcd. Lltht.:r impotent fellow rr:1\cllcr.., in ,lfc hitcl'tlJfe , Stirlin,!.!; \\:1.., ;It rile (elltrc of the '1mr: for T~~furi ;t.., :1 po..,itin.· c()unrcr-c\<lmplc. :/.., onc ;If{.'hiteer trying hard to n:I \'ig:lre :1 \\ eJl-rroddcn path \\ irh :I ne\\' kind of gear. 'I 'he talc of arl:llitu:ture ..,incc thell ha .. rC\ oh t.:d. to onc degree or anotht:r. :I round ' 1 '~lfllfi"" critiq Ill: of :Irchircctun.: '.., ..,ocial impor<..:nct.: in the lTe;Jtioll of tht: hili It cm ironmenr. hJr o .. :lI11plc. f.\oolha:.ls has nude ,1 project of nodi ng tht.: border.., of the :Irch irecturt.:

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ghetto and reconn ect in g the pr~c[icc of huilding (() thing ... (hat people arc ;H,:rually committcd [0. like shoppin!!, and celcbrit~ clIlrun.;,' <' In these efforts. together with th e liberation pron1ised by m:1SS eustomjs~ltion (onc might only ~sk. whocver thought that h:1\ ing e xactl~' what you \\:mtnl \\·<.IS a logic for anything?), Stirling appear... like \'cry ~mall bec::r indeed, But as dlC dust scales. as shopping ~ce ll1<;; ;1 little k ss urge nt ...Ind <I'" m ,l SS cusromisation thrci.l[cn ~ (h c • lI[(e r ;jromi'>;]tioll of Jl,rec::d (and rhe ludicrou ... \ j)cctrc o f ma'>sprodllcnl indi\'iclll alir y). hi . . torians rerurn tu {hi ~ fa 'icinating and conOicrnl figure (0 as..,cs\ a "dficty of pos <.,i bijiri cs offered in thl: pn)\ isiol1 of uncxfh.'cted and interesting building ~ that complicate Of openly defy borh the shon h"ll1d of mcdi ,l di sse mination and IHC\ ;Iilin g dcfini tiOll'" of what ir me:ln<; to he modern,

.\ (" lIlmIcJgrncnh: K llrt I';!rqer ,Ln J f', 1,Lrk (:rin,,(,n h,l\e he.:e.:n e"pcl'lall~ ge.:ne.:UHI\ 111lc.:riol'UIIH' during: Ihc dc,dllpme.:nt of IhL' n"IY, \\',!rm thank\ ,He ,ll"n duc tU Je,tnI ,IHli, (:(lhl'Ll, ( :.Lrolinc ( :(,n'l,lrH, 1\eHI! 1\ rum \1 ic.:Je.:, Rt,bcr! ~l a:":11 dl, ,\my :.. kycr" " cilh 1\llmick, :\In !'utt" C:hri~tophcr J.Cmc,l lm\ ard Shuhe.:n, Hullcrt \~[ Stcrn , \b f\ Sh,1Lld SlirlLnl!;, ' l 'hom,J\ \\'l'.L\e.:r ,[Lld mO\( c"ped,Jlh ,hI.: "rudelll" in ,I "cll1inJr at Y,llt' ,"'('])1»111 (If Architccture.: ILl Fall ::!IIoft, fpr a \.lric[\ nfStirlmg dl"eu~"i(Jn~, \\",Irm Ihank" .LI"ot;o I~Ll'k\ \ndcr~on ,1nL! \\'illum \\'C'L I':rrur" of fJet Of oplllion are.: all nn 0\1 n, I

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T he.: exten t to \\ hKh Slulmg (cJ"eJ the Snlllh"on" 1)\ U 'IH Ln!?, LlWllf, from ch"'lr II(,rl.:. in 101:llh :ll lc.:re.:J l lrl'Un1'tancc " .lnt! III r'ldiulh difli:re.:m dTnt, h ,l~ \e.:t III he fully iJ1\c"tL~,lt('ll - hILI the.: inlc'ligatllHl prom"e~ lu he rC\\;HJmg, Y The c lJ ~ rod i:lll ;11 ( : :11111)[1 J ge ~e.: elm e.:' pe.:c Ial h 0 Ihe.:" \e.:d \I 11 h the non -fu 1L cc iOlL;l1 it il''' of thc i"mildinl-: he {emk [n .,pitc Ill' hi, Cl ldelll lnICfC\( tn rl1.1J1\ ,['pe.:<.'I\ II( Ihe dfchilc<.'ture.:, 1)1.; al"lI hl!lLclc~ Ihat the huildll,g I~ 'dlaboltcd'. T hi~ 1..\1111111 he.: gllod for him, or t he ,lrchite.:cIUfC, \IJ Lllng, a I.ondlln ,Lrdme.:u \\11\1 Ilorked fill 'imllllJ.!: in the latc 1,)60'" claim" Ih ,1\ Ihe.: admllll'lr,ltIlHlll fC :lmlmdgl' l nl\ t,.'r"l{\ '1llIlIld p ull il do\\ n if the.:\'Cllllld', ( :OlHer";IIL ,m Wllh ,Iuthor, Ou;,hcr 20416. 1(1 Pele f E i~ennl.(n '" fa ~eLl1J l i I1g C '\Cgl.;~L" IIf {h i, hu i Id Inl! L' l'are.:fL I1h "0.: Ic.:u 1\ c !If rclCl,lllt "OItr("1.; m;]te.:rL,LI; hUI thi, i, rdlc.:llJle Ilf E L~UIJ11:tn\ 0"11 oper,H1Il' in (en t HHh, 'j 'hrotLgh ( ri I l( i'Ill of (11 her .I rl h il Cl'lll rc\, E i"Cll 111.1 n ,h LI1111 h ,(d I ,iIltT' the gOJI~ of hL" 11\\ n l'fe.ni\l' projcct. SI.T 'Re:LI ,HlJ F ngIJ,h: the 1kqOlCIIIHl of the HO), I ', in Opp/i,il/io!JJ 4 ( lY74). pp. :,-,;,~ , 11 Scc Re yner Hanh;lll1, '.'\e.:o· L lbert\: The.: It alIan Rl::HC,L t frlllll \I odcrtl ,\rl'i IL{t.'l'tuTl" , in Thl' . 1nlllftYf/Jlyli Rt"i. '/I'vt 4/ S0, In'> pit I.' of f e.: f\ e IH ,Id 111 ir.1I LOll fllr Ib 11 h ,Im, I de.: pi 0\ Ih L~ qm'l.1t LOll, \\ Ilh \1 hldl n an h;llll Ollldcm ne.:d Ih~ III i,n:ll11cd ,'" ec I- I ,1 ho.: Tt I '. I. ) e.::o.al't re.:\en~c, B.lnh;Ull'" prc:m.llurl~ buri,11 uf it.LII', Ileo, re;llht ,lfchLteU" (to norrlJ\\ ,L more appropriJte.: {('TIll from l'lI1e.:]ll,1 "IUJle.:,,) onll fu('lkd Ihe.:ir p,lk ,Ind gIH)~th rC~llrrcuion Lll ht"tllrltl"ln~ P,,"IIHUlkTIll"lll t\\elL!\ \Clr" Oil, I le t hu~ "lIppre.:~"e.:d a k~ i []Il1;He rc~pon"c I1I (inl' pre""11lg Ul'" (thc rilk of archilecture.: in the \\;lke.: Ill' totaln.! fi,Hl Jppn'pnatllin' Ilf I11nderni,rn) ,lIld hl.:lpl'd pTl.;ci pit;l lc ,I (on"id e.:rah I; mllrc \!\ erbl(lll n LL ne (po\ulwdc rn h L' IOri( i'LLl), F liT a fa~cinallllg c:o.:empk of Ban ham '" opef.nil e \1 Of''', ~I.;e.: \ nthllll\ \ 'idkr, 'T(J\I ,nJ a T heory of thc ,\ rd1JteClHJI jl ro~u m " f)t/O!i/I 10(1 \ I· ,d I 2011,;}, pp, St;-74, \" I h,L Ll k" to E\\ard YdOllLk i't.lr bringll1g ,hi, rl.;fcreLlle.: 10 ,\tIcnlion I Z Brill E\cr"nk h;.l'> \ITLttCIl a probing ,!lul\ '>L" flf tIll' placc flf thl" hllLhlLnc. \\ ;Ihlll po,,{ll1odern ;trc hHe.:ctllr,tI di"coLlf'c. cntitlcd 'T .lllgellh: J ,II1lC' StLrljll~', \\" i""cn~ch,lflvenrrum' \ u npu bh"hed m;llw'l-npll I,:; T hc rl.:lcnt projl'ct" on 1 .1lU\\i~ ~I LC" 1,111 dcr I~ .! he.:, tn c'\hlhitinn" ,lnt! IHu ,k" could be.: en li,ted (l) ~lLP P ()rt Ihi~ cLlLm: uther l' fflJrt, III "imd.lf dirc(tlon" ~'Jn he.: traced in pruJe.:l.'t~ ;1' dlffc.:rent a~ I he.: relTnt '\ h lllc.:rnl\n1' \hO\\;lI chI.' \ lctoria and Alhert \1 1l~e.:lJtn III Lflnuoll and the J).ld a C,hLhitillJ1 at '\f(l~I :\ , t ]llerlll~ Ofl'rl Llt empllr,H\' produuiol), mh e.: r :-'111 ,\1 \ '>ho\\\ ILke 'Light _\ rdlLll.;l.'(lJTI.:' .LnJ 'The l ' npril ,He I I1111 "e.: , pe.:rfllrmcd 'L111d,H 1,I,k", For hl,liIriall~,;L I\lok ,I( PCler E i~enman'" 1\01" Oil Te.:rm/!.ni rai,c" ,ullil.u qlle.:"llIllh. ,llhci , throut!h J prnjClt eon"idcrahl~ le" lied III hi"IOTlC:II .In'lLrJC\, ,wd ~'OI1"L"Cf;lhh morc l'ngaged Hl contclllpflr:.lr\ re.: fu llC(llming, 14 ()f m an~ ,ouru.:~, in man~ ulffercnt field,_ perh.lp" 1111,,, r nlJllpdllllg I" Hruno I "Hour· ~ H)t) I 11',. Ift/f.r .\"1'<"(''- Un If IJod,.nI r ( .. lInhridge \ I \ : \lIT Jl rc-.', HJ9,\ I, Scellhll Re.:inhold \ [;lrtin\ re(ent riff;H1 [ ,,\tllLlr.' \r ...'hl ll'l't ufC\ Illl,lge Proh km: 11 :II'e \Ye 1·:I'l.:f Bcell p l)~tlllll(lern' , ill (;,.1'\' ROllm l2 (\,"inler lOOS), pp, h-Z t), IS" (»Ill h :l:l" ' dTIl rb ((I re.:l'IUlnCl'1 Ih e .tIeh i te.:l I11 re gh e It 0 \11 11lL: \\ orid of P I.J LlI1 L11 ~ d e ~l'fI c a le,,, OppllrtllL,iqi c, k~., fn\oll)lI' c\t,uioL1, fllr Ilhldl I hcrc I)ffu In leH '.

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In the Academy's Garden: Robert Venturi, the Grand Tour and the Revision of Modern Architecture Martino Stiedi

In 1<)66 the d irection of architectural discourse was changed by (wo books published just a few months apart: Aldo Ross i's L'ar(hilfllllfr/ dt>f/(/ (ilia and Roben \'~IHLlri 's (,ollJp/fxity alld COII'raoirtioll in A.rrliilfll/1rr. Their simultaneitv marked the climax of a crisis in Mchitccture widely felt among a younger generation of theoreticians and practitioners. \ 'cn wri' s book in particular claimed to be a ITIanifc.;sto (a lbeir a gentle one) for a new beginning. l ronicall~:', thi, rhetoric of renewal was linked (0 a re-examination of architecwr:tl history which - at least on tht:: surface - had been sup pressed by the ;lv<!IH-gardes of the tWL:ntieth cCIHury. Indeed, a largc number of the images reprodu ced in Complexity alld r:ontrodirlioll referenccd the buildings of nunncrisnl and late baroque in England anJ Ital y.' \ 'cIHuri's reconsideration o f the canon of architccrural history. however, was nO( inrcnded to herald a rerum ro the classical language of architecture, as was erroneousl\'. belic\ed h\'. .some larer protagon ists of postmodcrnism. Rather, the point was to illu~rr;.m; the cxistcnce of another tradition of architecture that had nor been acknowledged by the purity and ahistoricism of latc modernism an approach against which t he book was ostcnsibly directed. ("ompiexi/.y and CO/lln/diction rh LIS ma n ifested \ 'cnruri 's u neasc \\'ith the interpretation of modern princ iplc:s in conremporary arehinxwral discourse. But bcneath its iconoclasm, it also represented the inrdlcetual digcst of its author's extensive travels across Europe in the late [9405 and his two-year tenure at the American Academy in Romc between [954 and 1956. Since Vtnwri characte ristically refra ined from sketching or taking nmes o n his uips, the book is in man y ways a somewhat dehlycd collection of imagcs, thoughts and itineraries generated by his European sojourn. By marrying architectural connoisseurship once again to architectural tourism, he resumed the earl it::( tradition of the g rand tour. while by channelling the findings of the trip into a historically rich theory of architt:ct ure relevant to contemporary practice, he established the pJrildoxical nexus that has defineJ his position in more recent architectural history. The 'grand tOur' had traditionally been Cl perennial journey ;lCross France and rtaly des igned ro iniriaw the class ical education of young British aristOcrars.l ' I'he term itself wa~ fi rst lIsed in 1670 by Richard L assels in his l'oyngfoJI/a/y. By the cightcenrh century, the tour had bccome a firm social convcnrion for [he British nobility:, <bs Lllning the character and importance of a rite of rass,-Igc, but by the latc ni ncrccmh century the idea of rhe tour itsc..:!f also toured, with econom ically and cul{Urally aspiring Am L: ri o lll middle classes increasingly see ing in the c itie s of Italy and (;recce a repository for :1 highcr form of cultUral learning. The emergence of a canon of Italian arehircewrc was rhe direct rcsu lt of {hcse ari s(()crat ic gra nd tours; an t:st<lb lished body of blli ld ings and styles soo n supported by European systems of arch it cc rural ~md artistic education. As early as 1663. the French Ac'ldcmie Royale de Pcimure et de Scu lpture established thc Prix dc Rome anJ officially sanctioned the journey to Italy as a m<lndatory parr of an artist's education, J move endorsed three years later when Jean-Baptiste Col ben fOLJnded the Frt;;nch Academy in RaTTle. As far as the LIS was concerned, arch itectura l educat ion in th e nin ctccmh century was heavi ly re liant upon the European academy SY:HC Ill. Before 1865, when the \Ia <;<;ac huscrci In!>titutc of T echnology ( ~IIT) was first to introduct.: ~I COl lr<;e of architecrure

into its curriculum. American archiwt.:tLlfal "iwdents , were forceJ to gain their profcs~ional training abroad. Ir W;)'5 the Ecolt: dCi Beaux-Arts in Paris which set th e standard for American architcctural education well into the twcntieth ccntury. But C\'l:n though the French system accorded a high St~Ull<; [() the iruJy of antiqllir~ in Romc, the l lS lacked an institution which would ha\"c allowed ulcnred art ists and architects to spe nd extended pcriod<.; in the cit~. Thi, changed in IRY7 wht::n architcct Charle~ Follcn .\Id'im founded the American Academy in Rome on the hilsi, of the French model (the American School of Architecture fOllnlkd in lkY4 had heen a precursor, bur was absorbed into rhe ACCldcmy three ycar., later). \ The Academy promi sed J high l.it:grce of '1oci:11 :1110 profes':iional prestige, and th~ imposi ng neo-rcnaiv'iance structurc, huilt in 19'4 hy ~fcKim 's linn \lcl\. im, .\!cad and \\'hite on thL' Janiculum, was evidence of dlC cu lwral se lf-conct.:ption of rhe instiw(ion. \V ith the establishment of the Amcrican Acadcm\' in Romc. the tradition of the grand tour was in<;titmioll<lli'led into American architectural education. For the cmerging ge neration of modern architects ~md lksignt.:rs, the architectural tour remaineu:.In impon<lnt t.:\emclH of j1er. . onal and profess ional education. Le Corbll"iier\ eX((..:n<.;i\路e tr:I\t.:\s :1CWS<; Germany, central and south-easrcrn I': uropc :lIld the r\kditerr~Hlean provided him with an abundance of impres')ions pin>tal (0 hi~ later work. H owcver t [he set.:m ing par:ldoxical oppositioll of the :\\ antgarde to the classical su hjccts of thesL: tour . . ~lITlOuntcd ro a rejection nor only of the established canon, but also of the aCllkmic in stiturion!\ enrrustcd with its di,scmination . This :lpplicd in parricular (0 lhe Prix de Rome and it, inreflutiollal t.:qui\ a\c.;ms, \Vhile in his manifesto 1'f/:5l111r(lIrliitef1I1I'1' I ,c Corbu-;icr acknowledgcd rhe importance of Rome by dcdicJting <.l \\ hole section of his book ro the city, his opinion regarding thc <.:ducuional vallle of:1 Roman rour was much less favourable: 'The lesson of Romc is for wise men, for those v. ha know and C;ln appreci:He, who call resist and <.:an verify. Rome is the damnation of rhe half-edu cated. To 'lend architectural students {() ROOle i~ to cripple thcm for lift.:. The (;r:Jlld Prix de Rome <lnd the \ 'illa .\ l edici arc the: c:Jnccr of Frcnch Architcctllre.' ~ I ,e Cnrbusicr's statcmc.;nr rendered the ACllknn, and (he educat j on~{ll1lodel for which it swot! ineolnpatihle with thc aims of rhe Jvanr-ga rd c. Th~ more the archirceturt.: of modernism heCJIl1C the international standard. the morc the AC;ldemy seclllt.:d IXI ~sc . Thi s ap plied {() the American Acadt.:my a, \\e11. which could on ly claim <l ma rginal position in American architcctllraledllc<ltion after the Sccond \\'mld \Var. Vl:nturi h~l~ rctfO'pt.:cri\ dy commentcd on rh is situation: 'The Academy W<l~ kno\\ n in the archirecrLlral community generally hut it was not fa!-ihionahlc because of thc pure modernist ideology of the time ... l'\'eiehcr Frank Lioyd \\'right nor Le Corbusicr would han: gonc. ' \ 1': \cl1 in rhl.' modcrnist-minded J950S , however, rhe Academy was nO[ as unpopular a. . \ 'c.;n[llri\ statement suggests. Lo ui s KJhn had been there a, an ':\n..: hill:ct in Rc sidence' in the \I,!intcr of ItJ.)u -5 I," and \'clltllri had ro :Ipply three times beforl: finally rccei\'ing a [\\'o-y<..'ar ~cholarship in 19.14. Furthermore, its postwar activities wcre not in the reactionary mould that L,e Corhusier h::ld ascribed to rhc French Acaol:lll\' in the 1<.)20\. The institution eOllnted on the pcr'\on;i1 rL'sponsibility of e~lch fclhl\\ and ha.rdl y pre'\crihed :Iny mandumry ani\ itics. The fellow;, \\ere

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free ro choose between anending kctures, discussions and olltings in variolls fields of study. In this liberal climate, Venturi could largely follow his own interests. Venturi's lack of reservations abollt the Academy mainly came out of his own education at Princeton University between 1944 and '9'=;0. Its school of architecrure at the time differed significantly from other elitc univcrsities in that it att::lched great importance to rhe historical education of its stlldcIHs, insisting on mandatory courses in art and architectural history from the department of art and archaeology. In fact, Princeton had largely resisted the realignment of American architccrural education according to the example of the l3auhalls. The curriculum of the 'Princeton System', as it was called, was 'based on the belief that an architect should have a wcllrounded education in liberal studies, [and! that he should understand and apprecia te the other arts in their relation to architecture . ' ~ The strong; ties of the Princeron school of architecture to the Academy s,)'stem \\"ere demonstrated by the fact that its studios wcre o\'erseen b\路, jean Labatut. who had been trained in Paris in the atelier of \ 路ictor L,alotlx. In addition to Donald Drew Eghert's course on the hisrory of modern architecture (the importance of which Venturi ILlS rC:ldily acknowledged"), the curriculum of the school gave p<Hticularly broad space to Italian art history. This emphasis on history made Princcton look dimodf in the pos[\",ar intellectual climate, yet at the same time it explains \ 'enturi's predisposition for the American Academy as well as his openness towards the study of historic architecture, with which he had familiarised himself in (he cbssroom bv, wav, of slides and books. Endorsing this historicism, Venturi tr<lvelled to Europe for the first time in the summer of 1948. This trip lastcd two months with stops in England, France and Italy, and served a primarily educational purpose (as Venturi stated in a report written after his return to the l iS in the autumn: 'ITlhe appro<lch to my travels and in\'estigations was architectural" "). Aftcr arri\'ing on a rransatlanric liner at Li\'crpool, he tr:;l\'elled on to London, Apart frorn thc clpital, \ 'enturi visited Oxford and Cambridge, John Vanbrugh's I3lcnhcim Palace, the cathedrals of Ely and Salisbury, \Vinchestcr, Eton, \\'indsor. Ke\\' Gardens and Hampton Coure After ten days in England, he arri\'ed in Paris on 20 july, From there, he wured the c:lthedrals of lie de France as \\TlI as the chateaux of Versailles, F ontaineblea u, I3lois and Chambord. As for modern architecture, he visited Auguste Perret's church at Raincv as well as se\'eral buildings by Le Corbusier, including the Vdb Sa\'oye at Poissy. the Cite de Refuge and the S,,"iss Pavilion in the Cite l lniversiraire. The third <lnd final leg Offhc tollr was Rome, where \Tenturi arrived on 8 August 1948. During his mOIlth-Iong stay in Italy he also \"isited the cit ies of Pcmgia, Assisi. Florence, Siena, Bologna, Ravcnna, \'('nice, Pado\'a, \ 'icenza and ~ I i\an. His impressions of the first clay in Roml: were the beginning of what he later called ::111 'extremely emotion;lllovc affair' " (a sentiment supported by the fact that he still regularly celebrates the anniversary of his first day in Rome). \\"hat particu larly struck \ 'cnturi was the quality of the colours, the 'golden air of Rome', as he called it later, referencing Henry james, \\'ho had mn'cllcd to Rome several times between 1869 and 190Y ami who had decisively formed the literary image of Europe in the l iS." The effect of colour was all the more striking as \ 路enruri had until

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then only seen the city in black and white through phorographs in books and slide presentations. Other than these earlier lenure images, his view of the city was guided by Sigfried Giedion's interpretation of the baroque urban space in ,Sj)(J("{', l{me, {/nt/Architecture, by the Rome chapter in Le Corbusier's Ferx flnf flrthiteetflre and by his copy of the Baerleke,.travel guide, Like any tourist, his vision of the old world was thus informed by prcconcei\'Cd in1ages ami cliches designed for consumption by a ma ss-cultural as well as an architecrurallv interested audience. The impact of these first impressions proved to be lasting. Soon after his return to rhe llS in the autumn of '948, Vemuri applied for a two-year fellowship at the American Academy, and after tWO failed applications, he eventually succeeded in gaining a place at the encl ofOetober ' 954," The liberal c1imarc ofrhc Academy allowed him tu continue his project of a thorough (ra\'ellin~ invc stigation of the architecture of Europe, He acquired hi s own car shorely after arrival, and in a first trip in January 19.15 he revisited Paris; a few days later, he travelled to Atessa, the [O\vn of origin of his father's family, The whole month of April was spell[ in Egypt. Greece and Turkey, in the company of ~uchitect lames Gresham and his wife, Among the sites visited were the Peloponncslls, some of the Aegean islands and Istanbul. After spending most of ~Iay in Rome working on a design project. Venturi travelled for around ten d<lYs to Sicily, accompanied by t\vo fellow residents at the Academy, painter Alan Gussow and archaeologist Virginia Calahan, Visits were made to the most famous cities and sights SLlch tI~ Palermo, ~Ionreale and the temple of Segesta, who~e isolated scrting in the landscape \ 'enturi recorded in a skerch. They went on to tour Agrigenro and the baroque towns of Ragusa, .\lodica and l'\oto, A last trip before leaving for Philadelphia for the summer was charged with driving the car of Car I ~Iilles, a Swedish sculptor ",rho had also stayed at the American Academy, back to Stockholm. On this occasion, Vcnturi was joined by architect \Varren Peterson and painter jJck Zajac, For his second year at rhe Academy. Venruri did not return to Rome until the end of Decclllher. A trip to Naple s with \'arious stops in smaller tmvns along the \",<lY bridged rhe gap before he left for another cxtended journey in February 1956. This time the destination was the Iberian peninsula. On his way, Venwri visited Pisa, Genoa, \rice and Le Corbusier's newly built l lnite d'Habitation in ~Iarseilte - again revealing his appreciation of the architect's work - before arriving in Barcelona. Here, [he work of Antoni Gauclf was the main focus of attention, '4 The journe~' south \\'as continued by way of '\lurcia to Andalusia, wherc Venturi sought Ollt. in particular. the cathedrals of Seville and C6rdoha, Further Stop~ included La Coruna, Salamanca and, on the way back, Biarritz and Toulollse. After returning to Rome, another (rip led to Turin, the then recently finished Ronchamp charel in the French Jura mountains and Venice, In rhe second half of i\lay 19.=;6, Venruri trd\'Cllcd to southern Germany to study late baroque and rococo architecrure, (his time accompanied by Academy fellow s Norman Ncuerburg and Charles Brickbauer. Several traces of this trip can be found within Comp/exit)' and G'ontradirt;on, such as the images of the churches of Vit:rzehnheiligen and :\"cresheim b~' l3althasar ;'\Icumann and the pilgrimage church at Birnau, A last trip to the Gulf of NapJc,') marked the end of his two-year fellowship and the conclusion of hi . . grand

1c~sons

of which hl,; was to directly channel into Complrx;/), find (:Of/lrfldhlioll, largely \\Tirrcn in thL: years immeui,m:ly after hi ... rcturn bm nO[ pllbli~hcd until 1966. '; \ 'e nruri's p:mitioneJ grand tour and his sojourn at the Amerlcan Academy \n.:rc ~ign ificanr in amicipating the postmodcrn disposabiliry of rhe \\'ho!c im3gery of architectural history. Yet \ 'e nturi' s travel c'Xpcriences al\o pro\'idc the o rigin of a numbcr of key concepts of hi~ own theoretical position .... Primarily. this applics to his appreciation oflxlroquc architecfllre. In:l o:.um mary of ilis trip in the summer of rY4K, \ 'c nruri justilic:d his bias for Rome widl the words: ' I enjoy baroque, and rhereforc I \\as r:specially happy in Romc'.lI·This :lpplico in particular to the concept of the enclosed piazza, an urban clement hc di'ltin.~LJished fan)LIrably from the more open French pl(/{'(': 'T he Italian concept: llrhan interior "pace is to be tin:d in - nO[ JUSt tran:l!cd through from onc e nclosed (bldg,) space to another. Thcrcfore thc concept for c;\tc.:rior SPJce is more enclosed. different from the Pari'liall nincteemh·ccmtJry com.:cpt JS see n in bou!cvards." ; (n thi::., \ ' entlJri'~ preferencc was informed by Camillo Sitte's /)(,I'Sliirilr/J(1I1, to which he rc.ferrcd both in hi s repon and hi" letters home, ;llld by C; ieli ion's Spare, '/'imf, fltldAnl,;terf/lrf, a set text at Princcton which accorded <.lJl1ple space to baroque architecture and urbani<;Jl). I ,atef. ml\'clling dHOUgh Sicily, \'eIHlIri was especially thrilled b~ baroque city foundations such as 0.'0(0: '\\'har a great cxpaienec ro sec an cntirc.:ly baroque (Own designed + executed all ;1( once - in onc.: stroke - with beautiful de(ail + golden n1:.l sonry' . '~ On thi" trip, \ 'clHuri h:.lci abo \' i~i((:d tht: classic si res of antiquity, hur hi" prcft:renl'e~ clearly lay else \\ here. During hi s stay <lr tht: :\mcric:.ln Academy, the Gnman art historian Richard Krautheimer, th<.:n schoLtr in residence, furthn nouri,>hed the young architect's interest in b:lfoqlle architccture. Ar his instigation, \'enturi parricip:ned in at IC,l~t onc tour to thc \',uious baroquc churches of ROlllc , It W:l" a\'io Krauthe iml:r \\ ho alh'ised \ 'en wri and his co lka~lIe~ to undertake a trip to soUthern (Jcrmany in order to study bte·baroqlle ;m:hitccturc.''' \ 'enruri latcr cxplicitly acknowledged KLlllthcimer .... role in his pcr\onal education in the second edition of {(}Ill pl('",il), (/lid (.'011/ radir/ioll .'· Baroque and mannerist archirecture in (,'o/JIp!exity (JJJd {,'o lllmdirrioll \\'crt; nor promoted as a rool of an::hirecrural fO(llls to be drawn on, but as the exempLlt:-· cmbodimt:nr of an ~Inti· classical archirecture and the :Ihstrau ide:l of;1 complex ;lnd contradictory ~le s [heri c order. Thi'l applied in particllbr (0 the question of how bJroqllC afchitecrure mediated the "patial need~ of rhe insidc and olHside of <l building. Al.'l'ording to \'el1(uri, this principle was lacking in modernist :Hchitecturc. where thc exterior was prim:lfily co ncei\'cd ,IS the cxpres\ ion of rh<.: functional need" within, Thc.: clear differcnriarion bL'tWCen inside ;:lIld out~idc \\ as w become a central aspen of \ 't,;nruri 's :lfchirccrural thinking, Ir quickly came to work in tandem with the conccpr of contcxt\lilli~m <lnd the idea that a building's e'\terior had to n;spond ({) the phY'iical (and cultural) eonwxt of its gi\en urh:1I1 "uffollnding ..... t ' In l .n/I'"i"/f./rl)lII I .a.... I'fKtlS (1972). wrinen in collahoration with I)c.:nisc Se-on Brown and Stcn:n [/.cnollf, \ 'enturi dc\'(,.: loped the iLiC::l of a clea r sepacJtion hetwcen rhe functional interim '1trueturc <lnd clK detached facade - ; j faCltk {har rc~ponded tu it') context and 'comm un icated' \\ ir h it') onlookersinro the full·bIO\.vn theory of the 'dccoratcd shed' (<I concept {h <.H \\ as tour, the

defined exactly by this separation, and which. \\'irh lirtle irony, \. .·as dismissed as faca dism hv, Vcnturi's critic,,). The notion of the decoratcd shed, henccforrh the signature [rope of\'cnruri's architectural \·crnaculaf. emerged a\ carly ;lS the mid· 1950s, during hi s {enure at rhe American Academy in Rome. l lnlike 'complexity'. howe\'er, its Iinc3ge cannot be traced back "olcly [() the haroque. \\'riring to his parents about a \'isit to the Egyptian temple of Etlfu, Vcnturi reflecred on the rc!e\·ancc.: of historic:11 architecture: 'Onc thin g 1 IC<lrned from it is that Egyptian architecwrc i:-. not the heavy, pompOllS, humourless + fascist kind th:lt I lutl pictured ... There arc so many things about it relc\'anr [0 my architeL'wre thinking today.' Having seen the \ire of K:lrnak, he undcrscored this point: ' I am co n\'inccd {hat see ing + knowing [he~e buildings is helping me very much as an :Jrehitecr.'u By introducing into Complexity tJtld COfllratfirt;ril! onc of his 0\\' 11 photogra phs of Karnak, \'enruri clarified the re lc\'ancc oftht:se buildings to hi\ understanding of architecture, pointi ng Out tht: motif of 'things within thing.... ,mu 'doors \\'irhin doors' !1 The morif appeared <.lnalogollsl~ in his design for the North Penn \ 'isiti ng Nursc:s' Association Ilcadq uarter... of [961. H ere, the window opc:ning::i on the ground noor feawf(.: broad wooden profiled framc~ thar arriculate the contradiction between interior and exterior scalc'i. Accordingly. thc ~rrect facade of the building was a first step towards its em~lI1cipation from the generic structural box, Traces of an interest in urballcOnte.'\t can also bc.: found from his time at the AC<Jdcmy in the form of:1 Icrrcr he \\TOr<.: after remrning from his 19::'5 '\'oyage u'Oricnr' (0 Eg~' pt and (;rccct:: ' \\'e :uchircc[s found Egypt fahulous, thc i\ l o~lell1 architectU re in Cairo, + the village architecture as well a~ tht: ancient \tuff. Greece of course was wonderful. hut it can't compare with Italy, \\ herc every \'illagc is a masterpiece of art. for <jluntity + often richllcs". '"4 These re\'cries hint at an insighr madc h~ \ 'i ncclH Scull~ in hi" in trod uct ion to (;0'"p/fxi~\' (/ JltI (:0111 rOf/;r/ iOll, \\- h it: h c '\ P hi i n "i the fundamcntal differences hetween Le Corhusit:r :lnd \ 'elHuri in terms of their respective arehitec{lJral ick:lls: I.e CorbU,>icr's ~rCJt rC.lcher \\J' the (;reck temple, \\ nh J{, l,oL1tcu hod, \\ hill' .lIld free in the r,lnd,t:~lpC, it, luminou, ,w\remie, ek,Jr In the ,un . \ eJlllln\ PUIn,IT' in~plration woulu ,Ct:nl to h;l\c come fr(lm the Gre ek lernpk\ hl,100Cll ,mu an.;hctyp,ll OPP()~lto..:, the urh.ln fat'auc:, of rt al~, with their endle" :Idju'ltnenh to thc eountcr-requirement, (If in,iuc and !)\J{,ide ;lJ1d their intkClIOHl \\ Hh ,Ill illl' bu~inc~, ofc\cryday life : not rnmarily ~culprural actor, III '.1'1 1.lnlhl·apc, hilI compk\ ~p,llIal I,:o nlamcr<; and definer, uf ,tn:(:(~ ,md \tlll.lfe,.

