S+V Past + Future - Publication 04 Landworks

Scotland + Venice

LAND WORKS

PAST + FUTURE

LAND WORKS is credited to the following contributors and guests:

Fergus Purdie RSA (Elect), Architect at Fergus Purdie Architects, Part-time Studio Tutor School of the Environment, University of Dundee Rowan Mackinnon-Pryde Architect at Reiach and Hall Architects, Associate AE Foundation Associate, Editor of Matzine Ashley Tosh Scott Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment, Robert Gordon University William Purdie University of Strathclyde Jamie Bell Graphic Designer, Jamie Bell Design Rory Cavanagh Photographer Seรกn McAlister Director, Seรกn & Stephen ltd, Editor of Matzine Stephen Mackie Director, Seรกn & Stephen ltd, Editor of Matzine

Past + Future PAST + FUTURE

A s e r i e s o f r e co nnai s s ance e xe r ci s e s u nd e r take n to o b s e r v e th r e e s i te - s pe ci f ic co ncr e te s tr uctu r e s o f the Sco tti s h l and s cape wi th i n a tr i p tych fr am e wo r k of:

ABOVE - ON - BELOW Th e fi e l d wo r k s tud i e s ar e m appi ng wo r ks i n p r o gr e s s ; o n- go i ng d e v e l o p m e nt al o ng v ar i o u s l i ne s o f e nq u i r y i nto the ad ap te d m o d e r ni s m o f i nfr as tr uctu r e and ar chi te ctu r e as a v i s ual l anguage us e d in the Sco tti s h Hi gh l and s d u r i ng the 1950 s.

Th e pr o j e cts s e l e cte d p r o v i d e co m p ar a t ive cas e s tud i e s i n th e us e o f fo r m , s cal e , m ate r i al s , s pace and p as s age o f ti m e .

I n p ar al l e l wi th o ur fi e l d wo r k s tu d i e s the i d e as and i nfl u e nce s o f th e p r o gr e s s i v e Sco tti s h ge ne r al i s t tr ad i ti on, ad v o cate d b y Patr i ck G e d d e s ( 1854 1932) , ar e ackno wl e d ge d as a pr e am b l e t o the e v o l v i ng m o d e r ni s m o f th e 1950s .

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RECONNAIS S ANCE 1 AB OV E Wa t er Tow er, Ny bst er RECONNAIS S ANCE 2 ON Da m, L och Ga lsca rnnoch RECONNAIS S ANCE 3 BELOW Hy dro S t a t ion, Cea nna croc RECONNAIS S ANCE 4 A Colla bora t ion RECONNAIS S ANCE 5 Out look - Enquiry

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LAND Case Study 0.1WORKS - Fleming House

PAST Embedded + FUTURE Modernism

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LAND WORKS “We suppose the demands of utility are already satisfied: a choice still remains to be made among indefinite forms.”

Roger Scruton, The Aesthetics of Architecture

The ‘Funda ment a ls’ exa mined here a re no t individua l component s of t he building fabric: w a ll, floor, w indow.

Inst ea d a ccumula t ed not a t ions: d r aw ings, phot ogra phy a nd t ext , acknow ledge essent ia l considera t ions in r e l a t ion t o t he a rt icula t ion a nd composit ion o f object a nd spa ce. We ca ll t his ar chit ect ure.

The t hree st ruct ures select ed sha re a common ma t eria l: concret e. As object s o f the la nd t hey sha re a common purpose, e nga ged in t he cont a inment , dist ribut ion and collect ion of a na t ura l resource: w a t er.

When view ed in t he la ndsca pe, t hese ar e incongruous object s, a noma lies; but at the sa me t ime t hey seem oddly fa milia r, p o ssessing a sense of belonging t o t his p l ace.

All t hree origina t e from a period in which bot h building t y pe [fa cilit a t ing new i ndust ry ] a nd building ma t eria l [concret e] we re st ill t o est a blish recognised t ra dit ions and a est het ics.

While t hey a re indeed buildings o f ut ilit y, t hese st ruct ures illust ra t e a m a rria ge of form a nd funct ion, in a co nscious development of a n a rchit ect ura l l angua ge.

