Frazer Macdonald Hay has been asked to Speak at the conference organised by the British Council and the Ministry of Education Thailand.
"I am looking forward to the conference and the subject discourse, I am asked to speak in the secession …Higher Education Partnerships: getting the balance right.
This will be an excellent opportunity to learn, develop, contribute and play a considered part in East Asia’s creative industry initiatives. It’s privilege to participate”. FMH
ASEAN’s Creative Economies: educating
tomorrow’s leaders – Thailand Forum
6-7 September 2012
The Landmark Hotel Bangkok
Organised by the British Council Thailand and
the Office of the Education Council, Thailand Ministry of Education
As countries emerge from world recession, keen to define their position in a new order global economy, higher education is under huge pressure from world governments to drive economic growth and play a role in securing their global position. As global markets rapidly develop, governments perceive that innovation and economic growth will be generated from growing global networks of researchers, students and institutions. However these are hugely dependent on mutual understanding and trust for their success and sustainability.
The rise of East Asia to become a dominant economic force is now supported by higher education systems of growing international significance. This presents new opportunities for multilateral collaboration, as teams increasingly need to address a wider set of challenges and take up opportunities beyond their own national borders. This conference will be of value to delegates from across East Asia who are questioning how the creative industries can be successfully and sustainably harnessed to promote economic growth.
The Thailand Forum
The Office of the Education Council is one of the government departments in the Ministry of Education responsible for formulating education policy and conducting research for the further development of education. The OEC and the British Council jointly recognise the critical importance of connecting global higher education sectors and their institutions, promoting the exchange of knowledge and ideas and maximising the benefit that such an exchange delivers for the UK and Thailand.
Thailand’s 11th National Economic and Social Development Plan (2012-2016) clearly articulates a desire to forge creative businesses, creative cities and creative individuals as a platform to develop a knowledge based and environmentally friendly society.
As countries across East Asia recognise the need to broaden their economies in order to compete globally, the creative industries have been identified as a significant area for development. To diversify and build on new sectors of the creative industries, manpower development and education reform will be key.
Only by bridging the gap between future industry demands and higher education provision, will the next generation of graduates cultivate the competitive skills and competencies required of true global citizens, enabling Thailand to take its place as a strong contributor to the success of the ASEAN Community.
A holistic and long term strategy will be required to achieve this goal. Thinking on the creative economy is new for the school, vocational, and higher education environments, with some teachers and academic staff reluctant to change their style of teaching and learning. A flexible and responsive approach will be needed where the focus is on enquiry based learning, around a project orientated curriculum. New forms of assessment, where the process is as important as the result, will need to be adapted to be open and flexible to reflect an ‘education journey’.
Relationships between senior figures in government, leaders and entrepreneurs across the creative industries and the education providers, will need to be redefined in an environment which must foster new thinking if Thailand is to succeed in broadening and developing its creative economy.
The conference themes
Over two days, the conference will explore and debate the challenges and opportunities facing the development of East Asia’s creative industries sector. Plenary and workshop sessions will investigate the relationship between Government, the Higher Education sector and the creative industries.
Universities are highly complex organisations facing unprecedented challenges and demands from a new breed of stakeholders. In fostering a creative workforce, what are the underlying elements that support the creative economy, across all disciplines: critical analysis, enquiry based learning, reflective thinking, discourse and dissemination of innovative practice? What proactive measures can educators take in nurturing a new generation of work ready graduates, knowledgeable in both practice and professionalism?
What is government’s role in helping to embed, and encourage the necessary change of mind set to develop a supportive and joined up infrastructure? How can communication and networks be improved to provide a more transparent form of collaboration between stakeholders?
Industry- HE partnerships? How can the flow and exchange of ideas and talent between business and academia be encouraged for mutual benefit? How can research co-operation be encouraged to produce intellectual property that can be translated into innovative products and services that provide new revenue? What impact can international partnerships have on knowledge exchange? How can Thailand build on its rich cultural heritage while embracing new forms of creative output?
The dialogue will focus on best practice and lessons learnt from Thai policy makers and education leaders, and draw on experiences from other countries around East Asia and the UK, where higher education has been a driver behind successfully building a creative economy.
After attending a Short Course in Lasalle College of the Arts in Singapore I feel compelled to introduce these artists to those who may not be familiar with South East Asian Art:
Big Stone Collective are delighted to announce that the company’s founder and Director [Frazer Macdonald Hay] whilst on contract with Glasgow School of Art in Singapore has been invited as an ‘eminent speaker’ on the subject ‘Second Life Re-use’ by world Interior's Kees Spanjers,Curator and General Director This will an event hosted by World Interiors 2013
Frazer joins the other speakers on 4th -7th September, speakers such as:
“The congress will be held from 5-7 September with the famous Beurs van Berlage, located in the heart of the historic city Amsterdam, featuring as a greatly appropriate location.
From the main theme ‘Past, Present and Future of Interiors’ sub themes have been derived. The topic ‘Second Life, Re-use’ is where you come in. With your expertise and your important contributions to this field you will make an eminent speaker on this topic. We would be very much obliged if you, in principle, would be willing to contribute to the congress”.Kees Spanjers
Frazer Macdonald Hay is currently in Singapore setting-up a Glasgow school of Art Initiative in Singapore GSofA Singapore. GSofA Singapore will provide two key degree programmes, Communication Design with three strands Illustration, Graphic Design and Photography the other key programme is Interior Design. The School opens on Sept 17th 2012 with an initial cohort of 100+ students - The Students are taught by a collaboration between Glasgow School of Art [GSA] and Singapore Institute of technology [SIT] The students have an interim campus built especially for them until they move to their permanent Campus which will be built 2014.
As the programme’s director, Mr Macdonald Hay has high expectations for this pioneering culturally dynamic education environment ….
“We hope to create a new breed of global designer fluent in cross cultural communication and expression. The graduates will have a beguiling mix of influences, skills, techniques and histories which will help make them a hot commodity for the international design communities eager to facilitate tomorrow’s corporate and cultural initiatives” Frazer Macdonald Hay
Frazer Macdonald Hay MSC. Arch. Conservation; BA [HONS] Int. Architecture;MCSD,PgCTLHE
On a Milan Visit sitting on a train - thinking - relaxed and happy to be stuck - why?
The interior of the train has a calming feeling of cultural memory, layers of history, a space whispering of commuter interaction. A place that's comfortable in its job of transportation and comfort - in stark contrast of the plastic stress coated environments of British train spaces which are conceived in my opinion, by designers, accountants and engineers unable too guide, nurture, accommodate and inspire a society confused by their culture of progress, identity and economic security.
Designs & Architects have a duty of care in times like this in fact at all times ...........Frazer Macdonald Hay
In a City with an architectural shelf life, equal to a supermarket yogurt - sense of place - sense of self and cultural identity is forever challenged by the constant transition of mass and form. Living in the threshold of new and new architecture.
Building re-use and conservation is so important, not just in Singapore but in other [sorry -ALL] places like the Philippines and India too. We have been discussing Intervention as a tool for conservation in Asia a great deal in the last year -
The population of these country's are growing in their inpatients & concern with regards a disappearing architectural heritage and a homogenisation approach to modernisation and cultural development. Frazer Macdonald Hay
The Conservation and Re-use debate is hotting up in Singapore, The main sectors of Singapore'd built environment from a cultural significant stand point are listed below: [fmh]
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is Singapore’s national land use planning and conservation authority.
Tanjong Pagar Railway Station:This national monument was built in the 1930s. It has a main waiting hall that spans three storeys. Operations at the station, which opened in 1932, ended on June 30 last year. Last month, the Government announced that both the Tanjong Pagar and Bukit Timah railway stations could be rented out. Suggested new use: 'The station can be the centrepiece of a large mixed development with hotels, and exhibition and convention facilities.' - Dr Kevin Tan, past president of the Singapore Heritage Society
Former CID headquarters in Eu Tong Sen Street: Built in the 1930s, the cluster of five buildings once housed unmarried policemen. They later served as the police headquarters and housed the Criminal Investigation Department. The CID moved out in 2001 to the Police Cantonment Complex in New Bridge Road. Suggested new use: 'Tours of the place can be conducted. This can be the Alcatraz of Singapore.' - Mr Theodore Chan, president of the Singapore Institute of Architects, referring to Alcatraz Island in the United States which once housed a prison
Old Changi Hospital: The three buildings built in the 1930s started off as the Royal Air Force Hospital. During the Japanese occupation, they were a prison camp. In 1975, it was handed over to the Singapore Government. A year later, it was renamed Changi Hospital. In 1997, it merged with Toa Payoh Hospital to form a new hospital in Simei called Changi General Hospital. In 2006, a tender for a commercial lease was awarded, but the three-year lease expired without any development. Suggested new use: 'Its high floor-to-floor height, high-point location and getaway location make it a good candidate for a resort or wellness farm.' - Mr Jeremy Tan, a senior associate director at DP Architects
Queenstown/Queensway cinema: An iconic building in Queenstown, the cinema was built in 1977 and closed in 1999. The building also housed a bowling centre, fast-food restaurants and karaoke lounges. It is privately owned and zoned for commercial use under URA's 2008 Master Plan. Suggested new use: 'There's no reason why it cannot be converted into a modern cineplex given the revival of Queenstown as a residential area. Alternatively, it can be used as part of an arts performance centre.' - The Singapore Heritage Society's past president Kevin Tan
Old Kallang Airport: Singapore's first civil airport opened in 1937. The Art Deco-style building was once hailed as the gem of the British empire. The airport closed in 1955. From 1960 to 2009, the People's Association used the main building as its headquarters.
Under URA's 2008 Master Plan, the building will be adapted to new uses. Suggested new use: 'Its remake should be in sync with the upcoming Sports Hub - perhaps a new St James Power Station-type venue. Sports spectators need a place to unwind and party after an event.' - DP Architects' Mr Jeremy Tan
Neo Tiew estate: Built in 1979, this housing estate comprises three three-storey blocks. In 1998, it was announced that they were slated for a Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme. The occupants moved out in 2002. The estate is currently used for training by the Singapore Armed Forces. Suggested new use: 'A new artists' village in the suburbs.' -DP Architects' Mr Jeremy Tan
By TAY SUAN CHIANG
For nearly 80 years, Tanjong Pagar Railway Station echoed with the piercing sounds of trains pulling into the station or leaving for Malaysia.
When it closed last July, the building was left empty - and silent - until one night last month when 400 guests packed its foyer to watch models sashay down an aisle for a fashion show.
It is back to stillness again at the station, which has been gazetted a national monument. It is protected by the Government and, under conservation rules, changes cannot be made. Other buildings that stand empty include the old Changi Hospital, the former headquarters of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and old Kallang Airport.
How vacant buildings will be adapted for use depends on the zoning status of the land they sit on under the Master Plan of the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) over the next 10 to 15 years. The latest plan was released in 2008. A URA spokesman said land not immediately needed for development is put to interim uses - for example, as parks
Who said that Asia's Architectural Conservation only exists as a rather prosaic attempt to preserve Old buildings - NO - Reuse has re-invented an approach - Asia is a target rich environment for Intervention architecture and a very appropriate tool for conservation management. Frazer Macdonald Hay
"Ipoh, the Town that Tin Built, is beginning to come alive and heritage preservation is playing a big role. Since the collapse of the tin industry in the late eighties Ipoh has slowly but surely been on a downward spiral. Many of its youth, attracted to the more progressive cities of Kuala Lumpur and Penang, have left Ipoh in a mass exodus, earning it the label of being a retirement town. Concomitantly, old buildings, some of them well worth preserving, have been left to rot and decay, some even collapsing, as in the case of Concubine Lane.
Movement at Last
Finally things are beginning to move in Ipoh. Ipohites with nostalgia, as well as property developers, are beginning to take an active interest in preserving Ipoh’s rich heritage and some of its buildings. If we drive along several roads in New and Old Town, we will notice that progress has been made in certain old shop lots which have been upgraded with their exterior façades maintained while their interior have been modernised.
Currently, we are seeing a proliferation of this ‘preservation of Ipoh’ with the ‘restoration’ of multiple units of properties which their owners say will be turned into boarding houses or boutique hotels or “restored just to keep the spirit of Ipoh alive”. A welcome spirit indeed and one which Ipoh Echo has set out to explore and document".
Radical Reconstruction: an interpretation of the drawings, words and ideas of Lebbeus Woods
Lebbeus Woods explores issues that deal with the design of systems in crisis: Where the order of the existing is being confronted by the order of the new.
His designs are politically charged and provocative visions of a possible reality. He is probablybest known for his proposals for San Francisco, Havana, and Sarajevo in the book “Radical Reconstruction” These projects define approaches to the reconstruction of buildings and urban fabric damaged by forces of both human and natural origins.
The site Lower Lea Valley: Upon visiting the site, my initial thought was this is an urban wasteland! Derelict warehouses, landfills and scrap yards stretching towards the horizon. The East London site is a threshold: between the boroughs of Newham and Tower Hamlets. The river Lea carved through the landscape and left an industrial heritage in its wake: it now acts as an urban barrier.
Woods words were used as a backdrop to design a framework that can respond to the area.
By stitching the landscape together, weaving and creating another layer of the city. One allows the unimaginable, unmappable and unstitchable to all exist. This emulates the heterarchies Lebbeus Woods encourages as the mode of the city.
“Design heterarchy of spaces, not hierarchy of space”.
Lebbeus woods
A heterarchy is defined as any pair of items related in two or more differing ways. It has been said that to understand heterarchy one usually requires a willingness to move between unrelated perspectives.
We can now create complex, fluid and multilayered societies, but for this to be possible we have to revert to a city planning, that is complexly layered so that it has the possibility to grow and reshape itself. Old cities grew over time with use and re-use a transformation that stitches and weaves through generations.
This had an impact on the question of how one structure’s a framework based on his ideas.
Any sort of general rules of how to zone the area had to come from a heterarchical connection. Therefore a mapping of the areas past functions, its current uses and future potential was conducted to generate a code of key priorities within the new framework. By using the idea of heterarchical connections between the urban elements determining its position within the scheme it serves to guide the process as it continues
The process of transforming the teachings of Lebbeus Woods into a workable framework was a journey, trying to create a structure out of a system that encourages flux, informed complexity and change.
It required an interpretation of several of the key concept drawings and his words into applicable theories, a process that relied on interpretation and creative processing.
Turning concepts like scarring, freespaces, urban prescriptions and augmentations into an urban framework.
“In spaces voided by destruction new structures can be injected. Complete in themselves, they do not fit exactly into the voids, but exist as spaces within spaces” Lebbeus Woods
“Scarring and scabbing”; not tabula rasa. When a building is broken or an area is damaged, it should be treated with respect and accept that the past and that now it is time to adapt, revitalize and change. We should build for the future. I do not claim that all buildings should be kept or re-transformed; only that, from today the time for building short term is over. A building should and must have the possibility to grow to transform, to change its use and function into another, creating new layers of complexity and urban fabric.
This code is built on robustness and it is embedded with element of change in its very core.
The urban form is changed: old structures and roads are reconstructed to perform new functions where possible. New routes of movement are carved out of the urban tissue while routes lost and broken are now stitched back together creating a new pedestrianized urban landscape.
Parts of the original landscape are left “untreated” to act as glimpses into the past, where the area’s history and evolution can be seen in its scars. Woods concept of “freespaces” was translated to act as “potential space” integrated in any building scheme. The potential space can be injected with a new function (building or use) when the needs of the community become apparent. The new urban therefore exists with a failsafe against mono-use, to allow for a more flexible city structure.
When comes to reaching my final concluding thoughts on all of this, the transformation from framework to master-plan level was not immediately successful I found that to try to control the scheme was ironic, as controlling and shaping something that was intended to be a naturally evolving and flexible response to a system in crisis. The translation from theory to framework and to master plan was the part where I learnt the most. How the ideas and potential outcomes change, from “idealistic” theory to framework, and to realism dealing with control, cost and agencies on a masterplan level.
The ideas that make up this new, urban acting code, in effect slows the urbanization of an area, allowing it to grow and “become” at a more natural pace. This hopefully fights the notion of kit urbanism, and allows us to slowly move towards cities, that grow with the population and the needs of the people that inhabit it. The architecture should act for the people and respond to how they decide to change their conditions of living. It should not act as a defined mode of life, where society adapts to the grid put in place. The architecture becomes an instigator of events, transforming the social fabric as Woods said “Architecture is a political act”
I heard once that architects should be able to imagine the entire lifespan of the building he designs.
As urban designers I think it is important to move beyond the built form and the material world as Lebbeus Woods said “We’ve got to imagine more broadly. We have to have a more comprehensive vision of what the future is.”
A landscape is a complex system, similar to the human body. An organism that is affected by all of life’s effect. It breathes, grows, breeds and dies. It has the ability to memorize , to feel excitement as well as tiredness and disappointment. A system that due to human need of exploration and exploitation is wounded and suffers traumas. The mine as part of the landscape, is exposed to the same
functions of life. Could we assume that the mine as well as the landscape could go through all different states of emotions? What it’s reaction to catastrophic events? People can adapt to critical situations. For centuries earth’s resources has been exploited, the landscape exposed to the depletion of the natural world. Due to personal experience we can prepare ourselves for uncertainty.
Could we say the same about the landscape?
The moment we step out of our safety zone and find ourselves in uncomfortable situations, could be a powerful force of creativity. People have a need to belong, to be part of something larger than ourselves. An identity that we can relate to, allow us to survive the destruction, the violence of any sort. This drive to preserve the comfortable existence we inhabit, force us to treat the natural world as our very own smoere
gos board. Very often this lead to the landscape being depleted voided. Eventually left broken and battered. A state it might never recover from. Observing the events, changes and trends in the mining industry similarities become very visible. Drilling is a traumatic event; human hunger and need of certain standard of living become a force for destruction and uncertainty. Mineral extraction takes away from landscape its identity. The same area that could be a potential new finding is a home for others.