It was nor only the hisroriei~m of ancient and IXHoque architecture that Vemuri explored on his travels through Italy and Europe; modern and contempora ry buildings al,;;;o fe(irured prominently in his rours across the continent. In CompII'X;~l'(llltlr.()lllr(Jdirli(1II rhi ... is cvidenced most clearly in freqlleor referencc.:s to the \\ork orhi~ two personal heroe=s, r,e Corbusicr and r\1\'ar !\;.!lro (w hose building.., \'cnturi saw for him~elf onl~' 'iome ~'cars l:lter, follo\\'ing, the :lw:lrd of:l travel gram from the l :S Start: Department in [l)6S). Contemporary h<Jlian architecture, on the orhcr hanJ, j" hardh- referr<.:d [0 ar all. This is surprising gi\'cn the fact thar in Italy ,It that time rhere existed a vibrant and. with hindsight, highly ~ignifit:anr architectural "iL'CnC, l\hlll\' of it ~ JclXHC<; wcre ha~ed on issue\ rhar \ \:nturi would L1ter eomc to be associateo with. Forem ost :Jmong tht:sl.: wcre the inren,)t: architcctllr~ll discllssions rh:l[ Jc:\elopni Ollt or Iraly's

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gri.iliU lit. Ul ellt" ceiling india.tt • mo,UridireaiootJ ~~ . rule . . mIKh like , dome III • n"lI. Hagia Soph'" In baonbul iI ~;0'0ClI.l in • simiW ...,.. 10 omu:aJ dome on the tql.OAt't b.y .,ith ~tiwl implies I cmtn.l ~ chutdL, bur iu ""' "f'Kl' .id! half·JOln", ,,",gill 10 11ft up' IonA,rudillllLl u;' in the tndi,ioo 01 the dirutiom.! b"jljao TM horxsbx p.!an 01 the ~ and neo-Buoquoe ~n house f()CUleS OIl !he- sage and tIx ct:n1XT 01 tM aud.iroriwn. Tht ttnln.l /00:\11 01 the eUipc:ia.I P'an u usu,oJ.lr rdkO'ed in eN ocrwnmw ailing p-!1em and tilt" eoormow cemnJ chondrlier. the foo" rowud the Klgc in tlx ditecrional distoniOfl 0/ rht eUipse and pur'uon. bnwem the $Utrounding box" IU wd.l III in !lit" iDl:«nJpc:ioa of the itxlf. 01 Q)U.rx. and the _ring in die pil. This .rdkcu tbr dual locus in the program of .hI: pia melUe: rbt

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in rh.- artl('UblKlos of iu compla mou.Idinl!' JUWSU • doox on pmdmflTO ""er the- croning of • erm crou (27). 'The shape of the ceiling;" ifS O'Y~U rominuity d<.om !MM ckmrms 'mo f'Uodie: of '~msdv6, &nd AI~ rather • ~ 8< ..... tM from IlJ1 undulating ~l T1wK diROfIM elemmu an both c.onrinl,lOW aDd ,fIIO.l· Ia.oi A. atI(l(bn; Kale, shape lIld F*lIftn pl.oJ .imil.o.dr CCIfI.radl(lO<y roIn. Poo- tt:ample, fht profile of ,he Bynnnne api.al (18 ) molkes it Xml (IJIIIrinW)US., bur fht ta{UJe.nd ¥esc ig.iol f'lrum. of voIulct .00 ac:o.mhll:ll le:IYes articulate ,h< pon< The pc'<IimentM pord1 of NlChoIa$ fu ... ksmoof. Sr. ~8<, BIoom.bury (29) . .nd .he l)Ver.n shape of iu plan (3-0) imply a dominant nu IlOIlh .00 JOU.h . lbe wc:K fnm,nce and ~'. tho: Ifllerio. OOI"Ifigunlioo of bekonies. and the t"MC Ipse , ... hich con.. ioed the .I...,) .11 susses' an equally doomilWlt "",nret uis. B1 .meons of CO<ItrV"J' de· mUllS lIld duromd posiOoru rh" chwdI npre5Se boch .he COOtfU1J bet.un fht t.d:, from. and Udn of the Lat in aOSI plall and the ducHlir«tionaJ ues 01 a Gud: aon pion. l"hcK contradictions, wh w;:h resulted from particular

The Museum of Modern Art Papers on Architecture

Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture Robert Venturi

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Fcdcflltl (;OIriu, \1.lIIrl7JO I "LnJ.J. 'i~q.!l() 1.cnu. I'WIO \!JrIJ I.uc:h. C:Jrlu \k l/)~t.l ni. Cii,Jnlarlo \k nKhcui. (iiuli" Ri naldi and :>.l l("h<.:l(.: \ "Alnrl, 1":\-( ;;1':1 qUJn..:r <In \ 1.1 J Ihullm'J. I{omc. J('路W-,::;,-t

pressing need to supply :.lffordJble hOllsing in the wake of its fascist period Jnd economic slump offhe 194 0S, Th e go\'ernmenr reacted to rh is c ri sis by c remin,g th e Gcstione j ~A-Casl, a programme that directed money from welfare scn' iccs inro social hou sing and which sha ped th e face of much of Italian housing in the 1950S and the cou mry's arc hirl! c rurc in general. The legal basis for the programme WJS t he /rKr!.e Faflfalli of 194Y, which included specific design recom mendation s, Implicitly crit icising the modernist principles of ration,llisation and standard isatio n, the law ca lled for an urb anism evoking spontaneity ilnd 'genuineness' and argued against munotony <lnd repetition, The result was lIeorefl/i:iIlJO, I', an architectural mo\"C:~. ment based on an informal and picturesque organisation of the plan and on v,lriery and the use of traditional materi~lls in i{'~ detailing, a~ excmplified in the Tibunino complex in Rome ( 1954). Explicitly offen:cI as a regrcssi\ 'e utopia empowered by the (:.IS (CS and \'alues ofrhe man-in·tht:>srreeL its pseudo-rural \crna c ular \\'a~ intended for rcsidents who had relocated to [he ci t\'. from Italv's . depopulating count rys ide. As (h e 1950S progressed, Italia n architcc.:rs were increasingly l'onfromecl with the issues aroun d historic ism and bui lding in historically sensit i\'e urban areas, The estahl ished response became one of integr;1ting new building inro the existing urban tissue by means of form;)1 adaptation. This strategy, which became known as ne;:o-l ibcrry, was takt:n as a general turn towards hisroricism, particularly in rhe inrernarional co ntexL Its protagonists became rhe [<trger of \'c hcmcnt cri ti cism, causing a polemical debate t hat brought Iralian architccru rc to the forefront of international discourse. ' J Within Italy, the debate had first crystallised arou nd the Bottega u'Erasmo aparrmcnr house in Turin. Its architects, Rol')(,;rro Gabetti and Aimaro Isol<1, presented the building in the ~ I ay 1957 issue of the innuential r:flJabr//(I (O",ilJuitrl wirh a ca ll for a 'Con.. mitmenr [() ([adition', Althollgh Erncsto Rogers' edltorii.11 counte reu {his rro\ ·u ca(ion .'~ Re:yner Banham subsequently accused contemporary Italian architccture of a 'rcrre;:,l{ from modern architectur<::' .'" Th e debate continued at tht.: C I A~ I conference at Orterl o in [959, \(.\ Here, c riti cism wa s direcwd aga inst buildings such <IS Ignazio Gardella's Casi.1 ;tile Zanere in \ 'enicc and the Torre \'el<lsca in i\ 1i1an by Luc! m'ica Belgiojoso, Enrico Percss utti and Ernesto Rogers (BPR ), Both srrucruJ'CS paid tribute to their physical context by reinrerpreting rhe fOfll1al repertoire of their surroundings. Rctrnspecti\'c Iy, in his 1977 The 1,(lJ/gflage of pos/-. I/odertl Arrhiferfflre, Charles Jen cks located the contrib uti on of neo-libcnv architects at the roots of 'h isroricism', one of six (char,tcteristically Jeneksian) branches in his family tree of postmodernism. Jencks also identified what he saw as a di stinct parallel between \' cmu ri 's hisroricism and [tJliJIl ~lrchitccru re of the 1950S and [960s, " \'enruri himself ne\'Cr accorded contemporary Italian archi te;:crure morc than <l marginal role in the genesis of h is architectural think ing. Ilo\\'e:\'er, he was not only 3\\ arc ofthc Italian architectural scene during his years spent at rhe Academy. he also min glcd with a number of its key prmagonis[s. The '\ ' ihll1-based architect Ernes(O Roge rs arguably left the deepest mark on \'cnruri's inrellecwal deve lopment. In the first year that he spent ~It the Academy, Roge rs \\ a~ charged \\ ith supen ising 'a collahorati\'c project for the finc :1fts fellows ... the theme being the u... e of the :\cadeJll) \ ~anJ(,,;n for

addit ional studi os' , Il Venturi \vas one of the fellows involved in this design projccr. As a freqllcnc presence :tr t he Academy. Rogcrs qtJickly became both mentOr and guide (Q tht.: 'Young America n, In :1 Icaer [Q his parents in F eb rui.lfY 1955. \ 'cmmi \\'rote: 'The nicest ne\\,.., is that Ernes{O Rogers has reau my paper, .. and might publish it in his magazine 'Casahell;t'!." [Oln Sunday \\C <lfchitect~ + Rogers took an intercsting trip to the town ofTarquinia, .. T omorrow night wc architects + Roge rs arc ha\'ing dinner \\'ith P<..:ri.;;utti Isid.' ·' After his return from Rome in 19S6, Ventllri atte ~ tcd (() the importance of Rogers' companionship in;1 letter written to the Acadcmy 's Boa rd of Trustees: 'Aftn ha\'ing compkred my last tcrm a:-. a Fellow in Architecture. [find myself resisting my u~lIal di,inclination to write a let[er ... I co nside r my as..,ociations and my tr<ln:b and di..,co\·erie:-. mi.ide possible by the fellowship, the richest experience of my life ... I owe a p~lf{icular debt m Ernesro Rogers (here, for his friend~hip and his introduction to the be ... t of current Italian architecrurt.: . W Roge rs himself\\'as one of the most pro minent figure ... in I[alian architectural discourse in the 1950s, J~ ediror of rhe c()lIJ1{r~ \ most important arch itectural mag<lLine. In the 19"os C(I.I(I/J(>//a had se rved as rhe mouthpiece for f'fIzioll(l/i,I'II/(); the epithet 'c()ntinui ( ~I ' (added to tht: magazi ne 's title with its rcbunch in IY,i, under Rogers) signa lled a return to this rrauition, Ho\\c\er,:1t the same rime, the genesis of a more detached position can al.;;o be traced in Roger ... ' e ditorial s - an ambi\'a lcncc that anticipate\ ccntral asp<..:ct'i of Venruri's later rC\'ision s uf modernism, Roge rs' departure from modcrnist dogma \"as fir~t publicly articulated in an editorial from r95-1- entitled 'The rc",pIH1 s ibilitie.\ wwards tradition'. Although (he titlc \\as arnbiguou\ in the sense that 'tradition' referred both to r(lz;o!lrlii,l'I!lO and to historical architecture, Rogers singled out moderni..,t formalism <I.., thc predominant threat to contcmporar~ architec ture: 'jTlhc most dangerous formalism is th;,1t of the modern s, \\'ho I':lil to realise that t he modern style contrasts with the old prc::ci\cly hccall ~e it has laid the groulluwork for a dynamic appro"lch to problcl11\.' I~ Hogcrs subsequently developed a proto-conrextu;IIi'i[ understanding of architecture which W<1S based on a reinterpret<ltion of the concept of functionalism: ;fF }unctionalism is nor only [h<..: finest means of expressing every construction according to i{~ 'ipccilic character. but also of adapting every building to the problems of it.\ sire :l nd it'i c ultural situation.' ," ' rhu s for Rogcrs, <l truly function3li.;;r arch itt.:cture did not stop \\'ith spatial <lnd ... tructural cOIl'.idefi.ltions; it abo had to take intO consideration existing external factors sllch :1') the physical and cultural context. Following H.ogers' lead, hy the late 19SoS several Italian architccts h:.ld ui'itJnced rhcl1l>;eh'cs from this 'modcrnist formalism' and had turned to history. and rhe tis'iue ofrhc eity:.l\ . points of refere nce. in rurn pU'ihing the ueb:Hc on nco-liberty onto a national and international stagc, However. Rogc rs' rcvision was nor imclllkd as a break from modernism but rather as the rc-examination of i(~ \'er,'• aims . 'T'he ensuing ~Imbiguity of h i'i po~irion do ... cI~ re...cmble.\ a characteristic trait in {he architectural thinking of \ 'cnruri. \\ hose stance equally is one of sim ultane ous all ian ce and dissoci~l[ion from rht.: est<lh lished te nets uf mod c rn iS Ill. T h II ~ i n ('()Illp/e.\l'!)' (/ lid COli! n,d;('/irm, h t' argues against 'orthodox modern architects' \uch :.IS J\ lie . . \;.tll dn Rohc, whose '!e5S is more' edict i, sul}\'ertcd into tht.: p ithy 'Ies, is;,1 bore',

I'hoto;,: r<l ph h\ Bobc Tl \ ' c nt 11 ri, fnilll t h c \c('ond cdu l(Jn (If DWlplr,\i,'l {lml {:(Jl/rrt1(itnllJl/ 11/ ,! 17/111((1111'1', 19 n: \ c n lim llld ~ hon , :"- onh Pc nn \ 1'1 t In g '\III">C" \,~,O(.'i;H I' lfl IIc Jdq(Llrtcl">, \lIlhln, I'c nm\! \,:lni:l, IVII: I ,(Ill!) \! orcttl. (:;1';1 del (rlt..I,,,k, n nmt.:. 194i~sn: \ Cnturl <l nd Rauc h, ' [ rllbck and \\ 1,I(O(.kl fl oll'C', ' :lnlllckct h lJ1H1. \l a"Jdlll'ctt\, I'J/O: I.udol IlUVUJ((lf\I. h:JCril'fI (;,)rl<l. \li rhclc \',d" n, P ie r" \lJn c' I.lI~h :lnd 1.111,1.:1 \ ~,1 1 1, ' I ,cl \[ :lrlelL!' \11I'II;C 11\ \1J!cr:l, 19,::;r~'i4: \ 'cnHm Jnd "ihort, \',j llna \ 't:ntun II" II\C, Che\lnlll Ildl. l'cl\l\" hJIlIJ, 1</11

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while praising rhe co mplexity of the interior of Le Corbusier''i \ 'illa Savoyc. 1; The similariti<.:s extend further: Rogers' expansion of the concept of functionalism to include hi sto ry and context was later paralleled by \ -e nwri both in theory and practice, \~ as was the acce ptance of these two poinrs of referen ce as decisive forces in the design prm:ess. As w<;; haye.: see n, Venturi was present in Ital:-: and in COnt"lct with Rogers when these issues first surf3c<.:d in Italian architectural debates. The correspondences bctween R oge r~ and \'cnrmi ca n therefore hardh, be dismissed as coincidental. with the Italian revis ion of modernist principles anticipating Yencuri 's own critique of the movelTlcnr. In this way. the figure of \'elHuri provides the missing and direct link between Italian historicism in thc '9505 and rhe co ntexwalisl turns of architecrural POSt modernism in the 197os. Another key figure in tht.: Italian scene of the '9.i0S was the Rome-based :.lfchitect Luigi l\ loreni. Independently of Rogers, ~Ioretri worked o n his own rc\"bion of the rationalist tr~ldition, and lik e \ 'emuri, he was a great ~Idmirer of rhe bar()(_lllc. w And s ignificant ly, whereas \ 'cnturi hardly credited the m~jorit) of his Imlian contemporaries with any significant impact on his own architectural thinking, he nC\'er made a secret of his adrniration for ~ I ore{ti. \ 'emuri discussed his Casa del Girasole ( 1950) in COlllpit:xil), find ('OJ}lrtJrliaion l " and lmer called it 'one of the most inspiring buildings of my Ijfe'.~ 1 In deed. the direct influence of this huilding can be traced in .1 number of \ "clltllri's own dcsigns, the most obvious being the \ ' ~lI1na \ 'emuri I-Iollse. 'rhe broken pediments on both \'enw ri's and 1\ lorcni 's facades are the most striking correspondence resonant of the tympanum of the Greek temple. B{}(h hOllses reintroduced the concept of sy mmetry in the facade. tl device foreign (() modernist arc hitectura l iconography. in w'hich the out(.;r appearance o f ~l building wa s to mirror the logic of the inrerior. In this sense, mOl_k rnisl 'design from within ' was replaced by design sim ultaneoll sly from within and without. In both cases, howe\路cr. the symmetry is gently broken: while i\ loretti in his CaS<l del Gi rasole altered the he..:ights of the two n;stigial gables, \'enturi placed dle chimney off the ccntral axis. n [oreovcr. both facades were reduced to a planar surf;lce; they are onty thin scrcens, placed in front of the suucture almost like..: a billboard. r\ radicalisation of this conce pt can bt.: found in \ 'ent uri's Guild House. whert.: the facade appears screen-like <lnu lIntecronic, hardl\', more than <1 two-dimensional image applicd {O a suucwre. \ 'e ntmi took the chance ro further explore the contemporary Italian sce ne in the second vcar of his Rome residenc ..... In a letter , , posted in Nice, he wrote: 'This Ai\1 in Genoa wc saw sOl11e fine modcrn architecture by tile architect Albini.'" Ff<Jnco Albini's work mu-;r have sp urrcd \ 'enruri's interest. as the ~roup stopped again at Genoa Oil the way. back to \'isit '<1 \'cr\' fine musellm' bv, the same :lfc hitcct. \'enturi \\' ;1S probably rcferring ((l the Paiazzo l3i;Jnco (It)S I ) .~ 1 which in i\ lanfredo T afuri's words 'immediately became a nccesS<lr'}' point of reference' in Italian archjtecrure.~ Albini \ museum conn:rsion would han: offered an exemplary modern inrcnention in Cl histori cal building. in \\ hich art pieces were absrracted from the arehitec[lIrt.: and presc.nred <1, etherea lly floating objects in space. An undated handwritten mem o in \' cmuri's papers, fc:ltllring (( list of architect'5 and their most impo rtant works dcmon"rratcs his

interest in Cllrrent Italian architecture. Th L: note. \\-hieh nu\, ha\'c servcd as a sightseeing itinerary for l\lilan, lists a numht.:r of 1ll00krn buildings, among them the housi ng oc\-clopl1l(.;nt J[ (;c"';I(t.: (19.1-1-) by Alb;n;, G;ann; Albr;cc;, IlPR and Garddla: IlI'R', ~Ionlllllcnr to (he Dead in the Concentration Camps of Germany at the ( :imitc;ro \lonulllenrale (1946); Giuscppc Terragni and Pietro L ingcri's Ca . . ,1 Ru stici ( 1935); Gardella's pavilion for contemporar:-- art at rhe ~Iilan Gallery of l\ lodcrn An ( 195 ..0, and BPR 's apanllKnt building: on via Borgon wwo ( 19-JR). Finally. in a Icucr to his parent ... \\ rinen to\\'ard~ the end of his seav. at the Ac;:tdem\'. , \ 'cnturi wrote: 'Ch lick Brickballt:r and I had a nice drive in his open car throlll!,h thc olltskirts of Rome \'isiting examples of modern architecture, ;lnd recording it for Lawrcncc hicl Roberts \\'ho wantcu such <J li ... c .~ , Lallrance P f{obcrt ~ was president of rhe Academy. and apparenrl~' IK considered Ventllri and his colleaglle sll ch cxpert'i 011 modern archirec{Ure in Romc rhat he asked them (() prepare a guidt.: for future fdlo\\,'i. The surve y, however, remained uncompletcd. As much as thcir buildings. \ 'c l1ruri''i rc ... idellcy at the American Academy in Rome also ga\'c him rhe opporwnity to make t:ont<lct with Itali an <Hchitects thel1l sel,-cs. "["'h e principi.ll occa..,jol1 for th is was the se ri es of lecturc') organised by the Istiruw \la/ionale di Urbanistica (IN(J), initiatcd in 1953 in colbbora tioll \\ ith rhe American FlIlhright Commis . . ion. Each ;Htc.:ncbnt - including \ 'cmmi - received <I numher of vol um es on Itali an architecrure and urbanism~ a list of the mo...,t imporrant modern '-Itnlcrure') in Home and other c itie s, a similar li st with the addre:-iscs of contemporary Italian architects ;md ;1 lisr of lihraries "pt.:(.:ia li"ing in aft hi'){()ry.~'路 \ 'entuti rClllember"i h;1\'ing heard Pier I .. lli~i "en i - \\ hOIll hc had the chance to mect at a lunch held at the hOIl ... c of tht.: director of the Academ y in January 19 Sh - and Luigi ~ I oreni, In his personal correspondence hc also mentioned lectures by (;iancarto I)e ( :arlo, Riccardo ~ I orandi (\\'ho showcd an audien(x t\\ 0 of hi ... E1cwr:- project ... on the outskirts of Rom e), Paolo Ch(';];:luj (\\ hose idea ... \ 'ellturi co mpared to those of Louis K:lhn), I ,uigi Piccinato (who prescnted his planning in Siena and rhe \latera region. prompting \ 'cllruri to ca ll him a 'great rtalian city planner') ;md \ 'irrorio (;andolfi . ~Among the lectures presented \\'ithin the I ~ t ' '>erie'!, ~I presenration by Ludovico Quaroni lllU...,t h:1\'e been of particular inrere...,r to Venturi. bec<1use he retaincd it typcwritten C()p~' of it. including a list of the main works of the <Hchiwct. among them the I ,~~ \Iartclla development <Ind rhc 'T'ibllrrino district of Home, twO kc y pieces of Italian JJfore{}li.ilJJo.~~There is no direct e\'idcnce that \ 'enturi sa\\' either ofehe two sites, hut hi . . written account of nearby \ Iatera (in which he pointed out rh t.: 路 ~ord idn cs ... ~Tt beauty <lnd <lfchitectural interest ... <Ind rhe wonderful "p;Jrial rcl<lti(Hl ... hip'i therc '~") suggests he also tra\'clled to La i\lartella. \ 'cllturi \\"<1::, ct.:r[;.linly awarc of the social and archit<;;ctural problem . . at both La ~1arrell ;1 and Tiburtino, which lay at tht.: centre of the )J('f)/'('(/ ;'~\/lJO ideolog:-: the relocation of rural populations into moJern ')cttkment...,. and the accompanying media[ion of popular (il'\re \\ ithin high architectural cult ure. ,0 Th is reconci liarion of high and 10\\ ell lwres lar(.;r became Cl chieffoclls of\'enturi 's <1fchiwctural thinking, most famou ... ly prcsented in the / ,t'a/'lJi".r.jrolll I.as \'('/:as study he condu<.:red with Denise Scon Brown , Sre\路t.:n Izt:nollr and .1 group of architectural srudcnts from Yale L' ni\'crsir) in ItJoH. Il ere. in rhe <.:ommcrcial

vernacular o f thc strip, th e <.lLHhors proposed a referencc poim for a cOIHemporary 'pop' architecture that could mediate; bctween popular Jnd hi g h-taste c uJrurcs. In a similar \"(:~in" the " ent uri tc am introduced more traditional and regional forms of architecture into th e ir desig ns. as c\'idcnced in rhe Trubek and \\'islock i houses ( 1l)70) on Nanwckct Isbnd , which explicitly refer to the \'cmacul ar \\ oodcn archiwcturc of the region, Itali an neo-real ists cmployed similar straregit:s in accommodating Imv-cultural image ry within a ... erring of high -c ultural mod ern architecture: in Tiburtino. for example. architect I\ I<Hi o Ridolfi found in spirati on in cc nu;]1 Ita lian rur;ll Clfchitecru re whi ch he referenced in hi s build ings, Itali an "fol'ftl/i"wl() and VClHuri's own architect ure thereforc s hare a basic philo!'!op hy wward th e cxisting e l1\"ironment. in that hoth accept a \'ern:lcuLlr tradition as a vis ual so urce for architectural prod uction, In th e case of 1J{'{J/'l'(J/islI/o, rural bu ild ing technique\ and detail s ~HC ~l ppropri<ltt:d for co nte mporary practice: in \ 'c lltllri's case, it i~ an AmericlIl \ cmacular, be it regio nal or, as in Learnillg/rollJ I,as I "gas, commcrci::l l. Howt:\"e r, while lIef}rea/ismo 's uncritica l e mbrace of rural nos talgia amollnted [Q a kind o f rcgressi \'e uropia. \ 'c ntu ri refrained from any such trJditi onalism, con s isre ntl y res isting an expl icirl y conscn'ative backlash against modcrnism in LI\'Ollf of its rc - rcadil)g, ~' \\'hile \'cnt uri 's ex peri ences at the Am erica n Academy in Rome were primaril y d cd icltcd ro touring, reading and stud ying architcerur<..:, rhen; W:i S also the opportunity to ca rry O ut a design proposa l. In rhe spring nf 195 5, under the supervision of Ernesro Roge rs. rhe ACldcmy's fine art and architecture fellm'"s worked on dC:-iign projcct<; for add it iona l stud ios in the grounds of rhe Academy's garden, Although none were e\'e r realised, \ 'e nw ri's pro posal arouse d tht:: curiosir,,;- of th e Academ~''s di recto rs. In " lay 1958. he was asked {() p resent his pl ans to t he president of thc AC:ldcmy" l but rh e project Wll'i later abandoned, The unexecuted design offered ~l quinres"enrial digt:st of many of the themcs prevalent during hili sta\,. at the ,\ cadco1\', . \ 'elH llfi "iru<lrc::d his proposed studi o in rhe ga rden behind the t\ c:Jlh.:m~'\ main building, He intended to Icave thc existing gard cn a~ an inran open s p ~lce in deli bera te contrast to th e sur round in g llrb~1Il fabric, as h~ srat<:d in his project desc ri ptio n: ' In the semisuburban n<:ighbourhood evc ry other building is placed in the middh.: of its lot, leaving merely fragmentary spaces surroundin g'Y T o achieve rhi", he opted for a linear arrangt:menr posi ri oncd on an artificially lowered 1cvd accessec1 by an external flight of ste ps, Du e to this 'am i-pedes tal' , the full he ight of the projec ted studios could not hI..: mad<; ou t from the perspcccive of rht: main building. The ohjccrin: W<le, to Ic ( th e building blend into its co nreX L This. howcve r. was ilchic\'cd nor by adapting rhe design to the vocabulary or i\IcKim , .\Icad <.lnd \\'hire's neo- classicism, bur through a close re ~ld ing of the site ~m d an interpreurion of its specific quality as npcn space, an ~ll,,;- sing rhis physical context not in formal terms b ut on l\' 0 11 an ab:it r;lCr an d suu ctural level. In terms oftht: proposed pa vi lion spaces, tht: differentiation hctw t:c n (\\'0 funniotully di sti nct levels was ce ntral to the design. with t he gro und floor forming <l ter race subdivid ed by a se ri es of \\' ~lter poo b , Th c'lc we re seen to e ncourage communicatio n be(\\"t:en rhe 3rtis(s/i nh ahit<l.nts while at the same time sef\"ing i.1S an ope n- air

•S2

ex hibitio n space emirely accessible to the public and unified by [h e indi\'id ual studi o and ti\'ing quarte rs abO\'C, Th ese units wcrc separared from each ot hcr by small courryarus and were acces~ed through indi vidu al spir;!1 st;! ircJsc'), In an allusion to Le Corbusier an d his ascetic paradigm ofrhe monastery" \ 'cnturi \\"fore that 'It lhe interior is determ incd " , , by the idea of work sp~lCe enclosed for concentrati on, in cOntrast to the cxi~ting Academy sruJi m \\"i th their ex pansi\'e views, and in sympathy with thc tf:1dition of the mon k's cclJ'.'~ As much as to tht.: monastic model. \ 'ent uri rehHed this illea or enclosed urban space co th e ncighbouring Tra sten:rc quarter of Rome, but again the rcference remained on an abstract <lnd structural lc\'cl, with no direcr formal allu sion being madc [0 rhe built L>ity, The design. in thi s sense, \\'a<; clearly informed by a Jlloderni~( idiom, an allegiance literally made concrete \\'i th its biloll/JI'II/ walls, The slender pillars, in co mbinat ion wirh rhe open-air ground 1100[. are reminiscent of Le Corbusicr \ pilolis: likcwise: the notion of treetops breaking rhrough hHge circu lar holes in the roo f sur facc is an o b\"ious tribute ro the 1922 1\I\"illon de L 'Esprit 1\'() U \"C~IU. Howeve r, unlike Le Corbusicr's pa\'ilion and later \"illas (a t Gi.lrche:s, for example, in its con fident di,>inrere st in the surrounding \'e rnacular), \ 'enruri's project \\ ';15 nor designed as a radical break \vith the existing enscmble, ApJ.rt from its blend ing into the ,; irc, other elemencs underlin e the architect's cotl(t:xrualisr <lpproach: the public ground-floor terrace relates (() bmh ~l physical ~lIld clllrural concext by rakin g up the idea of che cc ntfi.lt courryard from rhe main Academy buildin g as well as by reft:rcncing the local t radition of the public piazza - an allu~ion that \\ ' ,15 further emphao.;iseJ hy the fOllncains and poob. On rhe somh fac,lde, \ "t: ncuri continued to pay explicit tribute to the cultura l co nrext by applyi ng:l ..,erie" of co ncrete casts of Roman reliefs in the style of direcr ciri.H iol1, \\'hilc rhe referen ce in this case was hisrorica l ~Hld remai ned in a stricti\' high-cultural concext. the design al <;o reflected thc IrJlian t:\"cryday by playfully fea [llring clotheslincs bc{\\"(::cn the indiviuuil l :lrri"r:-.' quarters, Furthe rm o re, the pavilion also ah ... orncd a num her of idt:<I" pre\'alent in Italian arch itcctural t hin king i.H rhe time. Both ' "cnruri's desi gn strategies for rhe Academy projcct and those employed h,,;-' BPR for the T o rre \' chlsca or by Ignazio Ci<Hdelhl for rhe C asa ~llle Zattere we re based on stfll crura l abHfacr ions of historical c!t;mt nts: furthermore, boch marked their diswnce to history h~' us ing concrett: as a material mctaphor for modcrnity" I-! O\\'c\'er. \\"hilt: \ 'e!lmri's formal repertoire remained moderni st. BPR and Garclclla 3ch'anccd one step furth er in rheir exploration of the historical: both the T orrc Velasca and the Casa allc Zartere reflec ted {h eir conrext'i Eluough ana logy on formal ground s. \\"hile the !'Itfuctural expre"sionism of che Torre \ 'elasca [Ook up a dialogue with \Iib.lll's nearby Gothic cathed ral, the Casa alle Zauere blended into its su rroundings b~ adapti ng the model of the ncighbouri Il,l'; pfI/fI;'t:zi o n a t~' p()lo,gic:l1 and formal level. This strategy of dir<;n for mal refert:ncc to the physical urban context became a dc\'icc that \ "enruri only really emp loyed later in hi s career, most norably in his design for the Sa in . , bury \\'ing of the .'\Jational Gallery in London, \\,ith its horrowings from both hi story and modernism, as well;l s its eonrextua li st appro;lch on hoth i.l physical and culturallc.~\· el. Vcnturi's p~I\ ' iljon project rh crefore assu mes the statu s of an arch itcctural a l kgor~' for his 'Ic;--lfnin~ from Rome', Th e design not onty \'isually summarises SOIlle;,' of the

\\ III I. ...

•

, •\

, •

•

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•

ar{'hit~t:rural

insights gained during his explorarioll!l arou nd (he cit y. bur abo ren eer') a number of theoretical positions in cOn£ c mporary Italian d c h:tt~ . As s uc h. it poilH s the \\'a ~ to \ 'ent uri \ fu rurc archit ccwral and th~oretical output. which itself c l o~e h, mirror" his earlier ex perience ... in Home. \ 'clHuri\ two- ye:.Jr tenure a t the Americcln Actl dcm y in the mid19S0S C<l11 in this way be s hown {Q occupy the central ep isode in hi s intellect ual hiogr:lphy. His rC\'isiting of the ca no n of I': urope<m :m.: hircct ural hi story was a resumption ofrhe classic tradition of the gLlI1d {Our within the guise of a modern architccwral ec.iu t:;)tion. Architecrs of the aV:IJH-g:lrde in the first half of the rwenti eth ccntury t:i1rricd out thcir own architcctural to urs. but th e\'• did not rccyclc hi . . wry into t he t:orHcm porary di sco urse as Vcnruri did in (;Olllplfxiry tlllt! Cf}//l,.ad;rl;oJJ. Ho"'c\'cr. by frequentl y re fe rring to the Ofllt"l"l.' of I, lJ ch an.:hir ccts as l ,e Corbllsier and AI\'ar Aalro, \ 'enru ri underline d hi ~ co ntinu ing allcgi<1ncc to {he modcrni ... t proje<.:r. Thi~ he:: also nladt: dear b y formally resoning to th e ge nrc of the manifc . . w at ;t rime whcn th e e ra of the Wfll/fh ririls or master n<l rr:Hi\'cs of his(() ry \\"a~ coming {() a close. as Jc;:t n-Fr:ll1\7ois L yo tard di:Jgnosed in 1'-) /9:~' As a manifesto. Complfxityo"dColJ lf"(/t!ir1ion onc~ aga in tried to establi sh an ovcrriding narrative. but its grandeur \\'<lS de libe ra te ly and parad ox icall y infused with an argument for conrradiuion. Vc.: nwri·s sta nce to\\'ard the Illod ern ist proje ct was simultaneously one: of reference Jnd of <llienation. By trying to keep the mOlll.:rnis[ project ali\"(; whill.: at the sa me rime (J.nempring to on;rcomc it. hi s po~i{ion markcd both the beginning and c nd of:1Il c..:ra. \Vith (,'ompit.'(Ih a"t! CO,,'r(lr/;rlioll. th c..:re forc , Vent uri changed rhe idea o f the im age of the architect and the co nce pt of :1fch irecturallcarn ing. Bc..: fore him , the architect W<I S acco unr::tb le primarily [() hb <ln istic imagination: after him. he became tin inrerprctcr and form-gi\cr o fa p rc..:-exi~ tc nr culrural situJtioll . Thi s change of 1l1 c..:~l ninf!. had alre;ld y bcen uiggcred b y the Italian resea rch of the I<),SOS. blll it was \ 't; lHur i who fully and ironically implementcd it by rcaffirrnillf!, tht.: cult ural role of the architect and at the same till1t.: fund amenta ll y que"tiuning his ow n sel f-conception. ~1.lIln~ri\1ll I\ ;I~. ~c

k.1\t l::-.plicitly. only m:uginally pre\t:n t in {,'olllp/(xir.'(IT/d ("milt/till 1/1)11. H()\I1,;\ l:r, undcr,tolld more l)\cr~lly a~ 'brC:lkin:..: chI,; rLLk~', it wa~ to dl'\dllf! lIltll:1 kc) idc.1 of\"l,;nturi\ <Hchiccctur:ti thinkinJi:. ;\cl:ording co him. Ill' IC:Il lwd thl~ v~lidity ol"thc C(JIllT1H for h11l1,elf in hi~ ~luui\l:1t the Amcri can AC,ldl,;lll\', \llOrd) befml,; ka\ in:..: Romc in (he \lJlllllll,;r of 1950 (pcr~\ln:11 eOrl1llluniouoll III .1IJ1nor. Philaue lphia, 3 January .200.2). On \ 'e nllui'~ (:lnd S(.;Otl BroIl n"") IIlHkr\t;.lnd 1I1J.! IIf m.m m:ri '>Jl), ..,cc Rohen \ .en (UTi .lllt! Dcni\c Scot t Bnl\\ 11 .. 1r,Aill'r/lIl"f' '" S~1!.1I\ ulld SjJh:ms: F onl .11flfln(riJ! 'I,mI' (C;lmhriuge. 1\1 A: II:lIl.mJ l ·IlI\"er-..lty PTe,', ZO(4). pp. 73- 101 anu 2J2-217. \ \: m uri here diffcrcnll:.l(e, .In 'c 'plIl"H nu n nen'Ill' refcrflng 10 J. partH.:ular hl'>Wri<;J.1 period In thc ..,ix(cc nt h ccnwI"\. from .Ul'uTl p hnc lTl,mneri~m·. \\ hich oenocC\ J morc ge nc rJl prilH.:lpk th,H c.tn ol,.·..:ur In ,In' c ra or pl.ICC. 2 On Ihl,; hi\cIII' Ill' the /!fJnJ !Our. 'cc John !(ecn:, ·Granl..! I"tlllt". in Jallc ·' ·IITner (cd .). TAl' nft IJtJlltlll' of . l/t. \ 01. 13 I l .onJun: \ IaC1ll111ao. I l)qh). pp. 297-.)06: (:hmlOphcr II 1hllc n . !nt' Grr",d T f)ur ( I ,o nJon: ' I·hamc ... "lec hucn. 19X7): Tr.lll·' J C;ln B OI~\CJU. ' (;r,IIlJ T our'. in Paul Fi nkclm;Hl kJ.)./·,''''·(·/OP(J({/fll oflhf' r'fIIlrd .\ill/f.! 11/ Ihl' '\"fIIf/I'Nllh (:mlllf),. \"Ill. z (:--':CII York: Charlc\ ~nbl1cr" \ SIlO". 200 1). pp. I- :!: \\ ' illl~1!11 \\" "iro\\ c. (;U;IIK .1/Jmari: Fum/lf'{lll Trm:d III .\ ·illl'l(('IIIA-(:,,,I/('1' . 1!llNu(1f/ (."{lIIIII' (Pnni..Tcon : Prilll.."'CtIl n ( ' nin:r:;iIY P n.-:~\. 19LJ-0. ,) On Ihe hl~CIII) 111' che !\I11Cnc.ln t\C.H.JCIll\" in Romc, sec l .ul·iJ \'alcntim: Jnd \1 .111 \ .Ilcncinc. :Imaimn ;\((Jr/I'my in Rum!' IIf9.J- 1969 (Ch.trlune\\ illc: t nlver.-,ity )lr c~~ Ilf\,irg;inia. 11)7.1) ' 4 I . e COrll11 \ il: r, ·!/If.··tt ni, (I • \,t'fJ... :1r,A ilf'ff 11/"(". tran~. F rnil: ri c k I ~ {e hd b (Ox fo rd : HIlIteflulrch ArdllCel"lllrc. 19Iiq). p. 173. S l'cr:-,ofl.d eornTlwnll.::.niclIl to ~lIthor. P hlbddphi:l, .\ }:lIlUU\" .2002 . fJ Thl\ e:-,pcTll:tlLC 1\ :..:enerJlh c()Il'H.krl:u 10 hc Int1ucntl;11 brgelv Oil K ~lhn\ later work . S(..·c EIIJ..:L: n c Joh mOll anu ~ Ii('hacl J I ,ewi\. f)n1t..~" (rum lA,. Sl)lIrr"(: "/"h,. "/"rtlt.v'; St rtlhrJ /j( 1.1111/' I A.·(I/III ,CJlllb ri uj!;c. \I t\ : \lIT Prc~\, 1990). T he :\Ill Crie,11l

rh"