Now, t hese Modern buildings present to us a kind of indust ria l a rcha eology.

Th ose w hich a re redunda nt a ppea r a s i ndust ria l follies.

In exa mining t he modern w e discover and revea l our t ra dit ions. Ca n w e use thi s underst a nding t o cont ribut e t ow a rds a mea ningful a nd releva nt S cot t ish ar chit ect ure?

Elevation

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10 LAND 10 Case Study 0.2WORKS - College of Commerce

PAST Embedded + FUTURE Modernism

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LAND WORKS Interview - Frank Walker

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F OLK + PLACE “...‘building’ is an elementary activity of man intimately linked with evolution and development of human life.”

Extract from the CIAM: La Sarraz Declaration

There is a long-st a nding rela t ionship b e t w een t he pa rt icula r la ndsca pe of Scot la nd a nd t hose w ho dw ell in it .

The posit ioning of object s in th i s ground ha s been a mea ns of underst a nding one’s environment a nd an expression of belonging t o t he la nd.

O n sit es w here folk ha ve erect ed st ones o r built ca irns t hey ha ve connect ed t he pr esent t o t he pa st , t he living t o t heir anc est ors a nd t he dea d w it h t he soil.

In a ncient t imes, pla ces a nd e l ement s in a nd ‘of’ a pla ce, w ere oft en co nsidered a s ga t ew a y s t o ot her w orlds.

Through my t hs a nd legends, ‘pla ce’ and prot a gonist w ere connect ed a nd so co nnect ed pa st w it h present .

This t ra dit ion st ill exist s, a lt hough no w it is genera lly considered a n ‘a rt ist ic’ ge st ure a s opposed t o one w hich is e s sent ia lly t o do w it h being.

Pla cing t he object in t he ‘field’ cr ea t es a not her rea ding of t he la ndsca pe; v i ew ing t he scene gives a n underly ing s e nse of cont inuit y a nd common purpose. “ I th ink all of th ese th ings are to do with c o mposing. Wh at y ou com pose with is n eith er h ere nor th ere, y ou com pose with w o rds, or y ou com pose with stone plants a n d trees, or y ou com pose with ev ents; [...], or wh atev er. It is all a m atter of c o mposing and ‘order’.”

Ia n Ha milt on F inla y

Plan

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20 Interview LAND 0.2 -WORKS Andrew MacMillan

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CONCRETE “Is concrete a historical medium - or is absence of history part of its appeal?”

Adrian Forty Concrete and Culture: A Material History

Concrete is an emotive thing. Its deeprooted associations are undeniable: mass industry; warfare; the unforgiving language of brutalism and the ‘failed’ urban experiments of the mid-20th century. To consider this material as independent from such affiliations can be challenging.

Concrete is a contradictory material. It bears resemblance to stone - solid, resilient - yet, conversely, it is fluid; plastic. Stone seems reliable - concrete unpredictable.

It is a material ‘of the ground’; the principal ingredient is stone quarried from the earth. Nevertheless, it is considered an artificial substance. Ground to a powder and combined with water and gravel - along with a certain alchemy - this new creation imitates its original stone-like state.

When compared with more traditional building materials: stone or timber; concrete lacks a ‘past’. This was a most desirable characteristic in a post-war era where the past was better forgotten. Concrete lent itself to the emerging building styles of the time, which rejected the conventions of the past and promised a new, ‘modern’ way of living.

Whilst having been used widely over the last century in all sectors of construction, there remains a sense that, beyond industrial use, concrete has no established tradition or accepted language.

In Scotland, concrete as an aesthetic has never really been absorbed. Left in its naked state, it is still seen as an unfriendly surface.

Meanwhile, the architectural community sees concrete as the ‘marble of the 20th century’. “the reasons why architects like concrete material honesty, minimalism, abstraction, asceticism, etc. - are terms taken from discourse among the already initiated” Falk Jaeger, ‘The Trouble with Concrete’

Section

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COLLABORATION “Archit ect ure a s w it h a ll a rt ist ic w ork, is e s sent ia lly t he product of colla bora t ion.

