DANIEL LIBESKIND
Architect of humanity
D
aniel Libeskind (1946) is a Polish-born Jewish American architect whose prominent buildings gained him the
title of one of the most prestigious figures in architectural practice around the world. He is famous for giving to his buildings an extraordinary and innovative character. His projects include major cultural and commercial institutions, convention centres, universities, hotels, shopping centres and residential work. He has also work in the theatre designing opera sets and costumes. Music and art captured Libeskind attention from a very early age. He became a virtuous piano accordion player at the age of 11 after moving to Israel. When he was 13, he moved to New York where he continued playing music professionally and was recognised as a very talented performer. Later, Libeskind decided to switch to architecture, moved by his interest in art and his mother’s advice. He received his professional architectural degree in 1970 from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City and two years later, he completed his postgraduate degree in History and Theory of Architecture at the School of Comparative Studies at Essex University in England. After graduating, Libeskind devoted many years of his distinguished career to teaching at many universities worldwide. He started to develop a particular architectural language with emphasis on abstract drawing rather than building, which lead critics to assume that he was only interested in theory. Nevertheless, Libeskind was convinced that his ideas would mark a new direction for architecture and it was his experimental sketching that allowed him to build revolutionary and meaningful pieces of architecture later in life. Even nowadays, working from Daniel Libeskind Studio with offices in New York and several European cities, he bases every project on his drawings which are real explorations of space. These sketches are translated into his buildings as broken geometrical forms which follow the principles of Deconstructivism.
“I am not allergic to the right angle, but it is a product of a spiritual history. It can only function within that spiritual history, and when that spiritual history is no longer decisive, the right angle also changes. Perhaps yesterday’s perfection is no longer “right” for us.” Daniel Libeskind
CONTENTS
JEWISH MUSEUM BERLIN
02-05
IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM NORTH - MANCHESTER
06-11
MEMORY FOUNDATIONS - GROUND ZERO - NEW YORK
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DANIEL LIBESKIND
ARCHITECT OF HUMANITY
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DANIEL LIBESKIND
The design of the building is based on an “irrational and invisible matrix�, as Libeskind explains. He combined two linear structures which form the body of the museum. The first is a zig-zaging line which is cut through by a second straight and discontinuous one. At the intersection of these lines are empty spaces called Voids. The Voids, with walls of bare concrete and largely without artificial light, are central elements of the new building and represent a connection to the old Baroque building.
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JEWISH MUSEUM BERLIN
DANIEL LIBESKIND
T
he Jewish Museum is accessed through a staircase and tunnel located in the adjacent Museum of German
History. This symbolises that German and Jewish history are inseparable and secret. Going downstairs, visitors can experience the feeling of challenge and hardship characteristic of Jewish history. The underground site is composed of three axes: the Axis of Death, which leads to the Holocaust Tower; The Axis of Exile, which guides visitors to The Garden of Exile, an exterior square courtyard with concrete columns; and the Axis of Continuity, which goes through the other two and represents the permanence of Jews in Germany in spite of horror and exile.
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JEWISH MUSEUM BERLIN
With the construction of the Jewish Museum, Libeskind prooved that his complex drawings could actually gain life and become buildings with the power to make people think and feel. Since the construction of this highly acclaimed masterpiece, he has won other competitions and has been commissioned to do many projects all around the world. 5
DANIEL LIBESKIND
Libeskind based this project on the concept of a globe shattered into fragments and reassembled on the site. This idea took the form of a striking building which consists of the interlocking of three shards representing air, earth and water, scenarios where conflicts are fought. The museum is an example of great integration of architecture, exhibition design and vision of history and future.
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This magnificent building, which opened to the public in 2002 and won the 2003 British Construction Industry Building Award and the title of Large Visitor Attraction of the year in 2006, gives visitors a unique perception of the world of war. Its highly complex geometry, sloping floors and ceilings are elements
IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM NORTH
Libeskind used to symbolise our world torn apart by conflict.