Acadcl1l~

in !( ome remalll'" in IHj.!;h e\tcem in AmCflC;l1l ;lrchnccrur,l l :lCldcllll.l. wi th the mo"t prIl1111,in~ ' ll1dcnt \ \1111 c 'pec tcd co ap pl\ for chc Ihl1m: pri /c. 7 In hi~ applic;llion~ \ 'cllfuri un.l not 1,llk the ,upp0rllJf influcn[],llluwr, .mu emJl I(l~cr,. I n January 1951 hi::. then hI)" Eero Sa;lnno.:n 1\ ((I{e II I {he \ IllCTlC;.l1l ."\ eade111\ Iln hl\ bo.:half calling him ' UOiquc m.HeriJI fur {lul ,chl)l;lr~hip' I Eero (,j,I:ulIlcn (I) L:H1r,Ull'C Rohe r". 2 J:mll<H) 1952. Amc::ricHl :$aJcm~ III R01TIl' :\f(hllc..,. \iC\\ ) ork). Other refcrcnc c~ came from Sherl) \\ \ Inrg:m. the director Ilf thc PnncctllO St·hllol nf :\Tl:hitceturc, and (rom I.oui\ K,lilll. The follo\l m~ ~C,IT. :.Ilcltf:r h\ DlJn.lld D re\\ E /!bcn, his formcr Prim'econ (cJeiler. called \"elltufl 'onc nf the !tHee or four mo~t proml,ingg;raoIJacc, of our Schoolllf :\rL"llitCl"lllre in the pa~l (llent~ \car,·. ('\'L:n though he eon,idcrc:d \ 'crl(uo', prnfC$lOnal,lt t illlUC at tlmc, 'a hit o\'eri nt en~e' (O onald D rl,;\\ I ':~bl,;f( (11 \Id!) T \\"illiJnh 27 janllJr~ IIJ5 ,~. Arnl,;rj<:an Academy in Rom e Af(: hil"l:~. i\:CI\ York). In hi, third and \llI,.Te~\flll ;Ipplic.lti(ln, \ 'e ntllri 's then (ricnt! anu ~llrpllrter [.olli\ Kahn played a Icn' Impnrcam rllle. In a le cter to hj~ lover Anne ' I'yll:": I)f H JJlllJ ar\ IYS4 hl: mCl1tionl,;d h~l\ lng bcen asked hy Vcnluri I() wriC!.::t lCl(l,;f (If TCC()nln1CnJ,1Il01l on hl~ bch:.llf. I1 herc,I' In a ~IJbscqllcnc Ictcer of J0 J :'lnllar~ 19S4 he alllltleu II1 J CI,mt:r'>:.ltllln I1 Ich the sccrl:tJ~' f)f the AmcriC.lll :\c;ldcmv ;Ind with Ecro S;IJrinen \\ ith thc ,lil11 (Jf ur~m.e; hl111 10 ~uppon \ ·e nwri . Sce ;\one (; rl\\ullo Tyng (cu.l. I J,IIf.ii A(//I/} 10 .1IIIIr 7i'flJ!'" Thr RomI' ! LIlf'f"J f95.l-11}5.J C.... CIl Yur]... : Hlfm/t. Ill,) 7). pp. My and lJS.' \ d ecl\J\e moment in \'enruri· ... application \\;1., prol y.lbl, che f:lf.:t thal l1l 1l)54 Kahn \cf\et! as member of I hc jury of I ht..: I\mt..:ric.l n :\ C.ldemy in Rome ~r,mtint!, the \L"llOl.lr,hljl\. \'entun at thac time \\.1 ') K.l hn ·\ '1 ~\I\[J.nt .11 thc t . n ilcr~ it\ of I'cnnwh .lnla ;lI1d uccasionallv workcd in hl\ office ;1\;,In ;,Ifl llll CU. H F Tllm the llnin:r"it) <:;\t.lll):":uc of I 9.2()- 2 I . qUIlted in I),l"id \ ',111 Z,lnll·n. " I'he " P rincernn S)\tt:m" J n u the FotJnd ln~ of the School of \rchitcl"luTc. 1f)IS-ZO·. in ( :Iuiswpher ~ !cau {cd. 1. /"hI' . lnhlll'll/ll"f of R(j!J{'ft I'm//ln (AI hili Itn: rq lie: L ' nivcr~jty of Nc\\ "1e\1t"(J "re", IIJKt)I. pp . 34-44 . SL:C dl~1I St,mi\IJll\ \00 \l oo" I'nllufi. Srofl /Jmr."1I {/fIt! ;\ssfI(illlr(' /{flJldlllgr (/Nd f'mjl'fls 1(j81)- 19(j8 <Nc I\ York : ~lona<:clli. J9f)91. pp. zH-.lC) . I) Sec Robcn \ 'ellll lTl. "I )orulJ ])rc\\ I':~bert - >\ T rdHlle' (11))-\0). in /o)lll?Rmp/1I" (Jilt! 1i./r,lrolll("s ( 'PUll ff (;,wrrr :1 r(liitr,"fm"f': . \ l'if'fi~ fmm lhr Dra(ti'l/!. Room (Ca m hnda;c, ~IA: l\IIT P rc,,\. (996). pp. 4.)-4.=i. [0 Robert \ 'cncuri, 'Summcr Al"til 'ltle~: Rl:purt .1nd Some Impre:>\lom', IInpuhlt\hcd { ype~crip t. \ ·enturi . Sentt Brown ;md '\'~ (I(."I:.lIC~ . . \rehivc\ .. \ rehirccturJ.l "\ rdlll·t..:\. l .n ive r~ity of P c n n~ y 11"<1 11 i ~ and Pcn 11\ ~ h a n III 11 i \(orica I and ~ I ll\C u nl Cormn is~ion ("" \ 's BA Areh i, c~ I. 11 Pcrsonal commllllic:l.Iioll tll thc ,lIltnllr. PhihHJclph la . .~ JJ.nll:l~ 2002. In a !cllt:r to his parent\ wrirccn 011 thc da) IIf hl~ .mll al in Romc. \ 'cnllln \\ rote: ' \1, fiht impre~~ion i~ fa\'orablc. I 1011; it. It 1\ rC:'llh I Cl"\" {hffl"Tl"nt fmm \\ hat 1 npcctel1 there i~ '0 much colour in {he hll1h.hn~, d,!.\ain\c a Jcep hlue \k\ ... deep /.:recn foliJgc - ~o mcthing \1 hich \\ c 11 ho ha\ e h\ed In t\meril.l cannllt illlJ.1!11lgl.1 nuO\' of {hI.: hllildjng~ arc Jeep rouge - a hcallllfltll·l)mhlll.lWI1l Cif f(I\C ,lnJ ,cllml.· 1{ I~hcn Venturi ({l Rohcn and \ ';lnna \ 'cncUTl. H \lIgll\t 1'J4H. \ 'S BA Arl"hn e..,. I Z Robcn \"cnwri . ':\dorJhle J) i,cO\crte~ \\'h en I \\" a~.1 "iemi- ..... al\c Fcllol\ :lIlhc American Academ) in Romc That I NCI'cr F orKer' (t(N4J. !(lJIwgmpA.l' (lilt! /·j((lrOIl;(.5. p. 57. On Ihc int1ucnec of Ite m) Jamc~ fin nlJ.~~ tollfl~m \CC Stll\le. CoillK ...lbroat/, pp. 16 1- 194. 13 D ue tu thi~ rather late anil;!1. \ Cll(llTl Il1I\\eo a trip to (he \'COI CC Bienn :t1c exhibition anJ to mhl'r Ittl lian Utll:\ IHgalll\cd lw chc Acadcmy fm thl: nCII rdlow:.. Sec American t\C;IUCl1lY in !-< Oflll:. l~ cp()rt 19S I-IY:;S (NI,;\\ York Jnd Rom e . 19S5) . Besides Vcnturi the .ITch1tceCllrC fcll()\\"~ .It the Acauemy ,It the lime were: J~m e~ A (;rc.\h;ll11 :.lnd W arren t\ P eccr~on for 1954-II) S5 .1110 Chu!t:\ C Br ic khaucr. J ~lIne~ f\ ( jrc\h,IIY1. \\ ~lf"fcn t\ \' ~ICf\(IIl. and Dan \{ Stcw:H\ for 1955-1956. Sce .I!IIfril"flfl A,m/I'IIII' if! Rumf, RI'!)fJr' '95f-f(6"~. p. 26: .Imrnfll!l A.t:ademJ' ill RomI'. R,pfln f()S..i - 195C) ('\Je\\ Yor]" :.l mJ Romc. r\mo..:ric,l n ACId cm~ in Homc, 19S9). p. 13. Lt ' /-I e [Caudij i" curious all u:.:ht - hut hI,; 1\ \C~ ,>Hong + IC~ grC:Jt h01lletlll)L"' Ill~ i5 like our Ph i];].. Furn c~ ... - but 'ffong;c f + more f:uHJ,til'l . " Roht:H \ 'cmuri 10 Rohcrt and \ 'arma \'entun . I 2 Fchruaf', 1<)56. \ 'SB'\ t\ rchi\ n. Thc l'OrllparNlrl tlf thc Ca£aian with Frank Fu rnc~, WJ":I \ign (If hl~h JppreCIJuon a' \ enwn 011 othcr IK:<:asion.., cxprc ... ~<:d hi, ~ re;1I rC\pclt fur P hlladdphi.l·'" k.luin~ \ 'iUOTlilO Jrchitel·1. See Ro be rt \ 'c ntllri, . F urn c~~ ,lOd T, I~te·. IrfJlloJ!raphJ' flllrl!-."IfffrIlfIlf J, pp. h 3-6S. 15 The writing proec~~ nf (;()Jllpll'xil)' IlIId (im/mrlirIIlJII \\.1.., rJt her comple,. i\ 10\\ of rhc book had alrcady hecn \\' rJ\{en In the frJmL:work of J. rc~e,H(.;h j!;fJnf from the Graham Foundat ion h) J()6l. to 1\ ho~ c dHcctor \'cnturi ..,ent ,I letter plcduin~ for financial su p port in Fchrt1:l!)' nf (h ,lt \"C~lT! ROOcn \"enturi 10 John [) Emcn/.... 15 FdHu a~' 1962, \'SUA Archl\·c'i). Fnr octall~ IIf thc \\"r it1 n ~ IHO("C\' \CC Rllhl,;rt \ 'I,;ntllri, Comp/exily find ('fI1l1l"r1difllflll III ,I n'hi(f(I!l1"1' (N C\\ York : The \ ILl \e UIII of .\I odcrn An, 19(6), p. 6. 1-:"CI1 though thc hook 11":1<' 111"ficiall) datcd 1966 It Ila, not <lvai la ble for cl istrihu tion hcfore "larc h IIll?: ,cc I Jianc I. ,\ I inn ilc. 'Ch TOllology·. in D~ viJ B Brownlce. [)avid (; [)e I ,Itn/.!. anJ K ~thryn B Il ic~inger. Oll( o/rhl' orr/i110ry. Ro!Jrr/ 1'1'1/111ri, /)fl/ i.'-" Smll n f"IIf.!'!l (llId 11.1'.\1),;(1 /f.l: :I !"rh itN/m". { ·,-!JrnIlJ·m. D rs;pl (Phil auc: lph i:.l: Ph iladl:lphi:i ~11l \l: 1l1ll of An, lOO I I. p. 241-1. 16 \. cn ru ri. 'Su mmc r Acti\"iti e, '. 17 lbid.; Robc n \'cmuri, pCN)Ilal Cllmm Il n iC.lTlon to allthor. Ptllbdelplll~ . .) J ..I1HW"\' Z()(J2. 18 RobcTt \ 'c nturi 10 R(lhcrr JnJ \ 'anna \' enruri. 12 June 19S5, \ 'S lt·\ \r(.;l1l1e' . 19 ' Ac J ccn3in point Krauthc1l11Cr dcc ided th at I\C \Icrc ready ror L,H ~ B.uol]ue ...

I Ic laid (JII' In itincrary of Smith (j c rman ch un: he, and P:J!;ll:C, 111 H:\\Jri:J ;Ind Fr:anCOIlJ.l .•mo Bob. me Jnll tll O ot he r fncn oo; .. . made Ihl.' pli~f1mJ/!.e . · ( ;h:l r le~ Bric khJu c r, pcr... onal c(,mnlUnie<Hion to author, 22 :"o \ crn o cr 2001. 20 ' I \1::Int to c .... p re" m~ grJllwde to Richard Kraulheimer, whQ o;h3rcd hI" m ... l/.:nt, o n Rnma ll B;lroquc arcnltel:turc with u ... Fdlo \\, 3t {he American Ac.loel11) In Rome '. Rohe rt \ .e n tu ri , r :f)mpl,xin· alld r:mUrtldlrlifJIl ill A.rrhi/~rfllr', 2 nJ e(..I. t '\; c 1\ 'Ink : Thc \I U'ClIl11 of \ II,dcrn An. 19771. p. q . Ch arle s BnckhJlIer. ,mothe r fello\1 :H Ihe :k :ldem y at t he tmu:, ('quall~ ... trcs ... cd !\ ramhcimer\ irnpJct in th io; rc-;pcu : 'Our luck W,l<' dut KraU lhc lmc r wa ... parucu ia rl y dispo~ed £O\\Jrds iHchit ect ... a nd luvcd w:.I.lkmg thc ci ty ,mu di5l'1J~<;ing whatever 'i uhj~ c t migh t he gcncratcJ h~ a fal":IIJe. J dlUn:h. pla/.l.a or ruin. I It: wa~ rc~ponsible fur "'Iirnll la ting rn\ IOlerC~t In thc Ir,uoq lle and I :1nl )lIrc he had (he ... anle Influence on Bob.' ChJrlc ... Bm:khalle r. Jlcr~(lIl:l1 eumm LlIllt."tHion co a ul hor, 22 N o"em her 200 I . 21 \ 'el1wri h<ld become Intcrc'teJ in the i\~ue ofcontcxt c:.I.rlier through j.(e\wlt p~~ dwit),g). I-li . . Jl rince ton J11<l~ter \ thc<.is of 1950 \\ a~ dedjC3t~d to t hc q lIc","n n of how the (urban) t"OntCX ( o f:l huildin.t; affce(cd it~ meaning. Sec \ ·c ntlJri. / o)1foJ!,mphl' (Jlld Flmroflir.>', pp. 333-.3 7-l · 22 Kobcn \ ·enc u ri to Rohert and \ 'anna \ ·~ntllr i, 23 \brc h 19.')5, \,~H :\ Archi\·c,>. 2,\ \ 'ellturi. Compl,.\In' (111t/DJIIlmtiirllf)!f. p. 76. 2-l Rohcn \'eIHuri w Hoben and \',m na \'cnturi . .2 i\la ~ 1955, \ 'SB ..\ [\r(:h i\c,. 2_:;; \ ' i nee n t Seu Ily, ' I n 1r()(.Iucllun'. in \' c m uri. COII/pl'xiIY mlli r:f)1lfr(1l/;(/lf)II, p. t 2. 26 .\"rormlismo d Id not (lri~ inJ lc \\Ith arl.hi rcClure. R.H hcr, the term W3' cOlncu for Italian cinema uf Ihc lale I Y4 0~, indudin~ film, like I 'll/ono D,Sims Smm/(! ( lw6 1 or 1./JIhi (It blfu:I,,,, ( 1lJ-l91. which refer re d to a ·n::rnacu la r' lang ua.gc in a W:ly ..:nmpa ra h lc 10 :trdlllccturc. :'\! Qr 11.1<' Iltor('(1lism o J gen uinel y hali,1n dC\elopment. Rather. It mu 'l he ..:un:'ldercd a \·ilricty of rea li ... m. u nc of the ma in Ilw\eJl1l.:nt,> in Europcan arl.·hi te(:{ure :1I thdlli m e. Generall y. [\\"0 Iype,> of re;lli, m ca n bc J I ~lingUl~hcd : il n the onc ha n u the ~ol'lal de tn llCr:Hic reali'>m Jf1 Ihe SCJnJina\ la n nHlr)trlC'. \\"h](h i\ Indebled to the rnl)derni .~1 trad irinn, a nd 1)11 th e o th er. thc ~O(: l ali~1 n::lh'IllI,f Ihc SO\ ic t I nion a nd ils satellit e \tjtc~ . Whil e Ihe Scanui ml\ i;ln example W;j~ ;1h'llrih.:(j ,I C ro,>~ Euro pe and Br itain, .... here il fou nd ~\l pr0rlcr~ p:HtlclIlarlyaround l"Ilt'.' l / y /iil((l"r(I/ Rf"i.·iffi"_ it W,I S aho gencrall) k nown in !tal). I 10\1 C'I er, it ha ... bl:en Jr~ued that f/l'f)rmliJ!lJ() \\"<1« clo ... cr to Ihe idcological irnpact of SO\ ict ... oc iali,t rcali ... 11l than to Scandinavi:m ncw crnplriel~Jll (a ~ i, was called by Tit,' . 1rrhltf(llIml N.1't./I"fJ,;). See (; io\ an na t-. 1:1 \~o hri f) a nJ Paol n r ' urtoghe ... i, "/bum rI''J!./t (111111 (;IIJI/II(/!I!(J ( Rvma: L atcfu. 11)771. On lleormli.~m{j in 11 :.1lian Jrehllenurc, ... ec Bruno HClchlJT), · F igurc\ d e ncorCali~me dan'> 1' ;nchl{(:e TlHC ilalicnnc·. in l .r.l" ( :tJhifn rill .l/lI sl, fi(Jli()lI(iI t/'(/ I"' m odrnl(. no. 69 ( 191)91, pp . 7f)....1 1,1: \lJ ri~tdla Ca<,c'ia lO, ·Ncorcal1'm In ita liJn An: hitl.:ctllTc· , in Sauh \\' i11 J3 m , (joldha~cn and RCJean L q~a lll t ( cd~ .). , l llx;ous :flodernis,"s: /i..,pnimffllfllifl1lf UI Pt)." ~(I" . \ n-hllf(lIJ rtll C ull/lr, «(;.1m b ri dgc, (\ 1A: [I. 1I T P re'i<;, 20(0), pp. 25-.,,,. I· 1'1" ,j n earl ~ cril ie31 a~'e"'ment IJf I he 1l)00cmcnt by une of ils propagltor.. <;ce I ,udOllco Q ua rnm . ' 11 pde'c dCI ha rOl.:eh i', ( :(I.f{II1,l/o COllfillllllfl. no. 2 1'; j IlJS i). pp. 24-25. 27 On nel)· lihen y JoJ th c di"'c ll\~ i o n~ c,oking around it ~ce ·I\'el,-libc rt \: Th l.: D ch.1t c', in T/u .l"hil((.//l 1"(1! Rt"i..'in..~. no. 75-l ( 19.,9). pp. 3 -l1 -3 ~ : C1.wd,o 1)' :\ 111;1(0, ·L J ·ncir:Ha· It.lliana del .\!onmcnto ;->. Iodcrno: mcmona, ~oti rJ c quc, lIIlIli cli ... tik: nclre'pc rlen/.;J clc I neoli hcrt~ " III COlllmSpaZl1J 9, no. -Vs t (ktoocr-:\"m cmhc r 1977). p p ..,n-.=; I: F ranee,!."o Cdlilll, '1.;1 polemica ql ne lllihcn y·, ( .f)lJlrosp(1zio 9. no . .. IS (OclObcr- ;\"m·crnhcr 19 77) . pp. S2-S,,: Koberw G abeu i, Ainuro J ~()lJ. \"iuor;n (;rcK.o u i, anJ Ern C~Hl Nathan R ogc r ~. 't\nualita ~h una poltrnlc<l: anto lo ~i, 1 di IC~li ~ul neoliherty', (:o l/Ir(l~jlazi() 9. no. -lIS ()ctohc.:r-I',O\·Cl1lbcr H)77), pp . H.I -K~ . 2H Sec I':rnc'to 1 '< at h:m l{ ogcr\. ·COOlln Ult:1 (I cri ~i?', in e(na/ld/a (OIIlilllllla, 21.; (it)S 7). p. -l. 21) Re yncr Ihnharn. 'Nco lihe rt~ : Th c 1[,l1J<ln Re trcat froml\ lodern Architecturc', in tlu :\I"("h/((/ (/.Im! RIT)il'U.". nl f. 747 ( 19S9 ), pp . .23 I- 235. In [h is a nick: 11:.In harn e x pi ici 1ly I.:l"1ti ci\c' (;;IC AIJ km I, \ ·iWlril' GregmtJ , I , UUOVIC! I I\ icneghcn i, (;iow I Swppino, Rohc rl o ( ; ahetri ,lilt! their mO~1 out ... pokcn defe ndcr, Aldo l{ o~~i. R If.ltcr~, al fir\! crilicl l of Ihe I~ ork o f ~omc o f Ih c )ounger ~encrui (Jn him ... elf. \\.;1 , n()l to plll up \\ II h thc En~ li ~h man \ c.lcnigr :lUu n ~ and fou gh t back our~ p()ken Iy. calling Ib nham a ·clI"et.lkc r of the fn~iJ:l1Tc" '. St...'C E rnc~to ;\I R o~cr', ' 1. \ ;\"I .lulIlIl1e J elJ".uch ile tlu rJ: R I~ pml.1 al t· lI ~ tO(1c.: Jci fnp;id3irc~·. (.'IslIlKlla mmillll/m. nu. 2.z1:! ( I t,I_ , 91, pp. 2-4. .)0 Sn: Sar.l l'rol,hllni, 'Th e ital ian Group and {he :-' Iodcrn Tradition '. ,n Hmsrxntl q . no. S2 ( IW21. pp. 2H--.)1). J I ( :h,lrlc\ Jenl.· k ~. 'Po'I-[l. I(xlcrn Ili ~tu" : in ;lnhifU:fllrtlIIJrs~f!lI 4 H. nu. I (I Y7~n. pp. 1.,- 19. 32 AII/f"iUIII . l mdnf/l1ll Home, R"/Jf)J1IY51-lfJ55, pp. 27-2fi. :u Ro bc rl \ ·cOlU rt III I{ohe r! and \ ·an na \ 'cntllTi, 21 r chruar~ ' YS':;, \ ·S B \ An.:h l\ c,. · I·hc artlL·le m eJl( lI/Tl c J \\,h nc\cr puhl1~hCl.J ( il ~ \\"hcrea hOlm ;lTe unkn(\\\n). \ ·C ntllTJ h:I'> l:lICf e h.ual.·tcri,cJ it'i content,> a~ '\peLulatlnp; on th e inflllcnl.:e Ill' I1.1 Ii;lIl hdltlf\\.Il, I)Il (hc dC'I~n of Tali c ... in ,Ifrcr F r,mk LlO\ d \\·righl .... It Jli:ln trip III 191(/ tR(lhe rt \ ·c nlllrl. unpuhli ... hcd typc~e r ipt. IsJan u:lr') 19K.z, "merlcan \ I.;ldcrm In 1~() Jl)e l\fl·hllc,. ' e \\' ) ork;. 34 i{ obcfl \ ·c 11 tu ri !If J ,lInc~ Kell UJl) Sm Ith. 16 Oe lobcr 1956. \ 'S BA An;h i 'vC~. 3S Erne ... tl f:--,· R"ger.... · I .a rc<;pon ,>iblh lj \ eNf la tradi/lone', (.{ISfI/J(I/(ll"fIn{illfli!fl. 1111. 202. ( 11)54), p. 2 (1 lTl g ina l E ng;li,h tran,l:!ti,.., fmm the appen di x nflhc- m agu ll1 c l. 36 I': rnn to 'J R oger~. · I .n tr<lduiollc dcll'an.:hltctlur:J modern;l it;!I I;ln:.1-. ( :fI.lalldl(l (O l/{IIIU/lfl. no. 206. (19S5), p. -l (or igina l En gl i,h tralhhlllOI1 from Ih c ,Ippcndix (Of (hc 1ll:1J.:,II.IIH:). ,"\7 Scc \ 'CIlWfI. {.(uflplf.n/)'llfld(.ljnlmdim·f!lI. pp. 23-2'-j :lllJ .,1.

3H \"cn tu ri 'i:1 \\" functill n;-I li ... rn C\ ... cJ)Il::llh ,h a forlllah~ 1l1 of the Indlh[ful ICrll,IU II,Ir. Sec Robcft \ 'en(Lui ;lIld Ikni,c SLUt! Bro\\Il. ' FU IlCtil !ll,lli ,m, )c~. BU l .. '. I 197-l). ] n A I ·itu: f l vlI1 rh, Ctmlp1doxl",: S~/~(."d J.."SJ(ll"S I fJ5.J-1 'IN" t;"'C\\ ) ork: I1 ,Ir pcr &. Hov.. . 19S-l 1. p. 44. 39 Sce in Ihi\ rc~pel.' t \I flrclli '~ art id c!- in hl"Juu rllJ l Spfl:IIJ. ~I.:l' J I,o J·cdcmo Bun·1 and \ larto \ I u IJI.l:l n i_ I ,ll iJ!,t , I !tlr~"'." I rod·, fUlfil r nllll.'!.I. IT a n~. \ l.UlTl.1 d cCollnlu ... (;\"ew York: P rim;clOn .'\rchuct·rur;11 Prc~\. 2UOll. -lO See \ ·ennui. (;omplrxity(Uld(:olllmr/f("fIfJIf, rp. 21.).1.)';. Sel' 1Il1hl~ rc~pct.l ;tI ..... \l oTeui's Pal al.Li n:1 dd la coopt:: r;1I11 e A ~ t rc,1 1ll ({OIllC, \\ he rc lhl' trLltm ent of thc facade a~ an clement pec led off Ihc h ll ildlng 11 ,I' lTHroduel'd alrc.llh In 1949. Scc · 1 ·hornJ~ Schllmachcr. ' RoTHc : (lrphall I. r thc \ Illdcrn \1 0\ elllcnt (if (:radlt- I)/" Po~t -1\ l odernl~m ?', in t-. Iichacl (; r;lve~ led.). Noma / !If("177!{{fI . .11) Pf7di/r 20 (ftJiIJ). p. IJ';. -l l Pcr~on a l communieali()Il tu :ILlthlfr, P hlbdel phl.l. '; J ;UHI:H\ 2U02. 4 2 Robert \'cntlHi to Roben ,1I1d \ '<lnna \ 'c 1Hurl. H F chrll ,I(\ 14,6, \ SB.\ \ rdll\C'. -lJ An undatcd mcmo p rnh:l bl y from the "ull1merof II).'S II \h th L l)alllC\ o("lIne eorHcmlwrar) I[alian archi lec t'. among; thcm h ,OKIf \ !11111i. l nucr h", hl:.1Ull1g, Ihe l1~t menli o n~ ' ]' :l1a:llo Bi;mco (; ell0;\'. Rohert \ ·en tlHi. unddleu memo. \ 'S BA Arehi\e ~. Oth er imp0rl<ulI eontrihllllom 10 111l"CIIIll .Hllmeeturc 1>\ \ 1111111 In C CIlOJ at tha l time a re ,hc rC"tlfr:.l. tlil/l of the 1',,1.11 /0 RO"l' ill hleh, hO\1 c\cr. \\"a~ nl ft publi shed ullII I ]1)61) ;lIlJ Ih..: \I,, 'cum (frlhl..: ·rrca, u r- of I..j.tn I .ore n/'f ( hlJlh J952. with Fr,1I11.:a I kl ~l. 4-l \ lan fred o T afuri, fl lSlfJry fJj IlrJlifllJ .I nhtl(l/(If'" I'IU 1'1<'(; {( :amhnc.l~c, \ I \ \ 11'1 Prey,>, 1990). p. -l9. ,- r{ohcrt \ 'e muri 10 Rohen <llld \ .,nna \ cllIun. l) \1 ,1\. \";B \ \ rdmL"'. "... h The li~t on modern Roma n ;HI.-h ltclwrc 1l1duJ..:,. I1Ilfr"I:(I. h('lI'c, 11\ " rduICt'! Pi Cl roA~chlcri from Ihe latc Itj2m, ~e\crJj huilt..hn.t:' mlhc { :ill :1 uni\(;f,I{,lTI:I. \\ork ... by [l.iario Hidolfi. I ,lllgi P]CelnJlff . ..tnd I .Ulgi \l nrl.:uI ( i ncltldin~ (he ( :,I" I Jcl G ira~o1c ), and large \u burha n de\elopmcnt~ funueu 1)\ (h c 'laIc-run ]'\; ·\ -(:a,>\I hOWling programme, amo n ~ them thc qUMtlere J" ibll n inlll.lf Ihe hi~h ·rl,e~:1t \ ' ia. Et iopia by R idolfi ,lIld \\"o Jf~an~ Fr,mkl. \"cnluri k t: p I th e lh t' in 111\ 1',lpcr'; sec VSBA A rdl1\e~. 47 Ro hert Venlllri to Robcrt :Ind \ ·,11111,1 \"enl\Jrl. 26 Feh ruaT) 1<):).,. \ ·liH \ \rdl1\C~ (De C arlo): 10 ~la rt:h 19S5 ( .\ l or<1ndiJ: 1<) J a nu an 1').16 tChe lani): I I:ehnran 195 6 (P iceinaWl; 14 _\I<lrdl 19S6 t (i ~lndo lfi). Ik ( :ario pre~t:ntcd hh filnh (ltl u r bani~m madc for the Inch \I ilan T flI.:1ll1<lk of I<).i-l \\"hl'TL,I~ :-'l or,mul di'L"Il~~cd :.orne bridgc project.'> and i ndll"(flal hll ikhng': ~ ec f. ·.1 rd,,!({fll"'· ('OH/tldlf ,. ,IMW I, no. t (1955), p. 1)2. ' r he 1Il\·it:ltiIHl, ~cnt Ifllt to th l' pJrtlnp.lnh Ilf thc· 'c III In,II'" .Ind kept in \'enturi ', r;J,pt:r~ r:,1 \ C ,I furthcr mdl..:at ion ohdlO he had ,'l"h:IlKC to hcar. althou~h hi ~ freq uent tr;1\cl, l\olllJ hinc 11IlHkrnl hllll rrom _lI tenu i l1~ re~llhlrl\ Accord i ng lO I hc ... e Ill\'] t:tlIOn\. I h I.: folll f\1 ' llg :lTeh ilo't' kCI un:d al (hI.: I,· t '>c minar:. in 19.:; ... /55: R iecarJo (; II du lil h. \ I,Hccl 11l d ·011 \ 11. (; 11)\ ,111111 .\ h..:hcluu·t . ~I ario dc ' L uigi. G ianc<lrlll D c ( :a rlo. n KedrJo ~ l nranul. I ~1I \ alkcchl, \ 1.1f10 Coppa. Gi u':oc ppc \'aecarl), L lllJ.:1 \ lorclIl, 1·.mlllO P t/Tefl. \ d.t1hl'Ttll l.iher'l, I.udovico Qu:.t ro n i, ~ e llll HeIlJel.·lf. JgnJl J ~ ' (; an.klla ,md ( :e'J rc I~r;lndl. I· .H rC,I"lll\ unclea r. rhi" IIs1 Joe, not corrc'porH.I e X,l("th to;1Il .lTlldc .m the'L" \L"minM' po hit ~ het.l i n L 'A,.,.h1I{'1f11 I'll. ( ·mll{/( 11(' ,. S/t)17f1 I . n I I. I ( 19:;;':; 1. p. 92 1·h I ' ;1fI1L It- 1.·1 Ic·, the foIlO\~in ~ 3rdllICC{ ~ III <lJdltll .n 10 thll'C ,llrc;l\h mC nl loned: ( ;lI'\,lnTll ·htcngll, Alhcrto Re, ...a, t-. I<lrll) PanicOllt and \ lll hck \ ,[I( .rc. ()n the ,.chn h_Inu. it Il1Jke' no mention of the follO\ling: (i iuwppc· \ Juan •. l.lI ll!;l \l o rclll, Em lli,) P iffc-fl. ignal.io G ard ella and C e,a rc' Hrandi . 1·01" 19fi.,/'-,h. [he whedlllc oflh..: 1'-:1 ~CIl1111Jr~ rcmain~ unclcar a.,> 110 invlt.H1on ... h,IIC hccn ,Hdll\cd for thl' peTlod. 4R 'Seminar of 17 April·. IITlIH'hli\hcd lypC~l"flpL \ ·S B,\ Arl"lme .... -l9 Ro llcr! \ ·cnwn {o Robcn :ll1d \ ·:,lI1n,l \ ·CT1tl1Tl. 2.\ \pnl [q:;h. \ ·~ B ·\ \ r..:hilc,. .:;;0 · I~ hi~ i~ ~llggC\ICd h~ ,cnc~ uf pro rnp l' Iln an undated nlCl110 in th..: \ l.,BA :\ [1.."hl \ c\ wilh thc ti t le ' .\l lJretll' . ~t On rcall ... m in \"cntun \ <irthitcClurc. ~cc ."' I:lnl,lau~ \1111 \I om, ·Z\\Cll.:ril.:l Rc.d"llllh'. In H'ert-Arc/uIII('j't' n-l, nil. 7iK (11Ji7 I, pp. '-j~.2: J ) ~Ill (; r.1 hJIl1. ',. 01 PO~I- \ Il1lkrlll'lll :I~ Againsl r l i~ lO rit."l\m, EUlOpean :\ rl.iJ..: t\ p,11 \ crnacul ar in I~l" lall()n 10 \ ml.:f1C;Jn Cornmcrc i;11 Ve rna(."lI LII , :mJ tilt: (;H~ ,i'" ()ppo~cd tu thl.: l nd ind llJI Bu ildIng'. A rtfonJm 20, no. 4 t f) el'c rn her IIJk I ), p p ..'io-,H: \ on \ I00'. \ t'IIf llri. R(II(( h & S(II/I IJroa:lI, pp. 60·-6Ij. 52 .\Ia r:- T \\'ilhams 10 l{o l1Crt \ ·cnturi. 29 \1." II)SK \ rlni\l;~ nf tht.: ;\ mcncan k,IJCIl)\ In Home, ;...'C\\ York. .;3 Robert \ ·enlU ri, · P rIlJclt: .\ d d lllonJI <";llllhll~. \ mcncUl \Lld..:nJ\ Il) Hume·. \·SB 500, P m jee!: Adt.hul)ll;tl Sw~hll"'. -\ mcnl'an \caJt.:m\ m I{.flll<.:. \ .... n \ \ rl..·hl\c" S-l l /;id. .'S Sce J e a n- F rall~:oi\ l .yc .t ,l rJ, Th(' / '().,Ilff/ld,'n} CfIIff/ltilJl: .. 1 RI'/JlJrt Ill/ A "IJr.:."lnl"I' ([l.llnlll.!.lpl.li,: 11n i\cr' I(\ I)f I\ Jlnn c"l t_1 Prc". I</X-4): I'ern \ f1{kr"m.llyt)nl!.I11' of P OS!1llf"lr nIJ/)· (I ,0nJ0I1: \ I.·r~\f, IIJ<)t'\), pp. 2-l- Y'.

:\1 1 imagc~ eourtc,y nf J lJ hn Ileno u r:1I \ 'S BA. C~l"Cpt p , I ~C .i . \ Clllllrr, Sl'Ot( Brl)\\11 and A",()eiatc~, Are hn e .... :\rc hitcClllr,11 \ rl. h i\ c,. l ·nncr,lI \ of Pcnn,\lunu ;l1ld I' cnn'ylv'lIli.1 Ih ~[()n c3 I ,lnd \11J 'Clllll ( :()rnmi'~loll: paJ.:c 7. cllfCk\ll',e frO)lll top left: 111l1iJertn Allcmandi: Ed]/.h,ne di (:onlllOlt:t : 0 2110n Ahll.Hin·op Fow; (:(lIl1li1'//(1 i"fjl/{;!J/J;lil no. 21S \ 19.';7). p . :N. p,IJ.:C I). hotto lll left. (.(i \al!('!!II/I)1IIJlJJII{fi n.,. llWI ('9S4 ). p. -i h. E\cr~ dTofl ha~ nccn made to eOlllJU cop\ rlJ.:ht hO)ldc f' . T he 1'1I1>11,hcr, ;Ip! Ilogi,c for an\' om i,~ion .... \\11II.:h I he\ \\ III be Plc;l\cd I. f rec tl(' J l Ihl..: e,uilnt 'fPPOflll 1111\.

Robert Venturi American Academy in Rome Photographs 1954 195 6 Ova the course of Robcn Vcnturi's two-year fdlowshir at rhe.

would soon come to be associated with \'cnturi 's work, including

American ACH.kmy in Rome, rhe young architect rra\"l::llcd cxrcnsivdy

his apparent fascination with urban facaLi<.:s. with the street :.md

:ICro.sS nor only hal)' bur the whole of Europe and north Afri cL Illustrated in the.: fo llowing pages is a selection of il11J,gcs from rh!.;sc

perhaps Illore than anything else, with a commitment {() the idea that photographs of buildings should be animated by their users :lI1d

trip " - photographs that rcn.:a l archircc(lIral and

human context.

