Week 7/8 - Bricks

 

There comes a point in human expansion when we are forced to move to unfamiliar geography which does not lend the options of living the way we are familiar with. Perhaps through much practice humans are quite proficient at making an unlivable situation livable. One of the most important technology humans have made utilized to expand our territory is bricks and mortar. In areas which do not provide trees or geographical shelter, people processed bricks and major scale architecture rapidly advanced and spread. As earlier mentioned in the last post, much of the earliest architecture was more about modifying the natural environment to suit our needs. Bricks on the other hand require its initial components to be physically changed into a new substance.

Bricks often remind me of bread in the way they are solely a human convention. Unusable components are combined, moisture is added and the entire substance is baked in whatever form best serves our purpose. While other animals make homes from pre-existing geography and trees, our building blocks are unique to us, which I believe should be celebrated. There is something about brickwork which draws us to it. Despite the wide availability of materials, brick continues to have an appeal despite its structural flaws. There is something to be said about knowing someone had painstakingly placed and mortared each individual piece. Its modern day popularity and high price results in many artificial brick type claddings which I will allow you to make your own thoughts about.   

Not only is brick building widely available, it allows for endless architectural expansion, most importantly vertical expansion. Building upwards led to two important factors integral to modern architecture: urbanism and the monument. Urbanism - the collection of people in an unseemly concentrated space - results in the acceleration of culture. Even in today’s interconnected world with the internet and international media, the most forward thinking cultural and art centers seem to gravitate towards urban centers. People have the overwhelming desire to create grand monuments to celebrate their culture. More people = more culture = more monuments (if that makes any sense at all).    celebrate their culture. More people = more culture = more monuments (if that makes any sense at all). 

A great example is the Ziggurat of Urnammu in Muqaiyir, Iraq. Although this building is not an example of conventional shelter (it was made to be an artificial mountain for a temple dedicated to the moon god Nanna), it is a great example of ancient brickwork. The fact bricks were the chosen material for such a grand temple validates their significance. One would assume the best construction techniques of the day would be used for the temple which stood as the apex of the walled city of Ur. Each handmade brick was stamped with the Sumerian king Urnammu’s symbol and the outer layer of bricks was baked to add sharpness of the silhouette. I think the marking of each individual brick as opposed to a large symbol demonstrates the importance of each component within the massive structure.

My ending argument is through allowing us to expand vertically, bricks let us become city dwellers. Although we could have potentially done so with concrete or steel and glass, we didn’t. Bricks came first and without that architectural foundation, who knows if we ever would have advanced our building methods to allow for those other discoveries. If not for bricks we could have ended up as a sprawling cultureless suburban mess of wood huts… oh wait.   

I will leave you with some pictures of brick type structures I took on my travels.  

Along the canels - Amsterdam, Netherlands

Beautiful vertical expansion - Copenhagen, Denmark

Industrial brick - Hamburg, Germany

Elegant brick - Hamburg, Germany

Traditional brick - Hamburg, Germany

Brick detail - Lubeck, Germany

Bikes and Brick - Lubeck, Germany

Dutch influence - Potsdam, Germany

Diocletian's Palace - Split, Croatia

Two-toned - Stockholm, Sweden

A miniature paradise for all - Zurich, Switlerland

Week 5/6 - Prehistoric Dwellings

           This week I am starting my previously proposed series on important phases of architectural history. I decided to start where I left off with my last post on trees and nature. Before architecture, people depended upon nature for shelter from the elements; whether it was a cave or a tree, people had to deal with whatever they were given. When nature was simply not sufficient for their needs, modifications were made. Although there are many early shelters to consider, I will focus on the “lean-to”.

 

As demonstrated in the sketch, the early lean-to utilizes pre-existing trees as its main support system. These trees later inspired specialized manipulation, shaping and positioning of pieces of wood to suit specific spatial requirements. This is an important step because people no longer had to depend on nature to provide them suitable trees on which to build a lean-to. Eventually foundations were added to prevent posts from washing away in the rain or sinking in instable ground.    

