Week #5
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Happy Thanksgiving!
(I'm really sorry America, not to be disrespectful but I personally detest turkey). ~ Crikey, so the other day I was in the hospital dining room, minding my own business, making a cup of tea. And then somehow got caught in a conversation about molasses, the creation story and the colour of the sky. *sheesh*
Furthermore, in light of other conversations I've had this week, today's edition runs along a similar vein, and is loosely themed around the relationship between architecture and religion/spirituality/higher power. I don't know, whatever floats your boat (or paddles your waka).
And like every other week, shenanigans are at the bottom.
Enjoy
1.0 almost forgot to add in the classical piece for this week!
Just for the Northern Hemispherians... Winter is no longer coming (as GoT lovers have been hearing all year)... it is here! I mean no big deal, it's only been late 60's/early 70's in Auckland. (20-22 celcius for the rest of the world).
For those of you not familiar with classical music, it's the music from the National Bank ad (when National Bank in New Zealand still existed).
2.0 some ‘food for thought’…
Back in the day, many Medieval old towns/villages and cities had religious buildings as part of their main focal point (and may have included a city hall and square). Churches and cathedrals were often the most elaborate building in the vicinity and religion a significant role in sociaty. At present we live in a multicultural society, and in New Zealand in particular, a society that is identifying less and less with a religious background (census 2013, 41.9% of people identified with no religion but Christianity being the most common). With many suburbs and communities comparable to the size of a small town or village, I crudely ask…
what is/are the new focal point building(s) of suburbs/cities?
do you think there should be one or is it several? (comment below).
(Is is the dirty shopping mall?)
Map of the Medieval town of Beauvais in France.
3.0 the prestige…
leaf chapel
architects:
klein dytham architecture
location: 1 chome-15-7 hiroo, shibuya, tokyo 150-0012, japan
Completed in 2004, the Leaf Chapel is part of the Risonare hotel resort. The form of the chapel is devised from the idea of 2 leaves - one glass and one steel. The steel 'leaf' has perforated holes that encase an acrylic lens, echoing the idea of bridal lace. An array of patterns are created on the interior as the sun moves throughout the day.
When it is time for the groom to 'kiss the bride' and lift the veil, the steel leaf opens out to the reflecting pool and magical background.
4.0 the temporary
christchurch cathedral
architects: shigeru ban
location: 234 hereford st, christchurch central, christchurch
Following the Christchurch earthquake in Feb 2011, the cardboard cathedral is a temporary cathedral designed as a replacement for the original cathedral that was heavily damaged.
The roof structure is constructed from 98 equally sized cardboard tubes with a triangle stained glass tessellation on the street facing elevation. Architect, Shigeru Ban is known for his cardboard construction across many disaster relief projects and the cathedral is his largest cardboard structure so far.
It can accommodate up to 700 people and will be used as a community event space as well as a place of worship. The building has an intended life span of ten years but Ban hopes that it will remain permanent and has been well received by the wider community.
5.0 the magic carpet…
architects: fearon and hay
location: cnr st stephens ave & parnell rd, parnell, auckland 1052
The one and only disappointment about this building, is that no one knows about it because you can't see it from the street!
When I saw this last year, it was quite frankly one of the most exquisite and incredible extensions I had seen.
The delicate ceiling floats above the ground, with a perfectly calibrated convexity. The edges of the roof seamlessly vanish and the gold leafed underbelly is perfectly accented with black metal finishes. To soften the interior, artist Neil Dawson has designed liturgical furniture made from native Kauri timber.
6.0 ceiling porn
henry vii chapel of westminster abbey
architect: unknown…
location: 20 deans yd, westminster, london sw1p 3pa, uk
OOOh having an unknown architect only adds more mystique and wonderment. Having been rudely spoiled on cathedral/church/chapel visitations throughout Europe, this was definitely a show stopper for me.
This chapel began construction in 1503 and the pendant fan vault (Gothic style) ceiling is by far is killer asset. Each compartment is almost square in shape, which is then ribbed and subdivided into panels.
Look up.
7.0 and one more for the archi-nerds who probably knew all the others…
KANNIKEGÅRDEN
architect: lund gaard & tranberg architects
location: torvet 15, 6760 ribe, denmark
Had the opportunity to see this presented earlier this year at Cooper Union; this restoration project houses the original ruin with its sizeable clay-tiled roof and also provides a home for the church council and staff. The building has the capability to hold functions for public talks, concerts and film screenings. The gabled roof sits on wooden pillars above the archaeological excavations, (the country's oldest from 800AD) and gives the building some permeability for light.
8.0 (a golden oldie… still, a stellar sounding song, to make any guuurl swooon. my by the temptations.)
9.0 an architectural model
Below are some exquisite CNC milled columns by Michael Hansmeyer. The geometry of the column aims to create a new 'order' and uses mathematical algorithms to embellish and produce new ornamentation through subdivision also known as computational architecture.
An abstracted doric column is used as an input to help initiate the process. These columns were exhibited at the Gwangju Design Biennale in 2011.
10.0 is this real life?
The Residences at the Hooper Mansion by visualisation artist group, Neoscape.
11.0 undercover celebs
A video that gets bandied around the architecture circles, Ice Cube (the one and only) studied architectural drafting at the Phoenix Institute of Technology. Below is his tribute to the design work of the Eames.
It's pretty great actually.
12.0 architectural spotlight - this is…
le corbusier
born as Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October, 1887 - 27 August 1965) from Switzerland. Le Corbursier was one of the first and most influential architects in the "International Style" generation of architecture. He was the International School's most active propagandist.