\'iSIIJllfOpCS

thar

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...... FI LE S 56

•

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•

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FILES

路I.A fll.ES

FILES 56

On Public Interior Space Maurice Hartevefd and Denise Scat! Brown

/ n Ihe riry ,ada)', fJrt IIIfel in pllblic alria alld shop in lIIalls, fJ!'e move along rovfred f!:..'alro oys fllld go /rom streel to slreet by laking shol1(!1ts /hro/lgh /he buildings of a ril)' Nod, /n ream demdes, the amoun/ and proPOl1il)1I 0/ public spat(' ffi,,'thill urban buildings has sleadi(r illcreased, ff-,i!h miliA 0/ it forming pan of a larger interior and eXJerior pedes/riall lIel'ff.'orJ:. Yet, although ill/friar public spact has become aft impOlton/ (Olls/i!/lelll of ti,e romemporfJI)' df)' alld of our urball experiell(:e, il is rarl'fl' designed ilS sllch, Prompted by Ihis discofJncaioll . •I/olllice H[JI1et'tld has follo'il!'ed dijfert'1ll leads /0 examine cOlllempor(Jty urball desigll in relatioll to public ill/eriors, tlJlvugh this resemrh, he has r/oCIIlllell!ed ill partirular the urban allafnes and af"(III'!n1ural desigIH of Robel1 l'fJI/llri alld Denise S('Q// Bro~'II , ill '{f.·hid, i!l/fliorpllbl;r spare is arcorded s;gllificam and mulliple roles, Ideas piolleert'd by I ell/lIri olld Scoft Br~'II hove become absorbed Gritl,;1I tIIrnitertllral pr(JcI;(f, flolnbfl' Iheir lW' of Ihe .volli .flap illtrodured ill their J 972 sludy of I,as I'egos, Similar6', the rOllrep/ of/he 'rue ill/flimr' sefll if} Iheir earliesl projerls. has motllred ill Iheir laler t.:.:ork /0 illrlude (I/J in/erllol street imbeddtd ill (1IJt/'iJrork of urball pll/;/ir spares and path'lJ:)ays, both illterior rllld extetior. Hom'tVfI~ although Int')' refer 10 illlflior public space freqlletJ!~I' ill their ru'Iirillg, Fellluri and SCOlf Brom'!l hm.y yet to (/tsrribe Iheir viere's 011 if ill allY greal detail; (/ more forusfd examinalioll that Ihe /olloff.'ing dialogue bel'ff.'eell ll/mllice Hal1l'Vfld (lnd Denise SCOff BrO'ii::n seel:.~ 10 prm'ide. 1

,11": 'The street through the building' is a re~urr in g theme in your dcsign work, In your rcccn t book, Arrhiterl"r! as SiglJs alJd Systems: For rI ,1/alJlJalsl Time, I learned that this street always ties into {he t::xterior pathway system leading [Q the building. \V ith this approach, thl.: imerna l street ca n be designed to suppOrt the urban circu lation SYS[C lll while at a smalle r sca le it forms (]1e sp ine. as you call it. of the public seC[or of you r building. To make app ropriate public inte riors yo u closely stu dy the surroundin g urban patterns then design the architecture CO fit with these and to encourage commu nication. This seems to bring the two of YOll together: the urbanist and the architecr.

DSH: I am happv that you have found the book useful. It attempts to broaden our grasp, as architects. b~i applying urban ideas to architec[ural design. in and Oll( of bu ildings. Bm it's perhaps an over-simplification (0 call Bob an architect and me an urbanise \Ye arc each borh, The dichotomy is within us as well as between us. ft's a four-way dichowmy,

,I!H: In looking ~u these internal streets. there seems to be significant variations between projects - in both their public nature and how they arc designed, For cX:1mplc~ the street between rhe Life Sciences Instiwtc and [he Commons Building in yOllI Uni ve rsi ty of i" ichigan complex is lllorC accessible than the onc bct\\'ccn the (WO wings of the regional governm~nral complex in Toulollse, In both designs, the major SHeet is internal to the project bur outdoors. an d it is aligned with surrounding pathways, RU{ in Toulouse it can be closed off by gates. therefore it is perhaps ll)Q f C private, In the Trabant Student Ccnrcr of the l ;ni\'crsiry of D~la\\'are the route is interior; it is borh:.l street and rhe major public :uca of the bui ld ing, And within the ex isting Princeton building that you con\'erted to the Frist Campus Ccnrcr the streets arc low and narrow. They arc the least open in rhe series. and are also set at right-angles to the outdoor path. Could you explain how these differences in publicity are affected by the design assignment and rhe urban ana lysis? In what ~ense arc they all public?

DSI3: It would take a book

answer these questions, Rut fir<.,t, il lingu istic issue: in English, 'publicity' commonly mean~ 'commu nication to

for the purpose of making certain in formation better known', "' 'his. I think, is differcm from what you intended. How such publicity is ac hieved through architecture and urbanislll intere~rs Bob and me very much: however. \veren't you referring in your qllc~tiun ({) a more general and abstract idea of 'puhlic qU3Iit<? ) IH: \\' hen I use the term 'publicity' 1'111 referring to "ociol()gist~ who c<Hegorise inferiors public if they arc part of rhc so-callcd public realm, In the [950S , through writers slIch as Hann:lh Arcnut. this realm was defined as the sphere of action and spc<..'ch, So, in it~ origin, the notion is c10selv• related to communil.:<lrion, f would ~a\'• that interiors arc public when they open themsch'es to the knowlt::dgc of a community. A shopping nH11. for cXCimpk. unlike:1 home or pri\'3tc club. issues an ill\'itar;on to the general public. Th<..'fcforc. to continue this reasoning, it i:s open to gcneral regulation<., ~imi l ar ro those for an outdoor street. fitH you <lfC right that. in uesi~n. rhe s(ate of being publicly known i ~ only one 'J<.,pc(.;t of a much hroad(;r quality of being public.:. Others might include being ilH itin.g to the public, and being part of a network of public ~paces ;lnd p<lthw<l.Ys, In considering these broader aspects. the emphasis on thL: public quality of the space becomes most important.

DSB: The difference between 'public' and 'ci\'ic' should 111..: noted too. And you're right: our \' ariou~ imernal<.,trccts '.II1d space~ h:l\'(': \cry different public qualities - as different a<., those ora city, As wc design (hem, we find metaphors in a range of urban prototypes. fron"! I11<..'Jicval market routes to expressways, and wc bcar in mind the is<.,ues of location and capacity thar transponarion planner~ consider. \\'c develop our categories and hierarchies of ~rrce[ rypcs from. amon~ othns. transportation engin eering, from I .O ll ~ ahn'~ famou<., plan for Philadelphia 's streets, from our 1960s an . llyses of La~ \'t:gas, :Ind from David Cranc's 'four f::lces ofmo\"<..'m<..'nt·, Cmne was on<; nftht: re\\ members of the Univt:rsity of Pcnmyh'ania planning faculty during my time rhere who tried ro maintain (I link between architectllrc and social-scie nces-bascd. 'non-physical' (as they called it) urtx.tn planning. It was Crane who SCt me ro scudy regional "iCiLIlCC, and whose im<..'fcst in urban change and unpredictabiliry ha:-. been an influence on my work ever since, These, {hen. are the undcrpinnin~s of our ideas on the design of the public sector. or srn.:cr. in buildings. But this is half the story. The other half concerns specific~ of the brief or programme, which give the basis for the project. In (he.: clil.:nt ·s intcndeu acti\'ities, the relation betwcen them. and the 5r"CC~ required to accommodmc them ties th e first definition of the public realm, And rh<..' fir'!, rolt: of the 's{feet throu gh the building' is cirndation, It forms part ofth<.: movement system, along which the building's spaces arc locared. ~lI1d from wh ich access ro and among users' a<.:ti\'i,ies is obr<lillt::d, l ' rbanist~ study urban economics and transport;;ltiofl t::nginecring to undersund how patterns of circu lation affect urban dcvclopmcnr and hO\\ land u~t: and movement arc interrelated in the: city. And Crane include<., 'giving access' as one of his four faces of mu\'emcnt, poi nting out that thi~ quality defint:s the ,{feet as a 'ciry builder'. becau'\e gi\'ing ,lCce'!s {() land enables its dc\dopmem. In (he !><l I11t: way. wc consid<..'r the <.,trcct" through-the-building as an acccss-gi\er and try (0 comhine J<.:ri\'icy patterns and circulmion in designing building'! as we would in pJ.lI1ning a city. This forms the basis of ollr claim that wc cia land lIS<..' and transportation planning inside buildings. Yet, :IS 'inrL'rior urh~{nis[s', wc find wc mUSt work with categories offunction beyond thost: of [he brief. These relate to the building's role in rhe communit~, and

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., lilt pllgr. r hc rnJ In \1 J Ir~ .I'l' of I he '\, JIII)I1J I (;aller:- \ S;Hn ~bur\ \\' i ng (19<'11:1-'11 ), (.II,dr."ut .from fOp n::ht: \ I 900 culou r ph ()lO~rJ p h of I he i ntc rrl JI J H.Jde ~trI:c I 111;1[ ru 11' \\ 111-11 n I hl' h,df -11 Ol hoed nOli ~l: ~ p,u:llkl W CllC'IO \ IInd ~c SUee!: a n ,M\I) en,e.rJ\ lI)J! uf lhc IIlICfllJr u f rhe (;Jkric lfO rkJfl\. PJfl\: plan (If dll: Forum In Ro me frum C amJilu "jIItC -.. IX~ Dn ,\fnd{(lJlIIl: Jnd .1 1)(lrflon o f (' 11)\ ,mn! 1I ,1 1t 1~1.\ '\Ill,', d l:lJ.ik.1 map (If R ome, 17 ~ f!, \lIlInage~ l'OUrtC<" Ma u ri cc I-I JHc\cld, C:':l:Cpl for Chl·~ll'l \[fccIIO l 1IISlein 8i1d/TopFl)(nl.

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mav concern the size and volullle of mm'emclU or i.K'ti\·it\". . Particu larh. impo rtant arc catcgories th.l( differclHiate betwcen puhli c and pri\'ate :lni\'ities or spaces, and help tu define th e characrer of each and the n:lations berween th e m. In co ns idering puhli c-private relation s hip s in <lrchircctlln.:, we have learned from a comparison ofNo lli's map of Ro mt.: and our .'!olli ITI<IP o f th e Las \'egas Strip. and fro m Crane'" idea o f [he.: 'Capital \Ycb '. w hich he d esc ribes <IS the in frasfrllcmre of all public facilities in <1 city.

.1111: So undcrs(an din g public span: mC<.In s understa nding its relation to priV ~ltl: s pace. and e spec iall y so as we consider public inte ri ors.

I am reminded o f a di scuss io n thm \\"as at th e ce ntre of the di scotJr:,c o n urbani s lll in the late n ineteent h century. The pioneering urban theorisr Josc f StOhhen pkade d for a clear d ivisio n of public a nd priv ;'He space. whil e Ca mill a Sine argued in ~ LJPpOf{ o f an inrc f"\\"()\'C1l relation shi p because a wea r part o f public life rook place within buildin gs . r-\O( only pu bl ic squares bur ell so enc losed spacc" were , he cla imed, llsed publicl y. Thi s is what wc ... ce in the city today, but man y dt:si g ner~ seem to h a\T forgo[«;n tht:: (.:o mpJex symbio<;is that cx is ts between public and private.

DSR: A beach is publ ic cln d

ro\\"n hall is ci\'ic, In t he firs t we a ll s hare ~i common good but don't join together ro do so. In the second \\ C ;.Ire part of <l cOllllllunit y. Blit public and ci\' ic funcrions ma y also be sC f"\'ed by the interi o r.;; of so me pri\'are <lnt! inst iwtional buildings. Shopping mall s are rn some exte nt puhlic today, and I ,as \"e gas simu late ... the public secto r both indoors and out. Th e combi n,Hion of publ ic and pr ivJte has a Io n,!! and \'aried hi story. An auspicious eilfly t\\ c IH ic th -cellt ury t;;xample is the much lo\ed inre rio r ofr he John \\':mam aker departm ent SfOre (now \ lacy's) in Ph ilad el ph ia . It 's a large atrium inside a pri\"lte huilding, bur peop le arrange to rendezv()u~ rhe n: <IS if it were <l puhlic square. It feels civ ic ,uld it has a rolc. both retail and rit ual. in the com mun al Christmas cele hrations of the city. In Touloll se, the client SJ\\ our diagonal s(rcet <.lcross the site <IS hi g hly ci vi c bur in addition to it:, civic fun cti ons it pro\'ides a pedestrian s ho n cllt betwecn two ex isri ng com mercia l a rcas. 1 had hoped it co uld co nt ai n a street rnarket as do orhe r Toul ouse Str~c t s. howcn;r the clie nt \\"()uld nO{ countenance a co mrncrc ial usc and althou g h this st rt;;t::t is the public ..H,' cess to all gm'e rnm elH office~ it is shut off <l r night for sec urit~, . Th ere 1... also a small civic p/arf hefore [he Srdle rf/~ (As.mu/J/ie that is lin ed with (rees Jnd be n chc~ like the squarc of;j traditiona l French ",air;t'. L' nfoftlln:ue!y thi ", has been c losed [0 the puhlic agai n for reasons of sec urity. Blit children walk (() school 'llo ng o ur ') tre c t and rhe local comm unit y ga th e rs there for C\·cnts. And so m e interna l "pa ces have d c\·ctopcd ancillary lIses. Thc assembly ha ll complex is used far impOH<lDt p ublic announcements and conferences, and;1 market for fruit <lnd H.:getables has ap peared, unoffi ci all y. undaground in the p<Hkin g struC[ure along th~ ro ute to th e elevacor. At our l ln ive rsity of ~ l i ch i ga n Life S cieno;s com plex, a series of pcdc))trian p<Hhs. br idge~ and public spaces co n nect the academic "icic ncc .... a life sc ien ces rC'ic~Hch Elcilit\' and rhe medical cenrre, Tht: ... e routes :lrc more like medic\'al streets th an a civic plaza. Th ey ra ke lIsers directly where they need to go, via rclati\'el~' n~Hro\\' pathways that wid en to .~i\'c access to doorway ... or to a ll ow eddy s pace in which pcopk ca n co n,gregarc, En cou ra gi n g se rcndipirou s meeti n f.4s be{wcen sc h ol<lr~ of different di",cipline" is a major ailn in rh e phlllning of our '.l(,·adcmil· strccr . . . \\'c rhcrefo rc locate informal s to ppin g place s at points o f encou nt er where important p:.lth\\"ay~ <1

crns'). Jn la b buildings. we place coffee lo un ges off the main corridor near rh e clevC\wr. I n cxceri o r s paces around inte nsely u..,cd buil din gs wc provide infor mal scari ng. sornc cimt.:s cafe chairs, often ju..,t steps, parapets and led ges. H ere in good weather student s cnl sttrdy or worke rs ear lunch. These inforn1:.l1 oppoffu niti es along t he \\'ay rcvcal rather than dem onstrate rheir fun ct io n. Peu pk:. especially ')WdCllh. "icem happy ro d isco\'cr an d dcfi ne usc') for thern ...c:ln.:s. (;i\'c 'ilUdcnts a bench (0 s it o n and the y will lie on it or (hlllcC 011 it. but pr()\ ide J parapet or ledge and they will treat it ~l') ~1Il engaging opporwniry. The ITWjOf route chat pa~ses through the Trabant Ccntcr lit: ... on a direct path betwee n the collcgc dorrnirorics ;ln d thc kctllfc halb. It ser\'cs the twO prim ary functi ons (lrall strcets - to join points long itudin ally a nd to pro\"ide accc')') (0 acr i\·itic') and \trtJcrllre~ bordering it. Sitting spaces along ir plIn'cy the feeling of il c()!nhina tion .;;cmi nar room and sidc \\'a lk cafe. It is therefore much more (han a food court . Th e narrow stret:.:t~ of the F riq (:,Imp u<; Ccnrcr emcrgc directly from rhe hea\'y ha"icmenr .., tru("[ure of rhe exi~ting building. Bob man age d to draw from this pi cruresqlle.: hur uncompromisin g herirage a needed interplay between rhe C;cnte.:r\ tight, l()\\ spaces and in; hi gh. ex pans ive ones. Th e rig h t-angle {Urn that concerns you at the main entry (() rhc building must hl.: 'ice n in the cotl(e.:xr of the circ ulation pl a n in t h ~H pan of the C:lIllP"~. :\ p:H h\\'<IY doe .. indeed tra\'erse the front ofr he Fri st Build in g. and ir widcI),) en form <I patio at the entrance; but it 's les"i used for accl.:~'" to the C:cnter than i<; i\ lcCosh \ Valk, which run s pJrallcl to it, to the north. Th e cntr~ arcade added [() the "'ri st extcrior is de s igned to dra\\" from this 1~lr,C!;cr crow d of pede ... tri ans, bringin.e; them from ... cveral direction ... into the building via a ~cric:, of ne\\' doorways. <..:feared from what wcrc origina ll y basement windows. Peo ple walk :lcrn ... s the p:HI1\\'ay and inro the basemem, Once there. they mO\e bet\\een (he he.:<l\'Y suppor{~. through right, low way"i, past campus centre facilitic ... in a L~l'" \"egas-likc se ttin g. then o n f O the \·ast. light "'pacc') of the cafcn.:ria and "iwdcll{ offices above. This ~eq ucnce con\'(::rts what W;IS once a bll ildin g st..:rv in g one academic department into a faciliry for the \\ halt.: community. Although the or igina l front door still admit ... ')wdc ll r", and fac ul ty to classrooms a nd a lih rary abO\'c. a Illore ci\ il' cnt0 and acccs\ pattcrn has bee n added fo r the ca mpu s ccnrre. Blit 'ci\'ic' for u nder.grad uat e ... ca n be funky and a little (but o n l~ a little) likc I.a ... \· Cg'IS.

:llff: In all t hese designs the internal ,,[reet

u'\ed as <lconnel'tnr and communicator IXerwec n t he prh'<ltc and rhe public dom:lins. linking pathways. inrerWC~I\ ' ing the public sector, and u ... ing communic:.ltiong raffiri (signs ,lnd sym hols).

f)SR: Streets can pl ay many roles. Cra ne' \ 'follr faccs

m(l\ el1lent' s ugges t that chey function as channel" fnr the (."ircular ion of people. ,!!,oods and \'chides; c ity builder'), in th,lt thc~ gin:: acec ....... to places for seu!erncnr; roo m s for activitie'). c~ p ecially in mild clill1<1tcs a nd in dc\-c1aping area .. , w he rc mudl (If life t<.lk(.:s placc outdoors and on stree ts: and infor mClti o n givers, telling tr:l\·eller.., where thc~ arc in the ci ty, pro\'id ing the loc us for communicat ion bc[\\ ccn individual ... and purvey in g m css;lgcs, l'o lllmun al and commercia l. T hi ... i", the publicity function. whose iconography wc . . rudied in I.a . . \ 'Cg<h. In all its rol es the St reet i", a link he.:(\\ ccn the pllh li c and thc pri\'atc. at scale s t hat range from the sidewalk <lcccs') 01'.1 row hOllse to t il (.: nlO\'ernent networks that se rve major tilCiliric ... and urban areas. And thi~ ap plies to inrcrior strcets wo. Ycc if inrerior public "'P:ICC i... co co ntrib ute to urban c in.: ulati o n. ca rl'ful . . wdy of it~ context i... re.:quircd. ()f

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For this reason we analyse ::lcri\"iry <lnd ll1o\,e ment ~ys [em ,') arollnd the project site and document the quality of nearby public space, exterior and imerior. And wt: consi der [fends within these sYStcll1S ~lnd tkmands on them_ Thi s gi\-es a framework for the planning of rcl:.itionships both within the project and beyond it. And from the se phll1l"Iing swdies of the broader surroundings our designs frequently spring. In c \-oh'ing de s i~ns from context. wc ·\·c found the transportation planning concept of ;desire lines' to be useful. These l ine~ are drawn dire c tl y benveen where peopl e are and where tht:y wanr to be, regarclkss of whether direct roures exist. ~Iany \'SBA projcCt parlis stem from de sire lines. Sometin1es the building or compkx encloses a portion of the area·wide movcment sys tem and i~ literally bui lt around tht: dC!'iire lines.

,1/1-/ : The imernal street see ms \·e n, - mllch akin to the model of the Pari sia.n arca de. These con:red streets arc pan of rhe netwo rk of publi c space. gi\-ing access (0 shops and rhcCltres, and they al so di splay signs. But more important to this com(1arison, arcades al so function as systems o f shon c uts char have survived o\-er tim e.

DSB: Yes. it's imponanr {hat interior st reers ta ke people where lilC ), wam to go and. jusr as rhe market place sirs at rhe crossroads in a rown, so the more public functions musr be located at major access and crossing points. where most people pass. And yes, arcades that run within buildings make an intercsting comparison with the street. Your n:search n:minds me of tbe two-Ie\·el mai n Streer of Chester, England. Hen; interconnected pedesrrian ways arc sct ant: aho\·e the other. They f<lce:: the sneer on onc side an cl are lined by shop,') on the orher. This huilding secrion occ urs in a ll the pri\·a rc buildings along th e length orthe sneer. It has bcen mai ntained by successive builders over hundreds ofvears. so \'aluab le is it (0 the rerail uses of the city. , , \Ve also l:xperienced the longc\·ity of shortcllrs in T oul ousc. Thc site, when wc first saw it. had alrcady been cleared and we planned our diagonal acro~s it [() serve as a shortcut between t\VO nodes in t he city_ But only \\ hen our project was well into consullction did wc di scover from an old map thar we had sited OllT route exactly where a srreet had once mn. . lfH: Although a comparison could be made between urban internal

arcade') and rhe imcfIlal streets in your designs. the urban contexts <Ire quite different. \ 'SBA buildings are Illosrly frec·standing, while in general rhe arcades are emhedded within i.I city block_ Your buildings arc surrounded by public ope n areas while arcades have backs which arc pri\"3te. How, th e n. in yo ur de signs do rhese ope n spaces keep or :lchieve their public meaning witholl( conrradi c ting {he objectives of the internal street ? How. through architectural and urban design. d o you prl:vent rear areas and anonymous outdoor space from flanking rhe building:

DS/?: The internal arcades arc lined on either ~ ide by private (main ly rcrail) uses. They are co nne cred, as well, \vjth service and loading <IrC~l S at the back. In o ur wo rk as urban planners we somerimes collahurare wirh retail e<:o nomisrs \\-ho help us define the commercial naturc of the street a nd se t up the relation ships yo u are discus sing. TI)(~y choreograph the \ ·'UiOll S retail use s (Q achieve the most profitable selling em'i ronments for individual stores <.m d the community. \\·c must also plan carefully for se rvice functi ons. Th ough these may lack beauty, they can ' r be evaded bur must be adequately ~ i7.c d and we ll located_ \Vc wa x lyrical on rhe subjec t of sc n -icc planning.

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If wc don't, rrll cks <Ind maintenance vehick." wil l invaue rhe public places of t\l ain St re ct a nd the pedestria n p a dl ~ of the C:.Imp u"_ ,IIH: There is a more exuerne version ofrh c internal street in t il l: 1'0101 of rhe suburban mall. Architects who dt.:sign tht:m seem to focus onl y on the inside. Their building complexes arc: intro\"t~rrcd ; blind outdoor facades form a b lank box surrounded hy parking lots. But recently there has been development towards a morc outdoor-oriented typolo~y. Comperition with renewed c iry ce nrres and with mher retail arca~ has forced some mall s to he abandoned. Oth e r~ arc being redesigned to inrroduce outdoor pcdestrian spaccs. which surround pans of the complex and open up the faeadcs of the buildings. It <;CCJ1H that interior public space needs outd oor sp,lce an d morc important. needs to be part of a diffcrenrimed and hi era rc hic sys rem of pu b lic "pacc.

DSB: This is a m;}jor finding ofb(Jrh your work and our). From it, further questions cierin.':. For exampk, how lihould th e <1Ch' <1nt age~ of <l lively indoor streer be weighed again st thc ne e d for vitality on the exte rior? \Vc made a study of th c Rl:puhlic Square distri cr in Au stin. T exas, where our diem was pl:Jnnin ~ tu build office buildings :.l nd hoped to achieve vital rerail activity o n th e StrCC L \Vc anal:,ed \\';lYS in which building entrance and access p . Htcrn.., co uld be dc ~ i gne<.l to support and e nl ivcn ground floor. ~ rrc er- t~iC in g reta il. I f th e em ranccs to the office hu il ding are located too near rhe roa d interst:ct ion. then mid·block rera ilu scs may suffer bCGlll Se fewer people \\ ill go by them. But mid~blo c k entra nces draw peop k past ~torc fronts as thcy head toward build in g lobbie5 and c!c\·ato rs. As you have no ted , mall devel o pers <Ire seeking \\" ay~ to open up shopping malls anu gi\·c thcm some o f rh e intc re sr of \Iain Srn:et. \\"hen we plan for small main streer..,. we rry [0 help storekeeper.., to differentiare th e mselves from the malls b) u..,i ng the fact rh :;\[ th ey have the great open sky, not a mall rooL o\·cr them, and by im<lgi nari vc l) adapting their hi storical buildings to c rea te unique outdoor and indoor shoppi ng spaces. For this work wc mu~t find cco nomists who 10\"t: old buildings and undersrand their po ss ibilitic ~. \\'c h'1\·e also tried tu apply conce pts of rerail planning (0 rh e major thoroughfares rhat pass through and around ou r jnstiw tional huilJinl!,s. \ re ct in ~ pbces, which <:Olald be lounges. cafes. com munity buildings. or outdoor congregating "' pots . belo ng \\!herc route ') cross. Th e 'hundred pc r ce nt area' of urban econom ics is at or nea r the busiest crossing. He re should be ril c most intense group ac tiviti es, physical or mcnu!. of Cl cicy - and also, wc suggesr, of a building, I ,arge·\,olumc lecture halls require wid e corrid or access space. This is congested on ly c\·c ry hour. '.dlt:n c1a s~c.., cil.lnge. bur as stud ents wait there th ey can mec( <.ll1d c hac \\'c try to prm·ide seating and a glass wall facing rhe campus, so this corridor ca n augme nt rhe sparse common-room space rhar is all mo~t uni\-ersities G.l n afford. As it continues to ocher parrs of tile buildjng. thi s way Illay widen or narrow to serve its acceSs function s. It may gi\'c information yia noti ce boards and provide conve nient locarions for tclephones and electronic co mmunicatio n systems. Off it, indoors or Otl L wc like to prm'idc eddy places wirh a coffee machine nearby. so rha t fruitful di "c ll '}~io ll s. initiated as students walk out of lectures can continue informa ll v. .IIH: You could a lso refer to rhe uniqu e I "Pi ' ·cgas Strip of the 196os. Ir showed that a vast sys tem of puhlic interiors could exist tilat, as you e xplained in l .eal'JlillKJro lll L.as l"egflJ. was disconnected from tilc o ut side in order to keep patrons di"oricnrarcd in tirne and spacc so {hey wou ld lose co unt of rhe hours ,a nd rem ai n Jr t he gam bling tahk,,_

:\'owad:1Y'i along what was once the Strip, the outdoor spacc is morc csta blis hed and morc part of rhe whole systcm" Ouruoor pi'll./.a~ and open an:::as be twcen buildings and on what i\ nu\\' I .as \ 'ega~ Bo ule vard arc introduced. So both Las \ 'egas and rhe malls have wlI)~formed or c,'ol\·cd. D o yo u think these transformations sha re iI ,imilar logic conccrning thc d iffcre nti ati on of the public system and the:: elimi na tion ()f :tnonym()u~ o utdoor space ?

/)SB: On I ,;)s \ 'cgas Boulevard today hardly an ything is pu blic and probabl y in the malls it never wa s, hut both try to imita te..: <I puhlic .\ ecror. !\Iall s CnU1UrJgc se mi -ci vic and polit ical en;ntS ro take place on their parking lots o r in their interior courts a nd 'community halls', whi ch are llsually tucked-aw:IY spacc'i unsuitablc for rerail use and with lirrle public pn:sencc.:. Las \"egas has created a p ri\·:1tc- puhlic scctor. Th L' Roulev;l rd i ~ \0 different from the Strip wc ,tudied in thc 19hos" Hi g hl y pede~triani .. cd, it secms like an elongated Pial.7.a i'\<I\·oni.1. The 'p uh lic' pla/Js that lie bet,,'cc n the Bo o!e, Jrd Jnd rhe casinos im itatc th e Pllblic )cc(()rs of hi sw ri c Europe an c it ic::.. \\"h e re ')tridcl)( s ig ns, a portf'-tOdlh"f and a n.:ass lIrin g \'iew of park in g once beckoned rhe :lll{()mobile, ntH'. famo lls p lal.Js of Europc <HC jamme d wge.;t he r (() Ix:guik the pcdcs tri;..ln on the boulc\'ard. \ Vhy go to \\:nice, J[al)" the) $t.:e m (0 ask , when you can expe riencc Vcni cc, :\'evada ? Bur rhe mon..: rht:: cJ\i no front yards have heen made {O rc!'(;mhlc old civ ic pl aces. the morL' pri"ate they've bccome. T hert: i:-i almost no public s idcwalk left. Evc ryt hing that looks likc <I c ivic plaza is pri v:ltl: ro ,vi thin lulf a meter o f the street. And 'private- public' in not really public. as would-ht.: protes ters di scove red \\'hen they tried (0 ;lsscrt their righr to public assembly on Bou lcvard sitkwalk'i. Bot h I.as \ 'egas anu the m a ll ~ must think hard- he<ldedly aboLlt s~s tenh for 'icn"ice and parking, espec ially cus tomer parking, On the Boule"ard, parking has graduarcd to s tructure s behind t hc cas in o hotcb. l e~1\ in g rhe front ~i1 ru s availa ble for Cl pseuoo c ivic rowno;ca pc. BU[, a~t parking lors remain the pn":\";.l!cm and reas":>urin g firM view of rhe \hop pin g mall. I n both case~, the store sc n "icc \ys tcm is Out of "icw and :lnon\"mou:-.. :'-J(l\\" Las \ 'cgas is c hanging once again. Like cO J1(cmporar~ architccture ir is mm'ing a\\ ay from archilCcrural allus io n and rhe aim ro cO ll1l1lllni c:w..: and toward architectural alHr raction and th c projt:ction of Iu xllry and qU<llity sen'ice, It i'i hard to imagine ;1 I J;lS \"egas hort:1 thar no longer romances yo u off rhe boulevlJrd hut pllr\"t..:~ s, instead, an ;lir of privacy and high-da~s exc lu si,·cness. \Vh ,1( will he rh l.' narure of the public realm in sllch a t:omp\ex? I 'i uspect that landscaping will pn)\"idc the primary image. and that it will be use d to ~ h ie ld the ,·ie\\". whik disclosing di sc reet bur f<l\cin:Hing hims of rh e faciliric'! rcsc ned for ju<;t a few insjde, Pt:rhap~ thi s wi ll work. Pc rhap" by tilt: laws of co ntrast, abstraC[ neo-modern arc h itccrure will pre ~enr an irrcs istible attract ion to a public jaded hy t he o ld La!'i \ "egJ ~. nUt IlO\\ soon \\"ill people of tilc 2010s tirc ofarchitecrural abstraction. as their gra ndparent<; did in rhe 1960s?

.111/: It ~eel11S that for yo u mapping is the s in gle most important elt:mt:nt in tlnd cr~tanuing interior public o;p'lCe. It helps to depi ct the p ublic interior as :..I segnH':1H of a pedestrian path .,ysrell1 or part of <I bigger nctwork of public \pace. In the: past ~Oll have cxp l;Jin ed your use of diffe re nt tt:chniqllcs of analysis. I would "r~lIc that intt:riors contrihute to th t.: citv• if t h (.~\'• have an urban u\e and an urb.ln locm ion, It "ie:ei11\, rhcrcforL', th ,l{ :l naly ~cs shou ld be made 0fth e nu mbe rs and p~Hterns o f use r'!. 1)0 you rccogni:,t: the o;t: the:mcs in yo ur ana ly<;is?

D5B: In deciding what kinds of :.tn<llysis and analytic mappin g [0 00 " "c face a dil emma: the rangc of po~\ible in\"cstig<Hion:, i.'! ,a..,r and the ta"iks co u ld ,go on forc"cr bm funds an..: limi te d . So wc considc r how to foe Ll s from the start. \ \ 'e try to ;1\ oid \\ hat o nc of my profc.'!\or\ c~lIled rhe 'whale mcthod' of u rban rc\carcll. ' ril e whale: opens its mOllth as it swims, an d w hatcvcr no\\"~ in i~ what it CJts, This i'! not cffccti,·c. Thcrcfore:, as urban r~sca rcher'-J, wc must dc, ise tcchniques to di)c{)\'er, ea rl y, thc most relevant rc~c:..lrch , ·ari;lblc.;, for <I giH..: n topic. \Ye m<l: do rh is by co nduct ing <l brief, oncc-o\'cr- lighrly m"ef\'ic\\' of the projcct, before deh"jng into deui!. \\ 'e ha\'e also learned ro introduce ;1 fir.'! t attem pt at design deliberately too early in the proccss to help st rucfure the next rounds of rcsearch. So design can .'!C[n..' as a rescarch tool as a hcuri st ic for further rc~earch - i.l\ we ll as \"ice ,·ers:l. Bur gc ncmll y wc examinc patterns of dui\ irie\ and mo\l::l1lent, and differentiate: the: se by type and intensit y. preferabl~ m 'er rime. \Ye al'io cOllsiocr natural p;H[Crn S and systems and tho~e of built ... tructure\: and we d ist ingu ish between ani, iti e-, and the "trucr urc~ [ha[ hold th em. Th e .lge ofstructllfl' S is an impo rwll( ,'ariahlc. and there ~I rl' m3n ~ othcr'). particu la rl y t hose to do w ith capacity <l nu locnion. ~1apping the raw claw of use and structll rt: i\ JUSt a first ~rep, Beyond that. \\ c Illa ~ want to break o u r information down furrher. Thc computer allows u.'! to disaggrcgJte one \ aria h ie, for cxamp le, the distr ib ution of ~l ll sc iences on campus, and to \wJy the patte:rn it Illake ~, And our analysi~ includes synthesis (wc arc after all architccts). \\ 'e may JUXTapose two variablcs. For exa mple. for ' I \in~hlla ( Jni"ersity in Ik iji ng o ne of o ur most cogenr m ar s sup<..:rimposed densitie~ of reople on a map of ca mpU!i gret:1l s pace, It showed that t h t:rt: \\ 'a~ littk match betwecn where people and landscape wcre. :\.r !\Ii chi~a n , wc (kri\'cu rh e location an d rhe conceptual dc\i gn of our I.ife Science\ cOll1pkx from juxtaposing mapped disrrihutiolh - of CJmpu.'! .'!cience\, th ea tre s (o n ca mpu s and in downtown Ann Arbor), mll se UIll '!. ropograp hy ano pedestrian pat hwayo;. Fo r thc I .as \ 'q!,a\ Strip. wc mappt:d signs and li g htin g b y i nt cn') i( ~, locarion and pllfpmc. Th e maps that re\ ul reu portrayed the feci of th e place bctfc r th <1I1 could rradirionalurban hind llSe.; maps or the orthogonal plarh of arch itecrurt:. These anal yses and synthc . . c, prO\ idt: d informmioll, but the: " "c re also dc s ig n tools. They help e d LI S 11l00"C ... eafl1le\sl~' into t he process of sy nthesis arc hit cct~ c<.l ll dcsig n. And they h:ld a heurisric ,',1tuc , in that some ea rl y sy nrh c'!<..:s of ,'a riable:\ led to astonishing insight~ and in man y cases to the pani" For LIS, dt.:)ign and <In<llysi\ proceed in ta ndem throu g h our the de ~ ign proct.'ss . I n s um. what you a nalyse and how you do i[ depend s o n yo ur problem. You hop<..: dl~lt your once-ove r-lightl y study and :Ollr Sllccc'ls i,'C cycle~ of analys i'l and synth es is ",.·ill g ive you" good scn'!<..: of where to go.

.I!H : Either inten se acri\·jti cs or a goo d urhan location can makc im c riors appear more urban . Bcs id e thi \, puhlic inte ri ors, for a casi no, ca mpu s ccnt re or c hurc h. rc.:quirc hi g h-qua lity " pace where urban di scomforr is eliminatcd. This hrin g, mt: back to 'olli' ~ pl an. In t heir abi lity to dearly re"ca l the urbani stic network - the mazes of publ ic space - thcse maps clarify the urban de:-,igncr\ role in forming interior sp;Jces" In thi s sc nse. they rL'define the dichotomy between the ciry planner and the architect. As yo u once wrote , No lli 's map reveal .. the sem iti ve and cornp1cx connections bctween public and private space. DSB: Th e relatio nship bt:twl:e l1 puhlie a nd pri\",Hc has ~lI\\'ays been vc ry importanr in OLlr work, 'I'h i\ ropic ha!i perhaps different ramific.lt ion s in American urhan plannin g from thosc in Europe.

r-'Iod:rnit f r QlI/ltlp 1,1r: :\ n actb.l phl)(Q ~I:.iph of Ihe regional gOlcrnmc:nlall:omp!c" In TO(lloll~c 1199')): a diagram mapping blqck flo",. pcdc,m:lI1 tOIKCIIlr;Ulon ll"lk~ anu 'p.Kn of 'lUJ<.:1H Ide.H T~lnghll,l 1 ' Ill\"cr~IIY. HciJing (UIOS!: al1d J pbn and photo.~raph Ilf Ihe 1II1crnJI 'm:~'1 In the T,ahanl '">wclcm Center at the: I l ni\er~ll\" 01 !)cJ3\\an: (1\}<)6) .