Above is an example of a basic lean-to made solely out of materials found in nature, meant as a survival shelter. Presumably, it is a duplicate to the first lean-to shelters made thousands of years ago. Now while the occasional Boy Scout or adventurer may be compelled to lodge in such a dwelling for a night or two, today we tend to live in more structured space. While modern homes seem so vastly different, the basic structure of a wood frame house has similar properties.

These images of a construction site focus on the two important properties of a shelter, the walls and the roof (yes the foundation is very important, but to make things easier I am ignoring that part). While modern construction mainly consists of walls, below the drywall the structure is supported by the studs. These studs follow the principals of the first trees and wooden posts used in lean-tos as they are vertical, load bearing, and made of wood. The first image above demonstrates the inner workings of a wall which will be later covered in drywall for aesthetic appeal. The roofs shown in the second image demonstrate the use of a slope to displace rain and snow to a more convenient location. Without the extra finishings, our homes are built for the same purpose as any other shelter.

Although we seem so detached from our prehistoric relatives, comparisons between modern and ancient lifestyles result in a realization we are striving to fulfill the same needs. As I sit at my desk, I am very thankful I have a window between me and the rain, a warm heater at my feet, and a fridge full of snacks.   

I will leave you with an excerpt from Khalil Gibran’s writings, The Prophet (1923) which ties into my next blog post about the establishment of the first cities. I think it gives great insight into why permanent urban centers were initially created and why they continue to grow in today’s society despite their inevitable unsustainability.

Build of your imaginings a bower in the wilderness ere you build a house within the city walls.
For even as you have home-comings in your twilight, so has the wanderer in you, the ever distant and alone.
Your house is your larger body.
It grows in the sun and sleeps in the stillness of the night; and it is not dreamless. Does not your house dream? And dreaming, leave the city for grove or hilltop?
Would that I could gather your houses into my hand, and like a sower scatter them in forest and meadow.
Would the valleys were your streets, and the green paths your alleys, that you might seek one another through vineyards, and come with the fragrance of the earth in your garments.
But these things are not yet to be.
In their fear your forefathers gathered you too near together. And that fear shall endure a little longer. A little longer shall your city walls separate your hearths from your fields.
And tell me, people of Orphalese, what have you in these houses? And what is it you guard with fastened doors?
Have you peace, the quiet urge that reveals your power?
Have you remembrances, the glimmering arches that span the summits of the mind?
Have you beauty, that leads the heart from things fashioned of wood and stone to the holy mountain?
Tell me, have you these in your houses?
Or have you only comfort, and the lust for comfort, that stealthy thing that enters the house a guest, and becomes a host, and then a master?
Ay, and it becomes a tamer, and with hook and scourge makes puppets of your larger desires.
Though its hands are silken, its heart is of iron.
It lulls you to sleep only to stand by your bed and jeer at the dignity of the flesh.
It makes mock of your sound senses, and lays them in thistledown like fragile vessels.
Verily the lust for comfort murders the passion of the soul, and then walks grinning in the funeral.
But you, children of space, you restless in rest, you shall not be trapped nor tamed.
Your house shall be not an anchor but a mast.
It shall not be a glistening film that covers a wound, but an eyelid that guards the eye.
You shall not fold your wings that you may pass through doors, nor bend your heads that they strike not against a ceiling, nor fear to breathe lest walls should crack and fall down.
You shall not dwell in tombs made by the dead for the living.
And though of magnificence and splendour, your house shall not hold your secret nor shelter your longing.
For that which is boundless in you abides in the mansion of the sky, whose door is the morning mist, and whose windows are the songs and the silences of night.

Week 3/4 - Back to the roots

This post is a perfect example of the perils of procrastination. Not only am I taking two weeks to complete it, I am posting at the end of the week. Oh well, take it, learn from it and let it go; what else can one do with one’s mistakes?
 