This illustrates the complexity of the system, which has the ability to all affect others, although always remain under their influence. Exposed to every change, without the possibility to take part in the decision making process. The natural world is our silent bystander.
In a world where everyone has its own agenda.Could time heal all wounds? A statement that seems oddly relevant everything is affected by time. Even
the unwanted voice has the same mandatory needs for existence. But for the time being our Landscapes immune system is failing. The natural world is being depleted on a faster pace than it can be replenished. Exhausted…. Can the landscape be re-activated or else it will start to “oppose“ human evolutionary needs “gadgets”?
The disappearance of minerals from our earth’s crust will create an overall chaotic situation. The desperate response that follows will force radical changes on many levels. New political strategies must be created for society, as it exists today to have a chance at a future. Basics become the new key priorities distributing food, water, medicine, to provide shelter to those who need. Further exploitation of the already existing mines could create a dramatic landscape response. Kiruna’s situation proves it. The mine will not need the town any more. We should listen: to the voices that want to be heard. This begs the question can human hunger coexist with our natural world?! Is there a place for compromise?
Traumatic events force changes, creative solutions. Therefore a situation which from one side could be regarded as catastrophic, can and does open windows of opportunities. Recreating the idea of safety allow for radical changes to take place. Mines require large amount of space. Due to that consequences very
often are on the scale difficult to imagine. How can we transform the depletion of the landscape into driving force for new opportunities? Maybe an answer lies in what we are most afraid of: the lifespan.
Temporality could become an important part of future projections. Everything is affected by time. Why not to use the factor of the lifespan. Future “sites of trauma” should have an epheremental presence, the new mining villages” could and should move to where it’s needed a traveling circus of roaming
landscape exploitation machines. At the end of an era when a mine is shutdown there should be no remnants but a hole in the ground. This could lower the chance of catastrophes like the situation currently found in Kiruna. Instead of being intruders, mining company would adopt the role of a visitor. Guest that will disappear sooner rather than later, not claiming territory that does not belong to themselves. Not creating cities that are doomed to die and fade from the very beginning. In this time and age the last thing we need is wasteful resource management. With it comes another opportunity a responsibility really for reclaiming and reconstructing what has been lost in the sense of identity and belonging.Voices must be heard, futures must be considered, polices must be made. Views must be radically changed if these questions are not asked we might face a catastrophe that might, forever change human history.
Musicity is a location-based, curated music platform that explores the intersection of music, place, memory and experience.
We commission recording artists to compose original music in response to an aspect of the city that inspires them. Through our mobile app, you can visit these locations to hear and download these exclusive tracks.
Extra Special People(ESP) is Eastside Projects’ Associates scheme, supporting the development of work, ideas, connections and careers through a programme of events, opportunities and projects. Members become active contributors to a practice-led peer support network and benefit from Eastside Projects’ experience of the contemporary art world and regional, national and international contacts.
Castling
Hanson Street Studios, 77 Hanson Street, Glasgow, G31 2HF
April 20th 2012 – May 7th 2012
10am-5pm (until 7pm on Thursdays)
Opening Reception: 5-8pm April 21st
Inter-dimensional Transposition performance 11am-7pm Saturday 21st April
Extra Special People present ‘Castling’ a collaborative project between artists in Birmingham and Glasgow, taking the form of a billboard exchange.
‘Castling’ is an exhibition that takes the form of a billboard exchange. The project title, ‘Castling’, references a maneuver in the game of chess whereby a player is allowed to move more than one piece in a turn. The move was invented to help speed up the game and to help balance offense and defense.
Referencing the exterior billboard structure at Eastside Projects in Birmingham, Extra Special People have constructed two additional billboards in the Hanson Street Studios Project Space.
For the duration of the festival, works by artists including Max Slaven, BAZ, Nadia Rossi, Andrew Gannon and Sparrow+Castice will be shown on these three billboards as well elsewhere within the Hanson Street Project Space.
Nadia Rossi and Andrew Gannon will be creating a new collaborative work 'Inter-dimensional Transposition' in the space on Saturday April 21st 2012. The two artists will be changing places - sitting in boxes representing each other’s body space in an endurance performance lasting 8 hours.
A fourth ‘virtual billboard’ will be erected online. This ‘virtual billboard’ will take the form of an uninteractive webpage. This will change daily, alternately showing works made by invited Birmingham and Glasgow based artists, each responding to previous day’s ‘pasting’. The full list of participating artists can be found on the Extra Special People website.
The 3rd Year Interior
Students from Edinburgh College of Art had a brief from the third and forth
year Fashion Students. The brief was to design and fabricate an exhibition for
the 3rd Year Fashion Show [Monday 12th 2012] and then, to redesign the
exhibition to facilitate the final year fashion students exhibition at London
fashion week, this summer.
The design brief was
challenging in that the materials specified were to be steel and Calico.
The 9 Interior Students from Finland, Turkey,
Scotland and Switzerland working under the title of Fabritecture were excellent
in the approach to the design process, fabrication and communication. They
developed an animation of the process and a website. Take a look...
We take our "Big Stone Collective" hats
off to these designers....well done
“Only a fool will
build in defiance of the past. What is new and significant always must be
grafted to old roots, the truly vital roots that are chosen with great care
from the ones that merely survive. And what a delicate process it is to
distinguish radical vitality from the wastes of mere survival, but that is the
only way to achieve progress instead of disaster."
[Bartok, 1962 page xvii]
.
Part of the collective has been built on
research geared to explore analytical streams, methodology, design systems and
tools for facilitating re-use. We work closely with post and under graduate
architectural education, helping test ideas and develop design practice. The students work on centre projects and
develop case studies and model design proposals. The academic / research
relationship has proven beneficial and works well on many levels.
During years
of research and analysis a growing concern began to develop, at first it was
difficult to put our finger on the problem; it was more of a feeling rather
than something tangible. We were getting very good results and the student’s
work was showing an increasing awareness of architectural systems and were
winning competitions nationally and internationally. The projects looked
dynamic in their electrically generated splendour, full of architectural articulation
and rigor, however, the projects lacked something, and in my opinion, seemed lifeless
and missed a subtle quality, a subliminal relationship was missing, an issue
which was also reflected in many projects from professional practice.
The moment of
realisation for me was when I was asked to present a lecture at a Haiti
earthquake awareness event. Whilst preparing my presentation it became obvious
that it was the destruction of memory which was not being addressed, unlike
Haite where their buildings and the memories they represented were destroyed in
one terrible natural event, we are unnaturally destroying ours, only at a
slower and more undetectable rate, year after year, one building after another.
An
old building read as a ‘Palimpsest’ is a helpful metaphor used by ‘Rodolfo
Machado’ which poetically reflects upon old buildings as a stretched piece of
suede which was used by Roman couriers in place of paper. The Palimpsest was
written on, using a metal stylus. After the message had been received the
surface was scraped back in order for a new message to be written. As the suede
wore, traces of the previous messages could be read, an interesting analogy,
when thinking about how buildings over their lifetime have been written,
rewritten in part or erased at times then rewritten again. These ghosts of past
interventions can also be read within the buildings’ fabric and used once
decoded as an essential part of any redesign or alteration proposal.
Often
architects and designers see their responsibility towards old buildings in
anthropomorphic terms - as performing surgery, breathing new life into and
restoring the soul and heart of culturally significant buildings. These are
dynamic and dogged acts which require the building to adopt a submissive role,
to remain prone while work is visited upon it. Anthropomorphising the building
in terms of ‘voice’ and ‘memory’ however, reverses this relationship, if only
in the short-term. The act of listening enables the building to become an agent
in its own reinvention and the designer has to work hard to hear what is said.
Metaphysical
aspects of historical buildings are often over looked. An interesting response
to the idea that buildings don’t resonate memory is reflected in the extreme
example of murder. Violent crime has the power to completely reinvent a place;
where society hears a voice so shrill that only demolition will cause it to
stop. In the UK, the homes of two notorious child murders, Ian Huntley and Fred
West, were not only demolished but the rubble was taken away in secrecy and
pulverised to help erase the memory of the events which took place there.
The
ability to clearly identify and assess the attributes which make a place
valuable to us or to our society enables the designer to adapt or develop with
greater freedom. .........FMH
Feedback after a truly inspiring trip to India for
the ASPDA conference.
The conference and related events were conducted and
facilitated in an impressively professional and friendly manner, the speakers
were of a high standard covering the event's themes [and more] with examples of
work, professional insight and research. Two speakers of particular note were
Sameep Padora from Sameep Padora & Associates and Kiran Venkatesh from
InFORM architects.
Both architects reflecting the exciting times in Asian
Architecture and an inspiring attitude to the global aspects of managing our
built environment. I encourage you to familiarise yourself with their work if
you haven't already.
The iiid [institute of interior designers] were
excellent hosts and the Goa chapter in particular worked tirelessly to ensure
that the conference ran smoothly on the day and for months before hand.
special thanks to the iiid team and in
particular Shrikant Nivasarkar & Nandini Shankar
"Spaces of delight 4 u" is a nod to the designers that have inspired us this month, we enjoy the contrast and bipolar nature of the projects whist manipulating light and material. We especially enjoyed the Rotterdam project for its tenacity and rigours attention to detail. BSC
The Director of The Big Stone Collective has been invited onto the current Cardross Initiative as an academic consultant by NVA.
"Established in 1992, NVA is a registered Scottish arts charity funded by Creative Scotland and a number of UK trusts and foundations. The organisation has produced award winning and dynamic projects in challenging landscapes – these have included temporary lighting animations on the mountains of Skye; permanent spaces such as the Hidden Gardens in Glasgow and major urban festivals". NVA Website
"This is truly an honour, the opportunity to participate in the St. Peters Seminary project, it is a building of extreme cultural significance and character. The building is a Scottish architectural asset and to be a part of the initiatives proposed by NVA is exciting and challenging". FMH
An evocative exhibition which will engage on many levels but for those interested in 'Our invested memory and energy' within the built environment - its a must see event.
The IIID APSDA
Conference Theme Design for Changing Lifestyle
Key Note Speaker:
Frazer Macdonald Hay
Synopsis
In today's dynamic culture of life and life style,
it is important to develop new and elastic methods, metaphor and design
practice.
At the foundation of all new elastic design methodology
lies memory, once memory is defined then the process can bend and flex to
accommodate change.
One such design approach involves the process of working with memory and the
building's 'DNA' to help generate new design solutions. When the 'DNA' is
understood, we can explore design in a scientific or medical manner. Genetic modification, bio mechanics, plastic
surgery and psychology become possible design drivers especially for our old,
sick and disabled buildings which struggle to accommodate a changing
lifestyle.......FMH
Big Stone Collective's founder and director, Frazer
Macdonald Hay has been invited as a 'Key note' speaker at The Asian Pacific
Space Designer's Associations [APSDA] International Summit in Goa, India [design for changing lifestyles]
International Summit of ASPDA 2012- Goa, India
Host:The Institute of Indian Interior Designers
Assembly
Dates:15th February
Conference
Dates:16th, 17th February
The Asia Pacific Space Designer’s Association
(APSDA) was founded by the Chinese Society of Interior Designer (CSID), the
Japanese Society of Commercial Designers (JCD) and Korean Society of Interior
Designers (KOSID) in 1989 in Taipei, Taiwan. Since then its membership has
grown to include:
· Chinese Society of Interior
Designers (CSID)
· China Building Decoration Association (CBDA)
· Design Institute of Australia (DIA)
· Interior Design Confederation Singapore (IDC)
· Indian Institute of Interior Designers (IIID)
· Indonesian Society of Interior Designers (HDII)
· Interior Design Association- Hong Kong (HKIDA)
· Japan Interior Designers Association (JID)
· Japanese Society of Commercial Designers (JCD)
· Korean Society of Interior Designers (KOSID)
· Malaysia Society of Interior Designers (MSID)
· New Zealand Society of Interior Designers (NZSID)
· Philippine Institute of Interior Designers (PIID)
· Shenzhen Association of Interior Designers (SZAID)
· Thailand Interior designers Association (TIDA)
Big Stone Collective has a new site we wish to engage with, this site is another modernist building type but this time it's much smaller but has just as much if not more to say culturally. The small white toilet block on the border between East Lothian and the Boarders, is the first point of reference for travellers public, private, tourist and commercial coming to East Lothian. In our view, the site is an important part of East Lothian's perceived identity and an excellent opportunity to develop a tangible connection with the area's beguiling range of beautiful scenery, historic and cultural significant environment, a rich tapestry of spectacular castles, bridges, wildlife, walks, beaches, people, industry, tourist attractions, sporting venues etc. which are seamlessly woven together creating an impressive cultural identity which merits an information facility greater than that of a crudely painted board screwed to a toilet wall.
The site also has a remarkable parking and picnic facility unknown to us before visiting and discovering its location north of the existing structure. The parking is located on the North lay-by which is on a mound which elevates your line of sight and gives you a underwhelming but workable panoramic view across the fields and towards the sea. Sadly it's in disrepair and only raises you high enough to see a small slice of the coast line.
This site has huge potential to showcase the many facets East Lothian's make-up and to set the scene for the tourists visiting Edinburgh and beyond. There is nothing from [or even on] the countries boarder which proudly states and facilitates the visitors arrival in our spectacular country.
The Boarder:
The Information on the wall of the toilet:
The picnic area [there are APPROX 8 benches and a vandalised information board only the supporting legs survive ]
A 'North Berwick Rowing Club feasibility Study' by Big Stone Collective
In the late 19th century North Berwick took advantage of it’s two sandy bays and railway connections to become a busy summer resort. Many wealthy Scottish families spent their summer months here. The town was sometimes referred to as the “Biarritz of the North” or, as the North British Railway Tourist Guide of 1914 stated, the “Scarborough of Scotland”. The seaside town was to Edinburgh holidaymakers what the Clyde coast was to Glasgow.
In 1840, it’s first open air swimming, tidal pool was constructed which proved very popular on the Milsey Bay Beach. Then an area of rocks to the east of the harbour became the focal point of North Berwick’s holiday industry. A sandy gully amongst these rocks became North Berwick’s swimming pool with huts provided for changing, an esplanade with a pavilion and tea rooms too. The large outdoor swimming pool complex on Kirk Ness promontory, opened in September 1900 at a cost of less than £1,000. Bathing in the open air pool, or pond as it was called, was immensely popular. This salt water pool was originally paid for by members of the North Berwick Swimming Club. The complex is of brick and concrete construction, there was seating on the north, east and west sides around a rectangular sloping pool. There was a diving platform on the south side, a dedicated children’s section and the entire pool area was surrounded with a fence or windbreak. Around this time swimming ponds were often constructed for exclusive use of women and girls, however, the controversial subject of mixed bathing was passed by North Berwick town council in 1905.
Crowds of over three thousand spectators were not unusual at the aquatic galas held at the swimming pool. At such events the pondmaster supervised antics like the ‘greasy pole’ of 1919 or swimming races launched from duckboards. As seen in this Pathfinder pack, postcards of family photographs were produced to order by local photographers. It was the time of sandcastle competitions, simple pleasures and midnight galas on the esplanade.
Divers such as David Crabb performed at North Berwick open-air pool. Crabb was a professional trick diver in the 1920s and worked in East Lothian for three summers. The ‘fire dive’ sometimes provided the climax to North Berwick galas. He would put on two pairs of overalls, the outer of which was doused in petrol and set alight, the lighting was turned off and Crabb would dive off the high board into the pool below. Crowds of over three thousand spectators were not unusual at these aquatic extravaganzas.
The sun and outdoor health fascinated many people during the 1920s & 30s when swimming became very popular. It was the golden age of lidos. Lidos usually have areas for sunbathing, watching, eating and are designed for activities around water, all of which were available at North Berwick. The term lido originates from the name of a place in Venice, Lido di Venezia where sea-bathing took place from the later nineteenth century. A swimming pool on the other hand usually just consists of a swimming pool.
Following WWII, the Saturday Night Dances at the Harbour Pavilion and the arrival of beauty pageants would bring new generations to the pool.
North Berwick pond from the 1940s onwards, saw dances at the Harbour Pavilion and the arrival of beauty pageants, bringing new generations to the pool. Spectators overflowed onto the Platcock Rocks sheltering the pool, for events such as the “Aquacabaret”. The crowds enjoyed champion and comedy divers and even trampolining by the “Trampomaniacs”.
A portion of the pool, or safety swimming pond was divided from the main pool for children and a small charge admitted spectators to oversee from the wooden benches. At this time the pool was filled with unheated seawater. Sea storms on the Firth of Forth limited the season in which the pool could successfully remain open. However “Mediterranean Heat” arrived in 1959 when the pool water was heated.
During the summer of 1998 North Berwick Outdoor Swimming Pond was closed to swimmers as decisions on the redevelopment of the site and the building of a proposed Scottish Seabird Centre were awaited." RCAHMS.
AS IT IS NOW.....
PROPOSAL
The intention of the design proposal is not
only to provide North Berwick's Coastal Rowing Club , with a premises for
various sized boats, oars, equipment [storage and repair], club activities [
training and social], changing facilities, showers and kit storage. The new
design will also serve to regenerate a key area of
cultural significance within North Berwick, East Lothian and
Scotland.