\A FIU路:<;

because Arnerican c ulrure rends [Q ;1\"oid rhe use of govcrnment slIpporr or acrion in favour of the private sector. 'rhis brings up qw.:sriol1 s ror urbani s rs and architects regarding rhe relation between the public and pri\·ate sectors, the opportuniries for action within each and. for 3cri\' ist s in rhe public secror. the public Ic \·eragc pO'isible on privatc-sector decisions. All of this would st illl1.1n::: been important with out the notion of mapping. however ~olli 's m,lp is inOuenrial and relevant in our work because it provides a method of showing physi ca l relations between the public and the priv<Hc city. In campus planning, in particular, wc rely on the Nolli SYStCI11, adapted for roeLly (there were fe\\" grassy areas and no parking lots in hi s Rome). \\'c map Nolli's variahles, s how·ing the porni of all publi c hllilclin~s :lIld of major public spaces in private buildings. On (ilcse wc juxtapose (hc sy"tem of pClkstrian path,-\'ays (hat cross (he campus. It form ~ a ncn OtlS p:l trcrn of mo\·cmcnr. rese mbling macram~. and running continuously betwccn cxterior and interior spaces. This pattern ~ lIbtt.:n<.h rhe ca mpu " open spaces. which we differcntia(c by (ype giving special prominence to those we feel arc highly sy mboli c. A ~olJi map for a uni\·ersity campus. in this way , ponra ys its o\'cr<111 puhlic "ystcm and (he rdation between its public and private lIses. It <;hO\\·, where the capaciry of pedestrian ways is nOt related ro the dcn1 lllHJ on them, :tnd ,,·here gaps exist becaLls~ new buildings were crcctcd but the pathway system \\"as not adaptt:d to thcm. Thc Nolli map has taught us J great deal about the charactcr of pllblic archi(~ctllre, including the architecture of the street through the building. The map b all about rhe processional. \Vhy wouldn't it be? It was concei,'cd as an information system for religiou s pilgrims. Rome's winding and si nuolls street pattern stands out in marked contrast ro its formal rlazza s, for example the Piazza 1\' avona. But the buildings, ,,·ith rlH.:ir stro n~ black plans, are particularly s ugge s ti\'e of thc difference bcrween the public architecture of streets and institutions :lnd rhe pri,·arc tiSC;IIC of the city. The fact that the plans arc baroquc doe s not indicate {hilt public s p~lCe should be baroque, The plans of modern ~m: hitcc(s, particubrly AI\,<Ir Aalro, lend themselves to <1 similar an<1ksis. Bur "<.; han: certainlv, learned from 'olli to think ofrhe . srrecr dHOlIgh rhe building as if it were an exterior <; trcct. Therefore in our National Gallery Sainsbury \Ving the main lobby <lnd srairway spaces :Ift; dad in rusticated stone, as are the facades of buildings on an lralian RcnClis ... ancc strcct. The entf\'• area and main lobbv• ,Ire sinllow;, taking thc shape of the crowd that uses them. \Vc planned <.I widened sidewalk :l11d shdtcrcd portico where visitors could wait for rhe museum to opcn, hcforc proccedinJl, through a n,ufO"· door into ~l larger sp~l<.:e bcyond. Ilerc a crowd of pcople might all stop at once, while deciding where to go !lex£. Our entry-way is therefore prct7.cl-shaped. Simihlfly, in our lab and classroom buildings, s e ,Hin~ occurs in eddy arcas off [he main circuhuion. These arc de ~ igneJ as widcning~ of corridors, nor room". Sining beside the continuing space of the Street should feci like a pause not a commitment. rr should be possible. while moving, ro glance in ~lIld ma ke a quick deci sion ro cnrer for a char or ro pass by. But somcrimes the safcty rcquirements for fire doors on nujo r corridors arc a restraint. Then we musr specify hin~c mc(.:hanism'i (0 allow these doors to remain open unless there is <I fire. So urban de sign concerns a door hinge as \.... ell as a region.

.II/!: Today\ design guidelines cover accessibility and various public qu:ilitit.; .. , bllt deo;;igncr'l co uld still learn from :\"olli: the church(;s h(; mapped were::: seen as bmh a retreat from tidily life and ;1 cenrrc of thc soc iety, and dc:::signing their interiors was considcrc::d a privilege.

Taking such an approach to our morc secular interiors could change [he di scourse on future public space.

DSB: Of course, the churches shown by

~olli

wcren', pUblic. Today

we might call thcm j\·GO s (non-governmental organisations), but the streets and plazas '{f.'fr'f public, and we consider the churches as stand-ins for the publi c buildings that \\·e study in our urban analyses. The churches could also rcprc!:lc nr a private sector [har 'feels' public. \Ve tried using othn m<lpping techniques as well [() suggest different types of publi c-p riY <HL' relationship, particularly kinetic ones - for example, to silo,," how an investment by government in urban devel o pment cou ld lead to a reaction by rhe private sector. The opportunities lie in both sector'i.

,IIH: In learning from Beijing. ;\Jewark, Philadelphia or Toulouse YOll began by studying Rome and I ,as \ 'cgas. It is generally known thilt you first travelled to Las Vegas in 1<)65, bur when and where did YO ll discO\·er rhe Nolli Plan ? \Vac; it pCrlMps when j '" OU visitcd Fruw;;'s exhibition in 1962 in Rome~ or did you simply come across rhe catalogue? DSB: Bob believes he ca me across r'-\olli's map in Rome at the American Academy in (he mid 1950s, when he wa s a Fellow there . I think [ first saw if in the early 1960s at [he l ' niversicy of Pennsylvania \.... here it was much in c\' idence around the school of archirec(ure. Pcrhaps some faculty member there, possibly Aldo Giurgola. had visited Rome in 1962 . David Crane had been in Rome in che mid 19'=;05 and in hi~ smdiu " ·e applied the idea of the capital \veb to thc dcsign of ant;\\' ciry. Our maps resembled Nolli's in that they s howed rhe buildings, open spaces and circulation systems of the public secro r differently from those of the private sector. bur in making rhem I don ' t remember using r'-\olli as a guide. In planning school we learned to pore over maps and aerial photographs, trying to discern in them what \\'<1\ happening in the city. It wa s great ro discover in a land-llsc map or photograph that something you were considering recommending was already happening, Later, , . .·hen we swdied aerial photograph s of (he Las \ 'egas Strip, dle parallels between it and Nolli\ ln8.p of Rome were oh\·ious. 111H: You begin A,yhilfr!lIre (1.1 Si[!,!lJ (lnd ,\:r.1!nns with an acknowledgmcnt

of evolution as well as revolution. '\,i,·a pragmatic/evolutionary over heroic/revolutionary!' Bob writes in the introduction, echoing se ntiments you had expressed in Las \ ·egas in 196R. But given our growing recognition today that interior public s pace can be a constituent part of the public c ity, where would you place what you wrote in 1968? As evolution or revolution: Perhaps your formulations on Las \ 'egas and Le Piante di Rama were nm. in themselves, revolutionary, but did bringing thcm together cause a revolution ? DSB: Perhaps. \\'e like thc paradox rh at juxtaposing evolutions can call se revolution. The I 960s was an era of paradox, when revolution W<l S stood on its head for good rea son and anti-revolution became the new revolution. At ch ac time, (he real revolutionaries were those who embraced the paradox ,Ind stood for evolution in architecture Jnd against rhe stultified rcvollltion of late modernism. Toda'y, archirects and urbanists are similarly c hallenged by the conundrum of public spaces within private huildings. Blit (his. too. is a paradox that wc can embrace. History shows how richly thc public interiors of privatc buildings can cxtend and enhance rhe cjty's public offering.

An Intern:!1 \([<:el \\jlhin (h<: Frl~' (:~Ill r ll~ {:emer, l'rinl'<:lOn l 1l1l<:f"i(I (20(1111 r\lIlIn:lgc~, e.\('ep' where ~1;lteJ. court.;,,: J"hn l/enolH :l1ld Brc! Tah";IJ~l ,\I \ SB.\.

>1..: \

Fll.ES ,6

In the early years of his professional career and under the influence of F rei

Book Reviews

Ono as wdl as. more distantly, the J apan~se '\lc[abolisL~.

hl: uevdoped a series

of prefabricated unib of different kinds from cardboard and plastic. Thest: first m~lnife:-.ted rhem"l:h路es as inLlIlts' play structures; later came larger modules, with sC~Hnless plastic coatings. They wcre fabriUHCU in hright colours

Peter H libner: l3allcn als e in sozialcr Prozel3/ Peter HUbner: Building as a Social Process Bv Peter Bl undcll lanes

and could he u~cd as re~~d\'maJe bathrooms or I;watories (some of which wcre installed on thc .\Iunich Olympic site in 11)72). H Ubner's first major architectural achievement WJS his own

Pete r H ilbner: Bauen als ein sozialer ProzeJ3(pctcr H li hncr: Building as a Social Process By Peter Blundcll Jones ~lediatin i': ~I ode rni s m:

house in \lcekanen7.lingen to the south of StUrr~~l rL where he ~(illlives and works: it was comtrucrcd with prodigious rapidity in 1<J7S from rwenty-three of his 'Casanov~l' octagonal modules. From the cnd ()f thc 1970s, howcver, H Uhner's architecture changed radic<1lly.

Architectural Cultures in Britain

Edition Axel l\ 1cngcs, 2007 358 pp., 拢49

By Andrcw I liggon

ISB:"J 978393256502 1

With his colkagllc Peter Sulzer. also a professor ,\{ the l Jniversity of Stuttgart,

Douglas Spff/rtT

Timothy Brillaj,,-Cat/ilJ

hc coordinaTed tht: design and construction of a university hall of residence with. ~

S\vings and Round abouts

Cinem:nic Urbanism: A History of th e ~lod ern from Ree l to Real By :'\Jczar A1SaYY<ld Ra/ph SII'm

Architcc{LJrc, Animal, Human: 'J'he Asv mmerrical Condition By Catherine ln graham

Spyros Pflpapelr()S

Wh en I was a child it was the rough children wh o played in adventure playgrounds. By 'rough' I mean the domineering, sclfimportant childn.:n, as opposed to weedy ones like me who preferred a neat arrangement of swings and rOllndabollts, preferably well maimained. L u<.: kily, one of the few things my disparate parems shared was a dislike of organised bossiness, so f was never sem to join rhose character-building excrciscs in which orders were barked out from an ugly construction of paint-sprayed planks and pl ywood. I occasionally viewed horrors like this from a certain discance and never really wanted to get any closer. Th e Stuttgart :Hchitect Peter Hiibner is perhaps the master architect of thc rcallife adventure pl ayground. Th is book by Peter Blu ndell Jonc s tells his full story路, and although it brings out somc longrepressed childhood phobias, it turns out to be a suhstantial and impoTtam work, critical for anyonc who has {fied to gCt to the roots of:l sympathetic and humane architecture. I-Wbner was born in Kappcln, in the far north of Germany, in 1939 and first trained as an orthopaedic shoemaker in order [() join his father's business. Tiring of this hc rc(Urned to sccondarv education whilst working as a joiner's apprcntic(;, building coffins and then, from 1963. <;tarreu his architectural education at the Stuttgart Teehnische Hochschulc.

by and for J group oforsr-year architecture student:-.. T he in~piration camt:. it '>eems, from Waiter Segal and the principal ch<1lknge was to find a way in \\ hich a complicated ~H1J \'aricd timher structure, slowly and organically built by amateurs, could make it through (he hUfdlc~ of municipal and university approval, nor to mention insurancc and financi<ll control. After ii year and ,l haiL during which more senior studen(~ were broll/!:hr in to encourage somc measure of tcctonie discipline. the first buildings of what was to be called tht: H auh~illsle or ' L i((1e Bauhaus' b(;came h:lbirablc. Blundcll Jones r(;poned on the chaotic, undisc iplined. lively. already lovt.:d shambles ofa building complex to the Anhilras' JOIl17J(1/ in Ig8.1,. apparently to consiuerable minh on the p~lrt of its editor Charlotte Ellis. But in a "ense {hc structures were never finished. and ha\'c gone on changing C\"Cf since. 'Ncver finishcd' became a slogan for Il iibncr. From {his point on he engagcd in a series of compicx participatory '>trucrures: assemblies of pia nb, board~ anJ ropes. of sccond-hand windows, art isans' c~lf\'ings, green roo fs and rough block walls. Th c basic template for his working life \Hwld follow from the approach of an cnthllsiastic community of some kind - a problem school, or a yout h club ur a Steiner establ ishment. The site would be next to a mororv.'ay, or above a water tank or in some other unpromising luc~ltiun. An impossibly

AA FILES .16

11)\\ oc non-cxi:>u.:nr bud~l.:t would then h~ buih up lIHou.l!.h effecti\'(.: public rdarion~, and in if" conrinuinl!, , construction and ll:lbir;Hion people \~ ould \\ ork all huur". ';;0 rh :1[ lh(: huilLlings lhem~el\'(;s were ah\d~S li\ cly. :liJ;o', full of \";uiery and m;lTkcd with thl.: t[:11.:I.:" of (hose who hJd buih thl.:l11 . And whill.: wlHinuing to changc. grow :lnd dC\'c lop, a sl.:rics of bndmark buildings cmerged: ;1 yourh cluh in Snl[tgan \\',lllgen in 1983-84: a disrinctive: radial :'ichool for rhe S(~int:r \llOVCll1l.:nt :11 Rl.:utlingcn-Rommelsbach in 19R7, which imaginarivcly rl.:used rhe grcater p:w of su me disl1sl.:u shed,.; from a Porschl.: Eu.: tory that wcre goin~ free: another youth club in S[Uttgart-Stammheim rhal incorpo(:lreJ ,I huge wooden dinosaur: :l fun her one like <I Hying s;lUcer in "' Ioglingen: SOllle very poli .. hcd huildinJ!.<; for :1 snl.m bO:lrding school from 1992: ;llld, UI"' (0 the pre~ent day, a numb(:r of other (.' llIb~ and sc hools with charactl.:ristic f()rJll~ including tree-like columns. green roof~. erinkle-crankle walls. lively roofsl.:.lpt.:s and loo~t: )!,t:oll1erric forll1~ . In 1n.IIlY ease~ rhe huildings were :lsst:ruhlcd by thL'ir future llsers acting as builders; sometimes thc), were conslnleteu in rough ;lrC.I~ where tilt.: proccs~ itself proved therapeutic . The huildings were published in some dctail :H the timc b~' Btllnddl Jonl.:s in TIu Ar(h;I{'('11II'fJ/ Rei..';f'fJO" anJ in 200S the Jurhor introduced the architl.:ct (Q the AA \\ hen lauOI..' hing an t:arlin lmok .. 1"rhilnllll'f' fllld Pflrlir;ptJlion.' The :IR under Peter Dave)' wa" rhe n:ulHal hOIllt: for I Hibner's work given its lalter-dav :IT( S anu craft~ erho~ and its sympathetic ~nvifc)nmcnt:11 construction. In f:lCf Blunddl Jone:o, (kserihe:~ the key B:IlIIUlIsk project :I~:IO cxcrci~e in ·recunslrlletin/.: the self into adulthoocL :t phrast: which pl:lces it firmly \\,irhin the tt:rri((Jry (,I' Tllt' S{'rl't'1 (,'mr/m nf 19 11. the novel in which pSydHHic children remake: thern~eh ' es through CQIlI:lC( with thc e:mh - through m:lking and growing, Ihc central f:J.ntasv of the arts .md nafts movement. I l iibner him~elf s poned :1 wild man's heard and clIrl y mo p in the 19Ho~, :.l nd phowgrJph~ of his building sites ... hO\\ nlu . . c1e-bound, eurly-hairl.:d youths cn,ga,ged in sweaty toil among the tenons :lI1d rhe tru~se~. In fact it is th!;sc pcopk, as Blundcll Joncs points out in OIlC ()f his intercstin::! footnotc~, who characterise photographs of any IlU hner hllildin~. The 'soeial proces,S' of the: book's sllbtitl~ refers to the \\av, in whidl he:lrts and minds are- hC:lled by hc:llthy. ("ollstrllctive pby. The ideas hehind thi ~ \\ere Ilot, ofcour,e,

unprecedenteLl in G c rnuny. c:,pl.:eially in relation to educatlonal building .... A book 1 picked up in the 19 / 0~ on [ht' design of kindergartens and da) -('a rc nurseries called A" ;IIr1frl(/~f'Sslii"(": n :(/I' Rf?egllung m;1 ripr orglJllIs;eJ1ff1 { 'm'!:dl ,givcs a good pi cture . The- undcN:.Inding then W:.l~ th ,l[ children's funivt: energies should be brought our into tht: open through regulated acri\'itic.." through rushing. lunging ;111<.1 fi~hting, through playin~ nlldt: (in an admircd Swedish W.lY) with buekct,> of w<l.ter.' In our current er;1 wc h:l\'l; for~otten how, long ago. this seeme d like:l threat, how thl.: physicality of others sCl.:Illed IllllCh Illorc frightcningly intru-;i"l.: \\hen \\0.; were ~oung. You ca n scn..,e thar lInca si ne~s in a comparable conte-xt in Francis King' ~ 1989 novcl PIlfJlSIIIIlt'IIIS" in which a fee ok British student \'i~iting Germany in its immediatc PO~[\\'M period is 'punished' rh rough scxlIal humiliation from :1 rugged, h:lJl~bomc blond called jlirgen who is cuntinu:dl), 'rhru~ting Out his long, sunburned legs in (hose ~hom so much shorter than any worn by the English'.' Ynu need only look at the picture:; in I3 lundell Jone~' book tn know what King was referring to. It is not onl~ that thrc:ltcning-yc:lrning, Ash bee- I Iou~nl:ln i.. n ph) ~iea I human aspect roat lliibncr borrowed from the English :Irts and crJfrs mO\'elllcnt for his consrnlctions: some of t hem have what Alundcll J orll':~ calls a 'world-trce' or "holy ccntral p{J ~ t·. a cunccpt ... urcl) from Lcthaby, or from thl.: <;acrl.:d grove that .\ bekinto~h built ;1'> the librarv of the Glasgow Schonl of An .' A further ckment of I-Ilibner' s work dr.lwn from la re \'inorian :wd Edwardian Britain is (ht: politicised social ani,,)t)' fnr which this <lstonisbingly 'H.: ci"t: <tnd con:-;cientious architt:ct provides;t c<lwlysL In a particularly rcl1in~ incident from thc building of a ~mall assembly h<l.l1 at Lippsradt - in many W:ly s the ultimatc H ubner .lbnJl£IIf'5pidp/tl/':, - thl.: architt:ct advised hi ~ client lt1 reject the offer of a favourable b'lIlk IO ~1n .lOd 10 t:lke instead :I small e:lsh equivalcnr: it was a rejection of (he wicked worlLl of inrern:ltion;11 finance with ir .') intangible tr:lnsactions and a ca ll to pick up tht.: sho ... cls :lnu do i( the honnt \\ay. "' I an~ of HUbner's projecb re\'olve arounJ sirnibr person:d p~yehoJr~lma~. Ili~ own hOllse was built - <klivereu. fitted. furnished and madc ready for \'isitors in a sin~ll.: day, To ceJcbratl.: the opening of his Ilerrenbcr~ )'(1mh Club in J9R), he c\cn walkcd (for rhl' fir~( timd;1 rt.:al

high wire, "'lore typic:llly his risk.-taking was displa yed throu~h hi.') building of sc hools. as at Lippstadr. where dll.:rt: \\.1'0 at thc outsct no budget \\'hat ~ot:\t: r, and he took no fee for it, Thl.: image:f\ of the youth clubs also project:. their lI~ers' most extremc fanrasie ~ - sC:lfah, ... hip, l IFO, space rockct, l.:ast lc . A fc\\ building;~ incorporate vast. my:-;(ical Tllomter~. serpents and dino s:lUrs into th!;ir fabric, and onc domed strueturC posse"~I.:S ;1 'eelestial eye'. lliibnl.:r. appropri:ncl) given his original career, like~ to quote I l ugo I-bring's remark to "'he:'; th,\[ he pn:..:krred to build 'shoes, not shoe box c~', and this is a book abOLlt per-;onal redemption. nor off-the-shelf ~:lti~f:letjon. Some of the photographs in thi, hook :lTl.: of ercmd ... of glowinf{, fulfilled people .•1 o lllgre,l!.Jtion thar has .. een the light, The Hilhner wa y is ro seek Ollt people', e rnoti()n ~ :.Ind to sce them puhlicl) rcaliscd in frone of an audience, onc of the hallrn;lrks of successful e\':tngeli~m C\C~' \\ ht:re. 'Thcre is hope in hont: ~ t error, "' Iackintosh famou:-;Iy in~l'rihed, hut '!lone in the icy perfections oftht.: rnt:re ~tylist'. And indeed styling buildings 10 look as if thcy were achieved throu gh '>{)111(.;one else's original meth o Ll ~ ha .. long hecn considered onc of the wor~t .. in .. in architecturc. [n 1992, the 11.1 published J long article on tht: recend y com pleted \VhitehiJl Primary Schoul ,It Bordon \Vhitehill near H:IsJcme rc , dl.:signl.:d h\, , , ~c" Chureher ;lIld Sally I)an id:- uf Hampshire COtlnt~ Council"" arc hitect ... · department under Colin St:l.Il . . fidd Smidl. ~ By this time se\ eral of lliibner \ proj!..:C{s h;1d heen pllbli slH.: d in Hrit ;lin, and the architects no douht knew ,Ihout them: this \\';lS reflected nOI only in the plan of the huilding IHrt :Iho by (he imagery used in the ;Htidc, \\ hich includcd a COVcf tlut depietl.:d l.:hildr!;1l si[(ing by a round winJ()\\ in a hrick wal1 - an image srrikingh ~imilar 10 onc in Blundell Jone ~' buok tha! illu <;t ratc ... H ubner' s recent primary .')c hool in S(lJugart-S t:lmmheim - and b) Daniel:-' cheerful and colourful IlOhnl.:r-like sKerches, The Ai wa ~ at rhi~ poi m in the first of its pcriodical \ i s il~ to rhe doldrurm and c\·eryool.: from the Ch ,lrlO[tC '·:l li s era had Idt. Evidcnrh (herc W;l S no onc around to point out ;IIlY simil:rrities ~omething of ,\ sham!..: a~ it would h;l\ e adJed eonsiJcTahly to all .Ippn.:ci;uion uf the buildin~. In fact there were other cornpar:lhle bu i Idings :lrouml: in thu:;e d:ty~. for example, the Cullinan practice W;I" IH:rhap~ ;H its creativc peak. "I am rol~llly !..'ommirwd

10 ll1.1king :lrchi((.T(LJU: \\ id) people ,\nU for

\\orld-trce . .

~lnU

t hc\c cd e ... tiJI

e\e~.

n)J(eriaJ... Jnd ,h;lpe .... FOf in th e e nd it

\\ ith t he proceSS;l n e.:ee"~a r~ ' Ie jl in

., th e huilJing that cOllm,. not {he

reali'ing (hem dfcclin; ]v? Th e)1.: He t he

dr;I01,I'" of {he hudd ing ,ite. T he re"r of

ce mr:Jllln;l, ke J. hut not unln ... "creu,

Ihe 'itor\' I' ahout r~l . . hiOlh. momt... (ha l

phrygrounJ -likc "i(e,,, irh joi.., t~ ,md 11Oi... r...

qlJc ... tiom o rthi !'! hook. In thet fir ... t pla('e.

l'OIllI.: a nd

,mu clambering kill!'! - and

lliibner r;lpiJh' came to [he (,'ondu "'I( ln

PC(,pk:' ,aid T ed in

1~6.

[]It,; ... C

Cullinan lull

huilt hi 'i hOIl!'!1: himsd f -then.: known ph otogrdph ... of thl:

'ld\

:lfe

\\ell-

cnrure-

i... liuk

~o.

SII (hi, ime re,ri nl!: :mu u,dul huo k I'"

<;urpri'ie to read in Kcnnc lh P owdl\

tha t rhe heroic rec\"c1ing of huiloing

not IInh ,I ... 10(\ ahout I hihncr ,tnd hi . .

monograph that the ~H1no!'!phcrc

matcr ials o id n ot :lCw;dl) pa) off. In the

!'amil\. [heir Illtcn"'l' c ne fg'o ', rill'lr eh:lrI ... m.l.

rh<..: office had hccn 'vcr) m :1l e, r<lthcr

ca'e uf the Stl.:in<..:r school at RClIclingen .

their cn \i ,lblc ,lbility to comprehcnd

boi:-.ternu!'!' or (hat there h,ld bel:l1:l

th<..: ;IJ"ant<ll!:cs of tht.: frce roof trll\'o(.;~

ho\\ a long and complicated pTCICC ..... i,

wc rc countcf<lctt.:d bv [he neeJ to fell1me.:

going to \\ork out ,Ind t n Ju dgc It'

judo mat in a hack room.' Th(.;re :1Il

:It

al\\'a~:-.

\\,;,1 ...

English hlokc"ncs s there which

:lpre~lrcd

flNy

to go down \\1:11 with b\lildcr~

\\ ca knc ...... n ,Ind i" ... rrcnglh,. It i.. ,I t:lk

nails by h<lnd. T he building'i

cOIl'rrlleteJ Ibi ng con\ "e n [ion:11. profc s",u)I1:.11

ahC)\lt ho\\ po litic, i, int<::T\\I)\cn \\ith

(or:-.o n:rt:lin cla~ ... -ob"e~<;ed En g li ... h

t:ont ra ctj n~

'I)

JfI.:hitcct ... thought). (ilC !'Ion of rou,gh

of the projects here) ~rc often different

people wh o mig lH be o ut

3ppCJrancc from thc ':-.oeial procc,,'

i[,cl!' Ihnlllgh Ih c 'oeiJI politll:, of

ocliean: hero from a F rJIKi, King nO\e l.

one~:

thc (1)Ko". For a ll the,e rc."ol1'l. BI 11 Illlcl I

\\'hen Cull inan re built th e church

thinJ!, thl.:~ have in commo n \\ilh Ih e

Jone ....... ~1Il c \ cellr.:nt gu id e. hccathe

(If St \I:U\. Barnc'i in ISl 7X-H..j. thae \\,:1 " a degrel: of cornmllnit ~ c ng.1ge.:menr.

other~ i~

no uthcr \\fitcr Jrl.ll"ing thc

\\ith bTgel~ umrc;ltcd timbe r. Some

,lrdlHectllfl' tllrned Ollt dUring {he

al[h ough unl ike I IUb ner .... much bte.:r

bLlilding~

1\\

Stammheim church. (h I: co ng;rc/!,:nio n did

n:ntre in \Wglingen o l1\\ard ..... and in

'" \\ ell to thl...' Illlpliclti Oll'" of \\ ork ;1..,

nO( actuall~ p h~ . . i eall~ con ... trlH: t it.

particular in Tl:cent jo b:-. \\ hcrr.: I l iilmer\

In fact rh<..: Engli ... h \er ... ion of pani eip:l cory

'011

llllllple\ " ... [hi .... no r til.: it in ...0 \\ell (0 the hro;ld hi,(oric,d cheme ... tu \\ hidl it

tC;l"e ,I

proced ures (the majorit\ 111

they arc "p ick and ~ pan. and [he.; o nl ~ Ihat (hl.:Y arc fini <;hcd ilH c rnJII ~

from the l ' FO- like Jl -FO \()I uh

Olaf h~l'i had

hand. arc nuu ,dh

le. ,tnd al,o abollt hn\\ Ht ... and er:lft,

dOl{nu grahhed an oppo rtuni t\ to e\prc"

organll..:

\\;1\

cmicrh <.r.:nlllT\ could alen the rc.IJer

mther e legant. So 1/[ihner i:-. not ]Hlltil,g

helong .... nnr indced \\ fltt.: rhl' ... Ior~ ..,0

:lbout p<Hticipatio n bel\\t,;en the member,

the process before the re s ult,. In r.K!

clcg,\I)t l~

of a sing:k pr(jfo~if) n :ll office - an ceho

in rel:ent times the Illi bner offiee ha, g(lIle

rhi.., hook. ;Jlld it

of what \\" . . tll<)ught (() h;1\ <.:; g:one on in

kick and revisited it:-.

the architect s' derartmcnt I)flhl.: i.on dun

~ tylc

C:ou nryCo uncil in the.:

ae !'! (hetic. T he unusual windO\\ ... no\\

,Ir(.'hi[ecrurc oftcn

:-,ccm~

to ha\'c hce n

lH<)(h

(,In (ll hcr

rough-and-re:\d~

of [he [98o~ and turned it into;)

'Illdrt

canunical epi,ooe in an ... ,mu cr;lft, folklor(';).

look expc n,jvcly madc. Th eir c urrent

c\ cco roing [() Po\\eIL the memhcr, of

i.lrge -scalc urban sc heml.: for the

Cullinan' 'i practice actualh draft e d

Dutch lown of En sehcde has;1 gre ;l[ deal

a nunifc~to in \\'hich the\ dcd.lred their

of elaborate-shape m aking C\ c n thfHl!!,h

aim to ,Kt cooperat ively.

therc i... linlet :lboll( {he participation

\I~

rea ...011 for highlighting \\hatlook,

prncc~ ..

it. ;l, n<.1 indeed it is clC;lT that I IUbnt.:T

dyn a mic co ll a borati\'e force 'Ia:h

It ...

duc, not need a proco~ to prod uce hi,

Illibn er i... chat che~ cast ,omc li~hc

011

rC ~lIl(, :

hc ean si mulate it . Tht.: \ cr\'

:Iewal rclatioll,hip bt.:t\\'ccn 'cyle and

impressi\'c Church ~chool a( (j d~l.: nkirch(.: n

methuu. \Vc no\\' look at che \\'hic c hill

ncaf E "''ie n c)f 1994-2004. which has

"dlOOI or the ~tiek~. b rick) 'iwffproduec.:d

,\ parcieubrly rich as::.embly of form:-., \\ ~I.'

hy the Cullinanitc, and \\ c do not kno w,

>lctually designed a!'l a ~erie <; of pa\ ili(Hl'"

and cannot {cll. wh:..n the ~(x:i;11 pfOt.:C,:-.

lw, indi\idual O1cmbcr~ of l liihncr' ...

hehind it at:tualh \\';1 ,. It ha" not h:Hrneo their feputation. \\' hitchilt 'ic hno l W;I ...

officc - that is to sa\'. , (ht: archirl'Clllral

huilt I1 linner-'i t\ le with

.,OIllC

g rei\t dcal

idc.: a of\ariety had ro be ;lChit.:\cJ h) con tro lled <If[ifici :il mean .. hCl'<:Iu, c

of\"JriJtion in th e interna l roof... t:apt.:. \I ith

prJeticaliric~

irregular c(dou red n om tile,. and c\cn

de ... ig ner~

\\ith l:ann] \\ ood e n cH)('odlk, lurking U1

:iTch irl.:c( h;ld h o pcd " .\ nd rhe fl.: s uh I'

thl' g;arJe n . And the building \\' ..1"

p l.: rhJp ... IlU bnl.:r's fin e:.t p iece of

fini~he d.

;lTch ite([urc - a hu ild ing rha! look ...

Then: \\'cre nl) pe r<;OIu l dram .. ....

wmild not J.llc)\\ ollt"idl..: b ecome imoh e t.! ,.... (h e

In rJ c t there the arc h itt.:n ... h .ld ' re.:-

participatory but w a~ ae w ~\lI y no[. Prolxil>]\

e nga ge d' (their

(he m o,t "ignificant proce!'!s in allllf

\\ O Tl.j)

\\ illl thc building

(OntractoTs father rhan with t he children

Il libner ' ~ c~rec r

or e\'en the "at'!' - a perft.:(.:rh· n.: . . pectahlt.:

\\ hleh he

ha ~

an.., and craft~ th ing to do. '

IlI.:CU thc

'proce~,'

So Joe, 1I libner nee d ;\ participatory

be :llO\cr of clunge thfollgh

from [he boy .. in the ath entllTC pl~\ygrollnd. ,,\:\: I'\:fl'f HlllnJdl J"nt:'. ·!-:mhr,ullll! J 11t:t:·"'·"'I'.llT ( :r,Lhf h. llldat,:Jften {:Iu"·. Iflr .1" 1111, "111111 R,"[ ,,":..:. '>e pfe III hef I 'NI>. 2

pp ...p .~ I 1,lllde IILlrkhJ,dl ,'/ ,It

Il,':!' f!I//I m,:

•\ ',Il:.' rnd,~ll'll'"

(nl.l.

},,,,rlrt7/'::" , ,/(111,

II/lf rlt,. '"';:(1111.< ,UN" , 11/;.: "f.

/ll/d 1'N.,!":r IlIf rill' (".'f"lt" Ill!.

Ilkfllll Ill fefnJTII, nJk . . 1) nlj!{l Zefllrlull. l!.Jilt!. p

21'1.'{

1·r.IO(I' t\lflg./'III11Jrmm/.l ([,nn.lon. 1LUll i,h I LlIl\ih,,". 1'1'''''/ ). p. 17, "'1 f" ILlCiltl"fi \b d'II1(,,~h\ 'tfee "f p. . ,,, ,,1.11 dfon· <ll1d hi" 'tree ,1f,nflIlCl1lc' ,knlhl" p( I Hq; ;"l'l' J.) m l~" \ 1K.HI 1,\, , (;//11 i!/rt.: .\,h'Jf,! /if I l.ond,,1i' l'h;IIJ IIIl. I<N.;!. l{lIth (h,t:lh. ·(:Ic.If-,Jle:d de'lgn ·. llllllta',' 111

,JUIle: 1t1'IL. pp. LK-4 1 (J 11"( cd III 1\ e n "et h 1',,\\ ell. Fd':.· (lid (

j'IIi!71r11.

, X

kt/llfl'd,'

II.omlo,,: \\ dn.

11,"1. P 4 / Ill/d.. p. I ; 0\\ 0.:11\. "'I'

1/1.