Co lla bora t ion occurs in t he obvious a nd pr a ct ica l sense of t he w ord, such a s in t he i ntera ct ion w it h numerous professiona ls, wo rkmen a nd cra ft smen, but colla bora t ion o ccurs a s w ell w it h ot her a rt ist s, a rchit ect s and la ndsca pe a rchit ect s, not only one’s co nt empora ries a nd t he living, but perha ps m ore import a nt ly w it h predecessors w ho have been dea d for deca des or cent uries.

A ny a ut hent ic w ork is set int o t he ti meless t ra dit ion of a rt ist ic w orks a nd is m ea ningful only if it present s it self humbly to this t ra dit ion a nd becomes pa rt of t ha t co nt inuum.”

Pa lla sma a , J. in L a ndsca pe Archit ect ure S it e/Non-S it e Archit ect ura l Design, L ondon, April 2007, Vol. 77 No 2, New Archit ect ura l Horizons, Micha el S pens, Guest Edit or

Patrick Geddes André Schimmerling Michael Spens Fergus Purdie Rowan Mackinnon-Pryde Ashley Tosh William Purdie Jamie Bell Rory Cavanagh Seán McAlister Stephen Mackie

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List of Illustrations p. 1 Land Works 2014 Photograph © Rory Cavanagh pp. 2 – 3 Above 2014 Photograph © Rory Cavanagh pp. 4 – 5 Water Tower, Nybster 2014 Photograph © Rory Cavanagh pp. 4 – 5 Water Tower, Nybster 2014 Elevation © Fergus Purdie pp. 6 – 9 Water Tower, Nybster, Details 2014 Photo Study © Rory Cavanagh pp. 10 – 11 On 2014 Photograph © Rory Cavanagh pp. 12 – 13 Dam, Loch Glascarnoch 2014 Photograph © Rory Cavanagh pp. 12 – 13 Dam, Loch Glascarnoch 2014 Plan © Fergus Purdie pp. 14 – 17 Dam, Loch Glascarnoch, Details 2014 Photo Study © Rory Cavanagh pp. 18 – 19 Below 2014 Photograph © Rory Cavanagh pp. 20 – 21 Hydro Station, Caennacroc 2014 Photograph © Rory Cavanagh pp. 20 – 21 Hydro Station, Caennacroc 2014 Section © Fergus Purdie pp. 22 – 25 Hydro Station, Caennacroc, Details 2014 Photo Study © Rory Cavanagh pp. 26 – 27 2014 Illustration © Seán & Stephen Ltd.

Water Tower, Nybster

Dam, Loch Glascarnoch

Hydro Station, Ceannacroc

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Credits Partners Ian Gilzean Sandy Robinson

Amanda Catto Juliet Dean

Chief Architect, Planning & Architecture Division Scottish Government Principal Architect, Planning & Architecture Division Scottish Government Portfolio Manager - Visual Arts Creative Scotland Visual Arts Advisor British Council Scotland

The Research Groups

Past + Future

Past + Future - An Introduction

First published in 2014 for

Neil Gillespie OBE

Laura Kinnaird Lewis Thomson

RSA (Elect) FRIAS RIBA, Design Director, Reiach and Hall Architects, Visiting Professor, Scott Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment, Robert Gordon University Associate, Reiach and Hall Architects Assistant, Reiach and Hall Architects

Advisory Panel

Group 01: ‘Being There, The Fierce and Beautiful World’

Anderson Bell Christie Architects and Architecture + Design Scotland City Design Adviser, Glasgow City Gerry Grams Council Lecturer in Architectural History, Scott Penny Lewis Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment, Robert Gordon University, AE Foundation Co-founder and Director Professor Christopher Platt Head of the Mackintosh School of Art Ranald MacInnes Historic Scotland Adrian Stewart Do Architecture

James Grimley

Scotland + Venice was curated by:

Group 02: ‘Embedded Modernism’

Reiach and Hall Architects

Alan Hooper

Neil Gillespie OBE Laura Kinnaird Lewis Thomson

David Page

Scotland + Venice is a partnership between:

Andrew Frame Christopher Dove Fraser Maitland Jamie Whelan

Karen Anderson (Chair)