By redeveloping the remaining aspects of a
modernist structure belonging to the "late" outdoor swimming-pool of North Berwick. An area with social,
historic and personally invested cultural memory , The old building's architectural style is particular
to the coastal environment and its era in Scotland's history. Visitors local
and tourist, came to socialise, swim, compete, romance and to
exercise in an out-door environment facilitated by an engaging modernist architectural
statement of its time.
The hope is that this will encourage further
investment and engagement in this historic area, helping to return
this part of North Berwick back to an important aspect of East Lothian's
culture and community - connecting; the sea, the public, the craft
and sport of coastal rowing to a its past whilst engaging
in the present and celebrating North Berwick's cultural significance.
The design should successfully integrate the clubs core objectives, rower's requirements and safety whilst engaging with the existing modernist structure and context, retaining its original identity and character as far as possible. There should be particular efforts to work with the sites history and 'social memories' with regards the Local Lido culture and Bathing facilities in the 1900s.
The new design proposal should be easily read and distinct in its relationship with the existing structure allowing the viewer to easily distinguish new from old.
The design proposal will engage with the environment and the elemental conditions
The design should be rowing club specific but not exclusive, the club has a communal and social responsibility to involve the members of public and promote community inclusion and promote the culture of coastal rowing and its benefits
The design should use sustainable methods and will [where possible] use materials from local or neighbouring resources.
The Design should engage with the sites embodied energy. The proposal will by way of efforts to conserve the site ‘in part’ seek to re-use key architectural parts and return them to their original state prior to the building's disuse as a Lido, or at the very least suggest aspects of its original use and design.
The design with build upon the sites Educational Value, its Social Value and its Historic value and develop the sites identity and its links with the sea.
Big Stone Collective were asked to visit a local primary school to explain and discuss, architecture, what does an architect do? and how does it work?.
what a fantastic opportunity to engage with youngsters in their primary level of education.
The Children are in temporary accommodation waiting for their new school to be built. The Head of School and the teaching staff thought it would be a good opportunity to engage them in design and architecture . The Staff asked Big Stone Collective to present a slide show and set a workshop task which would help the children to understand the fundamentals of architecture and design.
Travelling to the school on the morning of the visit I needed an ice breaker, a way to engage the children quickly. It dawned on me that we were all architects at that age. We were continuously building lego structures, camps with our household linen and furniture and dens in the back garden or the local park. We were dealing instinctively with structure whilst trying to stop the pillow walls from caving in or the bed-sheet roof from sagging, we were dealing with views in and out when hiding from our parents [or the opposite sex] in the structure we built. We were dealing with context and material even scale as we often built structures for our various toys. We became interior designers as we allocated living and play spaces to our visitors or whilst setting out our imaginary restaurant to serve our parents. We even dealt with time scale of structure, materials and the elements when we watched our sandcastles melt back into the sea or came back to our secret den the next weekend to find it still intact and usable, if not a little more muddy and smelly. So with this in mind I opened the day by asking who knew an architect? They were excited and happy to hear they were all sitting next to one......
The Day was a success and we all enjoyed exploring structure, materials and form, they loved seeing the iconic structures and architectural celebrities of the world from Gustave Eiffel and his tower to the proposals of Richard Buckminster Fuller. The workshop helped the children to understand building structures and was a surprising success with the student completely absorbed in the different types of structure - building from straws and glue [no sticky back plastic] - truss, arches, column and beam even cantilever in order to meet their brief .."design your own building".
We ended the session talking about School design and what they liked and didn't like about their old school and their temporary accommodation which seemed to be a fitting end. I left saying goodbye and happy I didn't need to tidy up...
It has long been my belief that our poor architectural awareness and expectations in Scotland have been the main reason for the poor buildings we suffer on a day to day basis, [housing or otherwise], When comparing the architectural intent with those across Europe and further afield my heart sinks Many people in the built environment complain pointing the fingue of blame towards the othe facets of the profession, only really seeing it from a short term perspective in my opinion - loving to share out the blame to the planners, the contractor, the developer, the architect or the bank manager, but it is my belief it's our general public's lack of engagement in architecture and design, especially at an early age [and throughout ] of our education which is the issue. Developers provide stale unimaginative cheep build scenarios because we buy into them, Architects and contracts will provide buildings that are of a certain standard if not challenged and tested and the next generation of professionals will still be basing their decisions and choices from a particular standpoint rather from a general foundation of appreciation and interested in the subject on a broader and more considered level ....and so on
I truly hope we engage our children in architecture and design better in the future or this negative spiral will continue to drag this great countries architectural expression and choice downwards.
...............The children were truly inspiring on so many levels and filled me with hope and energy, perhaps dear friends, colleagues, peers and professionals a local school near you might benefit from a visit, give them a call, drop by and transfer some knowledge.
As an Interiorist I am
constantly discovering hidden and forgotten gems, ceilings behind
suspend ceilings, fireplace and hearth behind walls. Our built environment is
riddled with spaces and places of lost magic and ghostly reflections of a
cultural past.
The Forbidden places website takes
this modern day treasure seeking to a new and perhaps more prescribed level. However,
the website is full of ruinous environments and provocative whispers of human intervention
and past innovation, well worth a look.
It is the 'Cumbernauld Art web
site' which engages on a more intimate level probably because I spent so many
happy years there as a school boy, tearing round a concrete labyrinth of interconnected pseudo-villages of new and
interesting form and material. The town
was amazing to me in that no path ran alongside a road, the cars were below and
we walked or ran above. The town became infamous for many things negative but
truly its heart is pure and is reflected in the iconic film Gregory's Girl in
which many of us young lads made an appearance.
The town is still misunderstood and ill financed by government but has a magical
utopian foundation that resonates and
connects with the creative soul. Cumbernauld is a missed opportunity laying culturally
dormant but not extinct, waiting for a spark of considered interest to ignite a cultural revival and an urban
integrity which was once shown ..
Image: The Late Enric Miralles's sketch of the concept for The New Scottish Parliament competition which he won of-course
The nature of competition is integral to
an architectural and Interior profession.
Architects and designers compete for employment and pay, practice's compete for
work and status. Therefore it is important to introduce students and professional
to the rigors of competition as soon as possible.
The secret is to find the appropriate
project or competition, research-based briefs or practical one focused on image and eye candy. It is so difficult to find a
project that can engage emerging young designers and challenge accepted
thinking through innovative design practice. Many of the competitions out there
are a shameless process of product placement and entrapment, where as others are bias 'carve up' scenarios of
favouritism and skulduggery.
That said there is nothing better than a
design competition to hone those presentation techniques, especially since many
are prepared outside office hours or between projects where time is precious. Therefore,
the finest and quickest ways to communicate ideas are always key and developing
those skills are a painful but rewarding process.
Bringing a project’s presentation
together in a structured and clear manner using the latest 3dimentional digital
modelling software can create a realistic visual representation of the proposed
solution but often it's the sketches and comments that capture the imagination
of the panel best.
When combing orthogonal drawings,
sketches, physical models and precedent studies the overall presentation
becomes complete and beautifully clear but only when you understand and practice of structuring
your package of information clearly - The Narrative is king.
The Concept sketch
consolidates and communicates the designers intentions, aspirations and
exploration in regards the Brief, Site and many other facets of creative
thought such as form, function and of course, design / architectural methodology
An ability to communicate a concept quickly and
clearly comes from a confidence which has built up over years of practice and
success or from a belief in your design resolution and a clear and
uncomplicated ability to get your message and feeling across.
One key aspect to competition entry is how we communicate the
manipulation of light giving the project a feeling of drama, depth and seduction. Lighting plays an
integral role in creating successful architecture and interior environments, capable of separating areas,
suggesting circulation, manipulating mood and creating atmosphere within a
space.
Natural light has got to be one of the
most important elements of an architectural environment and requires a serious
levels of engagement from the earliest stages of the project’s design process
In many cases the success of an interior
relies on the clever and sensitive use of light both artificial and natural.
Here is a link to some good competitions
currently active, Good Luck....FMH
............LET US HAVE MORE LIKE THIS!.................
An Angel of A Building..
This speculative office space redefines the sector. The building is extremely well made and resolved, offering an idea of how building and working in the city might become a more dignified act.
The new building retains the original structure while infilling much of the old courtyard and adding new office and retail girth around its perimeter, thereby both unlocking the development and making it more intimate with the surrounding streets. The entry sequence, with publicly accessible cafe and lounge, sets new standards for civilised explorations of the atrium form and for the animation of a commercial ground floor.
A magnificent polished black gestural sculptural piece by McChesney Architects, 'Out of the strong came sweetness', adds drama and counterpoint to the Kahnian gravitas. ...RIBA
Embodied Energy
The building industry in the UK is currently responsible for 70 million tonnes of construction and
demolition waste every year and most of it is sent to landfill
Embodied
energy is fast becoming one of the most important energy considerations in the
built environment and increasingly an important factor in architectural
conservation. In particular its buildings re-use methodology; assessing the
embodied energy of an existing or historic building, reveals the cost of
demolition and the viability in re-using the buildings.
In today’s energy
sensitive economy, custodians of the aging and historic built environment are
wrestling with the costs and practicalities of re-use and sustainability verses
a new build scenario. Understanding the relationship between embodied energy
and conservation methods such as alteration or re-use at the very start of a
project can save money, a factor integral to any and all, government or private
developer alike.
Determining the value of a
building’s re-use or rehabilitation, maintenance costs, and overall energy
benefits requires a process that provides a comprehensive assessment of the
building. Embodied energy is determined by the amount of labour and energy
consumed in the fabrication of a building, from the harvesting of natural
resources, to the manufacture and delivery of materials and installation of
these materials and products. It also includes the energy required to demolish
and remove building components. Embodied energy reflects a cradle-to-grave
philosophy and is critical to any sustainable approach in managing and
conserving our culturally significant built environment.
“The constant cycle of demolition and
rebuilding puts a huge strain on natural resources and energy usage; in terms
of sustain ability, demolition should be the option of last resort. In Britain alone
demolition produces a staggering 70 million tonnes of waste materials annually.
Construction of new buildings uses approximately 4 percent of Britain’s total
energy consumption and generates 40 million tonnes of carbon dioxide each year.
Up to 60 percent of energy and resources used in construction is spent on the
shell and core of the building, so retention of a building’s structure through
conversion makes sound ecological sense”
[Foster,
2003]
Evaluating
an existing building for re-use can be a complex balance of opposing values.Retaining existing building elements can save
money, and the quality of the original materials may exceed current industry
standards. Often, the elements that define the cultural and historic
significance of a building are the components that ensure the highest value of
embodied energy....FMH
One of the largest architectural web sites in the world, e-architects asked the director of Big Stone Collective, Frazer Macdonald Hay, to be a guest editor this week. Frazer wrote about a selection of current projects.
Click [here] to read the article which highlights projects such as:
The N+ Ningbo development in China by PLP Architecture [here]
After a few months of tutoring, I feel it's time to write a wee Friday article on Museums and their design, especially when dealing with historic context, content and hosted by a building with significant cultural significance.
The brief is to re-design a museum, a educational and tourist facility which has become tired and cluttered with no real sense of itself or place. The building is in a historic part of a city and has hundreds of years of use and re-use. The building has hosted retail, residential, cultural and civic programme. The building itself is arguably the main artefact and when allowed to, can communicate and engage on many different levels of educational, cultural and architectural information.
The Interior is crammed with all manner of bits and pieces with no real obvious narrative which connects them, viewing them is difficult, especially as most are observed through the obligatory, highly reflective glass in poorly, located, lit and constructed exhibition cases. The building groans with misuse and neglect, the space confuses and disorientates the user. The key exhibition spaces have a strange variety of content from seating and exhibition cases to boxes of museum admin, back of house storage, even a stuffed dog which appears to have escaped the storage demons or is part of the museums rogue 'lost and found' collection.
The positive aspects, however, for those that can find the badly sign-posted museum is that the space has a unique acoustic quality, rather like, that of an wooden deck, from a medieval or pirate ship, laden with treasure. A deck and hull which creaks with the history and memories of it past occupation and historical journeys. The other fantastic aspects to the building, are the natural light and architectural qualities, they are fantastically beguiling and tell their own stories of the space, place and the elements.
With that said you can imagine the project's complexity and charm.
The key thing to develop in my opinion, from the student's perspective, is the designers position, all designers need to take a particular and considered position regarding the task at hand...and the students have begun to engage with this process of developing a designers position, by engaging in:
What is a Museum, physically, culturally and metaphorically?
What's its purpose?
What is the Narrative of the building, its space and the artefacts it hosts?
Where is it located?
Who Uses it?
How do the public interact?
Are there interesting precedents to explore? [ It is important to stress a precedent study, is not the analysis of the finished product but that of the process and methodology too]
There really are a whole host of questions to explore and test, which will begin to develop the designers position. Once you become confident and articulate in communicating your position through the design process, the results are far more rewarding and richly received.
In my opinion, two fabulous, and relatively new museum projects require mention. The first is the 'The Natural Sciences Museum of Barcelona' The Museu Blau (Blue Museum) by architects Herzog & de Meuron in the year 2004..
The museum's circulation, exhibition and lighting is truly astounding and you can't help but inspire and invigorated by the content and how it has been presented...take a look [here]
The Second is the Neues Museum in Berlin, restored by David Chipperfield Architects and Julian Harrap Architects, the £49 million renovation is one of the most prestigious re-use projects in Europe.
In ways the Carl Scarpa would have enjoyed, I am sure - Chipperfield has rebuilt the missing north-west wing and a bay to the south east. The courtyard spaces and staircases have been restored in a way that preserves a sense of the building’s decay and the new and old can be read, The architecture reminds me of fictional characters in some fantastical novel with sophisticated and sensitive layering and challenging plot lines, with narrative and suggestion, weaving weft and warp, throughout the fabric of the writers memories and imagination.....take a look [here]
Whilst on the Museum Soap-box, you most see this beguiling exhibition, Luce Tempo Luogo TOSHIBA in Milano Salon, the link is to a film of the exhibition but it need to be to get across the exhibition's mystery and magical intent..take a look [here]
Lastly There is a fresh and a very clever approach to the historic context that I feel is appropriate to make reference to, simplify because it's beautiful. The project is in Spain and was delivered by Josep Mias Gifre & Mias Archiectes ... take a look [here]
There is a country which we are, in an architectural sense, fascinated by , and that country is Russia. The country is so large and relatively
undiscovered [from the architectural and interiorist sense] that the potential and possibilities
truly stager the mind and imagination. It is only recently we have become more familiar with
the culture and its reservoir of creative expression.
Russia has so much to tell and we at 'Big Stone
Collective' have been collecting information on its architecture, geography and
culture with the hope to finance some sort of research field trip in the
future.
Ironically it was an image of an America airport
entrance that started us on our quest for more information as we were convinced
it was a Russian architect that designed it - We were wrong - we had been
bitten by the soviet design bug though.
Looking through the e-architect website, a website
packed with architecture, design and creative discourse, it dawns on us that there are very few websites like this one, a website so crammed with information that you are constantly discovering new things and finding interesting international projects - so we thought we would tell you about the Friday journey it took us on..
Discovering new and inspiring practice is a delightful thing and critical for our practice and our ability to keep current and to keep challenging design methodology and idea generation, e-chitect is one
of a few sites that alows us to do this and as a group of ' interiorists' We often chance
upon unusual and current design and
architecture which sets us on a journey of discovery, you never quite know where
the next visit might take you.
We were researching articles on Temporary
Spatial Installations which led us to discover an excellent Installation piece
in France by Ball Nogues Studio which the e-architect
site had covered [here]. From there our journey continued through the news articles and
connecting subjects, we found ourselves discovering a practice called Bestor Architecture and their fabulous
interior projects and instillations finally ending up at the Graham Foundation............Founded in 1956, the Graham
Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts makes project-based grants to
individuals and organizations and produces public programs to foster the
development and exchange of diverse and challenging ideas about architecture
and its role in the arts, culture, and society...............
If you get the time explore the e-architect site its
surprising the journey you'll take...FMH
.........It showcases the different shelters that
the Black Rock citizens have to come up with in order to survive in style (or
not) the scorching sun and most of all, the almighty fierce winds.
Every year new designs come up, old ones are
refined, same mistakes are made and next year, promise, it will not fly away................here
Temporarily space design a-plenty in this blog, a
real festival of nomadic contemporary lifestyles
and ingenuity woven through the modern day need to escape.
We at 'big
stone' would love to book a plot next year and as the weary, burning-man revellers left
and discarded their fabric and poles we would re-use, stitch together and wait for the next festival resplendent in our almost new fabric palace of past emotion and memory.
After an interesting conversation with two architects this morning
the term 'Human Spolia' developed and since then I have been mulling it over in
my mind.......
The Human aspect to the term;
The process of receiving organs from others to enhance our
own health and life expectancy is a interesting aspect of modern medicine. If
we have blood circulation issues we can add a stint or if we are lucky we might even receive a new heart . If we are ill and need a new liver and / or kidney
and in some cases recently, a completely new face. We can attempt to re-use these organs
from a donorproviding they match our genetic make-up so that our body wont reject them.
Spolia
is a fascinating term which refers to the re-use of building parts or
architectural artefacts normally associated with the appropriation of Roman,
Greek and Medieval remains and using them to add to new structures for practical
reasons, aesthetic or even as symbols or power, success, social or cultural hierarchy.
Spolia comes from the Latin word for spoils, often relating to the compensatory
and symbolic reward or process linked to post-combat triumph.
The combination of the two words;
What a fantastically provocative term, 'Human Spolia'.....The idea of adding
other human parts to a body isn't new of course, most of us have thought about
being a donor at some point or another. Sadly few of us make the move to sign-up
as donors though, why is that?. ...