1<i'/~ l. P

1';1111(111

p. "

he \\ ;\n ted to karn frolll con!'lrruetion ir,elr. 1It: i, now blatantly doin g \\ lut

turn the thin:!, Hound. \\ a .. ch e ,l irn ,H the

;111 a lo ng - ad o pting a f>ugine ... qu l.:

out~ct

,lpprn,ICh to che tceto nic expre, ... ion of

~he~k

olle. i,

at :111: the thing ... that

thc ~lrchiteetllral re\ult<; be.:inl4 '1Il1p ]~ \\ h~t h;lppen~ a, a comcquellce)? O r. to tlmbcr

in\~ll\uhk

lcarnt.:d dut he uoc, not

h,1\ l' heen taught to him ny rhe buillling

r~\\

;Hl

ha . . been rhe onc through

procn ... in ordcr to fU llction (\\·ith

to product.: th e ... c

'Oil Cln

huilding .... but qill keep YOllr di,tance

here which might h:l\ C illl ]lo"'l.:d

like (he poor Briti,h relat ion" of :1 major Jnd the

dut

,mL! dea rh. T he 1c""OIl uf

hi, C(lIInUY eOLl . . in~ in Brit3in \\'ere doing

\ .\1111,,,6

of paIJce ... ·. actlllg in '>lIppon of tht: e", .. elln:11 form hut nor con .. ti(]l(l\e of t he form itself ~nd thcreforc nO[ rntf1mrcJ.lh

i\k:di<tring \l odt:rnism: Architt:crural Cllhurc~ in Britain Ih. AndrL:\\ Ili,"'ol( 0" ROll{ kdp;c . .200 j Z 16

pp .. 'iztj.9'J

ISB:"J ()41~401771

And rL'\\ I1 i,\!,!!ott' ~ ,lirdlllfill7, .1/ur/l'nllSlII nu\ he <"OIlllIed a'l;l tile cnllm hu{ioll (0 ,I ... rr~nd of hl"'wrio~rJJlh 'y riur h;l<; hccn working to refwme our lmdcr... r.lIldin~ of ,Ir(:hi(el'tufe \ recell( pd ... 1 for ... ol11e (ime no,,". In dulkngillg Ilh w.h:rni"m \ cI,li rn ... ( 0 ,Ill C\(;III\I\ e pn:ocL:up;uio n \\ ith form ,Ind "'p:U:C. \tiri ,ln F on~'<; It"orr/"Jlld IJlIfldilJf.[,I" (2\l\lfl), P ,u1.L~o(i:; T otlrni kipcj,,' Th{' H iJlrnil)j!l"fIpli \' ()/.I/(lfkm .1 ,.,hi/f'{llll'('

(1999), lkatril C(Jlol11lna\ I'rir'{I()' am! /'uMirif)':

.11or/Fm :I l1"hi,ri"lll!"f' (1/ .11ass

.1If'r/w (2000) :1/1J

I)Iher~

h:l\ e rcwrilten it'l praL:licL: a ... (!lle L:xtL:n ... i\el \ mediated h~ \\()rlh Jnd i111'1/.:(';'1, In tll(.; prnn.:s:">. chc hi",wn of modernl'! ;HL: hireclUn: h:J<; ... hifred from a "- ,uui,1Il fr;lrllc (If JutommlOU:; '1t:lf-n.:ft:ren<.'e to;1 ma ... ')-mt:di,ltcu framc of ... i,!!n ... ;mJ d i')eou r'lc. K.lIlt him ... df W;I ... pr{lf(jundl~ troubled h, rh<: q ll<: '1ri(l1l of fr:llnin~: of diffl'f<:IHr;H illl! hcl\\cen rh c c ... ~cnrial ,lnd 1I~ periphl.:ral <;Uppllrt. [n rhe en"!;f/II£, or./llr!!!.1IIl!l! he ,lIt em prcd to i .. olare rht: 'pure form ... · of.Ht (tho ... c (0 \\"hi <"h ae~the[ic'). [.l"te ;lnd jud,!!,ell1cnl . . h()uld ~H.1drc$:" rhcm . . eh<.:"') frOll) (he exuir1'lic. Cif(:llm ... t:IIHi~tl :Ind .. upp1cnKrH:lry phcn(}men~1 th ~l1 <;1Jfround them. To thi .. t:I1(.1 he il1\ okcd (he idea of tht: p(/!'n:z.rm. ~1I1 'ornament' or 'fra111e·. ')uch a'> 'thc dr;1pcric!> of St;1.t\lCS or the colonnadc ..

worth y of appreci,ltion or Jutlgcmcnt. ' In Iron/f mu! Hllilt/IIIKJ Fon~ ar~ue'i th;1[ a 'iil1lilarl~ ".1I11i 'l n linc of difTerellttation had accomp;lJlit:d .HchitecHJ ral di~eour~c in the ci~h(eemh ;lOd nint:(c<.:nrh centuries, hcfoH: comi ng to ic .. full fruition under rno(krnism, .\ ... mudl .1'1 this dis(;Ollf~e cam!.: TO hc octupit:d \\-ith que'>tion" of the pllri(~ of form. or ornamerH ~Ind ir~ er;lllicnion. langu~lgt: too wa s to be purged from (he dclinicion of archirecttrr:11 praetil..'c or apprt:ci~lti()n. [n 1790 f3null ce \\rotc. 'to de"uibe onc .... plea su re ,> i~ {o ce.I"'c li \ In~ under their influe nce. to cC:I<;e In enjoy them, ro ceaSc [(J cxi~t·. Ih . (he miu-(\\Cnlieth ee mllT\. thi" " alHian .tcs lhe(ic in \\ hich lhe proper "uhjel.'( of each af! \\;1'" the ... pceifil·it~ of its own mcdium. in which archirce{lm,; \\',1" \rbOllt' C'l p<ll'e JUS T ;1:,. p:1inting was 'about' (h<: pi <.:tlIH: phlne had hC(:ornc an nt;lhli~hcd (t hough nOI IInchJl1cllgeJ) tenet of moJerni"t pra(; ti ce and cricicism. The only pl~lce for language. wrore J\loholy-t\agy, waC'l in liter<ltun:.' By contra:;t. [)efriJa'" Jt!col1.'lcruuion of the parfI"J!/JfJ rt:\'eal... it;\') an es"elltial <;uppOf! rath1.:r than an e xtrin ... ic \urpJus th;lt mi ghc ()cher\\ i"c he ')t:1 J'Iidc ill the pur')lI il of pun: form , Within th i<; Sllpport ~y'> t(!m. fr;lm in,!! I') ... cen a'l incvitable ::lI1d indi .. pen ... ahlc hecame \\ irholJc it thc fiRM - the work - \\oIIlJ 'collapsc·.' Framing meJ i.l( es bet\\t:cn 'ins idc' ~lOd 'oLl[<;ide' and join-; {hc \\(lrk (0 a \\idcr co ntext which i... H... df dr:lwn into it.. form. -'lore than thi~, frame') exi') f within yet other fr;lll1e\ ;I nd chefe i, no point at \\hieh we linally <lrri\e;\I the limi(,>. Each rimt: w<.: I.()Onl out \\C cake in more contcxt. What \\'a~ at the periphL:ry ml)\ c<; to rhe ce ntre and new co ntexru,11 frallK . . <lppe:lr at the 1l),:If[~iO'). C;ontC\c i... rendcred hOllndlc ...... fr;Kc31. Th ere is no fixed c<;"enl..'e on \\ hieh to "CHic JOll wc .Ire Jlway ... ,lIread~. in thc middle of thing.... · I mrnt:diac~·. \\flIC' Derri da, ·1:->l!o.::ri\cJ. E\cr ~t hing bc~in~ "ith (he itl[crmcdi:1f\ .:

In chi'i mediatcd Jnd middling condition chc poi:Jrine ... het\\ct:IlIl1:1fglll ,lOd e~')encc art: ~lLbjel..'t (() ~l rt:\ L:f';11. .lhrlia!fII{: .11ot/l'miJIII. \\ h ich ad J rc",e'" t ht: :lrchitec(Ilr:rl intt:rm<.:diar\,. in BTIT:lin . i, ol..'cllpicd lI'i[h ~I re\ er't: plllaril \ of cxacth rhi') kind:

il1"dnn

Jrcillt<.:dllfC. J nd It

not

hur .(bOII{ puh IK.Hi(ln" h (,Ikc'

.d)"11( bllddl!\!.;\

I['i ,uh,cc{ [crr:lI n Inflllcmul idCl' ~nd ,tch~tc\

r3kinj;; pl3cc \\ Ithm J ll,:h nc('w la l culture . expfe"cd III ke\

Journ31~ <t'

It ukc' f"r ,l.:f'J.nled

ell a, hook ... ,

rh.l.[ hwldml:;' do nI)l 'pe,(k f" f

them,chc', but rJthcr thwU,I/;h rhc mtCrplClatlOn' thJl are m,ldc o f (h(.:m; ;Ind prC\lImc' Ih.1( Jrchut:Ltlllal PIUJCC" J rc 111\ .1fI~ hh ul!Jtcd \\lliull (ht: Cflnlt:X[ (If 1x:lk\(I\g in

\I)t:~dil

,deJ':'

\\'hiht the author. like o ther figure ... wirh whom hc might be ~r()lJpeu, 111.1kt: .. nu dirc{;( refcrt:nce 10 I )ermb. hl: dOt:'), like them, l)Ur~lIC;1 mode of ,In;l ly~i~ thar draws more genefJII~ on P<),)I"lfllctIJrali,t theof:'. Tht: per'pccti\e em plO\t:d in thi .. pllr'iuit rcprcsenr~:1 di,>till<.·tj\·c pha..,e in che relariomhip h<.:t\\ccn continenr;1I theory and arehileerufal di ... urur ... e. Earlicr approachc'i, .. u<.:h ;1') t1w... e of Rohert \ 'c muri or Charlt:~ Jt:nck .... ""cd che theory to ldn)(;aH: ;1 ~ hifr from thc formal aust<.:ri{) of thc modern i... { p.H;ldi,glll to the ... cmiotic ft:gi"tl..'f of t:\l..'f~d'l\ Ilfc .lnd commerce, or :;ou~ht. likc l 'tllbcno El..'o. fa model architectural ,lIla", ... i... aro1lnd ,I linguistic paf<ldi~m of code . . ;!lId ~\'nca'. or atcemptt:d, likt: Pt:tt:f Ei ... t:nlll.ln. (() employ dec()nstrIlCli\ L: mcthlld()I()~y as a gcnerative de\·ice. \\hlt di'lil1gUl~hc'l Colomin<l. Fort y ,lnd rhl·if fell()\\ ua\'ellers is both thcir '>hift 111 fO~'Il" from architccture;1 ... building to .Ifchit ectllfe a ... mediacion. and their add re ... !> (() llloJernr .. rn as a mm·eme nt \\hich \\;1\ ;l 1\\J\ ~ already enme ... hed in \y<;tem" of dl'il.·otlfW and reprc"cnt ;l tion. r:Hhcr th :Hl .1'1 onc problem;Hicall) f,lil ing [0 emh race (h<.:sl' condition",. Thi" is feHile grou nd for ,1[1.1" "i". T hc \Try poinc at \\ hich .tfchitecture appc<us to Jchit:\ c <In unprt:cedt:rHt:d degree of form:ll ,HHOnOrn) I", rl..'\ ealcd .!\ historically eojncidt:1lr with tht: birth and prolifcmcinl1 of the /11;r'l~ media. ,Ill'>t as it cast<; offornam<.:nt and hi'lrorici ... m. :lrchit<.:ccure fi nd'i it .. elf cneompJ"L:d \\ithin the twentieth-ccntury' ... nood of mechanical!) rcpro dll~'Cd \\Oft!'! and images: framt:J in It'! photogr.lph\. publications and exhi hit iU!h. Whibt figore ... ",Udl a'> Adolf 1,00.... :.h ( :ol(ll11in,1 h.. :; Jfgu<.:d. fc ... i... ced the'it: <.'IlOdlllO n.... othc~. moC'l( pJrJdigmatical t\ I ,c (:orhu"'ICT, cmbrat:ed [hem ;IS .(\'cnlle, for rC'lt:,lfch. propal:!::lnd~1 and ~d f-prom()tion. I knce her bold prOCLlll1;ttio n th'l( 'modern architccnlfe only become'l modt:rn \\ lth it" engagelllent \\ilh the medi:l·.\\·c might. in turn. Want to framl..' thi~ ,I","crrion by noting ho\l' ,lrch ircl'nrra[ hl ... corian, ()nl~ bccome po~rrn(Jlkrn \\ hen they engage with che chcor;. of lllcJiari()n. .llrdi(lflllJ! . lIodfml~(1II foIlQ\\" I hr ... p<lth. hlH

widen" it~ :-.eopc in joining it to anorher context of mcdianon: th:lT of modernism \ arri\:.d :lnd dc\"(:lopmcnr within rhe 'architcctural cultllrc' of Hritain. Working .It thc irHcrface between these two inrcrprer:Hivc bound:Jric ... hctween rnas'imediation :md n:lIioo:11 accu lturation. Iliggotc ,!!:i\'c" a pcr'iuasi\ c accoum of how [hc mO\cmcnt wa" recei'"l:d within;1 parricubr set of n:Hion,ll conditions and how these in turn sluped the spccifically British forms it sulm;qucntly assumed. !\t tht: outset of hi:-. account, modernism arri\ e" in Britain :.1S:.1 foreign import from (.'Ominemal Europc. lli~ott ohsenc!. Ih:.1t in the polemi(, of HC,!!:in:dd Blomfield \ '~ l ndcrni<;mLl<;' architec[Urc likcned to an in\"asi\'c 'I..:pidcrnic', and Ihat AA pre:-.ideIH Gilbert Jcnkins dcscribed thc \ \ ·c i<;:-.en hof Si cd lung of 1927 as fit only for:1 '\cgccJrian hiologist'.' Other architectural touri'ils rcturned with morc po:-.iri\·t: lI11,tge'i from their rcnmnai<;<;ancc of den.:lopments on the mainland. T he reportage of Frank Yerbe ry and Il o,,"Hd I{ohert"on. nme~ J-iiggon. \\'<15 cruci,ll in opening rhe fir5( cracks in thc Bnri sh architectural l.::-.t<lbli<;hmcll ' \ ins:ular ho<;tilit\' [0 the modern. In a kngthy 'icrics of Jrticles for"/hr Arrhill'lllWd RlIildinK .\'~J, bcrv,cen 1<) 25 .md 1931. the:-.c figure\ offered \ome of the first po<;itin: :lccou nts and [he first phocographic inugcs (of the \\ork of Le Corbu:-.ier. Asplund and Oud) :,l\"<lilablc to a Rri,i5h audience. \I odcrnis t architeClllTc. a<, Higgofl' s narrati\'c re\'c;Jb, (.'ould ne\'er be :Ul 'imlllcdi:ltc' c\: pcriencc in Britain. It :Hri",:d fir:-.r in [he form of v.ords and

imil,L!e~.

and the.:"e C01HITllH:d to shape it" re.:ccption c\"Cn \\ hen it \\' ,1~ cvenw:llly being built in thc L' K, ' I'racing the history of this mediation, 11 iggort idcruitics {lu .I f"f"hilfl'lum/ Rf'<..'In.·, under the cdito r<;hi p o f Ja1lle') Hi chards from 1935, :1" rhe chief publie.Hion through which Illodcrlllst architccture W:H circu latcd. In the es<;av'i of Hichards or Well 'i Coarc~, and the photography of \1 Dell and Ill , Wainwright. dlC architecture of (irnpiu<; , Lubetkin or rhc n;l[i\'c t\IARS grou p \\ a') hrought before a British .lfchitcl'wr:.ll amhenee .. \l thc same time, moucrni::;m was immediJrc::h rcframcd \\ ithin the terms Of.l n;"l{ional culture and ih (:o'HI.:mpor:.1~· agenda, 'the ,>p irit (If the ,..gc' that Il iggott eLli,m rhe AR Captllfeu:H th i'> rimc. 1n (hi~ ('{)[1(cxt he makes a COIl\ 1l1cin~ ~rgllrnent for h(1\\ ,mu \\ h~ Brit:HIl gO( il\ o\\"n p~rticlJ13r n,.' r"ion of mo(krmsm. ,IS oppO\ed to th:\t \\hich (f;l\"Cllc.d from Europe to the l'SA

;\"atlonal

concern~

with social democracy 1Il da~::.-di\ idcu 1930'> Britain inclined the .IR to ,1 panicular appro:Kh in it:-. appraisal of thc 1ll00·ernent .. Ri chard~·", wrjte~ Il iggorr, 'promoted an architecture that w;\:-. the product of an enlightened ~uci31 cOlHract. that "ser\'ed" che pc..:opk, \\ ith the result of ~i\'ing;l lo\\ c r priority w(hc rigo urofdc s ign '.~ ln the 1 940~ che modernist urban paradigm of erasure and nl'W beginnings W:.l:-. harnesseu (0 (he social fecon'itrul'ri\'c agcnda ofthc O;"l"ccnt welfarc st:.lte within enterprises ~lJch <I:' Iblph Tubbs' 19.W Ut'illg in (:ific.' exhibition and subsequcnt hunk ;md the 19 43 .\bcR'romhic Plan. A~ 1-l i1!;gon remarks, 'far more of I ,on don :lnd othcr cities wcre descro)ed by po"twar urban de\"elopmcm than hy the dcmuction of bombin g itsl!If,,,·Jt follows thac Britis h architccUlTill discollTsc was always morc attached to variants of modernist architectlTre that shared it:-. 0\\ n national con('erns \\ Ith "ocial dcmocrac\', humani sm and imticutional p;l(crnalism, parti cularly tho~e of Scandinavia. As H i.£!,goTt HgUC~, thc l lS. in contrast, whil st ,luopting rnan~ crni~ rc modernist architcct:-.. ne\cr s ubjecte d the movcment to thc ~amc social preoccupations :lIld polemics tC) which it found itsclfhound in Britain. ,\, rntH,'h as he anend s to (he articubtions between architeCTural discollTsc and national ideology, Ilig.l~()[[ abo offers :\ rich analysis of the \\ ()rd:-. and images through which thcsc \\"erc materialised. As a formcr AA photo libr:.lTian, and with a long"tanding interest in :Hchitccrural photography, he bring:-. an acutc :lnalvtical sensi bil ity. to hi~ account . ofthc images dcployed within rhl! P1I hi iC:H ions d isclIsscd. For eX,1 m plc, in dC'ierihing the contributiqn~ of Dell and \\'ain wri ghl 's phOTOgraphy co thc Ri chMd~ AN essay on O\\CI1 \\'illiams' I'ion ecr He:llth Centre. he writc\: Thl;'ir "" rk

~ccn

herl::l1

P<':l' kh~m

l't\pilJlh

on fvrm and the ,\~'<:lIlhl~~<: of m3sse" ofli,l.!ht :J.nd C(1n[r~'t, thl' rh\thm oflolutnes, the <:xciu'lon nf~lI hut the Illoderni~(

mo,\ The

in tht: <.:mph:l\IS

'lc:mfi(; ~ !H

:md cdlll::d

tcllin,!! detail

frC'lIteill

"f lIlhJOu:uion.

bcnmt: Illle of their

'lratq~ics.

mtfoldll(:cd b\

'I~n,

11)("t

,tnd here the ,1rt1lk I,

J ph{jI\)~I'Jrh

of,>(:lIlpIIHJlh

f,ullng, Oil till' roof \\ lIh tilt:

~',lp\l(l n ' Fr<:~h

'1111,11111<: on Ih<: roof of the

pl.I\,I.!fOlIn .:I' "

Il i,~gl)tt.

cluycd Jlr ,tnd

in this W,IY, i~ :Idept .It <lT1Jtysing tht: rIH.:roric.iI <;tratt:git:s of an.:hiw.:rural photography. I k i", abo, ,I:' the abv\'e iodic'He", .Ilcrt to [he f,u.:t that \\ hen pbced

tngcthcr on the printcd pa~c \Hmi:-. :tnd irnilge~ \\ork w!!:cther in <;ubtlc. e\cn contr~ldir.:tl}ry wa~'s. -rh e gcnCTlJu:-, amount lIf~pacc given o"r.:r tn irna~c .. in till.: pagcs of tlR, he :lTgLJC~, frequcntly untkrminctl the journal's bro:,tlcr ')oci<ll ,Igcnda lw (j\·c r-emph:.1si"ing It~ Pllrt.:l~ \ ' i~lIal ~nd form:11 ch.lracteri~tic:-.. Often the tcxt \\ould :Ichie\'c link more [h:.ln a ""pporring role among~t chc tnodcrni~t <;tyled plwcognlphy, c~ pc :md bYl)ut. In trc:lti ng the pages of thl!~c pH blir.:a{inn ~ il~ a~,cmhlagc~ in \\hich the 11llgui'ilic ,Int! phorogr:Jphic l'ndc~ work on and through c:lch mhcr, 1 1i~~ott JPpe:lr~ to draw ;IS much upon che "emimic ,IIl,lh"i" of Holand B:.lnhc ~· 'The Ph ow,ii:r;lphi c \

1c~,>.lgt:'

:" hc does from the mOTe.: C.\:tlll~i\ c focu:-. upon language found in the bttcr':-. TJu Fm/liol1 S\'j"/nn (which I liggorr make') explicit reference (I) in his 0\\ n tcxt), PholU,gr:l ph", iJllhtr:u iolh, p130" .lIlt! dia,!!: r;Jm " arc JlI examined;1" -, i.gnifying pr<lcticc~ working in t.mucm \\ ith \\ ord~ to produce J hi~toric;ll1y and ~oci;llh emhed(kd di~cour~r.: on an::hitcctllre. Ilis ,mal~si~ cxtcnd ~, [hough, hcyond ~emiotic intcrprctation, to addre:-.:-. the materiJlit\" of 3TchitccllIr:ll puhli("at i Oll~, their proportion~, sllrf:lce~ and te\.turc", ,{" thcm,d\ e~ "lgnificlI1t ckmenc:-. of mediation. For eXJmpir.:, the .IK" II~C oftc\.wreu p,lper" :Inu \\JlIp:lpcr In<.,erts is t1c . . crihcd.\ . . rendering it 'Ikin co an ':Ht ohject' :lnd the di\er<;e formats in which i~'ue' of. I IYIIIKmm rn;)~a/ine:.: \\ cre publi~heu arc ~ccn <1:-. reflec li \c (If thc group \ "pontancous pr,u:tK'c ,1I1d di\ t.:T~C :lpprOJdl. Ili ,l!go((\ ,mcntion [Il [he i.JYOllt. furmat anu nl.ltcriali ry ofthc"c puhlicatioll" 1I1c\'icahh ilwire,> an:l1\"\i" ofthe,>e ~aml.: l!lernenrs \\"i(hin his own puhli<.:ation, e\'en where Ihe\. may nor he entirch. unul.:r (he:.: ,llIthor\ t:ontrol and supen i"ion. .\ ~ ,uch . . I/N/if/filll! .l/odfm;JI1I adopt\ a comcnrionalh. academic :lIld q ri ctl\. 1ll0noc:.:hromJtic fnrnl.lt \\ IHeh offer" :11l .lppropri:nely nc.uu,11 \\ 1I1dow on U~ UI\ cr:-.e \ubjecc n1dttcr, hut (,.'r.lmpcd :wd limited condition::; for ib \ i"lI:11 re prodllcti'>l1". \Iany of thl! phOlogr'lph . . reproduccd hcrc. int.:lllding 1I1O,e takcn h~ I iI,I!gott. Jfe "qIHx':/ed I11to the margin!), the thumbnail proportion" of\\ hi('h "1,!?,nifjclIlcly li mit chcu illu"tr.HI\·e rotcnriJI. And, ~1\ en the n:produl'tiOll~ of p.lge" .lnt! 'ipre<lus from large-format jOllrn.tb, more gencrou::; proportion" for the hQok it~df mi!!:ht ha\ e rcndefl..:d thc . . c Tllorl.: leglhle, IIJ"wriographicJlh, I Iil!..gou'" text "P,II1\ the pcri()d from lllodcrnJ"m'o.; eM"

British rcception in th<.: 1930\ [Cl thc pre~cnt lhly: from Reginald Blomficld's rolemic to Plasma Studio's Puerta Amcnca Hotel noor of 2005, I n light of [hi~ r~lnge, The hook'~ title cffeeti\'cly describc'i rhe pTtx:es~es analysed bm is misleading in its hi!>torie31 scope: the neatly .. Biter'Hive tide gl(}~s<:~ all of its mcdi3tiom as 'modern' hut. little m'er halfwa ) through the text, we have already e ro~~ed into che 'pop' of Arc hi gram in;1 narrative th:.1t continllt::s into a historical cerr,lin morc cOlwcnrionally signpo~ted :1S pustlTIodern, deconstrllcti\'(: and digital. In his treatme nt ofth<.: :\ucce<;~i\'e period ~ addn;sscd in .llrdiolillK .lIodf.!71ism, how<.:\,er, the ;luthor is alert to the dangcr .. ofinsln.llTIcntalising hi!'>tol) to fit pH;~ cri bed narrativt:s, or ()f smoothing over the cracks that run through mherwise ncac pl.:riodisations. 1-lif4?ott appro\'ingly quotes i\lanfredo Tafuri and Francesco 1);11 Co'" criticism of ~ikolaus Pc\'snc r f(lr 'ironing Ollt' thc r<:31 complex iti es of hi'itory ;lOd points up the tl.:n::.iom that p<:rme;J(e hi~ own suhj ect rll:.1trcr. In thc bo()k's (ourth ch3ptCr, 'The Shifc (0 the Spl.:cific', for instance. he cxposes the fault linl.:>; that dcvelopcd through the '950" and 1960s in Britis h architcctural dcbatc, On thc one hand the 'compromi'ied' modernism of the picturesque 'ww nscapc' idl.:al, ren::aled in Cordon CIIlJcn's illustr3tions, or infk(.;ceu through the vern,Kular of English industrial architecture in Eric Dc .\ lare '5 phowgrarhy, on cht: other, Reyner I bnham'~ Jrgumenr for imeroationalism and the cm brace of loon (cm porary tcch nologil.:,). H ig,gO! f\ path through thi~ history i~ chronolog ica l but shift s across a range of mediafin~ pr,lctices as it proceeds from the :lrchirectUf31 jOllrn~~ls of the JOs, through the planning committl.:t:" of the 40s, the exhibiti()n~ oftk Indepcnucllt Group in rht: Sos, Archigrarn \, .. cif-publications in the 60s and the pCd.lgOgy of Alvin BOYllr::.k\' at the A:\ in the 70~ and 80~, Whii'it the author as!'>errs t!1Jt 'the arglHl1<:nt of this hook i~ th ,1( architecture i::. invariahly shaped by ilka~, ;Inu that such idca" are formed and rr.:lIlsmittl.:d thrQugh thcir cuhUf<l1 exprc::.sion in puhlic3tlOn', thc book d oe ::. not focus <.:xciu"i\c1y upon public;uion. In it:> sh ift ing exploration .1Il'//i(Jlill.!! ,I/od,nllsm Ius the ~ld"ant age of illuminati ng the bro:ld range and pr,lctice of architectural medi;niolls, ;lnd their inrerrela(i()nship~, wjd,in ~pecifie soci<ll and hi,torical cireurnSt<ll1CI.:S. Thl.: di~advJIlt'lg<: hen.: i!'> th :tt \\ithin the scope of the book's 200 p:lge:. Ihc .. c: illuminations :lre nec.:c::."arjl~

partial ~lnd frugmcnra~. su that the rcadC"r cannot be offcrc.:d a \u~t:\ined :Jccount of how an.:hi(ccrural photography, or educaciona l practice, for eX3mplc, ha\'c develupcd over che whole Pl.:ri!)J with which the book is conccrned. But this choice of historiugraphical fOUl!.; at leasc c~tablishcs the nature ofthc connections researched, a'> oppo,>cd to setti ng onc form of mcdi~1tion in arrifici:.11 isolation, as with Tournikioti:> in hi ... own 'historiography'. for cxampk:, wh<.:n he pUtS the 'construCted world' into parenthesis in or<.h路:r 10 focu!'> on the discoursc of a h:1ndflll of archi rectllr,1I his(l)riall'\. Iliggou's text, in c.:(\ntra~t, clcarh. dcmonstrates (he n<.:n;~~il\ of ~mcnding to the complex rday'i (hat movc octw<:en arl.:hirccturc, social prJccicc, ,lnd mccli:l within a national culture, Only in Ihe brief final chapter, 'Architecturc as Discourse', in which HiggoH addresses arch itccrurJI culture from thc <)OS [(J rhe prcscnt day, attcmpting a broad '~ ur \'cv' of it" 'ex (cn .. i"c literaturc', do the various strand s nf hi~ narrativc bei2:in to sli p into a kss I.:oht:rcnt arr~n .!!cmcnt. There arc <:vidcnt problem ... here in ~ttemptin.g to dr~w che book's hi~torical framework and concern", into ..~ cOlllcmpora ry pcr~pccti\'e, At this sra~e, chc tide's rcf<:rl.:nc<: to the term 'modernism' ha s already becn stretchcd through the pos(modern and into a ne\\' centlll) in which it has lx:comc largely unusahle. Th e cxamination of nation:11 ;Hchitectural culcure, >;usraincd this far, also r<:;lche!'> <I. point beyond which ic~ terms cea ... c to f\lnni on dtCctivc:h. Thi '\: is bccau ..c of both thc now ,e.lobal iscd practice of architecture, acknowledged by f liggon in hi>; rcfert:nce to P la~ma Studio (a GCfm;ln/Argcntinean partnership based in London whose featurcd pruject is in .\ I adri d) :l~ rqJfc!'>enr:ni \ e of th is [Tcnd, and duc ro wider historical shifts in which rhe 'n3 (ion ' appears ro be di s'\:olv ing in rhe wake of tT3nSnu(ional corporation::.. global c iti e~ and ,;uper rcgions. A final difficlllry for this chaptn i~ that an adequatc aCl.:oullt of mediation in the twenty-fi rM century would il1\ olve dealing noc only with the \ a<.;t proliferation of traditional media, hut \\ ith ,j <;imilarl~ exponential gro\\ th in onlinc puhlica(iom, ,lOd with entirely new :111(1 'virtual' form~ of arch itcetllral rcpresemation such 3S che fly through: a task deserving of;l hook in ir~ own right. What Il iggott has achieved with ,lIrt/i(lfjll/!. ,11()df.m;sm, though, is wextcnd the rangc of the historiography of modcrni .. m, as medial io n. into thc .. rea

of na(ional discourse in a co nvin cing fashion. 'J'hi~ is ac hieved through an IInucrplaycd but effective ",ynthe~is of the methodologies of posrsuuefural ist thcory, sem iotic analysis. cultural st\ldie~ and empirical rcscarch. But wc mi~ht stilt ask, in accounting for thc ways in which 'ideas shape architccture路. to what extcnt thcory itsdf comritLlte~ .. further layer of mediat ion: or how Foucault, Barthcs or i\IcLuhan ~HC u!'>cd to shapl.: our u ndcrstanding of architecture, Th cory rCll1ain~ a tool typically approp riaTcd and instrull1cntali~ed b~ arch itectU ral historians in pur<iuit ofrcvised and post-K .. nrian rcadinJ?;" of modernism. r:uhcr than onc used ~clf颅 rcnecrivcly. I f",!.: wert:, cOIl\'er~dy, to recogni sc theory a'i yet another k:vcl of context. apP<:<lring at thc margins of archircctural diKolJrsc a~ we :loom OUt to cX;llllinc ic s practicl.:, wc might h<: in a position w quc .. tion it.. broader im plicati ons and recognise it J" IHJ k .... loaded or historically "pecifrc (han Kamian notions of :1rtistie autoTWm). I mmanucl I\3nl. (.路n(iqll' of jlJ{/if.'lltlll ( t'\ cw Yurk: I )OH: I, .wo

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Cine mat ic t J rb~lnism: A H istory of the \I oclcrn from Ree l to Real bY. '~zar :\IS;lHau .. Rourlukc ,.... , -~ooh 2S6 pp., £26.2S ISB:'< (),PS700493

Ralph Slt!'!1

T he interrcl<Jeiooshir of cincma and thL' cit~ i~ compelling. By \'isually documenting thei r c\ ' er-transiror~' phy~ical form ,lnd social rebtions. cincma ha", played J role in sffllc(Uring cities sinc!.: it~ im:eption, beginning with carh ' ,ll:tuali{ic~' , ",uch as chm.c colkctL'd in the notcwonhy D\ 'l) rele<l<;c cntitlcd f~/ff'r/"i( Fdfi.."{//"tt;(/Ils: Thf' 1.1),"/ Film,1 tJi .lh/r1ldl er f.:t!lYf)!! (200=;). :.tnd Illilc~tone~ of :-:-i1cnt film , ~lIch ,1.., P,wl Str<Jnd and Charle<; Schcekr\ .Iltlllhi///{/ (If)21), \"alter RIlrtmann':-, Rn/in: ,~:rmphr)//y of 1I Grl'(J/ ("i~r ([927) or Dzig,l \ ·ertO\·\ 7hE' .It(l!! G.'.'i//i (I .1/o'c Il' C(llIlera ( [929). T he imponallcc of cinema in comtitLuing urban experience has g;lincd increa:-:-ing recognition at (he ",ame time a.., film an~dY~is ha~ gained in ",orhi~ticH i on. 'l"rb3n ' genrcs such a<; po<.;{\\"ar Amcrican "oir, Italian neorcali~rn, F rench fJolI'L'dlr UIf!.IIE', nco-noir. the more recent comriburiom of director.., ",uch ;JS \\,im \\" endcr~ and \\'ong l\ar-\\"a i. a!limE' such .IS \bnlOru ()",hii\ GllfJsl in/fit Shdl (I<)I),=;) or thc urh,1I1 topographic,> cxperienccu lw childrcn, as in \:abil Ayouch'" haunting: .lli 71/(/1/(1, Pn>,((' (if' la Rife (2000). an: increasingly

complememcd by tempting forays into less readily apparent genres such as music<Jls and western:-:-. ' Thi~ densc ficld is further cnriched \\irh studies on the 'pre-' or 'prowcinematic' experiences of the j/1/Ilf'flF and j/I/Ilms€', ::IS traccd in writings by G iuiiana 13 rullo, Anne F riedhcrg and the eiegam prose of Anke C lcbcr. ' F inally, there arc fascinating studies lw author'i such as " Iiri<lnl H ansen. Charles '\ illsser, Ben Singer and \\" illi:1l11 l -ricchio on the dis(illctiun~ of class and receprion in the circus!.::-:-. \',wde \'illc hall.... music theatres and nickelodeom that sen'ed as early \'enues for <l burgeoning urban 'public srhere' enthralled with <l new technological man/cl . \ For architects and lIrbaniSl~ conce rned with the intt:rsection of cinema anu urban studics thi~ wealth of information prC'iCllts increasing oppormnity as well as difficulty. Coupled \\·jth issuc~ of technological development. cconomic transformation <lnd audience participation as well as larger i'i'illes of reading" complex urban environmcnt in relation to representat ions of gender. racc <lnd class. the information can become ovcrwhelming. Presenting this matcrial in a pcd,'!gogically succinct manncr raises ~'ct another issue: spccificall~, ho\\ can this di\'erse material b~ made ,H;ccssiblc to students \\'ho h~l\ ' e . .. .. Ju~t a passmg lIltere<;t [n c[ncnl<:1 or. yet more di fficult. relcgate cinema to rhe re alm of 'cntertainment'? Accc'isibility is;1 significant problem for tho~c who may ne\'er ha \ e <;cell <I ~ilenr film, who might rccognise tht: 'modernity' of film.., such a~ Fritz L a ng 's .1/ ( 19.) r ) bur sri 11 be com p lete Iy pU/.zled hy the pacing of Roman Pobnski\ Chi!lalo'&:.'fI (1974 ). or who might bc unable to read the continuiric'i 3nd discontinuirie:-:- of urban rcprc'ient<lrion between the 'Berlin-;' of Rurtm:JllI1, Billy \\'ilder. \\,im \\"cndef'" Tom T ykwcr or Paul Grecngra<;s