Famous works of writing include: Urbanisme (1925); The City of Tomorrow (1929); Towards a New Architecture (1923) that is my current bedside table read.
Below is Le Corb's Dom-Ino House, which is conceptualised as a prototype for the mass production of housing. The name is a mash-up (or more eloquently put)/pun of domus (Latin for house) and the game dominoes, due to the way the units could be aligned and could make different patterns.
The model proposed an open floor plan consisting of concrete slabs that are supported by slender reinforced concrete columns nears the edges and a staircase for vertical circulation. The model eliminates the need for load-bearing walls and support beams for the ceiling.
Dom-Ino House
The Villa Savoye (1929) is was a trans-formative project for Le Corbusier's career and the founding principles of the International Style.
The way it detaches itself from its surrounding context, echoes Le Corb's personal interest in the Industrial age and the way the house is seen as a mechanised object for living.
The Villa Savoye was a response to Le Corb's "Five Points of Architecture"
- Pilotis (the house sits on slender columns)
- Flat Roof Terrace
- Ribbon Windows (as exhibited on the image above with the continuous windows).
- Free Facade
- Open Plan (the house describes an interplay between public and private spaces).
he’s famous for referring to the house as “a machine for living in.”
Ronchamp (1954), Notre Dame du Haut, 13 Rue de la Chapelle, 70250 Ronchamp, France
The original church was destroyed in World War II and the church wanted an entirely new building that hinted at none of the extravagance seen in its predecessor.
The Ronchamp is so modern that one would not even pin point it as "Le Corb" style as its sculptural aesthetic differed entirely from the International style and anything Le Corb had previously designed.
Le Corb designed the space as a place for meditation and reflection. The curved wall and roof are its two most powerful moves formally and help to mould this experiential space.
Another famous project is his Unite d’Habitation, one of his first communal housing projects. It focused on the idea as a vertical city where residents could shop, play and come together.
The complex was designed to house approximately 1,600 residents; a typology new to Le Corbusier’s resume at the time. The project is constructed from reinforced rough cast (beton-brut) concrete, dissimilar to his usual use of stark white facades.
Other famed projects are as follows…
And finally it would be a sin to forget his furniture, which now adorn many lounges as a clone generation of cheap ripoffs.
shenanigans
1.0 a canine friend
Can’t get enough of this cute guy.
2.0 babe
The inspiring and outstanding abilities of Simone Biles, holder of 4 Olympic Gold Medals.
Ough, tough day at the office.
3.0 space invader of one world trade center aka. the freedom tower by som
Another (newish) New York City classic.
Taken by me, circa 2016? from Fulton Street.
4.0 boy
Calvin Klein OG, Marky Mark (Walhberg) before that hamburger chain and that terrible Transformers movie.
We'll keep this blog PG. By all means the rest of the image is fully google-able.
5.0 stair porn
Special credit to Jaime (Kwan) who forwarded me this pimpin' staircase. Composed from a monolithic piece of stone, the two-storey staircase effortlessly spirals up to a glass atrium above.
Wow-wee, an engineering feat to boot, and design class.
6.0 art
Currently on exhibition at the David Zwirner Gallery in New York City is the work of Yayoi Kusama. Kusama has become one of the most influential contemporary artists, of our time and began her career in New York in the 1960's. She uses art as a medium to assist with her personal mental health problems and has had hallucinations since childhood. She has been quoted saying "if it were not for art, I would've killed myself a long time ago."
Click here for an interesting interview by Grady T. Turner from Bomb Magazine.
Yayoi Kusama's infinity room.
7.0 object
Somehow Marshall always pull off the cool retro/chic/grunge look all at once. This new multi-room speaker is pretty cool, and sits at an ok $599 USD price point. Not out just yet... but maybe in time for christmas...
8.0 wanderlust
Tale as old as time... the Disney castle, or the Neuschwanstein Castle, in Germany. Definitely on the bucket list.
9.0 lost in translation
butti / BUTI / BUTY (NZ) = STOCKY? (EVERYWHERE ELSE)
A description of something that is ill proportioned... something being short and wide. Kind of like this truck.
Or suitcase. It's just not quite right, if you know what I mean. We don't use it to describe people, objects only. That's just cruel.
10.0 harsh realities…
Victims of the Iran-Iraq earthquake that struck late Sunday on the 12th November. The quake measured 7.8 on the Richter scale leaving an estimated 70,000 people homeless. The devastation hit many Kurdish homes that were of mudbrick construction, which are not designed to withstand earthquakes.
11.0 meanwhile…
In keeping with the superhero mutant movies out at the moment, this guy was gifted with a (shall we say) unique superpower.
12.0 doodle
An illustration of my Sunday morning back in NYC, not hungover, chilling, eating breakfast (potentially my favourite meal of the day).
13.0 lol
Yes, we know who you are DJ Khaled, only because you say your name at the beginning of EVERY SONG.
14.0 nom nom nom
Part of the Hip Group, St Heliers Bay Cafe have hands down THE BEST ice cream (which I believe you can get from all of their other eating locations).
Winner winner chicken dinner every time. It's the only time when I'll diversify my ice cream palette out of the confines of chocolate, to salted caramel or coffee. Hamana hamana hamana.
15.0 and that’s a wrap! here’s some ‘new’ music.
An all-round sound experience, I've gone for something a bit different this week. Released a couple of years ago, this is "Gosh" by Jamie XX from The XX. The video clip is pretty out there too and the song doesn't warm up till about 3:00 where it gets pretty epic (in my opinion).
Pro-tip, turn up the volume.
_
Till next week my friends.
I hope that I have credited everything. If not images are not mine unless stated, please click on the images and hyperlinks to their original sources :)