The
combination of the two words is intriguing when you consider our greatest battle
or conflict is with nature and our struggle to survive in the most fundamental
of ways. Shelter, food and protection, we have become extremely successful and
our culture and society reflects that to a certain extent.
That is
until you allow yourself wonder, 'what is our bench mark' with regards our
success, have nothing to weigh it against [or have we?] there is no other race
of humans, so we can't measure ourselves against that. With that in mind, we
could be completely underperforming in our complacent amble through life, full
of idiosyncratic posturing and Narcissism .
Is Human Spolia the next stage then,
are we to gather the spoils of our success from those less fortunate...it's a morbid
thought, I know...? Make no mistake, I am 100% in favour of organ donor-ship
and wholeheartedly support it, it's the potential
questions, implications and mysteries
that the mixing of the two words evokes which
intrigued me.
In fact, taking it to the next
stage of the ramble, Contemporary Spolia from an Interior architectural point
of view is an incredibly interesting methodology or proposal where buildings
with sickness are concerned. Organ-like issues can receive medical treatment in
the form of architectural elements re-used from buildings on a donor register.
Like humans the building will have to be compatible and the DNA completely understood
before augmentation. An architectural Stint would be used to increase circulation
flow or an extra lung to help a building breath which could be taken from a
healthy donor or a donor which isn't diseased but due to no fault of its own, derelict or
due for demolition. Imagine parts or the entire body of a church surgically implanted
within a corporate host body of an office building type....Or the face of one
building grafted to another ...might we clone successful buildings for their
parts?....ramble over ...FMH
It feels strange promoting an event two years away, I can't
wait though, in fact in two years from now, it will be drawing to an end and we
will be in a anticlimactic place of reflection, optimism and desperation.
Reflective on the mouth-watering events and exhibits programmed, desperately
looking for the next event in the calendar to follow-on from such apotential wealth and variety of rich and simulative
design content. Finally the depression because after all the excitement,
dreaming and throwing your hands in the air with creative inspiration and gay
abandon, reality slowly filters back as the clients emails your blackberry with
budget issues and the contractors have left 15 messages on your phone telling
you that your drawing are wrong and they have fallen out with the sub-contractors......
Where is our design nirvana? university could be the closest
.........probably?
............2013 will be the Year of Interiors in Amsterdam; an
attractive and varied event program will
highlight the historic, cultural, artistic and economic importance of interior
architecture and design. Theme of the inamsterdam
World Interiors Event 2013 will be the ‘Past, Present and Future of
Interiors’. Existing and new initiatives in the field of interiors will be
brought under one umbrella, aimed at professionals as well as the public at
large. From March to October an array of exhibitions, fairs, events, projects,
lectures, seminars, presentations and much more around the theme of interiors
will take place. Where possible the program will connect to existing events.
Other Dutch cities will be involved in the World Interiors Event 2013...........
To Get us in the Mood here are five things we love about Dutch [one from each of use - off the top of our heads] Design:
What a Space 'Kraftwerk Berlin-Mitte' has been used in a variety of ways from an exhibition space to a rave venue ...here
Berlin's Realstadt
Berlin played host to REALSTADT.Wünsche als
Wirklichkeit [Realstadt.Wishes Knocking on Reality's Doors]. The focal
point in this exhibition was not only the concept of the City but also the
way we dealt with the City.
It is the wishes of very many different actors
playing an active part in shaping the City that are central to the exhibition:
mundane wishes and spectacular ones, idealistic and economic ones, local and
global ones. Cities, after all, are built from wishes, animated by wishes and
pulsing with wishes.
A vast array of around 300 architectural and planning models
and 80 exemplary projects from all over Germany testify to the wish for change
and the energy needed to make it happen. In response to a nationwide call,
these models were submitted by local authorities, town planning offices,
universities, planning initiatives and individuals. The prize-winning projects
of the competition “National Prize for Integrated Urban Development and
Baukultur”, which was organised in 2009 by the Federal Ministry of Transport,
Building and Urban Development represented important points of reference. They
include blueprints for extensive urban redevelopments and pinpoint
interventions, realized concepts and shelved competition entries, participatory
processes and bold individual statements.
Realstadt.Wünsche als Wirklichkeit is staged in the
8,000 m2 turbine hall of the power station Kraftwerk Berlin-Mitte, which was
built in 1961. For REALSTADT it is making its debut as an exhibition venue. Its
stark austerity lends overwhelming resonance to the exhibition’s urban
impulses.
This architect and his practice has an exciting formula for concrete and light that not only challenges the exterior and the building's context but also leads us to explore the merits within the interior. A brutal and uncompressing style but delightful in its sophistication and apparent simplicity. Take a look at some of his work...here
Valerio Olgiati studied architecture at ETH Zuerich. Having lived and
worked first in Zuerich and later in Los Angeles for some years, in 1996 he
opened his own practice in Zurich and in 2008 with his wife Tamara Olgiati in
Flims. Among his major buildings are the schoolhouse in
Paspels, the Yellow House in Flims,
a house for a musician in Scharans and the museum for the Swiss National Park in Zernez. Among his major projects are a
housing development in Zug, a winery for Carnasciale, Italy and a music
auditorium for the manor Hohenbeilstein in Germany.
When Teaching this week in Edinburgh, I asked the students in their third year to send me some links to their inspirational characters and their art work, I was delighted with their response so I thought I would share some of them with you...Feel free to email me more inspirational work from out their in the creative realm [contactcrrb@aol.com]
I really love the
details of Art Nouveau architecture.Living
in Amsterdam over summer also seemed to really inspire me, the Openbare
Bibliotheek is a great library:
On the way to work, reflecting on the Annual UK RIBA Stirling Awards for Architecture, I slowly refocused my train of thought onto the radio programme in the background. When I had originally turned it down, Radio Scotland was asking a question about Fat Tax but now they were talking about buildings and their impact on everyday life.
I turned up the radio and was astounded at the line of questioning .."Do Well Designed Buildings make a difference to everyday life or are they just arty-farty and don't really mean much" Kaye Adams, BBC Scotland[brings a human touch to the stories making the news] . http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b015d1sf#synopsis
People were phoning in their opinions about their new and improved spaces and context. One caller " The Head of a School in the central belt said when asked, what her teachers and pupils thought about the new place, she answered " surprisingly they did like it and commented on the fact it was a little like an airport but really liked the wide corridors and stairs. The pupils felt safer, could meet one-and-other and work more effectively" [or words to that effect]. Then a retired Architect came on to discuss the merits of buildings and how good building design effects us. ...................................
Why am I writing about this?
Well, ...It is just me but surely its depressing that we are still in a primitive stage in our culture where we are feeling the need to discuss publicly the merits of good building design as if the alternative is just as valid. Why is the teacher surprised that the students liked this building and why was she surprised that they responded to its aesthetic? "Atry Farty" what, are we still in the 50s? please !......I switched off sighed and wound down the window in the attempt to blow away the scepticism I was feeling about our current state of architectural and design discourse.
Sadly the Car Window trick didn't work and I was still scowling when sitting in the office waiting for the PC to boot up.
The First Email I opened was about the RIBA Awards and the success of Zaha Hadid with her new School Design ...how's that for Irony.
The 2011 Awards are an interesting event especially with the above subject in mind. The RIBA spoke beautifully about the wards stimulating new architectural practice and reflecting where we are now as conscientious designers, designers who think more about the user [the public] than say creating a signature building of image and status. http://www.architecture.com/Awards/RIBAStirlingPrize/RIBAStirlingPrize2011/RIBAStirlingPrize2011.aspx
Odd then that Zaha Hadid was awarded the prize, a building full of image, status and signature. I do think it is an amazing building - but is it the new architectural message the RIBA were selling us the other night on the TV?
All the building were amazing and some were fantastic in there Re-use and the architect's manipulation of the old or existing structure. one judge likened the designers to watchmakers, with really creative ingenuity, another remarking that the building design of one building saved the environment 18 years of co2 emissions when weighed against the new build option. So surly they were better placed to deliver the new RIBA message of architecture love and concideration for the public and their everyday quality of life?
The building before the "Intervention" by Jean Nouvel in 1989-1993
The Lyon Opera House in France designed by Pritzker Prize-Winning Architect Jean Nouvel, he created a dramatic contemporary theatre from an ageing host building with cultural significance when he re-modelled the Opera House in Lyon, France.The grand first floor façades of the Opera House in Lyon were the base for a dramatic new drum roof which set the scene for one of the most seductive pieces of building re-use, Interior architecture and Interior design to date. Although relatively old the intervention still stands as a beautiful example of architectural intervention.
Jean Nouvel and his practice have long been a favourite source of architectural and design expression since being a student, I have followed French practice and their international projects for years.
The Lyon Opera house can be easily read as old architecture and new intervention which is essential in the re-use of buildings. The original building is allowed to retain its old characteristics and invested memories whilst starting up a whole new architectural dialogue with the new modern structure and their context.
Why discus this now?
Well when a student of mine asked me, what is the future of Interior Architecture and building re-use I stopped and thought, yes there will always be some sort of host building to tackle, changing its use and orientation but what do you do with something like the Lyon Opera House. The building is beautifully layered old and new but when it comes to add the next layer of modern day use what then - I will have to just as creative in what we remove as well as what we add.
We should already be challenging ourselves in redesigning or re-using these types of modern buildings - hybrid building use is the future perhaps but how to facilitate that?
How do we re-model Gehry's Bilbao or Calatrava..................FHM
This building is an excellent example of material and Light. The building has an unusual form and function with regard to its context in Acapulco, Mexico, however, after a while the material and form make perfect sense, especially when soaked in Mexican sunlight during the day. So much so, you could hardly imagine anything else in its place.
It is not until you are inside it or up close to it, that you feel the magic of light, shadow and mass.
At dawn the building sweats with solar anticipation, at dusk the concrete remains warm for a while and glows with artificial light at night giving an otherworldly connection.
The function is that of a mausoleum and to me it is definitely a celebration of life and energy, a fitting final space from which to depart from.
A New Book, Event and a New Competition to bring to your notice
Competition:
Janine Stone is pleased to announce the launch of the 2012 Young Interior Designer Award. The competition has quickly established its credentials and is well regarded by the country’s leading universities. They recognise that it presents an exciting opportunity for students to compete against each other for the grand prize of £10,000 cash and a six-month, fully paid internship with one of the world’s leading interior and architectural design practices.
“The Young Interior Designer Award created by Janine Stone presents an amazing opportunity for talented Interior Design undergraduate students to launch a successful career in Interior Design. The competition is a chance to demonstrate the breadth of skill and creativity of our students and a chance for them to stand out in this competitive industry".
More than 50 UK universities have been invited to enter their students in a bid to get their work seen by a national audience of media and potential employers. Students will have four months to respond to the creative brief before the closing date for the competition on the 31st January 2011, culminating in a gala judging event at a chic London venue in April 2012.
The competition has been established to help young interior designers to connect with the industry by providing a national platform to showcase their work. It is hoped that it will also help to further drive respect for the industry by showing the commitment and excellence of the graduates that take part in the competition.
The Brief for the competition:
For the purpose of this award we are asking students to design a 450 sq metre lateral apartment in a major city of the world. The apartment can have balconies and terraces up to a maximum of 100 sq metres. The height of the ceilings can be up to maximum of 4 metres. There are no restrictions on the number of rooms or spaces within the apartment, provided it meets your client’s brief and design aspirations. The design of the apartment needs to reflect the culture of the city of your choice and the requirements of your client. Your client can be a single person, a couple, or a family unit, with or without personal staff. The client can be a well known personality or someone fictitious.
FULL DETAILS OF THE BRIEF TOGETHER WITH THE CONDITIONS OF ENTRY ARE CONTAINED IN THE ACCOMPANYING AWARD DOCUMENT WITH THIS COMMUNICATION AND ALSO AT:
The Marqués de Santa Cruz (Spain) and Dr Rupert Graf Strachwitz will speak and then Paul Docherty (British Council UK 2012) and Donald MacDonald will join them as panellists for the subsequent Q&A
Date: Thursday 20th October
Venue: RCPE - 9 Queen Street - 5.15pm cash bar for 6pm event
Tickets: Free of charge but registration essential - viaapmcich@btinternet.com and guests are most welcome to attend but in respect of each delegate please supply:
Book:
Florian Urban
Professor and Head of Architectural History and Urban Studies Mackintosh School of Architecture Glasgow School of Art 167 Renfrew Street Glasgow G3 6RQ
United Kingdom
Tower and Slab – Global Histories of Mass Housing (Routledge, 2011)
212 pages, paperback, ISBN 978-0-415-67629-8
Tower and Slab looks at the contradictory history of the modernist mass housing block - home to millions of city dwellers around the world. Few urban forms have roused as much controversy. While in the United States decades-long criticism caused the demolition of most mass housing projects for the poor, in the booming metropolises of Shanghai and Mumbai remarkably similar developments are being built for the wealthy middle class. While on the surface the modernist apartment block appears universal, it is in fact diverse in its significance and connotations as its many different cultural contexts.
Florian Urban studies the history of mass housing in seven narratives: Chicago, Paris, Berlin, Brasilia, Mumbai, Moscow, and Shanghai. Investigating the complex interactions between city planning and social history, Tower and Slab shows how the modernist vision to house the masses in serial blocks succeeded in certain contexts and failed in others. Success and failure, in this respect, refers not only to the original goals – to solve the housing crisis and provide modern standards for the entire society – but equally to changing significance of the housing blocks within the respective societies and their perception by architects, politicians, and inhabitants.
These differences show that design is not to blame for mass housing’s mixed record of success. The comparison of the apparently similar projects suggests that triumph or disaster does not depend on a single variable but rather on a complex formula that includes not only form, but also social composition, location within the city, effective maintenance, and a variety of cultural, social, and political factors.
The restaurant which opened on June 27th , at the Opéra Garnier was billed as a contemporary architectural or design statement, a powerful interior design which contrasts the cultrly significant building and creates an new energy to be experienced. The designer Odile Decqis already understandably drawing notice from restaurant designers and architects.
......The contemporary addition compliments the classical details of the vaulted stone ceiling without altering history. Narrow columns extend upwards towards the molded plaster hull, which curves to form the edges of the handrail. This vessel, which has been slipped under the cupola, is almost like a cloud formation hovering between the existing elements of the room without touching them suggesting the changing form of the phantom, whose white veil glides furtively within the space. The large floor plate is suspended with concealed steel plates and a glass wall encompasses the interior isolating the space from the existing shell. The wafting white structure touches down to the lower level producing integrated organic supports. The striking red Poltrona Frau chairs, bench and floors produce a theatrical character reminiscent of the phantom of the opera which was once performed within the auditorium. .......
I worry though, as striking and as luxurious as it seems I can't help feeling that it has already begun to date and that the design may be more of a 'one trick pony' rather than a 'magnificent stallion of design integrity'.
I do love the contrast expressed through the form, material and colour though. I certainly will visit and have a meal basking in the pure decadence of the space - enjoying the guilty visual pleasures on offer. I will, I know however, leave feeling a little grubby and culpable in my enjoyment and participationof such flashy design masturbation and will leave vowing never to return but knowing deep down I'll be back soon.
Sorry Carlo Scarper and Peter Zumthor ...etc., I have been seduced by the Parisian design candy....
Born [1960] in Japan and now living and working mostly in Berlin Tatzu Nishi is one of my favourite and most admired artist/ sculpture/ Interiorists of the moment. He is constantly redefining space, scale and the preconceptions of the artifact and its context. What a breath of fresh air.
He attempts to make the encounter between an art object and its viewer a different, often surprising experience. He plays with public spaces transforming public monuments or sculptures into a temporary, mostly private usage. Rather than making art for homes, he creates homes around art.
Whilst attending the ECIA [European Council for Interior Architecture] Annual GA meeting in Valencia, I was lucky enough to visit the Design Show which was being held in the same building.
What a building it is!
The industrial setting of concrete and steel gave a brutal contrast to the designs on show. The building is dramatic in scale and character, full of spatial integrity and wonder.
The Show itself was remarkable, interesting and delightful in its temporality and theatrical expression, begging for attention in the hope to procure an element of corporate intercourse.
This event was one of the biggest and most well rounded interior design shows I have been to, including furniture, decor, textiles, lighting, appliances, transport interiors, and far more.
The statistics were: almost 1,000 exhibitors and 60,000 visitors
Feria Hábitat Valencia is the only international Spanish trade fair that gathers together the entire product offer for interiors: furniture, decor, home textiles, lighting, contract, fixtures, fittings and furniture for commercial facilities and, courtesy of the R, D + i seminars, leading edge cooking.
Feria Hábitat Valencia seeks to give a boost to the sectors involved, create trends and generate innovation. Its achievements to date are proof of this ambition: it now boasts 800 exhibitors, 60,000 visitors from more than 100 countries and 125,000 square metres of space given over to exhibits.
At Feria Hábitat Valencia we have always believed in and been committed to quality and design as features that create a point of difference. These values are at the core of the 'Made in Spain' way of perceiving interiors and have helped make ours an important exhibition for the world’s leading markets...........
If you ever get the opportunity [or rather, I suggest for you to create the opportunity] to see next year's fair and enjoy the space and exhibits whilst exploring the fantastical expression of Valencia's city culture both architecturally and socially.....FMH
A Book Recommendation ......by frazer Macdonald Hay
AVA Books
'Drawing out the Interior' by Ro Spankie from AVA's Series 'Basics Interior Design & Interior Architecture is easily the best academic book of its kind, I haven't enjoyed or been inspired this must, since reading Ed Hollis's book titled 'The Secret Lives of Buildings'.