This entry is inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright’s quote: 

“Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.”
       

In my study of nature I decided to learn a little bit about the structure of trees. Not only are they a major component in local architecture, they are a great architectural example to learn from. Just think about it, the roots are like the foundation of a building, bark is like sheathing and leaves are photosynthetic all natural solar panels. All it needs is soil, water and sunlight to create a sustainable home for an innumerable variety of inhabitants.
  

  
Furthermore, trees stand the test of time, Old Tjikko is a spruce tree which has thrived for 9,550 years in Sweden. Not many human designs have stood the test of time quite so well. Often we jump to the conclusion that the newest design or innovation is the best and we must always be progressing. However, a system which has been around for as long as the tree (360 million years) clearly has been doing something right. That is the great thing about nature, it has had so long to evolve, perfect and vary according to the earth’s conditions. So, while human technology is fantastic, we have only been creating for such a short amount of time compared to nature and we have so many harmful and destructive flaws in our designs and we will for a long time to come. However good our intentions, there will always be a future generation to look back on our methods and wonder how they could have possibly been related to such a barbaric culture, just as we do to past generations. Perhaps it is time we take a good long look at organic designs before we step forward with our own technology.  
     

On a slightly different note, the other night when I got home CBC Radio 2 played a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire” redone by Whitehorse. The folky cover adds both sweetness and dynamism to the song, making you almost forget it originated in mid-eighties pop culture. This got me to thinking about architecture and how we remake or “cover” popular buildings from the past, keeping the essence yet making it contemporary. In order to become a better future architect, I am embarking on a thirteen (or possibly more) part series to discover various significant phases of architecture and discuss them. If I am extremely motivated I will also discuss a modern adaptation of each style, but I am not promising anything. Next week, is the study of the formation of architecture (I know, how exciting!).  
  

I highly suggest going to Whitehorse’s website; at the bottom left of the webpage there is the player and “I’m On Fire” is the second on the list may it bring inspiration into your day.    

Week 2 - What do Pineapples, Kay Sage and Architecture have in common?

This week I decided to try out some colour. Inspiration: the Vancouver Art Gallery had a substantial exhibition on Surrealism which I viewed no less than four times. I have to admit during my undergraduate in Art History I never focused on the Surrealist movement, focusing more on architecture; however I should have. I am the first to confess I have the habit of focusing on the realistic or logical arts. That being said, Surrealist art has persistently, slyly wormed itself into my awareness. I blame Dalí. A few years back, the Vancouver Art Gallery had the Monet to Dalí exhibition and the colours and brushwork of Dalí’s "The Dream" caught my attention. Of course I had seen images of it in class and knew enough to get by on a test, nevertheless seeing it in reality was something else. Later on in Berlin I went to the Salvador Dalí museum, which was mainly composed of his earlier works and sketches.

Last May, for my birthday my sister gave me a membership pass for the Vancouver Art Gallery and I went with my good friend Katie and we had quite a time trying to decipher the meaning of the Surrealist Exhibition “This is the Colour of my Dreams” and went for cupcakes after an hour and a half.

The following attempt, I decided to get an expert’s say on the whole matter. On Tuesday, the Art Gallery is open until 9PM and occasionally they have themed tours, often led by university professors. The tour I took focused on the influence of science and medicine on Surrealism. The main concept was many of the founding Surrealists had backgrounds in science and it deeply influenced them. I won’t get into it too much here, however the one point which really stuck with me was the explanation Surrealists rejected the real and the logical. During WWI many of these artists were exposed to the negative effects of the machine of war which too easily rationalizes the horrific activities demanded of soldiers through logic. Therefore the reaction was to reject the logical and focus on finding ones subconscious and arguably natural and pure thoughts.

Back on track, I returned to the exhibit two more times to revisit a few of my favorites such as: “This is the Colour of my Dreams” (1925) by Joan  Miró, “Listen to the Living” (1941) by Kay Sage, “The Four Temperaments” (1946) by Kurt Seligmann, and the Cadavre Exquis and “Plein Ciel” (1947) by Yves Tanguy.