Chris Lowry

Fergus David Sophie Crocker

Director, Reiach and Hall Architects, Part-time Studio Tutor at The Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (ESALA) Lecturer in Architecture, The Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (ESALA) The Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (ESALA) The Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (ESALA)

Architect, Programme Leader, Department of Architecture, The Glasgow School of Art Architect at Page/Park Architects, Visiting Professor, University of Strathclyde University of Strathclyde The Glasgow School of Art University of Strathclyde The Glasgow School of Art

Scotland + Venice ‘A residency at The British Pavilion as part of The 14th International Architecture Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia’ 26th September - 24th October 2014

© Scotland + Venice 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in retrieval systems or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission by Reiach and Hall Architects.

Reiach and Hall Architects 6 Darnaway Street Edinburgh EH3 6BG Printed by Sharman & Company Ltd. Note: Every reasonable attempt has been made to identify owners of copyright. The publishers apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently been made.

Group 03: ‘Land Works’ Fergus Purdie

RSA (Elect), Architect at Fergus Purdie Architects, Part-time Studio Tutor School of the Environment, University of Dundee Rowan Mackinnon-Pryde Architect at Reiach and Hall Architects, Associate AE Foundation Associate, Editor of Matzine Ashley Tosh Scott Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment, Robert Gordon University William Purdie University of Strathclyde

Group 04: ‘Outsiders’ Samuel Penn

Cameron McEwan

Penny Lewis

with additional support from:

Hugh Lawson

Volha Druhakova

Lecturer in Architecture, Scott Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment, Robert Gordon University, AE Foundation Co-founder and Director Lecturer in History and Theory of the City, Architectural Design Tutor, AE Foundation Associate Lecturer in Architectural History, Scott Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment, Robert Gordon University, AE Foundation Co-founder and Director Scott Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment, Robert Gordon University Scott Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment, Robert Gordon University

Further to those listed Scotland + Venice 2014 would also like to thank additional members of the partner organisations Les Scott_ The Scottish Government, Esther Hutcheson_The Scottish Government, Alistair Donald_British Council, Gwendoline Webber_ British Council, Camile Mateos_British Council.

For their assistance in communications and when we return from Venice: Morag Bain_Architecture + Design Scotland, Anja Ekelof_ Architecture + Design Scotland For reference and use of Building Scotland, Past + Future, A Cautionary Guide by Alan Reiach and Robert Hurd in 1944, we thank Jim Tough and The Saltire Society, Edinburgh We also thank our partners in Venice: M+B Studio SRL, Endar, Francesco Raccanelli_The British Pavilion Finally we thank all those who have either contributed or assisted in the publications and events: Reiach and Hall Architects, Miles Glendinning_ESALA, Margaret Richards, Chris Rankin_rankinfraser landscape architects, Angus Farquhar_NVA, Dr Jonathan Charley_ University of Strathclyde, Ellis Woodman_ Architects Journal, Murray Grigor, Toby Paterson, Irvine Welsh, Rebecca Wober_Studio DuB, Katherine Ross_Timeline Films, John Barr, Mark Baines, Professor Andy MacMillan OBE, Frank Walker, Seán McAlister_Matzine, Stephen Mackie_Matzine, Jamie Bell_Jamie Bell Design, Rory Cavanagh, Emanuel Petit, Sven-Olov Wallenstein, Dirk van den Heuvel, Fergus Denoon, Michael Wolchover_A Slight Shift, Norma Shewan, Derry Menzies Robertson and John Barber.

Reconnaissance 5 Outlook + Enquiry. In 1915 Patrick Geddes’s seminal work - Cities in Evolution - was first published. As its centenary approaches the opportunity to begin revisiting and reinterpreting this study of cities within the theme of ‘fundamentals’ is timely. Land Works will begin this pilgrimage in a gathering place where ideas and aspirations are explored and exchanged through an interdisciplinary and international forum of open dialogue - as Lewis Mumford said ....‘(Geddes’) Scotland embraced Europe and his Europe embraced the world.’ Team 03 Fieldwork will be continued in Venice under the following : Seeking Anonymity - there is? is there? - The Betrayal of Geddes