Ro Spankie's book is beautifully structured and written with the right balance between text and image to engage the reader visually and intellectually. The book will, in my view, be a big hit with students but strangely, I also feel, it should be an even bigger hit in the realm of professional practice. I have lost count of the amount of colleagues which have voiced an insecurity and /or a frustration about drawing without CAD. It's this type of book which will inspire and rekindle a lost love for some and for others, it will inspire and energies their learning and practice.
I am very relieved to see Ro Spankie has written and researched this book with rigor and depth. I am so tired of seeing publications of so called authors, who just catalogue their past students work. Although this is at times interesting, it's one dimensional and shallow, with little impact value to student's education in my opinion. Ro Spankie on the other hand has written a document with authenticity and integrity, which works on many levels.
The AVA series in general is well worth a look, I feel their range of Design Topics and their authors are excellent, I was fortunate enough, to read yet another book from the same range earlier this year, by Graeme Brooker and Sally Stone, the book is titled 'Context and Environment' and I immediately recommended it to my students............FMH
Arch Group have given us an exciting [not so] new take on cellular architecture. The MDF built structure is compact and architecturally interesting with very little requirements from its host structure and its flexibility with regards location. The Sleepbox [as seen on DEZEEN 2009] is a beautiful piece of furniture and stimulates the imagination.
Practically though, I would feel uncomfortable about sleeping in a space that can be used from 30mins to several hours, how do you pay, when is it cleaned, how is it managed, is it acoustic and what does it cost? I feel the hostel option is the better.A location such as a train station is a good utopian idea [You cant just have one or two there though]. I feel it will be better placed in emergency situations, flood earthquake that sort of thing, for short term accommodation, even events like Glastonbury. I am not sure the shopping centre or train-station needs it - The airport might work due to the fact that it is a controlled environment I suppose. The is no getting away from the fact that I love the proposal and want one....even if its just a folly....FMH
Dear
Undergraduate students & Post Graduate student,
The
summer frolics [I know for most, it was a
summer of hard work, saving living at home in order to return and survive
another academic year] . Ok so, the summer is almost over and I hope you're
returning with the energy and ambition to start a new year. Before you start
however, I thought I would perhaps offer some helpful information with regards
you, the learner. It is important to realise your strengths and weaknesses, to
understand yourselves as learners and to understand that not everyone learns in
the same way, speed or structure.
Take
some time to read and reflect upon yourself and you characteristics from an
academic perspective. If you felt frustrated or disillusioned last year or
perhaps feel underappreciated then perhaps it's because your learning style or
learning approach hasn't been met yet. Take time to understand yourself a
little better. If you feel it's appropriate discuss it with your tutor or
tailor you activities with added confidence, in the knowledge that you are in
control of you own specific learning approach. First though, understand what
kind of learner you are.
..........Are
you:
An
Activist
Activists
appreciate novelty, will 'try anything once'. When given a task, you will throw
yourself wholeheartedly into the work. You
will like to get on with things but are not so interested planning what needs
to be done or what you are about to do. You will most likely be living life
very much in the present. The activist gets fed up with repetition and
processes which appear to be going over old ground. Activists are stimulating,
vital. open-minded and gregarious.
A
Reflector
Reflectors
like to 'look before you leap' you will like to collect information and sift
through it. You are cautious, thorough learners. You will prefer to observe
rather than take the lead. You might be slow to make up your mind but when you
do, your decisions are very soundly based - not only bases on your own
knowledge and opinions but also structured on what you have learnt from
observing and listening to others. You might feel or appear quiet in groups,
however this is more related to your 'Olympian detachment' rather than from any
insecurities.
A
Theorist
Theorists
occupy the world of ideas, you might have tidy, organised minds. You're not
content until you got to the bottom of things and explained your observations
in terms of fundamental principles. You need to know the logic behind actions
and observations. You may dislike subjective, ambiguity and others which take
actions which are not underpin by a logical or theoretical structure. If a
tutor uses data to support their opinion, it is most likely, you, theorist
learner, who will ask about the validity of the data.
A
Pragmatist
Pragmatists,
like the theorist learner is equally interested in ideas, but you want to try
them out to see if they work. You are often less interested in actually
developing the idea itself but will happily beg borrow or steal those you think
will facilitate your actions more effectively. You will certainly enjoy
experimentation but won't be to interested in drawn out analysis of the results
which would appeal to the 'reflector type' learners. You most likely take the
opinion that if it works then it works, if it doesn't work, then there seems no
point in wasting precious time wondering why. You will probably spend the time
looking for an alternative solution with more promising aspects and give that a
go. You love solving Problems !!
Ok so
just in case you feel that was easy and have already classified yourself one
way or another - you may also be surprised to learn that your approach to
learning can be measured too, and badge'd as an approach or process of a
Serialist or Holist:
The Serialist's approach to learning in a
systematic and linear one, breaking down the task into bite size 'sub-tasks'
combining them later to achieve the task's main objective. You might work in a
general pattern such as:
You
might work systematically, one step at a time
Focus on
particular aspects of the brief
Look at
details and data evidence
You may filter
images and data, as too many will frustrate and confuse your process
You may
need to take ownership of your project rather than just accepting the
explanation offered by others
You probably
enjoy a tightly scheduled and rigorous teaching style
The Holist's approach is in complete contrast
to the above approach as you will work best tackling a task in its entirety,
right from the very start of the brief. You might work in a general pattern of:
You may
work impulsively according to mood, interest and inspiration
You may
look at the whole picture first
Your
focus will be on broader issues of context and programme
You will
really enjoy images, precedents, theories and comments, 'more the merrier'
You will
then probably enjoy giving the evidence your own interpretations
In terms
of teaching you will perhaps enjoy a more freer tutoring style
**Just remember you
will need to embrace both approaches to successfully approach a design brief
and deliver an appropriate and rich solution. Problem solving calls for a
combination of both approaches so know your strengths and work on your
weaknesses **
Finally
there are three fundamental approaches to learning which are known as DEEP,
SURFACE & STATEGIC, you most likely already have invested in some or all
approaches from school or higher education. The approach criteria is something
like this:
The Deep approach is all about you taking
ownership of the task [Learning as Understanding] making your own sense of your
learning and its outcomes. The other key aspect to deep learning is that you
reflect on your learning and appreciate the personal changes its made and the
academic journey taken [Learning as personal development]
The Surface approach is all about learn as a typical
process or your traditional perception of education. Surface is often referred
to as passive [sit back and absorb] a method of filling the learner as if like
an empty vessel [Learning as getting more knowledge]. Another surface type
learning approach is memorising the subject content, it's a little more active
and requires subject matter to be retained and understood.[Learning as
memorising] Finally there is the aspect of learning which require an
understanding of not just the facts given by the tutors but the methods and
theories too[Learning as acquiring facts, procedures and skills]
The Strategic approach is all about achievement and is driven by higher
grades based of feedback and criteria and weighting of material to be learnt.
You approach learning intending to gain the highest possible grades, You will
be focused of time and effort and making the most of these to their maximum
effect. If you feel that this is the approach you most suit the chances are you
are a mature student. You will already have a efficient, well-organised and
manageable study method or two.
I hope the information in the text
above is useful and goes a little way to making your academic years more
enjoyable and productive. Good luck in the coming years and remember you will
be taking your learning skills with you after higher education, it is probably
good practice to work on those weaker aspects within your learning portfolio as
you will require rounded, balanced and robust learning skills and methods in
professional practice too....FMH
After last week's discussions with regards to Aberdeen's St. Nicholas Houseand the merits of concrete structures please read below, as I try to promote the finer points of the subject:
Please,
let us get over the idea that Concrete is
Ugly - It isn't It's amazing! more importantly
its culturally significant
Image by FMH
In
its simplest condition,concrete is a
magical but complicated substance that when set hard has the compressive
strength and durability of stone but when initially mixed, has a low viscous
consistency which allows the substance to be plastic in
nature, malleable and easily cast in a multiplicity of conditions.
Although the concrete fabrication process is fairly sophisticated nowadays, concrete
has a relatively basic mixture [fig1]
of paste and different size aggregates [coarse and fine stone]. The
paste is composed of cement [formally lime]
and water which coats the surface of the fine and coarse aggregates. The mix,
through a chemical reaction called hydration, hardens and gains strength to
form the rock-like substance known as concrete. It is within this hydration
process that the key to concrete’s remarkable dual characteristics lie. These
unique properties have intrigued and seduced the construction industry for over
eighteen centuries and explain why concrete, can be used to
build furniture, skyscrapers, bridges, sidewalks, houses, dams and even lighthouses.
Although
the word concrete derives from the Latin word “concretes” meaning hard, concrete is often referred to as, “reconstructed stone” or “reconstituted stone” which
acknowledges the fact that concrete is an artificial fabricated stone like substance,
with characteristics resembling those of natural stone. For example, most
sedimentary stone such as limestone and sandstone comprise of small sized stone
aggregates or sand grains that have been bound or cemented together naturally
over time. Concrete too, is comprised of smaller stones and sand held together
by a binding cement which sets to produce a solid material.
Image by FMH
Concrete is
one of the most widely used construction materials in the world fuelling a $35
billion industry and employing over two million industry related workers in the
United States alone. There are many types of concrete in circulation today
ranging from the widely used concrete masonry used mainly in wall, floor
andfoundation construction to tilt-up
concrete, where walls are cast in the horizontal position and then tilted to
the vertical.However it is the
ready-mix concrete that accounts for nearly three-fourths of all concrete used.
Ready-mixed refers to
concrete that is batched for delivery instead of being mixed on site. Each
batch of ready-mixed concrete is delivered to the contractor in its plastic
condition, usually by road.
One of the most common uses
of ready mix is in the fabrication of reinforced concrete. Reinforced concrete
was developed to address concrete’s low tensile strength and revolutionised the
construction industry when realised. The unique potential of reinforced
concrete derives from the complementary virtues of its two constituents: steel
in tension and concrete in compression. Steel is set into the concrete. They
bind together creating a material high in both tensile and compressive
strength.
Concrete is an extremely
versatile substance and can be cast on site [insitu] or pre-cast off site in a
more controlled fabrication environment. The process of pouring concrete is
governed by a set of key actions. The main actions are compacting and curing
the concrete. When initially pouring the concrete
into formwork it is important to compact the freshly poured concrete. This will
expel unwanted air bubbles and ensure that the mixture fills the formwork to
achieve the required profile and ensure the correct coverage depth when working
with steel reinforcement. Consolidation [external or internal artificial
vibration] will compact fresh concrete to help mould it to the forms and around
embedded items such as reinforcement bars. This will help eliminate stone
pockets, honeycomb, and entrapped air too. When concrete is vibrated it behaves
more like a liquid and slowly settles into the forms under the action of gravity.
In this condition the larger entrapped air pockets rise more easily to the
surface. As soon as vibration stops the concrete continues to set naturally.
Correct compaction techniques are essential if the concrete is to meet its
intended strength and durability. For each one percent of entrapped air,
concrete can reduce strength by six percent and its ability to protect the
reinforcement and resist frost action will be severally compromised over time.
Curing is the
second action when working with concrete. Curing the concrete aids the chemical
reaction called hydration. The concrete surface is kept moistwhich extends the curing / setting period
which will improve durability, strength, water tightness, abrasion resistance,
volume stability, and resistance to freezing and thawing and de-icer salts.
The process of hydration will still take over 30 years to complete which means
the material will gain in strength long after the structure is in use.
The
amazing historical Context of concrete........
The history of concrete can be mapped back to the
Romans however the Egyptians and Greeks were using mortar well before then. The
Romans industrialised concrete mainly due to the discovery that when volcanic
ash was mixed with water it
allowed concrete to harden under water. The main source of the Roman’s ash was Pozzuoli near Naples.
The Romans used this natural material to bind pumice [a light porous volcanic
rock] and brick rubble creating an early concrete material easily fabricated
using cheap or free labour. The concrete developed by the Romans was used to
great effect creating impressive structures like the hemispherical dome of the
Pantheon in Rome,
spanning 43 metres which to this day intrigues architects and engineers from
around the world. And also, the Coliseum, Rome AD82 - the
foundations and structural elements of the largest and most important
amphitheatre in Rome
were made of dense concrete, while lightweight concrete was used in some of the
arches and vaults. The Romans also experimented with adding horse hair to
lessen the effect of cracking whilst hardening and adding blood to make the
mixture less susceptible to frost damage. Although concrete was known to the
Romans, the Egyptians and to even earlier Neolithic civilisations, after the
collapse of the Roman Empire, its secrets were
almost lost for 13 centuries. The last great Roman concrete construction of
note was the Leaning Tower of Pisa, a 58m high leaning tower [5 degrees from
vertical] with 2.7m thick walls, clad in marble which began construction in
1173.Concrete was rediscovered in more
recent times when a British engineer, John Smeaton pioneered the use of
hydraulic lime in concrete, using pebbles and powdered brick as aggregate for
the construction of Eddystone Lighthouse, built in the English
channel. Smeaton and a handful of French engineers began experimenting
with lime based concrete and slowly reintroduced concrete to the eighteenth and
ninetieth century.
Concrete’s modern development
spans no more than 185 years. In 1824 a patent for the manufacture of the first
Portland cement was awarded to Englishman Joseph Aspdin which proved to be one
of the most important milestones in concrete's modern history. Modern ‘Portland’ cement
developed by Joseph Aspdin between 1824 and1845 revolutionised the use of
concrete in construction. The discovery of hydraulic cement, created at much
higher temperatures than before, altered the chemistry of the material. By
heating limestone [the main source of calcium] with clay, and grinding the product
[clinker] with a source of sulphate, hydraulic cement could now set and harden
through chemical reaction with water, which made it ideal for construction
purposes. Concrete originally used to construct lighthouses, docks and other
large scale industrial buildings using hydraulic and non-hydraulic lime binders
began to diversify and find new uses in construction using hydraulic Portland
cement.
The next important
evolutionary step on concrete’s timeline came in 1854 when William Boutland
Wilkinson patented his idea of reinforcing concrete through the addition of
iron hoop and iron section. Although it wasn’t until the development and
resulting patent of French entrepreneur Francois Hennebique in 1892, that
architecture fully embraced the potential of reinforced concrete. The
Hennebique system made use of round mild steel bars for the main steel-work
needed to enhance concrete’s naturally weak tensile resistance whilst
complimenting its compressive strength. The ends of the bars were split and
spread to form Y-shaped“fishtails” to improve mechanical
anchoring. The Shear, an effect condition which tries to split a beam or slab
vertically is resisted by flat steel strips or links wrapped around the bars.
Other reinforced concrete systems have been developed generally from abroad,
for example the Kahn system from the United States which uses square
bars with steel wings bent up to anchor the reinforcement into the concrete.
The further development of pre-stressed concrete in the early 1900s was
pioneered by EugèneFreyssinet,
a French structural and civil engineer who helped underpin the material’s
importance in the building industry. The steel reinforcement could be
pre-stressed before the process of fabrication, therefore, creating a product
with compressive stress that would in turn offset any tensile stress imposed
once load bearing. Concrete elements could span longer distances as a result
and the architectural merits of the material grew. Architects explored their
new found structural freedom and developed fresh methods of expression.
“After Iron, reinforced concrete is
probably the most important invention in the realm of materials, perhaps the
most important of all because reinforced concrete possesses all the properties
that are missing in iron – and because the properties of stone and iron are
united in the building material. For what has now become possible in principle?
No more and no less than the construction of surfaces without seams, walls
without joints. On a stone wall that was only possible after plastering it, not
before, and moreover this enabled the straight span between two supports spaced
at practically any distance. So it has become technically feasible to construct
the two most important elements of architecture – wall and the member spanning
between supports – with almost any dimensions. In addition, there is the
unification of floor and ceiling, also as a complete unit, and again in all
possible sizes. This building material is a technical triumph over the
difficulties caused by all the building materials produced up to now”
[1922 Dutch Architect Hendrick
Petrus Berlage]
Unfortunately concrete over the last few decades of
the twentieth century has acquired a bad reputation. This, despite the
liberation the material afforded architects and designers, was mainly due to
the general practice of ill considered and badly executed social projects in
the 1960s and 70s. Concrete was being abused in the construction industry; new
materials were used before research into their long term properties and
characteristics could be understood. This rushed and uneducated use of concrete
resulted in the short life span of many buildings or at the very best a
premature need for major repair. Many buildings were demolished not only due to
poor workmanship but also due to the concrete’s poor weathering properties,
unsightly staining and the misnomer of concrete cancer....FMH
Aberdeen's St. Nicholas House.... should be re-used and celebrated not demolished
We invested energy and memory within the buildings we use, St Nicholas House is no different. St. Nicholas House has a place in local and civic history. The Building has been a part of Aberdeen's social awareness of place and self. The Gateshead building "The demon of the North" was raised to the ground last year rending the local environment, local identity or urban orientation, benign and soulless. This came as a surprise to the locals. I heard some say "it feels like a death in the family" as I stood with them and watched the machinery raise to the ground generations of civic memory and social participation. Once the building began to fall the realisation began to dawn. The space, skyline and urban make-up was no longer specific to Gateshead but yet another multinational and homogenised copy of countless, characterless town centres from around the western world, spaces in which we drift in and out feeling slowly more disillusioned and grey.
The building was said to be one of the 12 most ugly...seriously? It is amazing in its scale presents and attitude.
It is to be raised to the ground..................behave yourselves! let's Re-use it ! but creatively, not for hotels or residential but something public and inclusive ...engage- engage!
The building should be recognised as a building of 'cultural significance' and conserved for generations to come...
Apart from the emotional and social loss to the city , the invested energy or 'Embodied Energy' must be acknowledged and engaged with too.....