This all being said, yesterday I was particularly inspired by a pineapple at the produce market and with all best intentions to go home and reproduce a perfect image of this tropical fruit then in victory consume all sweet juicy victory. I got to about this point and I fell into some harsh artists’ melancholy. I was not feeling the allure of the pineapple anymore, the colours and shape were frustrating and I was nowhere near done.

I decided to resort to abstraction and let my subconscious determine the fate of the remaining expanse of white in front of me. Here is the final product:

 Love it? Hate it? Life changing? Wondering where architecture comes in?

Ok! To tie things up, architecture if viewed as art in real four dimensional space has a long history of being symbolic and decorative from ancient Egyptian pyramids to Baroque palaces. Around the time of WWI and afterwards people no longer wanted to be reminded of the past which had caused so much destruction. Rather, plans were to be made straightforward with designs focused on logic, sanitation, and function. In other words, as my professor Dr. Rhodri Windsor-Liscombe put, they dropped the “macaroni” frivolousness (think back to the Yankee Doodle rhyme of your childhood). Le Corbusier stated “the home is a machine for living” and Mies van der Rohe declared “decoration is a crime”, which led to the starkness in modernism, evolving into the Brutalism style. Now this is me oversimplifying a very complex issue which had many factors and is not necessarily negative. My point: surrealist art and architecture split off at this point two opposite directions, consumed largely by the same people (oh for the sake of juxtaposition!). In recent decades, we have slowly welcomed decoration back into the architectural canon along with green space, new technology and other trends. I believe a balance of function and aesthetics is important in today’s design theory. Ugly buildings are unnecessary, uninspiring, and depreciate the worth of their neighborhood. Perhaps a little bit of frivolous subconscious wouldn’t be so bad in today’s designs as it may have a positive psychological effect on inhabitants and form creative answers to our many complex housing issues. Revolution through architecture?                

              

Week 1 - Internal Structure

The idea for this blog came after seriously contemplating my approach to applying for my Masters of Architecture program. When I applied almost two years ago, my application and portfolio was, to put lightly, a tad bit of a mess. This time I have decided to take what I learnt from my last portfolio which is mainly, don't procrastinate because the gods in charge of printers will hate you and you will not have enough time to reformat your entire portfolio. This is really where the blog comes in handy; the big plan is to take my Mondays and devote them to at least an hour of art, inspiration or some other development and report back to you, the reader. I am hoping since I will have committed myself to this I will be internally pressured to do a little bit of work every week. I also really hope to get feedback and brilliant ideas from you. After all, I would have not told you about this if I thought you were completely useless. Finally, it will compile a documentation of my creative process to look back upon.

This development will be quite lengthy as there are a few more things I must accomplish before I actually submit my portfolio. First, I have my second semester of drafting to complete from January to the end of April so I will be more knowledgeable of the programs (AutoCAD, Vector Works, Revit etc...) which I actually have to use to complete my projects in the program and so I can get a job at an architect firm before I begin my masters. Secondly, I need to take about two more300 level + courses to raise my GPA. If all goes according to plan, I will be submitting my portfolio by December 2012, so onto the fun part...

My personal belief is the wellness of people should be considered at every stage of design. This being said, I decided to do my first study of the human anatomical structure, in particular, the spine. The spine is an organic, dynamic piece of architecture within us and a natural lesson in design. The spine is similar to the structure of architecture, each vertebrae stacking like bricks to compose our posture. They may say beauty is skin deep - however like a badly built home, a badly taken care of spine will eventually crumble despite any fancy facade it may carry. Therefore, it is important to create our spaces with integrity and to promote healthy movements of the body. I discovered a study Leonardo da Vinci did of the human anatomy and decided to reproduce it to further my understanding of the body. Here is the result of my first day of sketching,    enjoy

Beginning Sketch

 

 Final Results