(Tht' flourlit' SlIprm1(/("Y. 2004) . \: czar A1Say-yad 's Ci!10Jlfl/i( l 't/I(IIIi.Wl: :I HL~/ory of ri,e .1/odrrJl from Rtl'i Iu Rea/make'i a successful contribution to ncgotiating thc terrain linking film ,md urban ",rudies, I n pan. (his appear~ to bc a continuation of carlicr \\ ork undcrtaken in AISayyacl's Hybnd (·'-/IIIII.,'illl: 0" IhE' ft/tIllit)' Disw,,,;,'!' find /ftp/Juil/Fllf'inJlI!II('III." [ n di'icmsing thc \\ ork of I lomi I3habha, AISayyau

writc'i that h~ bridity ' doe~ nor emcrge from thc 'i\ nthc",i", of different components, bur from a srace where dCll1cnts encollnrer and cran'iform each other. Bh,lbh,l belic\'es (hat it is throu .gh thc pcr'ii'>tenr di~pLtccmcnts of thi:-. ' in-betwcen' ",pace, \\ hich he Jl<lmc~ 'third ~paec ·. that colonial r0\\'er producc'i it:-. own ~tr~ln,ger:-:-, Thu'i. for Bhabha, thi~ third "'p;H:e h,lU the potential to become .I '",ite of re", i'" (J nee, " I n Ci!lOf/tll il ['rhllll ism, AIS;l\'yad n:turn'i to The notion of 'in-bcTwcen "'p'lCC'. Wishing to write a hook n!.:ithcr on film nor on citie"" hi", intention i'> to \\ ritc about the ''''p3ce of thc in-bctwcen, more "'recificall~ thc in-hetwccn of red and rcel 'ip~H... e ' ," .\ISayyad·", prim3r~ argument reject.., thc 'ui\'i~i()n of "'pace", into re;ll and recl', in~i"'Ting that thc lattcr CC~ISC'> 10 be prim'lfily rcpre",cllratinll<l1. Here he i'i Ie'i'i concerned \\'ith the in-bctwecn a<; a ~itc of rcsistancc th~lI1 hL' i~ \\"idl it~ prouucti\'c potential. Becoming 'gencfati\'c', thi", coupl ing of real and reel ,He 'mutually con'iTitllti\c to.1 point thM rcnder, the '>tuLly of onc \\'ithout the othcr complete or ill-informed'. \\" hilc thi", claim 111,\ \' wcll he rejccted b~ urb,lni..,r-, focu",ed on quancit,lti\'c anal~,>i.., and production , the daim i~ both ,lccuratc ~lnd, finallY, mode",r. ThL' interrclatiomhip bctween \ i~ual materi,lI . the urban illlaginar~ andllfhan rroducrion ha", been rccogni,>cd sincc rhc ad\"Cnt of the Italian ,Jdlll(l, \\ith the Ji"trihutiol1 of 'illch inugc'i (including the prodigioll'i \\ ork:-. of C; io\',lIlni B,IClista P iranc",i) acting <I'> a mcan'i of ..,tructuring the pcrception of Europe,m eitic", monlllllcnt", and ruin", for .r~ener'Hi()n'i of Grand Tour (ra\ ellef:-:.. I ,ou i'i I , llll1ibc recognised that cincma could ' rcprcscnt the nlO\crncnt of thc '>trcet"" of public place..,. with ,1,>[()ni..,hing fclicity', ~cf\'ing, a'i Tom (illnning 11:1" noted , (0 'capture conringcnt happenings in all their dctail,>' ,mu ~acriticing 'principle", of ",e lccc ion ~md hierarch\ found in trauitional imd.go'. " In thi'> reg,lrd A1Sa\"\;lu might h;l"c offered a ,>trongcr argutllenr both b~ <mchoring ci !lema in a longcr tr,ld ition of \ ' i~u31 represcntation ,1I1d I)\" di"'tingui'>hing the charKtcrisrie" 'ipccific to cincma <I, it "",iftl\' tr:ln~f()rmed from ,I technic:.d no \ eln to.1 111;1'i'> IllCUiUIll

dri\'en b~ ;\ din:rsc range of social. cconomi<.: and idcological forces. Cinema/it [·,./Jaf1ism al'lo prm'idcs link inform:uion on che origin~ of the \ ariou't film, di~cus~etl: whether they began a~ ~eripts or wcrc ~ldapted from a literary SO\lree, and how the interplay between ~I literary representation and its corrc~ponding cinematic realisation mi!,!h[ ,\tructurc public reception. The 'torie~ of Ravmond Chandler, Dashicll llammec <lnd j31lles i\ l C3in h3\'c 'constnKtcd' a view of I.os Angele, ao; much as the film'i ~(.'rip[ed from the~e 'tories. Similarl\', AISay~~ld's analysis of Rladr RII!/II~r and 'rcplicanrs' rnight han~ includcd a more sustained disetJs'ii(ln of tht': topin addre'i'ied in Philip " Dick'~ Do AI/droids f)r~l"Im of F./~("/!ir Sh~ep/' E\"oh 'ing from a serie::. of (.'ours(.'~ t~llIght at the r ni\'ersity of C,llifornia 'j( Berkclc\". .lskcd his . AISavvad . . studcnr~ to imagine that no trace of Ne\\ York or Los Ang<::le~ rcmHincd other than the films in which these citie') are depicted, before posing the question, 'what kind of hi'>tor~: would wc wrirc?' Thi" is an apt insi~tcncc on the importance of visual (:ulrurc and Ih~ 'picwriaJ turn' <.Int! .,cn·c,;; \\ cll ro countcr the criticiml of 'just ,>howing movies' that sur\i\·cs in J fe\\ ~cho()I') of archicc<.:ture. I)C\'c!oped bOlh in [he contcxr of de~i~n thesi') cour~cs and ~clllinarl le(turc~, the book rctains l11:tn\" of the 'LJ~LJal 'iUSrH:ct'i' fa$HJred h~' architt:crural 'iwJenrs (,Ift'fmp()/is. Plflr/im~. Tm; /)n·cfr. Blflde RIII/ller, The 7i'/JIJllln S/J()fJ:). But it enriches readin.f;:~ of these film'i by juxtaposing them with others less Lllnili:lT, or bmili"r CO carlier gcncration~. and in thi~ manner the iS~lIc of olcces\ibilit\" j'i pani;lll~ ameliorarcd. Thc'ie cinematic juxrapo'iitions arc then ordered in a ~equcnce of chaptcr<; separ~l[ing modernity inw a seric'i of 'modernities' that allo\\ for gre;Her intcrpret:.ui\ c modulation of both cinema and the eit:. This m~)(.Iulation ..lIH.l the .. equem.:ing of chaprt:fs are the central strcngth of the book, defrJ~' reordering the lilm'i under di~eu~'iion into topics 14ermant: (O urhan discourse rather th:m wpie') anchored in film 'iflu.lie') (including those menrioned ae thc opening of this re\·ie\$. The (;hapters addre~~. in rough historic,l! 'iequcncc: I) industrial modernity. 2) urbanisin,g modernity. 3) Orwclliall

modernity, 4) eynicll modcrnit~, s) from the post modern condition to cinematic cit~. 6) \'oyeuri<,tic modernity, 7) rh!! moderniry of the sophisticatc .Ind the misfit. 8) an alternati\'e modcrnity and 9) I.:xurb,m pO'itmodern ity. E nd notc~ 'HI.: prO\'ided at rhe closc of each chapter. offering sub'irance mi..,~ing in the closing selccced bibliograph~, The whole is well bound and pre~enrcd by Routledgc, which is to bc applauded for its continued commitment to addressing architcctural and urban i~~tles in an expanded field. The chaptcr hC<ldings po'>e immemdy intriguing po:-.~ibilitics anJ at (imes rhe book struggle<; to fulfil th~ promise of (;haptcr'l (hat, in a number of instances, CQulJ become books in chelllsd\"e~. There is also chc temptation to di\ ide chaptcr ... For example, 'voyeuristic moJcrnity' includes a hrief foray into governmental <,ur.... eillancc. a lOpic that should ~tanJ on its 0\\ n. The book ha~ also cur it .. elf loose from the original premise m~nti()ncd by AISayyad: th<lt of im<lgining a filmic histor~ of I,os Angcle .. and :'\ew York. Instead, ic couches on cinematic engagements with Berlin, Pari~ and London <l~ well as small-cown Italv and Ame rica. As sllch, rhc hook remains tied to European and American toric~ while IO!iing rhe focu'i it mi!,!ht have gained by limiting itself [() LA and ."'''e\\ York. The~e two citit..:s certainly have :.I powerful cinematic presence, more than enough [() fulfil AISayyad's original premise. From a methodological perspective, it is unclear whether incorporating other cities should be undersrood a~ necessary, opportunistic or coincidental. Juxtaposing. rather than interrelating, \'arious ciries ;lnd their cinematic counterparts also rai:')cs imporranr qllestion~ about the transnational and transhistorical limitations of the films addressed. The topic of 'urbanj~in14 modernity' (ch~lpter 2) argue .. rh:u small town~ ,Ind big cities :Irc 'linked categories' and juxtapose~ two small rowm.: 'Giancaldu' in (;imcppe Tornarore's ('llIelll(l Partlr/iso (1988) with p rank Capra's ' Bedford Falls' in If's (I 1I ondClflll,~ ift (1946). AISaYY~l d "UMcsts that 'wc do not learn as much b\" looking at the entire genre of tilm~ as \\c do by examining in derail (\\0 films rh~H capture rht: nature of the

transformation in two cinematic .. mall rown~';' but we arc not [Old why jU~l these cinematit, toWns, separated by che postwar cxpcrienct:s of a \ ictoriolls anJ defeated nation 0\ er alJllo~t half a cenrur\", arc the be')t • choices. Acccpting cinem~l <1'i all acti\c agent in consrituting urban ch~lngc requires a systematic rencnion on the changing characteri'lcies of that agenc~, Whereas Capra\ film is concerned ",.·ith the eonstrm;tiol1 of an idcali~ed future (onsistent with po~t\\'ar aspinltions, Torn~ltorc'" focllses nn :10 idealised past «(he character of Ekn:l insisrs 'There i'> no flUure. There i~ only the past. '). ( ';IIfllla Pamrii.'() is in many regards a ~urpri'iing selection from \\hich to argue for lhc 'j!;cncrati\'c' potenri:l! of cinem~l. Although the cincm.ltic paratii'ic <.;eT\e~ a~:.1 social focll~ for Ihe town, liuk impact is depicted in t<:rms of soriai or~anisation or aspiration, much less in physical CTan..,formation. Scekin14 diversion from li, e .. chat llre n<.:\ er delineated, the Sit:ilian towmpeoplc arc as sceptical of Luchino Viscollci'" La Terra T,.~m(J ('What a j<.lcka~~ to buv. that ho<.lt.') ~IS the,. are of \ lichclangelo Antonioni's 11 Grir/o (' T hi~ film is (oo highhrow for U~ . One d:.1)' i~ morc than enough.'). 1\' a site of entertainment, the Paradiso i') promptly abantloned in the face of firc (through which the projectioni .. t loses hi'i sight). Aftcr being rebuih by:~ 'northerner', it i'i abandoned again to television and video'i, with tht: 'old movie busine .. 'i ... just a melllm~ '. Finall~, it i .. imploded co make \V.1Y for a parking Im: a ~rilll reflt:uion. as AISayyad point" out. on the proces~es of rnotlerni~~ltion. hut nor onc supporting the notion that the 'real :.lnd Ihe reel h:l\"e become murually constittlti\ e'. ,u In other chaptcr~. tllc jllxtap()~iti()n of Amcrican :md European eitie'i facilitate'i more pro<.iuoi\ c Ic~~on~. Under 'industrial modern it\" ' RUttlllann\ Berlin i'i addressed <llong:~idc Ch~lrlie Chaplin\ ,I/odrr" Timrs ( 19.,6) father than \'ertov's .Ilrm r..~:i!ll (J .Ifm'if (,"rlllltm, it~ morc predictable counterpart. This allows AI5a\" , . ad to relate rhe figurcs of [he fIliJl~lIr to the '[ramp' rather than notion .. of the TO\'ing '''inoEye' (\'CTtO\·). Nonerhcle'is, the comparison has it" limitariom: Rr-dill, as a 'cro~s-~cction' film. \"HC'iCnt.., [hc filII panoply of [he Illclropolit.lIl

'symphony', whereas .lfor/el'n Times is 'mocking the insanity of rhe drive for efficiency and the extreme tyranny of the modl:fn ~ystem'." Hav ing opened the book with a discu ssion of industrial modernity of Bcrlin. AISavvad closes it with " a view towards postindusrrial postrnodernity ,15 cxcmplified in thc :"Jew lJrb,mist desire to re-create (or invent) the spatial form, scale and social structure of che American town via Gary Ross's Pleasan/'l.H"//e and Peter Weir' s The Trllmo!l Shot:.:, both from 1998. I n the attendant Jiscussion~ on nostalgia, simulation and hyperreality, the yearning for 'another time and place', one senses that Cinema Pa/'adiso is the precursor to Je an BaudrilLHd 's conception of the 'cosv, nook' as realiscd in the qU;lint cre;ltions of Seaside and Celehration, Addressing, at least in a cinemaric context of The Trumofl ShoU!.-', the pef\'asi\'e role of television, the epilogue returns us to New York and the <;crie~ Sex and the Cit),. With a dis<.:us<;ion of the financial imract of 'Sex and the City' tourist tours on the neighbourhood where the series was taped (which allowcd it to upgrade 'with street details, such as lampposts, similar to those in the show'), thc book concludes \. . irh the observation that 'in the cinematic realm, modernity and posrmoderniry are not historical periods, but different political articulations of the relationship between thc urban expericnce and its J rristic rcprescn rations'. " Ciflemfl/;( Uroil1lJsm prompts speculation on other city/cinema pairings and juxtapositions that would further expand and strengthen the cogent arguments presented, It also prompts speculation on the potential be nefit of combini ng the arguments made here with those in Hybnd (],-ba!1lsm. Thinking ahout cinema and cicy less ;\5 mutual I\' constiwrivc and morc as a relationship of 'm utual contamination' might grant the in-between of 'cinematic urbanism' the potential of becoming 'sites of resistance', And, as AISay~'ad has modulated the reading of 'city' through his series of 'modcrnities', it is possible to modulate 'cinema' into a more nuanced series of terms. As an accessihle, coherent text adding to rhe growing work on the intersenion of cinema and the cit\', , Cinem(l/ir: Cr/Jonisl!! is greath' , rccommcnded.

Sce. for example, Bianca Frcirc,l\lcd!ro~, 'Hollywood ~Iusicals and [hc Invcntion of Rio de Janeiro, 193J-1953', III Cmml{Jloum(J/, 4 1:4 (2002), pp. 52-67. Giuliana Bluno, S'fftro:-ailmg on a RlIl!ltd Map: rul/llml Htory (lftd /hr City Films of Elt-'inl Solan (PrinCCLOn: PrinCCLOn (Jniver~i!y Pres~. 1943) and At/as of t;mo/ron: 10!lm~s ill Art, :trdTiur/llf" and Film (I "ondon: Verso, 200Z); :\onc Fried berg. IVindOli.!路 Shopping: Cinrma llfld rlu PO.){modtm (Berkdcy: University of

California Press. (993): Ankc Gleber. 'The Woman and the Camera - Walking rn Berlin: Ob~eITations on Waiter Runffiann, \ 'crcna Stchn and Hclkc Sander'. in B Beckcr,Cantarino (cd.), Stt/in in F()(JJs: ('u/tllr(J1 TrafTsfoml(ltiofTs i,r Crnn(ln,Y (\Vestpon,

eT:

Praq~er,

19961. pp. 105-124 and Tltl :tn of 7d}jn~ a Wall: Fldntrit, Lr!rmtur( and Film in l\'omar C,,/Iur, (PrincelOn: Princeton l 'nivcrsilY Press. (999). \Iiriam Han sen, 'Earl\" Silent Cinema: \\'hose Public Sphere?'. in Nf'Ol" Ctm/aft Cn路liqut. 0:29 (1983), pp. 147-184: Charles ;\hmcr, Tltl Emtrgtnct of Cintma: T/u :l.mtricml SCrttn 10 1907 (Ikrkelcy: Univcrsity of Californ ia Prcss. 1994): Ben Singer. 'MlInhallan Nickelodeuns: ;.Jew Data on Audiencc~ and Exhibitors'. in C{fItma loumal, 34:3 ( 1995), pp. 5-35: Willia m Uricchio and Robcrra E Pcarso!l, Rifmmm;.; CIII/u~: H, Cast of th, h/(lj(mph (jllfl/irr Films (PrincelOn: Princcron University Pre .. s, 1993). Sec also the essays in V Toulmin, S Popp1e and P Russcll ieds.), Thd,os/ ]\"orldof . 1frlrhdl & Kfflyon: Edw:(udian !Jrita/f/ on Film (London: British Film [nstilutc, 2004). J\ etar AISayyad (cd.), Hyb,jd l 'romlism : Off thr Idtnlll)' ()isrourst and tilt !JIIII/ c;m-ironm(fl/ i Wcstport, CT: Pr.l.e/!:cr, 200 I). J\ezar AISa\"yad, 'Hybrid Culturc/H\'brid Urbanism: PandoTa's Box orlhe Third Place", ibid.. pp. 1- 18. Nezar AISayyad, CinffllallC ['rimnism: A Hrslory

0/ tlf( Alodtnt from Rul to Real (London: Routledgc, 2006). p. xii.

7 8

Ibid. Tom Gunning, 'Pictures of Crowd Splendour:

The ~litehelland Ken yon Factory Gate hI ms', in 1h~ t()J/World oj.l/ilChtll ct" KffI)'Off, pp. ~9-68. 9 :"oJezar AISayyad. Cinrmolir Crb(1f{ism, p. 48. 10 Ibld.. p. 66. I I fbld., p . .33. 12 Ibid.. pp. 237-239.

human~ to

autobiographical ck;script ion we just read.

e.:onstruc.:ted hy

It i" as if the d og's .;;na r! crossed a line

ex hi bit an imals. s uch a~ :mima[ farm s,

bct\\ccn

harm,

(WO

d ifferent wpographie:5,

zt)() l o~ical

house. kill or

parks. ;tqu;lfium1l or hull

animal anu hum:lIl. 'savagc' and civilise d.

ring~.

Ani mated by the sl ight breeze and the

(of a hycna)

pamsol's I11orion , the an ima l's ' fiercc'

not only a,> rhe proWt~ pc of .lnimal

growl reanimated a memory in the ~iclllist's

inc:1rcer:ltion ledlllique\. hut ;lbn

mind. Darwin. evidently, a{(t.:mpt$

~trllctllre

anthropomorphise his dog - 'full g rown and \ t.:ry sensible' -

as well as

rationalising

Symptomatically. thc anirn~l[ C:l~e ;lppear~

OIlC

of the ch:tptcrs, :1\ . 1

related to the nptic<llcagc of

Rcnaissancl.: pcr~rcL'tivc, thc archetypic,ll .lpparatu<; for '<..';I prurin g· hllman lifr.::

the a~ency of movement. The dog. in

within the \ i\u al fie[d in thr.:: \\'c<;t. On c of

turn, mOlllcmari[v a n im al ises Darwin's

the primary llbjr.::nil'c\ of thr.:: book, then.

mind. causing his th ou~ ht to swervc

i\ 10 ~how hm\ mem;ll aplxlr:nusc~ estt.:nd

iowa reflcx and forcing him to repr(;:.ent

to physical <;truc(tJrr.::\ in

rcaMlIl

human and animal life "ithm a nl.:f\\ork.

:I" ;1Il

essentially animal ddencc.

\Vc C<ln pt.:rhap .. ust.: the space opened up by

J)~lfwin's

'littlc fact' as an entry

cin':lIm~crihing

It is thcrcf()rt.: nu accident th:n onc ofthc author\

insightful architcctlH;d

11)0<;(

hcrdc" .... nption ofthc tr.uiin~

Inw nl}! o nly the subject bin alsv the \'cry

referencc ...

medlOd of Catherinc [ngraham' 1l ncw

room of 1,0111" SlIlIiYan'<, Stoek Exch ;l n~c

book o n architecture an d anim~lllifc.

huikJing

Lik c Darwin's description, a good part of

,mirn<ll hodies MC Jb,cnt

Chicago, ~l space in whidl ;1 ..

phy\ical entitie.,

Architecture, Animal, Human: The Asvmmctri<.:al Condirion By Catherinc i ngr3ham

the book. is also about connectin~ and

vct IHe\cnr

dividing lines be t ween a n imJ[ ,1Ild human

economic I.::\dungc. [ngrah.ltll dcmon .. rratc\

rcrriwrics. a bout invcrted sy mm t.:cries

how Sulli\an \ ornate building bccomc.,

ROlHlcdgc, 2006

and rceiproca l intrusinn1l. as well ~15 their

p:lrt of J l.lrger IIrgani"~Hi()n;tl circuir b~

368 pp .. £2S [S Bt'\ o,PS70107-t

strenuous co ha bitation within the fr;une of

extcndin~ to

archirecHlTc. A seemi ngly periphl.:ral

,laughte.:rhous(;. the "';Jcrifil'I.I[ 'p;JCC that

elcmcnr sllch as the

.sP)'l7)J Papape'ros

'I 'he..: An imal Survival of Architectural TheolY'

;~nima[

is herc brought

prcn::de~

:I'"

thc pnm3f\ ohjccb of

the .Irchu(;(.'wrc of the

dlc ,lrC1M of finafl{: i~d

tr;tn~a(.'ti()ll\.

into the cc ntre of a series of archircclUf3[

Thc

investigations, a nd as in Darwin'» animatcd

(hat c{)\·(;r... the trading fflOIll \\<llls ;\ in (hl\

incident. thc animal acts again a» a

\\~y c,,~cnti,llh

CovCrt intrudc r that moci\"ates a scrie~ of

ofthcsc llMtl.:rlal <lnd \\' mhnlit: tf3n~action~

unfor(;sccn effects,

iO\ oh ing money and ;lI1imal hlood,

BlIr instcad of uying to delineate exactly

efl\ he[ming vc,gcta[ ornamenr thl.: (in)organic remnant

:\IUtlleTOI1\ archi{(;cl'" h.l\ e :.harcd

;.In

[\Il\ dug, a full pown and \'cn \emibk ammal,

what thi1l vitally complex book i~ about,

lIltcrc~t

Wh h in!!; on the

~l1l1l.by:

let

thc modern;:'!! m;tsrer<;. Onc of Ingrah ,"n\

oc('a~1Unalh

by dctai[ing what it is not. To '> t;H{ , this is

but.1I mOl

I~\\

n dunng <I hot :md

link dl"tJncc

sli1{!u hrcc7e

cd dn open par .1:.01. \\ hleh \\ ould ha\ (,: heen

\\holl>

di~regardcd

b,' the dog, had an,' onc

nC,H I!. A~ It \\'a~. c\cr~

time that the

~twd

para~()l

\Ii,c;hth mmcd,lhcdojZ.,i!.rowlcd licn,:ch and harked .

H e mu\t I think. lun: reasoned to

rapid and

tlncon~elQu'

\\ IthOUI an" :.Ipparelll

hlln~c1f In ,I

manner, th:.l! nWlenu:nt

C:.lU~C

mdicated the

of "<lllle strange IJllIlg :.Igcnt, :.Ind no J

pre~erll' C

~trJng.(·r

IMd

fight to be on hl\ l efrlwrv,'

LIS

perhaps t ry to circumscribe it

not (al least

p rim arj l ~)

a book ahout

in anim:lk indltdin~ \e\'cr:tl of

dcparture point, in hoth thi, ;wd ha prl.:\ iou., hook, .1rrhift'('{fIJ't' Imd fnt' Burr/m"

building!> cither by or for an ima ls. [ t i1l not

of / ,III((Il'il'o. i\

an account of the structural organisation,

to thc annm:t1o\1<; contribution of donkl.:vs

building habits or construction p:ttlcrn<; of

.Ind their scemingh abc rr;lOt curvilinear

birds. beave rs, tcrmircs, bee .. and

PJth s to the forlll:ltion of vld-city \(fects.

amocb,ls; such material was cX(t.:nsi\'ely

which the architect jl1xt:lpml.:d with the

con:red more than thirty year$ ago by

properly :lTchitcctural right anglc~ of hi.,

the 7oologist and Nobcl prize-winncr f\arl

own radiJIH

HJIl

Fri<;eh and his son Octo in their

wonderfully dcscri ptive A!lim(JI AJrhifrrfurt', noted hy revicwers in

J A'

Corhu\;cr\ rdcrl.:nce

urh,lOi~m . ·

BIll the re i,

.1I!'-tJ aoor lll.:r animal ... idc in [ ,I.: CorhU\l er which [ngrah,IITl doc\ not tll(;ntion and

Pi c[Urc an English garden on a hot summer

\.... hich

d3~ during the eJrl~'

architcctura[ journals,' Furthermore. while

;~mbi \ ' <llcnth

Dan\ in is resting on ;t chair ncxt to hi\

[ngrah :ltn's boo k doe .. contain

\kandcr' .1Ilt! in h i'> f.1'>C111300n during thc

dog, One or m orc womcn must have

rcfercncc~

prc\ ' iousl~-

accounr of morphological parallels bctween

h\hriJ figurc of the t\ l illl){;lllf which he

an opcn para»ol behind. Suddcn [y;)

animal bodies and human s!rucwrC\.

per,i:.tcmh tried

slight hrecze blows, the parasol moves lnd

s uch

in hi<; latc palnting\ (pcr h<lp.,

(he dog: stam buking. T he :'!cillncss of

contemporary architel.:turcs resc.:tnb[in~

lllodcratc »llCl'C',,). t\ric~\ intcTc.,t

the ptcturesque lan dscape is ~hatte n.:d and

condors, fish. amoebae or nc.:o- I [aeckclian

.lni mal and \'egetal [ife i, well doultnt.:lltcd,

from the English countryside wc arc

radiolarian:5 (bowever sy mptomatic of

e<,pcci:tlh' in hi\ lihraf';.. \\ hu:h includcd

»udden[y rhrown into the jungle. 'The

today's :m.:hilectural culwrc chI;: appeltrancc.:

:tlm ost (he cntt rl.: ocu\rc of(jl.:rman p[ant

tendency in s:1\'a~es to imagine that natur,l[

of slIch antedil uvian monste rs might be). ;

ph~ ~iolol!.i~t

objt.:ct$ and agencies arc animated by

F inally.

Franc~.'

spir irua[ or li\lIlg essencc .... i\ perhaps illu~(f:l((:d by :1 little fan which [ oncc

numlx:r of refercnce.:\ to 1.(0», natura I hi:.tor.

l S7os: Charles

been "trolling around. leaving

noticed' was

[)~lrwin's

preface to the

W;IS

fe\\

biomorphic form , it i1l not an

the app arclH loomorphbm of

C\'C11

mu\eU!l1\ and

though the hook ha$ a s[ allKhtcrhou~c s,

(hi »

i1l prim;nily not an account of bltildings

which m,mifc . . lcd ir . . elf in I ,c C:orhu\ier':'! cuni[incJr ' [ ..,,\ o fthc

In't t\\'o de(;,tdc, o f hi, Id'c wirh the 10

';Hchircc ll1rali . . c· onl~

\\idl 11l

.llld bintheori\t Raul 11

but .. hI! a bnok on .mimal life b\

Ih c entolllolo,t.:i\t and b(.:c -\pcciali ... t K;lrI \on Frill, (he I;ltcr .lllthor of .llI/lIJal . In-hifn1/If?': And tllI.:n [herc i, Frednt ck

H.l

I\ iesler and hi~ H)J7 "nielL on J.nim~ds ~lnd an.:hitcclUrc pubJished in JnJiil{'rrllmi Rf(01"fi, rogcchcr wi th his references to termite~ in his unpublished ,I/ (lgir .\rrhilertMr: ' some of which found their W3y into the writing) of Roln:rro ~ l attJ. and orhcr hiornorphic31ly or biocentrie311y minded members of sUffe31ist and other postwar 3rt and arch itecrural circles. T his interest in ,mimals wa~ :!gain revivcd . ~llbCit

in a different context during the 1960s, in the work of architects such as Bernard Rlldofsky, \-",hose exhibitions ,md books include J. parallel examination of non-\Yesrcrn vernacul:Ir and animal arehitcclllfes in terms of organisational pa[[erns ,md airerna ti \'e con~truction techniques.' Intefcstingly enough, both !\ lesler and Rlldofsky, even though they work in difTcrent ch ronologiealrni Iiells, i[1\'nke the instincti\'e J.rchitectural creati\-ity of animals J.~ rJrt (If a critique of modern ;lrchirectuft', and of 'funct ionalism' in particular. It might be something of a p;lradox that during the postwar era Jnimals heeame part of 3 new 'hum;misr' agenda in architecILLre th~lt ineludLd a plea for more 'hurw-Ine' cl1\'irnnmcnts. F ram studies of crowding and territoriality in bLha\'ioural ps~ch{)log~ to natural ycntibtion s~'stems in rock-cut dwellings J.nd earth -burrow scnkmt:nts, rats. monkeys :lIld insects pro\'i dcu rhe authorial cvidLnce of nature to all question,., of the new huilding scienc L of architecture. \ 'cr~ littk of this animal prehistory of modcrn ~lrchitcctllrc, howe\"(:r, Jppears in Ingr;lham's book. One ofthL reasons fo r this might be that the book uecidedh , breaks with all hum:wist agendas on both animah and arehitccture that h3\'e so far burdent:d those di",clIssions. BIlt \\'hat. rhcn. is the book ultirn,ltely about? Thc ~Ill",\\'er is lifc . but not ' Iife in gLoeral'. Thc 'asymmLtrical conuition' mentioned in irs title implies the as~ mptotic (if not antithetic;)]) relation betwLcn art:hitecture's profcsscd 50lidit~ <lnu resistanec TO change versus the rn~lllc~lbility ,md transience of organic life. Ingraham argues that thc only le\"C1 in \\hieh architccture t:onsiders life is in the ,拢.Lnerir COrHcxt of 'the user' or 'the occupan,', categu ries which in fact e\'ade :111 complcxitie~ of bOTh human anu animal life. Likc modLfI1 science. an;hitccture confron ts lift: bv means of p:mition - th<lt is. b~ splitting li\'ing and spatial organ i..,ms into ~egmcnt~ to is(liatL their agency of TllOVcmelH until rh:n a,gLncy expires (without c\'er being disc()\ ered: D:II\\' ln's Jog would han: hOld ,

desrroy the parasol to disC()\'e r there WJ.S nothing behind it). to

E\"Cn though critical of architecture. Ingraham 's ovcrarching argumLnt seem s ambitiollsly architectural in plan. She rraces a broad outline of humanisr and biological discourses within arcbitcet[lrC during the past 500 ye,lrs, Her tripartite schLrna starts with the Kenaissance, when architecture is reconfigured according to humanist secuhlr doctrines. . rhL R.cnaissance also marks a radical split hLtwLLn humans and animals ~IS oppo~ed TO the hybrid mentJ.lir) of the middle ages. suffused by correspondLnce~ bLt\\"LLn animals. vegetables, miner31s and humans (what ~路 I ichd Foucault in The Order of Tlti/Igs, describes as similitudes). T his split between animals and humans dcepLns, according to Ingrabam. during the Enlightenment with the origin of biological discourses (cven though biology was not officially established as a scientific disciplinc until the bcginning of the ninereenth centll0'. with the studies of Xa\'ier Bichat). \V ithin this broadcr erJ. an,llogies between bodies and buildings transform from corrcspondences in external morphology (division in limbs and proportion;:ll relationships) to cm pathetic parallels of interior organisation J.nd function (division in ofg3n~ and

Llc:ln ian pS\Tho:lJ)alysi~ and its disnunrling of (hL orthopedic {Orality of thc 'iLlf. In rhL lare lyKos, .\fichael JJays appliLd the term 'posthullunisc' in his description of the ,lfchitccture of I iannc", ~It:\er and J.uu\\'i .g Ililbcrscimn within thL Lugl'r cri",i ... of the humanist ~uhjcct during, the !:He \\'Lirnar period." If I lays ' posthllmani'it account \\a~ wri[[en during rhe era of decon",[fuction and its rcntariyc crm:r~encc into rhL , architectural scenL. Ingrdham's 'p()",t-animal ' architl'l"tural theor~ i", h:lSLU upon:m C\'C[J morc rad ical q ue~rioTl ing of the h un1.ln factor by philnsopher" 'iuch as (;illc,> Dclcll/.C and Fdix (;tl<ltTari.JaC(llIe~ Ikrrida and . more recent", Giorgi o .\g:unbcn, ;)[1 of\\holl1 f()CllS upon rh L 'question of (he 3nim<ll" in fL~ponse 10 IlcidLg;gLr\ i'iol<lcion ofthc JninMI a", a non-cxi",tLnti;[1 or 'do~ed' li\'inl!; cOTloit]on."路 Aftcr rhiln~ophy. ir wa ... rimL for Jrchitecture to 'open' up into animal di"col1fsc. If. then. thL po'>t-animal follow'i thL posthuman. what Lome., afrcr it - i.e., what wuu ld thL 'P(J'i(' afrn th t: 'po",t-animal ' be like? ln gra h~lm contempbtes rh is in the third ;lI1d filU[ pan of hn accoun t, whiLh rcfcr~ 10 Otlf (l\\ n contcmpO[;lry periuJ - th:" is, thL er;l of uigit:ll.lllimatioll and othcr cOlllputJtinllJI tcchnologies incerwO\'cn with architectllrL. ( :o ntcmr<lr3ry animnion praLticc", enforce the idea

circulatory apparatuses), a shift which marks the origins of functionalism and organicism in architecture, as well :,~ rhe birth of discourses on building and urban pathology. In both eras , Jnd p:Hticularly the second, architectural discourses operatc, as Ingraham argues, within a 'po:-,( animal' logic. \\' ithin this 'poshwilll<ll' condition the human is essentiallv divLsted from its animal qualirics and the complex propcrties of life, POStRenaissance architecture is, then, 'postanimal' architecture, and po",r Rcnaissance humans arc 'post-animal:-.' ;)S well. Post- Renaissance animals3nimals domesticatcd bv modLrtl sciemx - arc also 'post-animals', that is, animals that arc essentially humanised. sllch as Darwin's allegedly rationalisin,!!; dog (c\en though the lJ.tter still seems c3pable of outsmarting his master), ThL tcrm 'rost-animal' incvitably im'okes the terms 'posthuIllJn' and 'posthum~lIlist' cmployed in philosophical discourses of thL lasr forty yea rs and in thc emcrging di~cipline of 'posthurnanitics'. In ,1rchitLcturc, posthumani",m appears in lhe \\ritings of ~ I anfredu Taftlri in the late Ig60s and Anthony \ 'idler in thc

Ingr:'ham hersdf appears ",cLprical of thL elimination of "'llch distinc(ioll'>. Referring tu the eupilori:l ()echioned b~ (he lifc likLnLs'> (If COlTlllllt<:ri~cd ()rJ.!:;mi"'Ill~, ~hL writt:s, 'It i~ impon<uH to nntL that the rLlati(l[J ofthc I)od\ to thL Il1Jchinc.likc biology (0 thc computer, i~ ... rill ;In :lJ);llogy, at most :l homology. not iyet) the apparcntl~ desircd Lollap"'c. The multi-facLted fanr.1sy of intt:rcollr-;e betwLLn the animatc and thL in;l1limatc is ~l[i\"e. but nO( fuJl~ consllmlll,uLu, b\ the march.' Thi~ mLam thar \\l1at \\L' may mi~reL()gni~e as ,I nLW lifc in computcr-gcnt:r:HLd archi(Lcrur L,> tl10lY <;(i]l bc the amocbic p~cudop()di;l of a 500-yc:lr-old 'po",t-anill1aJ" .lgt:. The a~YlllmLtrical condition ht:r\\'Len life and architLcrure ~till Lxi~h .lnd ~ () dOL' the di~tance bct\\ecn rhe anim~lTc ;llld tile

1~170s.

in,milll,J(L: yet

both unJer the influence of

that J.rtcLlCt\ JppLJr 10 ha\e an ~lgenc~ uf their own (the hc\\'ildcring: prLSetlCt: pondered by D:[f\\ in 's dng Ix:hind Of in~idc thL p3fa\(1), qualitiL'" that ...eLm (0 blur rhe boundaries he[\\ cen thL animate .md the in:lOim:Hc 'iCatL . Life it,> c lf i . . extLndcu from the org,lnic to rhL inoq,!:.lIlic LUnditioll,:.\'" mincral bodie~ .lppL;lr TO ;1cquire mm emenr and ~en~ation.

110\\".:1'"

[ngr<lham

relll~Hk,>,

wc ;He more aware of (he numerou~ po:,sibilitics [hat exi~[ in between the [WO conditiuns, Onc may \\ onder whethcr perhaps such 'iuntle imbrications between anirnab and humans, as manifested during the cyhernt:tic and computer eras, ;Jrc pre~cnt throughout the: fi\c or morc ccnturic,> of 'pIN-animal' life. What W;]s che iOlpacc, for e,X:,lmple, uf ()arwin'~ the ory of evolution in the ,>econd half of tlu.: nineteenth century, which C;Hlscd the o\'crthrow nfman fmm his humanist pedc'>t:.!1 and led, aceordin?; to I lcidcggcr, {() a 'rnon;;;trous :lIl thropomorphisa rion of the animal and a corresponding <lIlimall~<uinn of mMl?' " And ,\ hy do (hcse C\'oJutionist debate,> - on man's crcl:t p{)~;nJT(':, the pithcca mhropu'i' hi~ roe Jnd lIn the hybrid figure of the r-.linmaur rc~urfacc in the [9,)0'0 in the \\"ritin~ ... of the ~urre;llists, Ba(Jille and fin<llh Le (:orhusicr? I low arc \H; also to think of the recourse of modern architecwf(':. during its po... twar crisis in tht: 19S()S and 6()~. lIlto the era of prehistory, (he .mul (i -cl irt:ctiOll ali (ies'. as~i d unll~ o\"erlaps. r:lCtik furms and co llapse of bmh fi).,'lHC ;l nd ~rottnd (h~t ( jit:dion (based part I) on (he \\ ritio~s of p:llco-;Jmhropologi\( Alldre..: Leroi -Gourhan) 'redL~co\'c:red' in the :ulimal dr:lwing~ ofchc cavcs at 1"lSC'lUX?" \\'hat all of these re ;lppear,lIlCc<; of ~nimal

and carly human sensibilities pt:rhap:-. ... how l'i that the que<;tion of the ;lIlimal in hoth .1ft and archicct:wre is app,Ht:Il{I~ a rt:turrcnt. cyclical onc, replete \\ ith :.1I1:lchr()ni"m~ and regression... It is pt:rhap'i nO[ a history with ddinilc origins and bre.lks. either in the Ren:lis<;;lnt:c or in the Enlightcnmt:nt; rhcrdore it Illa\" be difficult to dis ringll i~h betwt:\.;1l rrt: ;Ind post. In spite of hcr critique of linearit), Ingraham\ scheme Illay in fact he .llitrle too rt:ctiline;lr in that rc .. pect. ( ' nk'i'> \It: recogni <;c the continuous )ct cOvt:f{ pre ... t:nce of anim:1l~ in architecture tht:se unimaginablt: creaturcs \\ ill (.'oTltinuc: to rc(Urn, clrht:r as ncwilckring /oomnrphic ornament or apotrop:lic mons(crs and digilal gargoyles snarling.lt tht:ir own t:xciusi oll from thc dom;lin of architecture PTf)PCr. I lowt:\'er, if w(.; aect:pt chat architecture .md ,mim allifc arc irrc\"()cahl~ 'iepar:lted. on \1 hat ground ca n ;1 parallel di.;cu.,~ion bt:(wct:n the t\\() be su<;tained? C:()min~ from literary theory, Ingraham suppons I);lf( of her discus sion on met:Lphors: Mchitt:ctural metaphor~ that afe U~t:tl in hfe or mhcr Il:ltural :-.cicoce ... , :1:wcll as biolof!;ic;11 Olt:t<lphors t:mployt:d in ;Hchitccturc. She ~t:t:~ tht: usc nflifc

mC(;lphor~

in architcc.:tllre, not only at the Icvel of I;m!!,uagc or theoretical discour~c. hut a)<;o in recent de:-.ign practice. for CX,UllPIc in projects by Greg Lynn and Rt:i~t:r + t Imemuro. q 110\\'(:\'cr one wondt:rs if rill.; rt:lationship betwet:n animal life and ;lfchitccturc could he resiruared on a le\ cl othn than that of metaphor. a dC"i ce th:H e~)cmially reaffirms rhc di'itance bct""\\ t:cn rhe twOarea;;; it nstensih[" U3\·cr<;c). Polaritic~, analogies or covert si",iltludes bet\\'t:en animals and human~, e\'idt:nccd in corre ... pondenccs rcrr:Lt:cd by Fouca ult In Tht Ordtr 0/ Thillgs, arc perhaps di~t:ur,i\ e de\'iccs that ,;pl.~ak of a morc intimate: relationship ht:t\leen animate anti inanimate emitics. But if such esscnti:d correlations arc irrcl't:Tsihly 10...[, on \\ hal b:L,is 'ihould new links he re-c~(abli'iht:d ? Art.: thert.: specific structures or mceh:Hlism ... bctwt:cn buildings ant.! \"it:11 proct:s se~, sllch :1S reflex, instincr. cmotion, mood. response, sensation and !llO\Tlllent. that co uld rt:animatc architccture \\ ith somt:thin!! more than .:IIl ::Jnimal (olll)look? On chat future project. [n~raham's hook co\'er~ some ground (partly visited hy cybernctics), bur aJ~o lunts at infinile po~ s jhilities th:lt remain unt:xplored. ' fhi .. is e\'idemly a hook pt:rv;~dt:d hy a form of emparhy bct\\een tht: 3uthor ;lnd her suhjeeL The overall organisation of the tt:Xt illustrates the: pobrity bt:tweell thc burdt:n~ of lineariry lnd che plea~urt:~ (a:-. wdl a~ occasional pitfalls) vf donkc~ urb3.ni~m. T he book i~ divided into ... ix P;H(~ «nd each of these parts contain ~ {\I (J to fj\·c sITI:1ller sections, Oftcn the~c sections arc classified according to a qll:l ... itotl;mil.· theme. fvr example as bird<;. (he praying mantis :md the hyena: hO\\ t:\"cr each of tht:st: aCCOLJnt~ i~ rather inuic.ne ant.! never follows a singlc line or path. I'-or t:xamplc. tht: <;ec(ioTl on 'Birds (from above)' ~{;]rr<; with a dj~c us~ion of pt:r~pt:cti\e and dle ~pact: of tht: '>ky b\ Rosalind Krauss, tht:n conrinul.:'i with the photographic cxperim(:llts un bird movcment by t>. larcy and i\ l uybridgc. prompting a quote from I.c Corbu'iier ahou( 'bird\-eyc vicw ', (hen it jllmp~ {(J Giedion's description of poultry dc feathering machines in . lIt(hfllliz~J/io!l TfJhs ('oll/lIIfmd, followed by an imprompw reference to the purported I) 'kinetic scruccurt:' ofCalatr<l\'a's ~ I ilwauket: AT( 1\ f lI~CUIll and, after sc\·cr.lllll::Jnocuvrt::-. and excursions inro ornamt:nt. animab in eOlltemporary art and I l:l.nnah Art:lldt', at:COll nt of homo /abel" in 7"!t(' ftrill/(III C01Jrlitiol/, finally return,> to I':rau<;<; ilnd (; reenh(.; ...~ on trom{X'-/'I)ft/lulnring anu the burdcn" of visual cllpti\";Hion \\-irhin

t:agt: of pcr~pt:cti\ c from Rcnai~~ ~HKt: to modern til11e:-.. At the samc time, ho\\t:\ c r, jt rt:prodllcc .... but never Ois("1I5~e ... , I.e Corbu,i t.: r', infinltt:h ... uggest i\e hl)ok illll~trari{)n ... dcplcting rhl! fac;ldc of S',m \ Iarm cOI'<..:rcd h~ ;1 !lock of pigt:on ... , ,md hi~ diagram for tilt: t:1t:\'atioll of tht: Palace of JlI~ticc ;11 ( :Iund igarh \\ ith .. lInil:lf (facing'" of hird" h iucntly tht: ,uuhor. ag,lill't I.t: Corbll~it:r~ ;IU' ict:. choO\e .. I() follo\\ the donkt:\ In hi ... Illt:anut:ring ,idt:lrack ... , \1 hil.:h Illight (X"cl;;;ionall~ prO\ c di~()rit:llIing for fClder ... who prckr.1 mort: 1I1l'i\I(.;f\·,ng path, the