Embodied energy is fast becoming one of the most important energy considerations in the built environment and increasingly an important factor in architectural conservation. In particular its buildings re-use methodology; assessing the embodied energy of an existing or historic building, reveals the cost of demolition and the viability in re-using the buildings.
In today’s energy sensitive economy, custodians of the aging and historic built environment are wrestling with the costs and practicalities of re-use and sustainability verses a new build scenario. Understanding the relationship between embodied energy and conservation methods such as alteration or re-use at the very start of a project can save money, a factor integral to any and all, government or private developer alike.
Determining the value of a building’s re-use or rehabilitation, maintenance costs, and overall energy benefits requires a process that provides a comprehensive assessment of the building. Embodied energy is determined by the amount of labour and energy consumed in the fabrication of a building, from the harvesting of natural resources, to the manufacture and delivery of materials and installation of these materials and products. It also includes the energy required to demolish and remove building components. Embodied energy reflects a cradle-to-grave philosophy and is critical to any sustainable approach in managing and conserving our culturally significant built environment.
“The constant cycle of demolition and rebuilding puts a huge strain on natural resources and energy usage; in terms of sustain ability, demolition should be the option of last resort. In Britain alone demolition produces a staggering 70 million tonnes of waste materials annually. Construction of new buildings uses approximately 4 percent of Britain’s total energy consumption and generates 40 million tonnes of carbon dioxide each year. Up to 60 percent of energy and resources used in construction is spent on the shell and core of the building, so retention of a building’s structure through conversion makes sound ecological sense”
[Foster, 2003]
Evaluating an existing building for re-use can be a complex balance of opposing values.Retaining existing building elements can save money, and the quality of the original materials may exceed current industry standards. Often, the elements that define the cultural and historic significance of a building are the components that ensure the highest value of embodied energy....FMH
Please don't make the same mistake Gateshead did........
The Empty Homes agency is an independent campaigning charity. We are not part of government, and have no formal links with local councils although we work in cooperation with both. We exist to highlight the waste of empty property and work with others to devise and promote sustainable solutions to bring empty property back into use. We are based in London but work across England. We also work in partnership with other charities across the UK....text
We at 'Big Stone Collective' whole heartedly support this initiative but feel it could and should be expanded to the documentation of dormant space in general. We believe it's not just the house that makes the home but the context too.
If you [the reader] feel that there is a dormant and poorly used space then document it - send it on, take ownership of the problem and engage.
The Second floor or upper floors above retail units in the high-streets are often partly storage but largely a waist of excellent space for example.
Churches sit idle and decaying and sixties architecture is being persecuted and destroyed at an alarming rate but it could serve an excellent social or commercial purpose - Concrete is not ugly guys its only the design and use of it, that can, at times let the material down - It is still our heritage.......FMH
Design
education is similar to the practice of any construction activity
[architectural or cerebral] in that all processes from the past to the present,
modern or traditional require a firm and reliable foundation from which to
build upon.
Within
the context of education, assessment systems are part of an academic foundation,
from which educational structures are built. If these assessment systems fail
or crumble in any way, cracks appear in the learning process. When cracks show,
the integrity is lost. Once flaws appear, doubts surface, trust is lost,
communication breaks down and the whole process unravels.
Within
the Process of assessment it is incredibly important to fully understand and
support needed within a student cohort with regard to its make-up and the different
student's individual needs.
Student
support is such an important element to an Interior programme. In many
instances the student cohort is regularly made up from a complicated mix of
traditional and non traditional student background, such as, mature,
international and first generation students, all individually creative and often
have particular issues such as dyslexic [which is often overlooked, stigmatised
or seen as an affliction suffered by the creative mind].
A
student's educational career is difficult and complicated. In order to be
successful and productive within design and architectural education [and
beyond] the student must overcome many conflicting emotions. The student must
by creative and passionate, however, they are also required to structure, timetable
and contain their expression and creativity. The students must be confident in their
design solutions, however, it's very helpful [and natural] to be insecure about
it too, the student should always question themselves [and others] as to how to
improve their designs and should never be completely satisfied with the final
outcome [complacency is a real pitfall to designers in my opinion] . The
students need a strong character that promotes individual style, design perspective
and interests, however, they must also be a team player and work well within a
studio environment adapting themselves and their designs to the rules and hierarchy
of studio life, [whilst constantly thinking outside the box].
Education
is truly an emotional rollercoaster, once a student has created a piece of design
work, it is often extremely confrontational, in that the work often exposes
weaknesses and strengths but equally promotes their interests and passion [which
have often been suppressed throughout their school years due to bullying and
social exclusion]. It is now imperative however that the student learns to
embrace that which makes them individuals and show their talents in a
structured and passionate manner.
To
complicate matter still further the student whilst addressing these conflicting
set of emotions and skills, they must embrace their competitive nature. It is
very useful [not always necessary though] to be competitive and is often useful
in the future. The design profession is structured around competition. The
winner of a competition will build their design, the best graduate are quicker
employed, the best designer will get paid more, the best design will make the
media and so on…
Whilst
studying Interior Architecture and design it is essential that the student and
their tutors are aware of these issues and understand the support that is
available to them. However more importantly, it is the ability of the academic
staff to sensitively, recognise and deal with the potential problems inevitable
in such an emotional and complex environment.
To
help successfully manage a group of creative students, an academic should
quickly recognise the potential issues and the warning signs, should
communicate clearly and fairly and understand their student’s support structure
whilst recognising their own professional limitations. It is also equally very
important the students realise that this process is difficult and full of contradiction
and pit falls but that they are not alone and that we [designers and academics
at all levels] have been through the process and continue to face the
challenges that this incredibly difficult but wonderful profession puts our way, so please don't suffer in silence.....
The necessity to become a little mad is not part of an
Interior education but it helps. To dare to put forward ideas, to offer up
visions to realise the unexpected requires pushing the imagination. But how
crazy should we get? Not too much: people still have to use the costly stuff
that we produce. Not too little: let’s be less boring in the future.
The design imagination should be a combination of
utility and philosophy. It responds to the specification and utility and
philosophy. It responds to specific needs and situations, but keeps in mind
that interior design and architecture is also a thought about how we want to
live in our world. These two, utility and philosophy, should not drift apart.
The secret is to unify them and to always let them be mutually enforcing. How
do we reconcile deep thinking with utility? Be curious, always ask “do you have
an idea for us?” Be interested in other philosophies and in fantasy, play and
experiment. Extend and deepen reality. Be prolific. Keep churning out the works
so as to get better and so as to grow in your own thinking. Above all, know the
world in which we are living and being skilful at developing combinatorial models
to get the most out of every technique, effect and idea...
Design
education is a slippery process, the topic is complicated and has a diverse
method in which, it is hoped that the student leaves after three to four years
with the confidence to create and manage an innovative response to their
clients brief. The student must learn to facilitate the clients brief whilst on
one hand adhering to the rules and regulations of the construction industry and
on the other responding to current cultural and aesthetic issues, ever
conscious that the public and their peers will critique the end product.....FMH
One of the most beguiling,
strange, inspirational and thought provoking site visit was had Yesterday in
Fife, Scotland. I planned to visit the Scottish Secret Bunker Complex for some
time and yesterday's schedule offered the opportunity.
The Bunker is hidden beneath a farm building, in the
middle of the countryside near St. Andrews. The site is a mile from the main
road, and driving there you feel as though you are moving back to the 70s -[ no
idea why, on reflection perhaps due to
the fact that the environment seemed to remind me of the beginning scenes to
every episode of the Sweeny TV series] .
Once inside the farm building, the bunker entrance is unassuming
and located unsurprisingly in the retail
area.Once you open the door behind the
cashier though, you are confronted by an all together different environment.
The Light, acoustic and materials are alien and in direct contrast to where you've just come from. The spatial dimensions
completely change, changes which are, at first, hard to fathom and slightly disorientating.
Down the stairs and in front of you is a 150 meter concrete walkway to the bunker complex, shroud in green fluorescent
light and which has a looped soundtrack
of its past institutional working environment.
From there onward it is a journey through a ' Post Second
World War and Cold War' condition of readiness, awareness, preparation and secrecy.
The spaces within the complex are capsules of time with regards design and
communication. The furniture and material, technologies and social requirements
are familiar and yet so very foreign.
As an Interiorist I was fascinated by the quality in many
aspects of design and spatial arrangement, Line of sight, acoustics and privacy
are cleverly woven within the military fabric of hierarchy and command. The
transitional spaces between off and on-duty
personnel are well thought through and
successfully executed.Communication and
data management is practical and easily monitored. The cross-sectional properties of the operational areas are simple
but effective. The working and living environments, although hundreds of meters
below ground and surrounded by 3m concrete walls are surprisingly comfortable
and do not give an excepted feeling of claustrophobia. Very important when you consider
the purpose of the bunker and the potential stress levels of its occupants when working there.
Taken then that the space is well designed and impressive
in its ability to function as a cold war environment where nuclear attack is a
real threat and move it forward 30 years. It is no more a military space of
formidable power and observation capability but a flaccid piece of war memorabilia
for tourist consumption.
The site becomes a bizarre mix of military sophistication
and tourist fascination . A secret cold
war bunk with a licensed cafe, large scale plastic ice-cream -cones, gaming
machines, disabled access and guided
tours.A completely delightful contrast
and which isn't picked up by the average tourist - but is a screaming oddity to a designer and Interiorist.A PHD could be written on this site alone!
To heighten the sites peculiarity, the attraction's owner
has chosen to dress the manikins in
appropriate period uniformsbut over
time they have become slightly dishevelled and unbalanced, adopting individual
characters of their own [honest] which is completely fine as they somehow tie the whole attraction together with a
presents and character which remind me of my days in the armed forces.
As a Captivating space and an odd attraction I strongly recommend
you visit and enjoy its many levels of charm and memory...FMH
+A clinic for sick and disabled buildings Is Coming to Scotland in December, contact Frazer Macdonald Hay at 'contactcrrb@aol.com' for more information and the opportunity to participate.
Recycling buildings is an essential way to breathe new life into our built environment. It is an approach that acknowledges the buildings embodied energy and which depends on the designer’s analytical ability to manipulate the host buildings structural and contextual information successfully, which means understanding its DNA Profile.
Once the DNA is understood then a successful response can be taken, in this case a medical methodology was explored with excellent results
An international workshop directed by Frazer Macdonald Hay held in Antwerp, Belgium functioned as an architectural surgery – A clinic for sick and disabled buildings.
The particular signs, symptoms and DNA were identified on a case by case basis [cases such as a Burns victim, architectural cancer, stem cell and cloning conditions] the workshop formed a diagnosisand developed treatment methods ranging from biomechanics, bionics, prosthetics, cardiology and even plastic surgery which were explored and tested.
The patients were treated within and according to their urban context - in this case, Antwerp. 17 international surgeons [architects and designers] spent a week working from the clinic.
“The distinctive characteristics of any national style of architecture depend in part upon endowed geographical factors and in part upon the circumstances of political and economic history. Scotland’s geographical endowment, in comparison with that of many other western European countries, is a markedly unfavourable one. Small in size and remote in situation, saddled with difficult terrain and harsh climate, the country cannot be said to present many natural advantages for pursuit of architecture”.[Dunbar J 1966]
John Dunbar’s quote in 1966 paints a bleak picture of the Scottish scene and on first impression it may seem there are fundamental difficulties in the pursuit of architecture in Scotland. But surely it is because of these difficulties, which throughout history architects have dealt with, or have been inspired by, that Scotland has it own national style. The difficulties posed by the country’s terrain, climate, political and economical upheaval have helped architects shape and characterise their architecture into the Scottish scene. In doing so, Scotland has developed a rich individual architectural heritage to be proud of. A heritage that is unmistakably Scottish in nature.
Castle Tioram, LochMoidart, Inverness, is an impressive example of a thirteenth century castle of enclosure. [1, 2] Unmistakably Scottish in nature, the building sits comfortably in its highland context. However Tioram’s construction and fortification style originated from England and Western Europe. In fact a great deal of Scotland’s architecture has drawn its inspiration from a variety of external influences throughout history. Churches built in a Gothic style originally from France, German and England, in the 16th Century. The great Scottish Castles of Stirling and Edinburgh, with designs that originate from a Northern European Renaissance period, in the 16th Century. A huge variety of country houses and civic buildings built in the Classical styles of Italy and Greece, in 18 -19th Century. Even the Tower-house, synonymous with Scottish architecture and built in the 14th 15th and 16th centuries, can be traced back to the Norman keep style, popular in Europe and England. These foreign styles became Scottish in nature mainly due to five main filtering aspects. The aspects which all external influences have passed through, and adapted accordingly, are related to Scotland’s building materials, climate, landscape, culture and conflict.
TioramCastle, LochMoidart, Inverness[Thirteenth century ]
Architects and stone masons in Scotland understood the nature of Scotland's architectural filtering system and were able to naturalise their externally influenced building styles to the Scottish scene.
Building materials used in Scotland, play a huge part in defining the character of Scottish architecture and to naturalise inherited styles from abroad. Scotland has an abundant and varied supply of good building stone, rich in colour and texture. Dark greywacke rubble of the upper tweed valley, granites from the North East, grey schists from the west highlands, flagstone from Caithness and many varieties of sandstone which provide a rich palette of architectural material. The use of local stone also gives the buildings an authentic connection with the country’s landscape. [Images 1, 2, 4]
Landscape in Scotland varies from the formidable west coast conditions of rock, sea and mountains to flatter more hospitable lowlands. The beautiful landscape is in the most part rugged and exposed with recurring features in relation to water, hills and the wilderness. The architecture must work with the landscape whilst celebrating its beauty and conforming to the terrain’s restrictions. [Images 1, 2, 4]
The country’s harsh climate plays its part in defining the character of Scottish architecture. Buildings have to adapt to the diverse, changing and inclement weather systems. Architects often specify thicker walls with small windows which insulate from the cold winter winds. The walls are often harled to protect the lime and stone from the elements. Pitched roofs that shed the rain and protect from the harsh windy conditions are preferred.
Scotland has always been a country of conflict whether in its defiance of the Roman Empire, national inter-clan warfare or the struggle for independence from England. Conflict has played a roll in defining the character of Scottish architecture. [Images 1, 2, 4]
Culture is the last of the filters contributing to a building’s nationalisation. Scotland has a rich culture of scientific endeavor, engineering expertise, religion and the arts, whilst remaining sober, confident and durable. It is the blend of these layers that giveScotland’s buildings a sense of identity. [Images 4, 5, 6]
3. Key to Scotland’s architectural identity is Scotland’s filtering system
The Last Major Architectural Influence in Scotland was the ‘Modern Movement’ in the 20th Century. The Modern Movement was born in a spirit of rejection of the old world, an exploration of modern materials and the celebration of cost effective technologies. Modernism became synonymous with reinforced concrete and steel construction, a clear architectural formula of aesthetics and an emphasis on functionalism.
With “Form Follows function”[Sullivan L] as their mantra, international architectsembraced Modernism and its ideologies. Modernism could be expressed in many different styles such as Structuralism, Formalism, Bauhas – (later to be known as the International Style), Brutalism and Minimalism. All were expressed through a common thread of, little or no ornamentation, factory-made parts, man-made materials such as metal and concrete, emphasis on function and a dedicated rebellion against the traditional styles of architecture. [Image7]
Modernism became further established between the two World Wars and developed again after World War II. Mainstream modernism, ‘The International Style’ had established itself in the United States and Europe. The International style has a set of recurrent generic elements which are easily read in the ‘Schroder–Schrader house’. Built in the Netherlands[Image7] and completedin 1924, it stands in stark contrast to the neighbouring buildings built only a few years before. The architect has typically designed the house around a grid of supporting structure, creating simple rectangular volumes, naturally lit by striped steel framed windows. The exterior has a characteristic flat roof, cantilevered horizontal planes and hovering flat surfaces, creating transitional spaces finished with metal railings.
.
Architect Gerrit Rietveld -The Schröder-Schräder house, Utrecht, the Netherlands 1923-24
In the later part of the 20th Century, the modern movement developed a Post- Modernism style which started as a reaction to early rationalist modernism and its associated building styles. The architectural style was increasingly seen as indifferent to the surroundings and to the discipline’s own historical traditions. Post-Modernism introduces a new set of factors. The emphasis was now on the façade; reference was made to historic elements of architecture. Architects increased their pallet of materials and started to explore a variety of architectural form.
The success of modernism and post-modernism with regard to whether, or not, the architects were able to naturalise their buildings to the Scottish scene can be explored by dividing the ‘Modern Movement’ into three general groups and applying the five part filtering system.
The first group contains “off the shelf modernism” - an international architecture, IKEA-like in nature and common to a variety of countries but originated from the Bauhaus style in Germany and the Benelux nations. An example of the ‘off the shelf architecture’ is Peter Womersley’s ‘Port Murray’ house in Ayrshire built in 1963. [Images 8, 9, 10, 11] Although an excellent piece of 20th century modernismthe building struggles to relate to the five contributing filters of climate, building materials, landscape, culture and conflict. And as a result, seems not to be Scottish in nature.
The flat roof construction and large windows leave the building vulnerable to the Scottish climate. The nature of the roof means rain and snow will collect on its surface, rather than drain away, adding to the building’s imposed load, and accelerating the erosion of roofing material - making the building susceptible to leaks.
The large windows, thin walls and orientation will result in problems heating the building, retaining its warmth and giving poor insulation against the winter winds.
Although timber framed and sitting on a stone base the construction is not Scottish in nature. The building materials are factory made parts, with very little protective qualities. The timber paneling used in the original construction has already been replaced and rendered. The steel detailing has corroded, and been replaced. The aesthetic nature of the materials used conflict with the environment within which the building sits.
