BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONOURS) IN ARCHITECTURE THEORIES OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBANISM (ARC61303/ARC2224) SYNOPSIS: REACTION PAPER (MARCH 2017)
Name: Chia Sue Hwa Lecturer: Mr. Prince Favis Isip Reader/Text Title: Text 2 – Learning from Las Vegas
ID No.: 0317920 Tutorial Time: 10am Synopsis No: 1 Author: Robert Venturi
Venturi is interested in the sort of architecture that has no pretension to being heroic. In ‘Learning from Las Vegas’, the then-Yale professor and twelve architecture students, carefully analyzes and documents the ‘archetype of the commercial strip, the phenomenon at its purest and most intense’. According to him, architects and urban designers have always overlooked this radical form of emerging architecture in many modern cities, even brushing it off as ‘urban sprawl’. The title is thought-provoking and poignant, urging readers to wonder what could possibly be ‘learnt’ from the city of neon, clutter and excess. This perhaps displays how widely unpopular these on-thesurface design values of the commercial strip and urban strip are, both impalpable in popular architectural culture and education contradictory to widely esteemed models. Venturi’s notion of ‘the architecture of persuasion’ takes on a different perspective. In a vast landscape of high speeds, big spaces and complex programs, architectural form was almost never the main attraction of the strip, but instead, styles and signs compensate for what the buildings lack in commercial persuasion. Finding historical parallels, the author expressed that architecture at the strip was communicated via bold statements rather than the subtle expression of the traditional style. Venturi diagrams the deeper meaning and beauty of its landscapes, stirring wonder and imagination in the minds of readers. This commercial sprawl is not limited to Europe. In central Kuala Lumpur, old pre-war shop houses are dominated by modern retail businesses. Now, architectural fronts and building languages are purposed to attract the attention of masses - via catchy posters, lights and signage. Unlike simple forms of the past, modernization propels commercial competition, intensifying the gaiety and eyecatching qualities of their own storefront. Perhaps the time has come for architects of the world to instill a notion of appreciation and logic to the structure of ‘ugly’ urban architecture. Word Count: 307 Assessed by:
Mark Date
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