~p :ltlal

I'<e\ t:nh(.;le,"', the'>t: momenta" djgre~,i()n~ ... hollld not lInert "'" from thc fact dut Ingral)JIl1's work in gt: llt:ral ha~:1 c()nsi~tt:llc\ (h.1t far exct:ed ... tht: limit~ of:1 '>inglc hOI)k and \\ith1l1 (h t: boumhof contt:lT1p{lrJr~ architcctural thcor~ exhihlt, a ... t:rilHl'ne~~ .oHI degrce of ~ch()lar ... hlp th:H i~ unfortunately ,111 (1)0 rarc. :\~ ,llrt:alh 1llt:lHiont:u, rht:rt: arc multiple IInt:,lgt: ... hl.·t\\ct:n thi, hook and ht:r prt:\ iOll !> houk-length 'tllth on (he Run/nl.' fir l .fII('(Jrt(I' ,I'" \\ dl .1~ ht:r numcroll~ .If[icle~ in jOllrnal~ .Ind cdirnl :1llthologit:". Two of hcr lir~t articles on ,lIl im "I,> thut: from 19H9 and 11.)1.)1. \lhlCh ,h(I\I'" (hat thi ... rt:I.·t:1lI hOlJk i~ not () nf~ .dlOllt lift:, hut .d ... o J IIfc', \\ork." Ingr;lham 11.l~ \\;t1kcd the ... e ,l1l in1J1 parh ... since ... he fir ... t t:IHercd thc ,1Tt::l of architccrurc frolll com p.lr:ui\t.: lilt:rarure, ... mllt:thmg of;l ... rrangt: aninul ht:r... df. and c\en tlwugh ~ht: 1.:\t:11I11alh ht:l.·anlC ;1 mcmher of tht: t:Jirori;11 bO:lrd of .1.,srm/;/(IJ!.f' ,111(.1 tauglll in llUmt:rOll'" architt:ctllrc ~chC)ol, ;1 ... \\t:JI ;h chalril1J..: the gmduatt: proJ!;ramme In aKhilt:l"tllfe ,I f the I' cH I In"tiwtc in !"ie\\ ~ ork, 'ihe: \\"a ... pcrh:lp~ 11<..:\"t:r fully dOl11c ... ticart:d wilhin tht: architecturallubll;l1. For which \\t: might be th;mkful: architeC"rure i'i in \'i tal nt:t:d ofthe:-.e pcrmanent '\ i'>irnr ... · or para ... 1tt: ... arrn ing from ntht:f di.;cipllllt:<; .lIld \\fiting abollt ... ccn1l1lgh peripht:r;ll ~lIhJLTt~. \uch J~ ,lI1illl;II~, to L"ominllou ... l\" rt:\ il,ili ... c it\ rigid core. Ingrah ... m· ... rt:cent ho{)~ i..... tt: ... timon) to [ht: qllahl~ Jnd rnilience of nllt only her own \\ork. hut ;1 1,,1 th ilt of .1Il t:nrirt: gcnt:r:lrinn of <lrl"illlectural thcori~t ... anJ hi~[(lfian' \\ ho, in ~pilt: of '>lht:lillt:d attaL"k~ I" "'(I-called 'pO... t-<'"Tilit:.Ii' critics. provc to he ,111\ t: .md wdl (a nd '>Iill harking). So Jc'>pilc !llC f<lcr dUI 1111 ... huok ha~ het:1l ~e\ cral ) t:ar ... III rht: making. il~ appear;lncc i... topicII f()f morc th.1I1 vne rt:.I:o>oll: 1101 on h bt: c:Ju\e ft:eCIl[ complltJtiorl.ll technolllgit: .. ant.! I' ... lIe ... of "lI~t;linahilit\ 11l.lke tht: qtle<,(i"n " flife in ;lrchitt:L"tllTc t:\·t:n mort: pre'> ... ing, hut

also because the parasitic status of

on and projected on the elaborate plaster

architectur:d theor\' in relation

mouldings of the ceiling and the casclding

its host

has been forcefully tested. From 7.0010J...."Y to

sociology, recent theo ries of parasitism,

shapes of the crystal chandelier. The experiment of displa~'ing horses as art

sllch as the account put fonvard by

subjects h,ld been performed sever:ll times

r-..lichel Serres, argue for the vital role of

beforc, Illost not:ably by )'armis Kouncllis,

parasites

in his well-known 1969 installation of live

I n.c:rah~ Ill, :1rd/l,'rr,'urr IInd firr Hurt/m""

lI/l.in(ll17/) INt"1 Il an'n: Yak l lni \er~ily Pres~, 1I)I,s).

On FrJncc Jnd hI' L"mribwlOn 10 Ihe Ballhau\. <cc Oll"cr Hotar, I'm/'Xoml"flll fo tirl' Srudl" uf Rio!florphl( .1I0r!l'mIJII/ (Ph I) Ui."erution. l !li'Cr~HI uf Toronto. I,!,)~q. pp ..194-4<).\:

the pn: servat ion of animal organisll1~,

horses tethered on the pristinely white

on \h es 'lOd FrJIKc 'cc Fruz ",'Cllnlc\o.:r. TM .ll1ltss U'oni: .IfIfJ r '(I!I dl'/" Rohr (Ill thr nil/Mill;: Art (C arnhndgc. ,\1.'1: /l,IJ"I" Pre,'. J9')I) pp. 10.2-106,

even when these foreign creatures seem

walls of Callcria L'Auico in Rome. Yet the

~nd

;IS

agents of eh:Jnge within

completely take over the body of

space is not ~1Il art gallery bur the lounge of

symhioric struggles may lead

an architects' private club, now serving as

entirely

Dedcf I>.kmn'. ·1 .l ,i nL': In a Jungle: \hts Or.c:']nll' :\rchit<,Tlllrc Jnd thc Art., ofCl1\ Illlildin.c:· ill I'hvlll' J,Jmoert (cd.) . .Ill1s i,l

AA installation IS different because the

their hos(.'" It seems that eventually these

Ymk: \hrJJll~. 20tJl), pp. S'Jo-tJ4o. I(arl \"nll F ri \ch. IJlllillrl dtlS I.rlml (BerilO:

: llI/tn(IJ ('\1<.:1"

new ti\'ing configur;uions. ·rhe problem

tile Jnnexe to a har in an architecture

inadvertently posed by Ingraham's book on

school. The horse's image

animals is, then, not only of life but also

re~lIlim;:Hc

of sUf\·ival. of the persistent cndur~lIlcc

as -"lark P imlon memion.'>, the Georgian

of the m,l nu~cnpt of' \1 J/!.il· Ardlitc("{ u rc'.

of a species of critical writing in an

building in Bedford Square was a private

<cc D1C!Cr BOL':ncr

architectur:.11 environment that, in all o f

mansion that might have been :ldjacelH

its twenty-first-ccntury tcchnologic,ll

to a horse stable. Once again, the animal's

cuphoria, is often as belligerent in its own

cmI)-' sign:lls a return, an anachronism

in eOopCf<HlOll "llh Ihe AU~lfI:Jn Frcucrick and I.i lhan I( lC~kr I'm .lte Found:Jllon. i-'rcdcf)ck J I(ie~lcr: f.:"dk;... SP(JI'I' r(htfildcrn-I{UlI: ILIIJt'

WaY;IS •

Darw in :,lIld F reud's• latc -

ninctcenth-century hostile external world. The question of animals in contemporJI)'

C,1Il

potentially

out the agency of its uninvited apparition.

life but Jlso of afterlife, a reanimation

However uncanny the reappearance of

of creatures previoLlsly thought to have

that horse might h:lve been, it made the

vanished. Surrounded by an architeClur:11

AA,. srudenrs, themselves rebelliously

iconography of computerised worms,

unassimilated and relatively uncont<lined

animal carcasses ami he:lched wh:lles

in that building, feci right at home.

depositcd on metropolitan waterfronts,

The AA installation is a rare example of

what is this seemingly 'dead' and yet

how anim,lls can be inadvertenlly

'JII too 'li\'(:ly' animal ch:u keeps rC3ppcaring

rehabilitated hy the mirroring of the Slme

in the contempomry architectllfal scene:

devices that frame their t:xclusion in space:

I _eSS:lS

filtered by photography :lnd guarded

familiar to some of the earlier readers

a new 'hunun and animal bona. And a postscript based on another AA-

imtallation by K~lthcrine Clarke

related animal incident: Wht:n Ccdrie

mounted in the Front \lcmbers' ({oom of

Price reviewed the publication of a thesis

the Architectural Associ:ltion during the

by Canadian architect and later web

:wtumn of 1993 and reviewed in AA Filrs

~lftist

the following year." T hc inst,lllation

he concluded his review with the

consists of a single large black<md-\\:hite

following approving, yet (rypical perhaps

photogmph of a horse in natural scale in

for Price) raw remarks: 'This book can

from nLI fireplace that m~Hchcs the setting

be devoured

of (lle room. The photograph is not

and suggest that a further edition be

mounted high up on the wall as

prepared thus for che delectation of others:'"

an cighceench-cenwl)-' grand portrait, but

This reviewer would like to wish the

stands on the floor, creacing either an

same for Cltherine I ngT:lham 's book, albeit

exn:nsion or:1 reflection of the real space.

with a less biting intention,

Rob I\.ovitz titled Pig Cify ,Jlodel Fa,m,

if ,\ pig. I like it vel)' mueh

(;h~rlo

Ihn' in, Tirr JJul"r,1/ oI l/ml mid Sr/I'(/IOfl in Rr/a/IfI!llo Sf:!: (;\fcw York: Applcwn & Co. 2

book. As I ngraham de:-.erihes,

'barely inscribed' within the paimed Ren:lis s~lnce

P alazzo."

Pcrhaps a ~imilar tcnsion exists in the AA installation reflected o n the polished wooden floor that the horse has 10 step

Br~tt

JO"Jnovich, 1(74). revitwed hy John I>.hy, "The Birds ~nu the Hcc~', AD, vol. 96 u~nuary 1'/76). p. 6 ,mu I)~vld />.1 Arup, "fIuJouma/ 0) lirt SOl"im' of:1 I"ririlrrtllm/lf j;"/ori(UlS. vol. JO,

Romano's horses are 'disciplined' but columns of the

IS7.,I, vol. 1. pp. 64-65. I(arl 'on Frlsdl (wi{h the collaboration nfOt{(, '011 Fri ~l·h). Ani/f/td 1111/lIIrr11lTf, tr~n~. Lishcth (;0111 hrn:h 0'\ tll" York: I brcolln

included among the illustrations of

Ynrk : H ,lr('ourt

l~l'Jee JD~JIlO,·ich.

Iq77).

I( i\ Iichacl t lay" . .lfodrnmm and Ihr l'OSfhufIIllJl/SI SlIly("f: 7"11, :trrhl/,,'flll "( of IIfJIlf/(S .If,.."..,. Imd 1.lIdr.-I;:' fii/lxfJrimrr (c'Unbldge. 1>.1 f\: \ lIT I'rt·~~.

191j2).

I11 ( j lor L':i" ·\!-':Jmbe n, "f hI' Optll: .1/(/ fI mld:1 rrimfJl, H~ns . I( C\ i n :\ucll (Sunfnrd. (::\: SI an ford l ' nlICf,i(\' I'rn~, 2()04l. and on {he 'JnK t]UeSllon. i\Ll1Ihc\\ Ca l;]r~'() and Peter A((crton (e(k). :1 flW1II1 PhJ/o.wp1n· , 1-:ssl"ll/tl/ Rmr!If/;:'s in

{hllllKhl ( I ,onuoll: ( :OIH 1Il till m, 2004l. CJlhcnllC lngr,lhalll . .\nhlfl'rtu'r ..·1111"1111. lJumtm : rhr i1Jrmfl/dnml Dllndil/OI/ (I ,ondnn:

Routlcd.c:e. 2()o6L pp ..~26-,'27 . 12 llcidc~er rckrrmg I" Nic!J:~cht, quoted .\gamhcn, :i,id., p. SK. I'.' Si"fricd (;icdJOIl. 1·.lrnltlll'rrJrlll.. 1

(olllnlmf/wl OIl r;,"'-'/(mt~· arid r.irflflgr. {'of. I.-

TIt! f/("{!.i!l mllJ!s of:I'1 ( '" c w York: Bo 11 in ge n Found.JuOIl. I'JlHheon B<)\,k,. l<;l(,l). 14 CJ.thcnnc

InL':rah~lll,

op.

M., pp. 305-.;;06. .\5911.

IS CJthcllnc lngrah~m.·1 \\"~nI wTJlk'. m/lI/rJnd .Irdll/tyt. 101. .B (Scplemhcr/Ucwhcr 10/I9l.

pp. so-Sf, Jnd '·\m m;ll .. 2: Thc Prohlem of I ) l~llIlCt i"ll '. i n .I.,.,-rml!/ill!r. no. I ~ (e\p ri I 199 I L pp . .2~-l9· 16 J\ lichcl Scrrc". rh! Paw.Ulr. {TJns. Ll\\"fCIll'C R Schehr. (1). 1in nc~ pol i~: l . ni, e r\ It \" of 1>.1 in ne~O!J 2(1U7\.

17 Sce Ihc rCI ICW 0\ I>.brk Pimlott.

'I(~thcrille

Clarke and CJlherine LI~~: Inner SIlk. In .-;{<l lbuon~ lI11hc AA membcrs' room ~nd

h~r,

SCl'temllcr - 27 (}ctohcr I</'}.\' . .~A hlrs l7 (Summer 1\)')4). pp. 61....(J4. I.'; C~therinc In!-:r.Jh~m . .~,.d"11'11uf"(. :I!IImill. IIlImtlll. p . 241. 19 Cedrlc I'flec. reI ie" uf Roh 1(0"11/, 1'1;: (:If'l .1I0dr/l;mm: A Halldbook 011 ilrriril((fllrr /llId :tJ!ri("llilllrr (;\few York: I'rinrcton Archllc("{llUI .2R

I'rcs" J99.2). puhlisht'd 111 ,1.\ Fdrs ~6 (t\uWmn I9<H), pp. ~r-IOJ. For allmhcr epl"xJc 111 thc r~'ccnt hl~t()ry of Jnunal~ III Ihe AA. '<.:t: al\o the dc"criptiofl of thc OlllhJtltJll . A \1"1 cable Bc~ti:HY' by Ol.!?;] :tnJ Aic>:3n(icr Florcn,ky in :t:1 Fill'S 4X (\\'uuer .2(102).

(\b y 1977L p. 137. F or ~ In:h com P'l risons. ~cc Il ll /!;h Aldl:Tscyllll .

Ikrn ard R udof\ k ). f irr l'f"()d~l{/ou.' /l /I i/(/rrs..VOf(J Tn"""rd 11 XI/fllmi JlislO!1". of:trririlr'fIIl"( "l",ln Sptriai R("{!.llrd 10 lirOS( S/vl'/I'.; lirlll tlrl'

Pre~~.

The ensemble is reminiscent of the

Ingrah~lm's

(:0Ilfi!1(I1/II1

by architecture, this virtual horse Issued

nugnifiCl:::nr horses p:linted by Giulio Romano on the walls of the Sala dei

Petcr Noclcr (eth.)

(:JIHZ. 200 I l.

(I'\<.:w

provocation, I offer an image (hat may be

<IS

~nd

rrlll!JtiOI}(///Y XrJ!,/rul'd or /JOr.."'llif'irl IplOrrd

question of return: not simplY:J matter of

Cavalli, in the P alazzo Te in J\ l antu3,

\01. ijl (Ap nl 19.,7). pp i"l7-<)l: for p~r"

horse came back from . Its intrusion turn~

eultun: is perhaps predominantly a

clue and more as a further

DCllt.,chc \ <.:flag. 19.,h). F rcucnt" k J I( ie s ler .. DcsI L':n C o rrcl :lOO n: Anim:lh 'lnd Archi{cl"!ure·ln ,lrd/ifl'rtI/ml RlYoni.

never be sure when, how and where dle us in£O Darwinian dogs trying £0 sniff

•

previous Llses of that space whcn,

within the architectural frame, yet wc can

of thi s jOlJrn~l l: it is the pho(O~raph of ~ln

C~(heflnc

\V illiJms. /.oomorpltir.- Sf'?' Afllmlll Arrltifl'tfUl'l'

[nslJlbtion h\" 1(,lIh('rll1c Cbrkc IIllhc AA Front r>.lemher,· Room. lS Scptcmher- 27 (kl"ber 1'J'J,;

,\A ~rLF.s::;6

C:on trtbutor<;

J"11II()tln Ilnfl,IIII -(./If/1II ICJdH.:,:1I Ih e I\ enl

S\:hn!)1 of \f!.:hiICl'llIre, Jt Ihe ( Inlvcr'll\' of "enl Hl (:~l1lerhltrv , Hc i~.1 re,C.lIiJr con tributor 10 1/11 lI'(ldd of Inll'l1 ors Jl1d T/ul n lll/(rIItr(l/ Rl't:irr..", ,Ino 1 1I~ h,}ok nn e;J rl\ nIOCICenth -cefHu r\ P.H'''I1Jge~ ,\ ill he rubllshe,1 l1e \1 Srnn,!!; b\ "pi re RIH) k, He t.HI~llI JfLhlltTltJullu<;l nr, .11 : hc .\1\ from 2(1t1I-.mo7, lIt1w/lr/ Du lit I~ P f1 nei p,1 I Ill' I h t· Pa n .. -Iu ".: Lt pr,u:l!lC Oh)t:lUk .md:1 n"lt:d IhcOTl'1 ofgeotJletr ~ .Int! ".mputJlion.!! "1110101'\ . I I!.: fOfmul.lleJ Iht: ronlepl '1('n o n-q;tnJJrd JH:h Ht'l'lurr' III hl~ hook f ,(JI/1I .11 IJ( t.'.' TIll' f'}J 17IIJ/IllIf!, ,4 r (rnfQlll'S ( 19<1:; l. .1 ullIn:pllh;J1 " J~ gl,cn Ihe rume OIlJE( :TILE bl (; d k , I)ele u/(: In hi, \loo).. o n Ihe plulu' ''phcr I.e lhnl/. fill' f"ld In I<NO. IlOgCthCI\\Hh PJuit' k Ik;IIKc. {:,td'le founded the ~'f)m rJn\ ()bJC('llk In Older (" l "nCCI\ e Jnd nun uf.K1 u re nOn-'IJnJ,nd ,Ir, hIICC[ 11 rc l'lJfnponenl", /'(II'If.tJ/J,w (hc d.H I'ril1rcton I ·n il!.:f,il\ Jnd for

11< 41 \ I..' Jr' .I~ .I Pri \ (k Rome fcll<l\\, fo ll,,\\ cJ ,,, [cJ!.:hin,l!: ]'H"tlHJn!>;H [he t nil t'r'HI nf I\enlucb Jn J, ,tOle 1979, J[ { ;JmlH!J~e l ' n1I cr- ll\ \1 ( :.1111I1mlge hl" te,Kne, .1!;.f.uJU JI!.: d e~ I ,I!:n ,Ind 15 lOl'lInI cn"r nf I he grJJ IlJtc prnglJITIme In the h I~IO[",\ .Ind pllllo,ttpln 'If Jrdmel·ulf!.:. .11rJlIIY"( 1Illrlrtorltl I' ;1n uroa n tiesl ~Il(,: r. plan n <.: r .lIld .H(hucl'I b.l,cd 111 1{(I11erdJm I k I~ J (filt;tleJ 11111'1 Ine l)qlJrlm<.:nt of 11rluni.,m a[ I1dfl

1 'IlnCrSI\1 ofTerhnollJf!" .• , J f!.:,c.r rdler .Inu ITIJ<;\cr (IlOlrdm .ttOf .J.nd hJS al51) rc('enth lel·IlH.::J JI thc I·.l<lie '- .UI"IlJIe SUpCfiel1fe (i' \ rdm eclu fl' lk l'.Hl,- llclll·ltlk ( E'L.:SAI'B). IJ I~ ",mm!:; h.l ~ k.u urnllll .1 nnmbcr (If puhl IC1 lu)n,. l ndudm~ the rl'l c nt I/rl ()1Irr.~rrp I (/11 dr Opt/ilIa", H.IINlltr UooO) ,HId O'llr i': { '"brlll "'"nflfllwlI (!(.(llIfilrt'r SrN/rI',! (,!Ooll), lie l' nmcnti v \1 ork 111)1: "n hi, di~,cnJtion "11 1(1ICl1or puhhc 'P,l('C. ttldudln~ fin ,1 1 fielJ \«Irk thmughout I·:urllpc.lr:an, 1 SA. ( :.Hl3(\,1 Jnd

""m

(, U,ln L:/hOll I fl en na le (CJ nl"lI. C llInJ) .lIld I,YIO!l BI!.:nnJ lc. In :2;i)()7, II Jn~ ( Illtch en·~u r JI!.:d 11 "mp(I dd /"1,11111) wilh I'hilippc PJrrt'nf) for Ih!.: IILtnehc,t!.:r Inlern,H]onal Fe~liI J1. In Ihc \<l1ll1.: 'CM. [he \ ,Ill :\kn In~lltulc aW:lflkd h[(n rhe :-':cw York r n/.!.: S!.:nlOr Fdlo\1 ,hi r for 200i((~ 1\ .\'\I'I;l1ll Pr"fc~"11 of 111~tnr\ ,lIld Thc \ll"\ to Ihe Sl~hl)ol of .-\ rehlleCWIe ,H Pn ncclOn \ ' ni' C(\II\ . I ll' s[udle:. Ih .... Inlcr'ClllOn, hC!\1 !.:CIl Jrch llcct ure and the \ '~U J] ,il t~. J' \I e ll J~ Ihe rCIJ[ I 'Hl~hip hCII'cen .\fChll!.:L'ltlrc. hiQ(.n(),C;rJphy. p~y(h(j~Il~I~'iI'i :lnd [hc hl\tOf' IIfr~yehol(lgltal ~!.:~[hclics. lIi, C,\~)~ h'l\c ~ppe .. n:d tn Gm' ROIIIII. Tllr Ox/Md .In lU/inlIlJ. /JIf/~'11/ anJ In C'dHed ,1n[holo,!l,le, o n JrchiCClIurc Jnd \ \Hrc JII~Ill. 35 well;l s Ihc (;ordon ;"!JIIJ -C IJfk rClro' pcctl'C e xh1h1tlon o r~:t ll l,cd In Ihl.: \\ hltne \ \ Iu'cum \,f ,\me ncan :\n. lie I' n m cmh .I Sdwlu.H t he (;ell\, Ke'icJ.Kh In ~ t l\ u(C III Lo:. ;\n jlde, compleling:l blH)k mkJ . lfl/ln /J(/lJ/I: .1//•. Inllllrrt://r. llw()fl in I\h (lh hc ,lnJI})!.:s d1\(()I,tr)(·., of J nim'HlOn Hl:lrt :lnd ,Hch iICllu!al hl\(OlrH)j::rJrh\' Jnu C:lriv twcntic[h -cen [ury J\':lI1[ !.:Jrde practlCC SPI/"< P{lpf1f¥lr'u

In Jrdlllell and plJnneT "h" JI") ,, flIe' Jnd ICJt·hc,. Educ u c d III the l<N0' Jod 19SIh ,11 \\'I [w,ltcr,ra nd I ' ni\er<.ll\.lh!.: :\A And t hc l nl\ Chlt~ of l'cnn~\hJniJ. ,he h'l~ . ~IIlCC Ih!.: [96m. I<lUghl.md led he r I'hl laddphl J firm . \ 'enwrt. SClllt IJro\\n Jnd A~~(\e l:lt e,. in ('1l1l.tbmJl!on \\ Ilh I{uhcrt \'cntu ri. Thclt projCl'h mdlldt, Ihe S:lin\hur: \\"ing, of Ihc :-.Jall1ltlJl G Jlkr,. I,(>n dlln. [he COIl .. cll (i c ncrJI Huildtng. T OIlI.-IIl'e. \I A ~tt'r jllannin~ fUT T )inlo:,hu .1 1' 111\ crsit \. BeIJlnt;. JI\J u rh:an pbn:., ('.. mIH 1~ plan' .IO J jtademfl an d in!>[I(UUnnll hudding' rhrnu,L:houI Ihe I ' nlled ~1 'l\e' . In hcr 'Iudl() le;J!.:nlllt.: <lnd her prJltice. Scull BrO\~n brm.c.~ lIncu't(lnt.H'\' Idea~. p~rtH:U13 fh from urhan '!ICI:l1 .tlld C~'(IflOml t' phnnin~. 10 ~rchircnur,tI cI!.:'I!.:n" llcr lIrban ~tlld!O,.'~. \\hich incllHk !.ttl!7111/!i, from f .£1"( ]'1'1<"5 ( H)i 2). \1 IIh \ cnruri <1nd SIC I en l /cnlHtr. !.:OllltnUe III mnllcn(!.: ~r!.:hiIC!.:I~ wo rldwidc. Onus, SrOIl Rtr/f,."}J

j ,II1,\11 J \enlOi lecturer In the "'chl)ul "r .\r!.:h ({!.:crute and \ '''lIal An, .1.I Ih!.: , 'nl\1,:r'lt\ ,,f E;J \[ London" I le 1\ :llso <I re g ulJr t'o ntnhu wr I" [he DiplonlJ I nil IZ <lnd 1.1ndwape l ltb,ml\TO pr.-tgramme, JI Ih!.: A.\. H I' rc'caTch (~ tr:ul,Ji s\'l plinar\, and dra w, upon hi' Cdllt'~lllln tn art :.md dC'I!!;n hl~tor.. fIlm 'tudlCS, eldlUml ~Iudie~ JIlll phill.~ophl. Ill' PUhltl'.uioll' Indud!.: <.:,~.I ~~ IJn utop IJ n J!.: "lhcIK' in hlerJlltre .md dnlgn. Ih!.: nc uwlw]H1CS of digil~1 are hllec1ure JnJ {he mapI'm,"':: <If t'(Jnlempfl{"JI"\ IIfh;lm\m. l ie I' e.rrrent1\ p rCp ;J fJll~ J PhD un ,hI..' 'lIbJct"[ of ;Jre hi!cc tu re. mC~J e\ cn[~ Jnd rhe nc:t\\ ork '(X'lcl' IJOUj;"U .\pmrr(' I'>

hJ' henl ,I I'nll :'.1..1'[ I:I.I[ Ih!.: .\ \ ~lIIl·!.: 20Ul. \fler ~ra dUJIlIlg from HJf\3rd (i r.ldUJ[e ...... h(~,1 oflJe~l!~n to 19':14 he '!':f\eJ J~ ,'" I' Lt!I rI' rofo\l'r of Arc h IIC\'(II rc I h!.: re \I nt tI lLl\)(), I k \\ .1' I l'llllll!; I'r,,£,.; ....or ,11 ETI I i'.llftl'h (200 I) :lnd l'nn rc(On l ' nl\n~it\ (.wo,-o'jl \ rcgul~rh \Juhll,hcd C\\J \ 1\1. ht' IS [hc .1IIIh"r OIf !JP: /'1ft IIII" /: IIf S}J dill r,< . .1' \I'd I ,1' Ilorlv"nr: /'Itr l .!ld (1/ QU I 111'/(1" I/rrll(11111111 /(UfA. ;!nd J l'fHlt'J I C",I\ m I/lull('III(IIII'(l1 FQnllc It/1I11 I'IfJ:rn m!. rllld du' Inlt",,'urr 0/ IlIr 1<ltl'nlOII 1'Illlrlplr { \ ,\ \'u bhrall{lll'. 2t1\1,--IIf)). "'1Ill"e 2U()~. hi" l .ond"n -h'hcJ ,lifiu: Ij I' ( :\lfj>llf<l1 lI,n h,l ~ hec n e"" pl"ml", Ihe tIlle",r.H IIln \) r'p.t~e. m.lIhcmJIK~ Jnd r ,.mpuI :HI'ltl . 1j1' I~ I'!e'!.:t)tl\ ll>mpk!ltlg:<. loOO-f'l(ll -long bndg!.: in Sttl~JPIlTt' ,md doing (lImpctitlott, \\'1 ,rIJ\1 Ilk . (,'ro'1:.l' l I f,;rrld,-r

11£111\ I"nut {J/>!1I.' JOIllCJ Ihe S<:rp!.:nUll!.: (,:llkl"\

.I'

{ :( 1-\11(!.:( [or, If I·. "h Ib!l1l)n~ .1 n d I'wj!rJ rnmn .11ld 1) lfCl I"rOr Interrl3['lIn;JII'[!'JCll' In \pflllO()h. 1'1It>f III Ihl' he \1,1' ( :ur:.\lt.1r "ftht' \liJ\!.:c d' \ rt rc llld!.: fIlc dc 1.1 \ Il k de l'.If" ,HllC ll/U(J• .1\ \\dl ;. ' lur.ltor .11 Ihe mu,cum in pro~rt'''. \ l!.: nl\~. fwm l'fJ.\- !()(Ml. I k h.1.' curJted 0\ L'( I SI) e:dll hltlun, Ill (crr l.lI ioll;llh ,lOt<: l',Itjl. Indudin,c.rlQ H. 1'111:1' .111'. I'", }'O/O" (Scrpe n I i Ill: (; ;.1 lie f) ). Cil/« 1)11 (ftr 110t·,. 1.lcdl Ife, XliII NIt/will'. I \I Ikrltn 1\lt· nllotlc. lI1.mifr\I.1 I Jnd IlIOIr!.: rel'!.:nth ,'!lrf'l1mn S/Nlt( Qf. l",r llu l . I ~[ \ 10<'('<11< ' 1 fl ennJIe. 2nJ

Ra/ph SU!'n dr\luc, hi, time ht"l\\cc n l\crlm. 'lC\1 ' o rk JIIJ I.~, \ cg~'. and l~ ,ill .t, ~()!,; i~lc prllfc"nr (If Mdlllcr.:ture in JC~l gn And Ih!.:of'\· :11 {''\ll . \ I< )lh a r!.:sc;Jrlh fIJO:ll,(lnl,sllc~ IJIllfb,rn re l're'COt;lllon. R!.:cent artlek, Indudc '( :!n!.: rn:r J nd Ilcrl lll \ ~ l'ellJde of De,trur.:t ion· (.1.1 F llfS .'il) JoJ · .. ·I·h!.: HI~ I ifl"i [%0): IIllJ,L:!.: Jllllldcnll~ m HIr>(:b ded Ikrhn' i(,'lfIl'ml1 l O/(f1I11J 4":2. 2(1\);). l itI.. curre nth" ( ()m p le [ln~ \\ork (111 l pho tog!Jphil

c.\hdm J nd l JlJlw~ue enlHled 'Siu:, of Tr ,lIl~iUl)n : I 'rh~IH s !!l~ [he :'. Ioj.llc Dcscrt '. Frcq u!.:nti} 1cl'tllrin.c, III rhe 1' 0.; ,tnLl Europc, h!.: h •• , I.Hlgh [ ill Ikrlin . Ihc (,rJUHaIC S('hool of "\ rrhllcl'lnrc J[ (:olumbIJ I nl\4.:(\111 ;Ind t he 11,,1011. 1·1ll',l r\. Cruiu,t11 IH"grJntnlC of th<.: ])ep.trl mcIH "r '\rdHH."CIIH!.:.1t \lrI '.

.1""1I!tO S"nit l ~ In.lft hl'lOnan \1 1)("e " nl k r()!,;u~e'

on modern :archJlct'lure ,lIld urll J nl,m Ilc l~ currenll\ \l ork(n ,1!; ~\ ~ POS[J,)cI OLII kllr", at Ih (; I I n1 \ e r~![ \' (I f Ih .. eI \\!I h ~ project 0 n l'ol Lt I!;!.: in Jrchi!cC([l lc . 11" PhD ddcn~c. ~n~h ,ill).,: \'!.: n [ 11 fI, SCI)II nroLl 11 a nJ 1/.0: nnu r', I.m,-,1/11'; /"'/111 1_11.( I ~{/J. I ~ Ulrre nth pcndlll.l!; ~I ETII ZIHKh Slierll 31,u I< or k' .1:' J frce lanl'c J rchllCll ur .. 1 niu( ;lnd hJ' eO-luralcJ ~ numbt'r nf e'l: nlh l[t{IIl'. i nd(1din~ 3 fccenl ,hilI< un [he S\\j" !.:r.q)hll JC~lgn e r \\ JII!.:r I lac It!.: Il~dl" ci le r (k no\1 n hc'l for the [)'pcfJl'C . H JCHe n\ch\\ cilcr' 1\ h Il h heM' hi~ name). Rl)brt11 'mlulJ i~ an 3rchrtc(:(. th<.:"ri,t, .trll\( Jnd (CJehcf. C oli ahof,H ing III d C\lgn dnd I heo[\ \ll1h D eni~e !-,.cUll Bf<)\' n Jnd membef' nf \ c nwr l. ~{)It HruI\ n and ·h~ocl :a[ c\. \ entu!! h.I' c \P Jnded Ih!.: IJn:::;UJ~c '~nd Irml l~ of :arehueuure Thl' Phl 1.ldelphIJ- hl.se d Il rm', projccl .. mdudc thc Sa!IJ~hurl \\ in~ (If I .onuon \ :-.JJlllloal (;.dlcf\, the 1I. l idp3f11lle '.likko KHlfun rc\orr III J.lp,lII. Ill!.: IanJmMk \';.Inna \'cll lllri hou~c Jnd rHlr11Cf'() U' academic ,Ind L'inL' fJnlilte:.. \ "cnt1lf1', (:limpil'ltfl, (Ind(;'(j!lf/'fllh"'''lfl lII ,lrrn"fO/iI"l'llljMl) Il1 l r"dw:cd fund:1m<.:n!,11 ('h<lnge' I" ardlll (; C[~' ('(lIK!.:P" o f m(1d e rll, ~n) It h~' heen \I "leh 1r3n,IJled JIllI 11' Id e<l' e""pJnded Ihrouj!h, 11111'1"(1//(/, frrm"f<'Opnl IIl1d F lutr(lllfts UPQfl (I (;"unl :V rilllrrllllr .I1ll1 . 1('(lIllr(/III'1' (/I Si!!1I1 (lIId .\'1',<11'111.< ffi,- tI . IJm!>lrn." I Illlt' ( with S<:fI![ 111' )\1111, In 1lJ'.)I. \ 'e nt uf! rt'ccl\ed thc I'nll.ker Prif!.: ; m IQI'l,:;. \":-'1\:\ g:l lnl'Ll Ihe \1.\ , Archileclural Fmlt :\\\3rd for 'h .[\ m~ ,0 profnunJI) Influenrcd Ihc dir<':UlIHl ,If \I odcrll archlrec[ u[c·.

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