The use of landscape as a means to naturalise the building to the Scottish scene has been largely ignored. Rather than complimenting and working with the context of the building, the architect has chosen almost to ignore it, happy to site the house on a raised artificial plinth of stone, sacrificing any connection with the landscape, and instead greedilymaximising the building’s main objective, the view.
Culturally the building style is Scottish in nature in that the architect has delivered a building which represents the country’s presence within a new international community. The building has been designed to reflect a homogeneous life style of a society without national boundaries.
But its anti-tradition ideology has failed to engage with the final filtering factor of conflict. By delivering an international building the architect has ignored the country’s struggle for independence and its national identity which has shaped Scotland’s architecture throughout history.
[Images 8,9,10,11 Port Murray House by Wober.R 2007]
The second group contains “bespoke modernist buildings” - one off pieces of civic architecture that blend modernist materials and building techniques whilst remaining sympathetic to the Scottish nature of architecture. An example of bespoke architecture is St. Peter’s College Seminary in Cardross near Dumbarton, built by the architectural practice Gillespie, Kidd and Coia in the 1960’s. The Cardross seminary’s architects appear to have nationalised their modernist building.
The building materials used were reinforced concrete and steel rather than a traditional stone construction, but by creating a rough finish to the concrete similar to a harl finish, the building becomes recognisable as Scottish in nature
The building’s inability to adapt to the Scottish climate was in the end its downfall. The building struggled to remain watertight from the outset and after a 14 year battle against the elements, it closed and currently stands in a ruinous state of decay. Ironically this has made the structure more Scottish in nature, standing as so many castles stand, ruined and yet iconic as (delete: of) a part of Scottish history.
The architects modified their architecture to the surrounding landscape by introducing arches, staggered terraces, curved surfaces and a variety of form. By using large amounts of manmade materials the architects have delivered a brutal modernist building. But by softening the exterior and reducing its impact on the landscape the building seems comfortable in its surroundings.
The Cardross seminary building successfully relates to the culture and conflict filters by (delete:in) reflecting the nation’s autonomous ambitions. The architects, mindful of the independent nature of the brief, have designed an aesthetically defiant structure from which to teach Scottish catholic priests, with an independent connection to the Vatican in Rome.
The third category relates to Post-modern buildings. Whilst still part of the Modern Movement these buildings are easily recognisable as Scottish in nature. The architects have abandoned many of their early modernist’s utopian ideologies and re-engaged in the pursuit of architecture relative to tradition. Most buildings designed in the late 20th century were postmodern in style. Architects were able to naturalise their modern buildings to the Scottish scene far easier but this time the architecture had evolved as a hybrid ‘traditional-modern’. An example of Post-Modern Scottish architecture is the ScottishMuseum built by the architects Benson and Forsyth in 1996. The building reflects past architectural style and explores new ways to use traditional materials. The architecture draws on past architectural theories such as James & Robert Adam’s theory of movement in architecture.
“Movement is mean to express, the rise and fall, the advance and recess, with their diversity of form, in the different parts of the building, so as to add greatly to the picturesque of the composition. For the rising and falling, advancing and receding, with the convexity and concavity, and other forms of great parts, have the same effect in architecture, the hill and dale, fore-ground and distance, swelling and sinking have in landscape: this is, they serve to produce an agreeable and diversified contour, that groups and contrasts like a picture and creates a variety of light and shade, which gives great spirit. Beauty and effect to the composition” [Adam J & Adam R movement in architecture]
The museum’s architects use a blend of traditional and modern building materials, whilst making clear reference to the origin of the building through their use of stone. The building’s architects use a variety of modern materials and technologies to deliver an authentic and complicated project of cultural significance. The Museum’s construction was adapted to the Scottish climate and sits comfortably within its urban landscape. The ease with which the museum relates to its urban context is partly due to the choice of construction materials and its scale, but mainly it’s due to its reference of past traditional architectural styles. The Tower House and Castle styles are easily read throughout the building’s architectural make-up. This combination of traditional and modern architecture connects the building to the local and the national environment, whilst delivering a modern interpretation of Scotland’s individuality and recent independence.
[Image 15, 16] Museum
of ScotlandEdinburgh
Benson & Forsyth Architects 1996-98
Conclusion
Throughout history architecture in Scotland has
had many influences both nationally and internationally. It is the external
influences and the manner in which they have been adapted and naturalised to
the Scottish scene, which have shaped and characterised Scotland’s
built environment. Architects and stone masons were able to naturalise external
architectural styles by adapting their adopted foreign styles. These
styles became Scottish in nature mainly due to five main filtering aspects. The
aspects which all external influences have passed through, and adapted
accordingly, are related to Scotland’s
building materials, climate, landscape, culture and conflict. By working with a
traditional building material such as stone, adjusting the building’s design to
the country’s harsh climate, whilst remaining sensitive to the landscape and
the county’s political and economic upheaval, architects were able to produce
buildings which were characteristically Scottish.
The last external influence was the modern movement, a
style of architecture that began in the early 20th century.
Modernism saw architecture as a solution to a variety of economic and social
issues which developed after both periods of World War. Modernism celebrated
new materials, new international ideologies, cost effective building techniques
and rejected tradition. In delivering these new modern utopian styles of
architecture, 20th Century architects were able to naturalise their buildings
to the Scottish scene but only in the later half of the century with the development
of the post-modern movement. The Post-Modern architects had re-established the
importance of creating nationalised architecture and explored ways to deliver a
hybrid building blending traditional and modern styles. There were exceptions to
the rule in that bespoke architecture and the architects that designed these one-off
civic buildings such as the Cardross Seminary, adapted their modernist methods to
the Scottish Scene.
The early styles of the 20s, 30s and 40shad been rubber stamped across Europe
and America
with a rigorous utopian internationalist agenda. These were styles which
struggled in a Scottish context of harsh climate, rugged terrain and the country’s
pursuit of independence and a national identity.
Ironically, current iconic Scottish architecture which
has played such a large part in the country’s reaffirmation of national
identity may never have happened without the unfiltered influence of off-the-shelf
modernism in the early 20th century. ......................FMH
Commons is an impressive new app that allows you to comment on your
environment - not only comment but give solutions too. At the moment
its in the USA and in focused on the urban environment but I can't wait until
it become more architecturally and spatially focused - anything that engages
the public with design and architecture is very welcome
Commons is one of the first in a new type of “civic gaming”, a new
approach to make citizen reporting social. It’s a mobile, location-aware civic
media app for urban communities that merges methods of traditional city-dwelling
reporting tools, with gaming mechanics and social voting.
Commons is a game for urban communities to
improve their city through citizen stewardship.
With Commons, you compete to do good, while
problems in your city get fixed. Report aproblemor recommend animprovementin your neighborhood that you think
deserves attention and resources, and show your city some lovin’. Voteon the best reports and improvements,
and see what’s most popular. Go on short missions around town to earn bonus
points, and unlockCity awardsto level up through the game.
Get your ideas voted on by other players towinthe game.
In Commons, share the things that you care most
about fixing and improving in your neighborhood, and discover new ways to
explore your city.
I guess this building in South Africa is well known to all in the professional field of architectural and design by now, with media coverage from The Guardian newspaper to Wallpaper Magazine. Designed by Mannie Feldman / Rodney Grosskopf it was the first cylindrical skyscraper in Africa, a fantastic and innovative sky scraper which became famous for its brutal subculture of gangs and urban decay. The building was seen to reflect, in particular, the countries turmoil and chaos after the apartheid in the 1990s.
In 2007 the building was bought and re-designed with a 'typical type plan' to revitalise the building. Luckily [in my opinion] the banks withdrew their funding before the project was completed and could advertises itself as a 'desirable residential destination'. I feel irritated to think, the original occupants were forgotten about . The building was to follow-suite in its prosaic efforts to become designer-like and western with a promise of malls, gyms and easy parking. Why couldn't it have been home for a social and cultural mixture of lower middle and upper classes, living together in a fabulous building with memories of conflict and discrimination embedded within its massive concrete self. Reminding the inhabitants and the city of their not so distant difficulties - where had the drama gone in the designers bid to redevelop the building - I guess in a few years they may of had a exhibition on the public concourse telling of the building sad story.... a depressing thought but quite possible...but seriously, what a missed opportunity to read the building's history and character, both physical and emotionally within a re-design solution...
In 2009-2010 Mikhael Subotzky re-tells the drama of the building and its migrant gold workers, gangs and persecution but also, revealing, in my opinion an undercurrent of hope, faith and innovation in his photography.An impressive visual documentation of 'Ponte' its life and space.
"Ponte has always been a place of myth, illusion and aspiration. This is what we seek to evoke in these preparatory pages. Perhaps this task is best left to the images that we have found there – both in the abandoned flats, and in the marketing material and advertising that we have collected from 1976 and 2008"
In 2011 its back to the mundane attempts to tame and domesticate the building. Mockingly referring to a red hatfor the building and renting out the premium spaces to the highest bidder. The old outlaw sits pestered and interfered with, whilst strewn around it, are the distant memories of forgotten points of impact as many past suicides came to their fruition
I truly believe every building, like us, has a character, a product of the buildings DNA, context and life. Like us the only way to work with a building is to firstly and accurately understand its make-up and past before engaging in any project. ......... FMH
An other
interesting bit of feedback from a well respected lawyer after reading the "Vertical
Squatting in Caracas" article, was that a Radio
4 documentary on Slums had air'ed this week, exploring an alternative view with regards that positive
aspects Slums create for community, wellbeing or actually has or will they become
more of a necessity to many a modern city's
existence in the future.......
thank you Sir..FMH
This programme
is inspirational and thought
provoking................have we over complicated our existence, confused
ourselves with the obsession for shinny new things that promote our worth... or
have we simply been socially complacent and just took our eye off the ball?FMH
Following the article "Vertical Squatting in
Caracas" on the 9th of August we have had a surprising amount of
communication from as varied a background as Lawyers, photographers, bankers
and architects.
One of the most interesting was from 'Frans' in the
Netherlands who is director for 'Gebouw
F' which is the Breda Centre for
Architecture 'Gebouw F' focuses on
architecture, urban planning, landscape architecture, interior architecture and
new media.
Frans told us of a building in South
Africa which was to be a block of flats, which had been colonised by
squatters and that a friend and colleague of his, photographer 'Hans Wilschut'
had gone to document the building as part of a project he was doing. Hans
photograph was full of light and hope and in my eyes a mark to humanities ingenuity
and resourcefulness. The sad and brutal news however is that after some time a
mafia like organisation became interested in the building and
its inhabitants forcing the squatters to pay rent in exchange for (actual)
protection. The poorest had no choice butto move to an alternative, unsuitable empty building further away. ... showing
a contrast of humanities characteristics and the
frustrating reality of our struggle to endure. FMH
"A new generation of the very best urban
sports stars are teaming up with incredible young film-makers. Together they've
produced stunning films that have captured the attention - and the imagination
- of tens of millions of viewers"
A
wonderful hour of Urban play and
expression by poetic film makers and incredibility skilled sportsmen, but wait!.....These
sports are all about the Urban or Architectural environment and yet there is no mention of it .
The Brutal architecture of London's Barbican has a cameo so do the multi story car-parks of the 60's. Material like Concrete and Steel take the lead roles, Industrial
buildings and ruins set the scene.
Without
the beautiful art of architecture there would be no contemporary sport culture developing-
it's a product of social housing and
urban development. It is an evolution
sparked by modernism, so where are the plaudits? where are the sick moves, high
five respect or nod to the greats, why is there no: 'double switch back 360 degree
'Corbusier 'FLIP'or the'Hurtsburger 'bomb' or even the 'reverse sliding grab Gropius'
come on guys modernism is just as, IF NOT.. MORE RAD....!
In a suburb
outside of Accra, Ghana, the African fantasy coffin business is an amazing
business and very popular. Why not? we spend an astounding amount of our life
spending time and money on our spatial experiences, from spec'ing car interiors,
designing living spaces [supposedly reflecting our individual character and aesthetic
preference] to fitting out our varied office
or working environments
Why then
should we stop there? The last and longest place we will spend time in, surely
should be given some thought too.
In Africa
this coffin business, has gone the next step reflecting the client's work or
passion, by modelling their last lodging accordingly: "shoes for the cobblers, hammers for the
carpenters – perhaps a Coca-Cola bottle for the street salesman".
Who knows
perhaps we can continue or obsession with capitalism and find sponsorship,
perhaps a NIKE tick coffin or perhaps a more appropriate one, Marlboro?.....FMH
At last the beginning of some sort of media realisation that you cannot design and build architecture of quality and integrity without involving an interior specialist from the begining of a project. Rather than asking them to dress the structural envelope when completed they must be involved from the outset, involved in brief development, client meetings and project design theory and execution.
Wake up Britain!
Architecture today and the spaces it creates, too often fail the user [us], spaces which are poorly lit, acoustically inappropriate and aesthetically stagnant. Spaces which you [sorry, we] are suffering day to day and which are avoidable.
As an alternative for architectural pomposity egotistically driven and with an obsession for signature buildings that brand a city [Bilbao are you listening]. We should be resolute and demand a building which is designed with integrity throughout - from the Context - to the Building - through to the interior and to the work place and back.
"Our workplace - from schools to offices and factories - should inspire us, motivate us and bring out the best of our abilities. But are these spaces doing just the opposite" channel 4
St. Albans and the local area's community have rescued an old and loyal friend in need, they fought for and financed a rescue mission which took years of hard work, organisation and good-will .
The old cinema in St Albans was due to be developed or demolished this year but after a outstanding effort the rescuers bought the building and took ownership of its memories and it s destiny.
Sitting here with fingers crossed, we at ' BIG Stone' hope that now the first battle of ownership is won, the new client body know what the next stages are and that they have a clear design intent with a clear methodology behind it, otherwise the rescued building may be destined to a fait worse than death.
Physically please beware the architectural equivalent of plastic surgery gone horribly wrong [chose the appropriate surgeon] or physiologically speaking, beware the trauma that a split personality can cause or the side effect resulting from an inappropriate way of dealing with the building's the cognitive behaviour.
The Odyssey Cinema is a trading name of The Alpha Cinema, St.Albans, a limited company. Registered number: 07103180. Registered Address ℅ The Rex Cinema, High Street (Three Close Lane), Berkhamsted, Herts, HP4 2FG
The Odyssey Cinema
166 London Road, St.Albans, AL1 1PQ (Not open to public)
A fascinating link between this article in Caracas and the last article about the work Misha a conceptual artist from Latvia. you decide what that means to you.
An article initially written by the New York times wrote about a high-rise called 'Torre de David' a buildingthat never met its destiny and was left unfinished due to the financial collapse.
However a far more news worthy situation has developed from an 'Interiorist' point of view, now amazingly the 150 meter structure houses 2500 Squatters. The Squatters, parasitical in nature, have taken up residence there enjoying its central location and like termites have re-started the building process within the structure providing unique spaces and social areas not to mention providing construction solutions dealing with the obvious requirements for protection against the elements and safety.
If there is anywhere in the world I would like to visit right now, it would be that complex of space, culture and social behaviour to document and research the spatial diversity and challenges the inhabitants faced and explore their designs which they felt were the solution.....I wish them luck....FMH
Misha's photographic projects 'Crowd' and 'Sheptun' are a captivating collection of work.
For me as an 'Interiorist' I especially enjoy the play between scale, space, negative space and its relationship with the body and our human obsession with contact and shelter. Perhaps I also like the work philosophically because it asks if we are a social race then why are we so desperate for an individual character and covet personal space ....... was it not Aristotle that said communities more than 150 participants begin to break down. It is a fact that a contributing reason for high-rise living to fail so terribly in the 70's was that after 6 floors you were no longer able to develop a meaningful sense of community, so the utopian 'vertical villages' of yesteryear failed to promote and nourish the communities the hosted.....FMH
An image sent to us last week has intrigued and created a host of different reactions.
Is it a positive space? he has a space to wait in or contemplate what? is it set now or in the future or a reflection of a past dilemma.
What ever you answer its a dynamic space created from basic materials and an existing structural foundation piece - It is obviously fabricated digitally or is it? ...FMH
French designer Methieu Lehanneur has developed an interesting method to tackle the relatively difficult task of design interventions within church spaces. Although relatively sculptural and prosaic in its purpose, I feel it could start a further exploration of complicated internal spaces by artists and designers rather than architects.
The Magic of The Llobregat delta walkway is in the
way the architects have poetically re-used the Neo-classical building and its
context to cerebrate and promote the site memories whilst allowing the user the
opportunity to read old from new. It must be a joy to explore the environment and its new purpose.
A modern take on a traditional 'Ruin' stereotype - Refreshing and dynamic - We should be
creating our own 'Modern Day Ruins' and re-evaluating their purpose in society.
"The presence of such a formal architecture as the Semaphore,
almost like an altar, deprived of its function, in a state of ruin which
changes the conception of elements like the roofs, introduces a strange
relation with its surroundings". B01 Architects
Many re-use projects are despite the host building and its context rather than working with the building and its strengths, weaknesses and memories. A good re-use project compliments the characteristics of the host environment and allows it to continue telling us its story, whilst being part of an adaptive re-use solution. The building has a DNA profile, as we do, it has a character and develops baggage on its life's journey. The key to successfully working with an old, abandoned or culturally significant building is the ability to discover and work with its DNA, found only through a rigorous analytical process.