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DANIEL LIBESKIND
All Libeskind’s buildings are imbued with strong symbolism. Far from being passive enclosures, they are dynamic and unpredictable places with the power of evoking strong emotions within his visitors. This effect, which results from Libeskind understanding of architecture, makes of his buildings unique pieces of living art to be experienced. He considers that buildings should transport people somewhere else and be eternal.
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IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM NORTH
“As Paul Valery pointed out the world is permanently threatened by two dangers: order and disorder. This project develops the realm of the in between, the inter-est, the realm of democratic openness, plurality and potential. By navigating the course between rigid totalities on one hand, and the chaos of events on the other, this building reflects an evolving identity open to profound public participation, access and education.” Daniel Libeskind
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DANIEL LIBESKIND
A
s a visitor to the museum, I perceived it as a powerful and unsettling building. I could vividly experience the feelings
of disorientation and confusion that the architect intended to create. It is a dynamic and intimate place that made me feel diminished as I entered it. Going up the lift on the air shard was disturbing, not only because it goes up 95 feet but mainly because of its industrial noise and enclosed structure which makes one feel as a prisoner being transported.
Visiting the Imperial War Museum North was undoubtedly a fascinating experience that allowed me to discover a new vision of a museum as a place not to be observed, but felt. 10
alking along the Main Exhibition Space where the award-winning Big Picture show is exhibited made me
feel immerse in the atmosphere of war. Apart from the various objects related to war displayed in this massive space, the 360 audio visual exhibit which is projected on the tall gallery walls, floors and even visitors, made the visit unforgettable. Images, music and oral history archives bring war to the present moment with an overwhelming clarity.
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IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM NORTH
W
O
ne of Libeskind’s most ambitious projects to date is Ground Zero, the plan to to rebuild the World Trade
Centre site in Lower Manhattan. In 2003, Studio Libeskind’s design won the competition for the master plan. The proposal consisted on five large office buildings arranged in an ascending spiral upward culminating in The Freedom Tower, a building 1,776 feet high. A transit station, an underground museum, a cultural complex and various parks and public spaces were also part of the design of the site. Although most of Libeskind’s plan has changed significantly since his studio had to concede the construction of individual buildings to other architects, he remains optimistic that the
MEMORY FOUNDATIONS
final result will retain the spirituality he wanted to create.
“When I first began this project, New Yorkers were divided as to whether to keep the site of the World Trade Center empty or to fill the site completely and build upon it. I meditated many days on this seemingly impossible dichotomy. To acknowledge the terrible deaths which occurred on this site, while looking to the future with hope, seemed like two moments which could not be joined. I sought to find a solution which would bring these seemingly contradictory viewpoints into an unexpected unity. So, I went to look at the site, to stand within it, to see people walking around it, to feel its power and to listen to its voices. And this is what I heard, felt and saw.” Daniel Libeskind
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ARCHITECT OF HUMANITY
In spite of receiving criticism for his controversial and striking style in some occasions, Libeskind is largely considered an eminent figure in contemporary architecture. His vision of architecture with humanity at its core, together with his mastery in the treatment of space allows him to create spiritual places with significance in the lives of people. On defining architecture Libeskind said in an interview with Charlie Rose for the American television: “ Architecture is an art that lives through the public breath.� A definition he successfully exemplifies with every one of his buildings.
In spite of receiving criticism for his controversial and striking style in some occasions, Libeskind is largely considered an eminent figure in contemporary architecture. His vision of architecture with humanity at its core, together with his mastery in the treatment of space allows him to create spiritual places with significance in the lives of people. On defining architecture Libeskind said, in the interview previously quoted,“ Architecture is an art that lives through the public breath.” A definition he successfully exemplifies with every one of his buildings.
“ I don’t believe that a building should just tell the story about his own making, a kind of artistic type of activity, but really tell the story of people, of places and of the future.” Daniel Libeskind