With this in mind:
Image: Boxing Club [In the blue timber clad link structure
Yesterday I had the good fortune to visit one of Edinburgh's leading Boxing clubs " Holyrood Boxing Club" I had heard of a business park being developed using a selection of buildings within a 'B listed' stone built brewery. The complex has an ongoing development programme of the Brewhouse, Wellhouse,Maltings, Fementation. Most of the developed parts are converted from the traditional brewery buildings of the Main Office Block, Stableblock, Paddock block and Tun rooms.
But it was the boxing club i was particularly interested in.
In the steel frame, timber clad link between the buildings an enterprising ex-professional boxer [Bradley] had began to re-use the space to house a boxing club.
Unlike the other developments the Club didn't decide to hide the building away with cheap plasterboard ceilings and walls of ridicules office and retail parrafinailer. The club worked with the structure and has a relatively sophisticated philosophy with regards their use and engagement with its host building.
Bradley, the boss explained that he understood that the building needed to breath and that the moisture content could be controlled simply by not sealing the interior space and removing its environmental relationship with the original building. The Boss also explained that he liked the idea of revealing the structure and building materials, as it had become a metaphor for the boxers and their training in his gym. The building and the gym felt incredibly comfortable and integrated with one and other.
Image: The Bag training area
I felt that, although the Club has no money and no architectural or design guidance, it has been more true to the building's profile than that of its contemporaries. I love the link between old brewery and boxing club.
The culture of dinking and fighting is obvious, I Guess, and in this area of Edinburgh, there is a reputation of violence. It is inspiring to see the connection reversed for the good. Youngsters are coached and given a purpose, white collar workers visit and are integrating through their pursuit of fitness. The local community is very proud of its club which is a growing concern in the community. All this in my opinion came from a humble and simple [but successful] piece of adaptive re-use.
ps
I promised Bradly I would add that on the 9th Sept there is a live boxing event at Princess St. Gardens EDINBURGH v LONDON.... i will be there.
Take a look around, where you are working? how are you working?
I love this image I took last month in London.
A working environment with large views out to the city, natural ventilation, plenty of natural light and plenty of communication with the client group, Clients satisfaction is easily monitored and sales pitch is varied.
He has a clear marketing strategy and there is no confusion as to what the product is. Security issues are minimal due to the cctv cameras above and property is south facing with plenty of sun but no ugly solar gain to tackle. The vendors posture is straight and has no back complaint from sitting eight hours a day. Eyesight has improved as his past job meant he stared at a computer screen for hours. He has access to email and phone for logistics....
Look around, are you in an artificial environment, is your posture and body showing signs of inactivity, have you sore eyes, headache? Is the lighting poor, acoustics irritating? ...
Don't suffer it's all about good design, demand it for yourself - get a professional in.................a proper one!
St.Peter’s College Seminary in Cardross a Grade `A` ListedBuildingnear Dumbarton, was designed by the Scotland based architectural practice, Gillespie, Kidd and Coia in the 1960s. The priests and students of the original fire damaged St. Peter’s college in Bearsden Glasgow waited patiently for a new college. The BearsdenCollege was destroyed in 1946 and in 1966 they took ownership of a new modern seminary built primarily in reinforced concrete rather than a traditional stone construction, but by creating a rough finish to the concrete similar to a harl finish, the building is recognisably Scottish in nature.The building’s inability to adapt to the Scottish climate was in the end its downfall. The building struggled to remain watertight from the outset and after a 14 year battle against the elements, it closed. Currently it stands in a ruinous state of decay, ironically making the structure more Scottish in nature, standing as so many castles stand: ruined, and yet iconic as a part of Scotland’s cultural history.
The architects modified their contemporary Scottish architecture to the surrounding landscape by introducing arches, staggered terraces, curved surfaces and a variety of form. By using large amounts of manmade materials the architects delivered a Brutalist, modern concrete building. But by softening the exterior, staggering the facade and reducing its impact on the landscape the building seems comfortable in its surroundings.
The Cardross seminary building successfully relates to, and reflects the nation’s autonomous ambitions at that time. The architects, mindful of the independent nature of the brief, have designed an aesthetically defiant structure from which to teach Scottish catholic priests, with an independent connection to the Vatican in Rome.
The construction’s £486,010 original estimate grew to a final cost of £609,800 and on St. Andrew’s day 1960 the site was blessed and the first sod was cut. However, due to bad weather conditions construction was hampered and rescheduled for the spring.In April work on the massive ferro-concrete retaining walls began, ending in November. The construction schedule was contested by the client group director, Bishop Ward, who was unhappy with the two and half years estimated by the project’s architects and surveyors. The eventual main contractor agreed to do the build 6 months quicker and was given the job but many believed the contractor to be inexperienced in reinforced concrete construction. The client went with the Glasgow based contractor against advice from other professionals on the project. The foundations were completed in April 1963. The staff and students of St. Peter’s took possession in 1966 only to be met by flood waters on their arrival to the chapel. Once in use heating was a problem as was acoustics but above all there were persistent problems of water ingress, the extent of which was revealed in an independent report. In February 1974 the building was reported to be “no longer proof against wind and water”. In 1979 the decision to abandon Cardross Seminary was taken. Father Fitzsimmons a resident of the seminary recalls, “Visually, I loved the building. It was brilliant - but utterly useless”. [Interview with Father Fitzsimmons, Walters, p67]
In its ruinous state, the building and in particular the main block, is still easily read. The main block part of the site is symmetrically arranged. The standard dimension of the concrete frame for the main block began with 2.5 metre wide student cells which informed the architectural appearance and scale of the entire block. The load bearing structure constitutes a series of reinforced concrete frames and upper cross-walls, placed in situ at 2.5 metre centres and supported on concrete columns at ground level. There are also a set of double cantilevered beams housing vaulted non-load bearing vaults, plaster finished on a steel lath system. The architects specified that all concrete should be exposed and the marking from its shuttering should remain rather than be polished out. The ground floor programme was a refectory [to the north], and the chapel to the south with a central hall dividing the two. The hall housed the central concrete stair which provided the main circulation to the upper accommodation levels which were cantilevered into the end voids situated at the north and south of the project. The cells were separated by load bearing concrete walls and the plaster ceilings were vaulted. Each room had access to a continuous balcony which was concrete and clad in heavy, exposed aggregate–faced precast units.
The ground floor chapel and recessed nave is flanked on the east and west by ten silo shaped chapels of brick construction which support insitu concrete semi domes.
At the south end of the main block sits the “Sanctuary Block” a load bearing deeply curved exterior wall with concrete ramp running within, leading to the cloister and crypt level. The sanctuary level was double height and top lit. The curved load bearing wall continually curves to meet the main block at the south end. The main block is floored by a patented screed floor panel layout in dark grey.
Although easily read in regards the architectural and design intent, the first impression of the building’s current state is one of extreme decay. The site is completely open to the elements. Running water is flowing from the landscape into and around the building and there has been damage due to fire on every floor. The widespread acts of vandalism are evident externally and especially internally. The timber detailing and most fixings have been removed, glazing, lighting and partitioning destroyed.
Despite the site’s ruinous appearance most of the damage is superficial and the main core structural elements are fit for purpose after some remedial care and steps are taken to arrest water ingress. There are countless examples of concrete spalling, cracking, water damage and steel reinforcement corrosion which have been identified in ‘Historic Scotland’s Avantire report’ which can be found on line at www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/index/news/indepth/stpeters/stpeters-avantireport.htm.
The main areas of concrete decay can be found in the ‘Sanctuary’ block due to fire, vandalism and water ingress; the external stair at the north end of the main block due to exposure and poor construction techniques and the main block and central stair due to vandalism and water damage. The key signs of decay in Cardross seminary are; staining and discolouring on concrete surfaces due to the steel reinforcement bars corroding and weeping rust coloured moisture. Fractures to concrete edges, these breaks in the concrete’s structure expose the integral reinforcement bars to the climatic elements. Chloride attack, due to the absorption of the localised flood water and the sea breeze which the area receives frequently, indicating that salthas penetrated the concrete cover and is attacking the steel reinforcement.Steel tendon tracks in the concrete surface indicate that the concrete coverage is too shallow and isn’t providing the correct amount of protection to the reinforcement. The steel is already showing in places and has begun to corrode.Blackening of the concrete surface is due to localised fire damage and superficial cracking and spalling through vandalism
The concrete in its current condition will continue to deteriorate relatively quickly. Without action in addressing the key issues of climate, water and vandalism the building will be lost to the nation. The building is a fine and rare example of early Scottish modernism and signifies a brave, and at time naive architectural engagement in a relatively new building material and its possibilities. The project is culturally significant, reflecting in many ways, a national struggle for independence and autonomy; the concrete used undoubtedly symbolised a stark non compliant attitude and a solid resolute ambition for change.
The material created some of the most spectacular yet subtle interior spaces and manipulated the light beautifully. However the material was in its infancy with regards fabrication knowledge and techniques. The acoustics of the space were extremely poor, due to the material’s ability to reflect sound and the poor concrete junctions and detailing meant that the building leaked heavily from the very start. The shallow concrete coverage of the reinforcement was insufficient and the contractor was relatively inexperienced in this kind of concrete construction.
The Proposal then
“As the twenty-first century unfolds and we reflect on the twentieth century questions as to whether and how its most significant architectural achievements are to be conserved and protected are attracting an increasing amount of public and professional discourse”.Mills, E. D [1996]
The Cardross proposals for re-use has been hotly contested over the last ten years with parties lobbying for the site’s demolition, while others want it restored to its original glory. In Scotland, nothing of significance in the so called modern style appeared before the early 1930s and therefore this building and many like it are becoming desperate for a clear resolution to the debate. The Burra charter may be the key to the final outcome for the St. Peters seminary.
“Conservation means all the processes of looking after a place so as to retain its cultural significance. It includes maintenance and may according to circumstances include preservation, restoration, reconstruction and adaptation and will be commonly a combination of more than one of these” [icomos, Australia, The Burra Charter, Article 1.4, 1981].
The important question is, has the project ‘cultural significance’ and in what part of the building fabric is that most evident. The Netherlands had much the same debate with regards the Zonnestraal Sanitorium in Hilversum built by the Dutch modernist Jan Duiker. In this case DoCoMoMo [the international working party for the documentation and conservation of buildings, sites and neighbourhoods of the modern movement],initiated in 1988 by Hubert-Jan Henket proposed a restoration and reuse solution. The DoCoMoMo Hilversum scheme was an interesting example of a building conceived to facilitate the suppression of tuberculosis within the country. Jan Duiker the original architect responsible for the Zonnestraal Sanitorium, true to Dutch modernist philosophy delivered a build with a relatively short lifespan, perhaps indicating that the building’s temporary nature should reflect the fact that it should last only as long as its original programme was required. However the architectural merit, cultural significance and historic context of the building posed a conflict of ideals and ethos.
“After years of discussion and countless proposals, it was decided that the complex would be converted. Work on recovery of the decaying buildings began in 1998, on the basis of a project by Wessel de Jonge and Hubert-Jan Henket, and was completed in the summer of 2003.
The main building is to be used as a conference centre and the other buildings as a rehabilitation centre. The 'De Koepel' service building will become visitors’ and welcome centre. The Dutch have managed to settle the issue of restoration of buildings designed by architects who had no intention of constructing monuments and solve the contradictions involved”. [Fig 23-26] Mills, E. D [1996]
The building’s tool value was deemed a key aspect and therefore opened the site to other tool value proposals which seemed to satisfy all the parties involved.
“A response to the conflict of interests is the pursuit of architectural alteration within a modernist building which would facilitate new programmes adhering to the modernist’s commitment to progress and engaging in the fundamental value of modern building which is that of the `tool value`”. Mills, E. D [1996]
Eventually a scheme was proposed to reuse the site whilst returning the building’s original fabric and aesthetic to its original intent. The detailing and repair was modernist in nature with slender steel window frames replaced and the concrete repaired and strengthened. Once the repair was complete the restoration began with regards the building’s aesthetics. The key element in the repair of the concrete, was the use of a white paint finish which concealed the work done to the concrete. [Fig 23-26]
This is also a fundamental difference to the Cardross project in that the original design was of fair faced concrete with no finish and with none of the formwork polished out either. Despite the obvious differences the Hilversum project could be a valid precedent and one that has increasing similarities to the Cardross project.
Indeed the Cardross building was bought by ‘Urban Splash’ – a company which specialises in the reuse of buildings. The new owner team had appointed ‘Gareth Hopkins’, one of Scotland’s leading architects and the engineers ‘David Narrow Associates’ to propose a reuse for the site. Unfortunately though the process failed and the building lay waiting once again.
Now finally a realistic chance for new life, the Cardross site is now championed by NVA, A very interesting and dynamic practice developed to engage participants physically and creatively in redefining urban and rural landscapes. NVA which is an acronym of nacionale vitae activa, a Roman phrase describing ‘the right to influence public affairs’. has a real opportunity to make a difference and the initial signs are extremely encouraging.
“Over and above these empirical considerations, it may be contended that even an architectural movement predicated on the idea of transience on route to a better future cannot uniquely escape history but is also a cultural expression of its own period, and such deserves to be safeguarded, at least in its most significant manifestations for later generations, just like the greatest achievements of previous periods
A key theme in the origins and development of modernism was the determination to address contemporary social needs by exploiting new materials and construction techniques”Mills, E. D [1996]
It must not be forgotten that a defining characteristic of the Modern Movement in architecture was its international scope and that the Modern Movement arrived later in Scotland than the rest of Europe. Is Cardross then a true Modern Movement building, with all the characteristics of the style? And if it is, then surely the modernist ethos applies too.
“To attempt to preserve an authentic early modernist building, so it has been argued, is thus to misunderstand the most fundamental premise of modernism, to subvert and dishonour the intentions of its authors and to fall victim to the same `museum culture` that has produced the acres of themed experience and ersatz history that increasingly characterised our towns and cities in the name of heritage, and that the self-professed successors of original moderns so vociferously deplore” Lion, E. [1982]tbc
“The interesting paradox of seeking to prolong the life of a building, whose design intentions and physical fabric were purportedly determined solely by its operational programme. To one school of thought at least, modern architecture’s defining `raison detre` in contradistinction to all preceding traditions was its commitment to the idea that buildings should not be conceived as monuments, rarefied artefacts defying time and change, but as functioning tools valuable only for their capacity to serve the social requirements or economic processes that caused them to be built in the first instance”.Lion, E. [1982]tbc
Perhaps then by this logic, the only consistent response to the question of what to do with modern architecture in decay like Cardross, is to salute its destruction and consign it to terminal neglect. Or is there a compromise to be had in the fact that the significant elements of the project are not in its architectural merit but in its use of concrete, its location and the structure’s internal spaces and their natural light qualities which are unique, [Fig 26-28] in which case a proposal would be to strip the structure of anything other than the concrete. Repair to the original concrete should be done by cutting out the infected concrete, treating and recovering the reinforcement bars, and strengthening through the use of concrete collars.The site should be properly irrigated and drainage within the building upgraded. The surrounding woodland cutback by at least 200 meters and security measures taken to ensure no further vandalism takes place. The entire site like the Hilversum project should be coated with a tinted protective coat and perhaps painted white. In this way you will still be able to appreciate the formwork, its special condition and marvel in its natural light qualities. This action will also serve to cover the repair work but not entirely, it is still important to read the building’s historic layering.
Once the concrete has been preserved, repaired and treated, the site drained and secured, the structure can be left as a castle ruin might stand: a monument to a particular architectural ethos, style and material exploration, which reflects the nation’s individuality and approach to a new modern culture. Once this has been established then within and around the building, practical architectural elements may be introduced. Smaller buildings which don’t touch or interfere with the structure in any way but merely share the space internally and or externally would service the original building and site, but more importantly serve to draw the public to the area and help engage and educate the visitors in the merits of Scottish Modernism, thus developing its economic and educational value.
Today has been a bipolar ride of excitement, inspiration and frustrations. Today I explored three spaces which I have waited a long time to access.
Driving into Edinburgh [in the rain, which I love for its purity and cultural shaping tenacity] I felt a knot of excitement in my stomach as I anticipated my visit to St. Andrews House in the morning and the re-designed Scottish museum in the afternoon with a quick visit to St. Pauls Church in the Old town just off the Royal Mile
St. Andrew's House is a fantastic and special interior treat. The building's views of Edinburgh and its period detailing a real joy to behold.The stairs and modernist detailing on original doors, window and utilitieswere straight out of the design-history books . A real step back into the late 1930's.
The most intensive [and incredibly sexy of spaces] are the board rooms, the walls have their original timber lining which surround the stone fireplaces and add a faint fragrance to the environment . The rooms have a perfect acoustic value and an intensity which is suggested too, as you open the walnut doors with a very large solid brass door handle. Revealing the meeting room table, solid and worn, which seductively radiates power and confidence a feeling that touches the subconscious and tells of a subtle knowledge and understanding with regard to a fabric of political memories and debate its hosted. The tables are central islands of reason to an assembly of seatingbuilt of timber and leather, comically shaped by many a civil-servant's bum. ....."ahh the irony"
Sadly though the building has been tormented and abused by tinkering design gremlins that have added poor lighting, carpets that offend the senses and furniture [for office and reception areas] which must have been chosen with budget, rather than aesthetics and quality in mind.
I feel a nagging worry that these offices could or already is a breeding ground for SAD Syndrome if not addressed.
The entrance area was a little disappointing especially the' dentist's dental hygiene like space' which is the waiting area or holding pen with an exhibition of this amazing building's life reduced to a collage of images and textpresented on one wall. The main entrance reminded me of a northern bus crossed with a colonial African boarder control out post building.
It also saddened me to see that there was no reference [architecturally] to the site's past [the prison in particular] in the refurbishment. The building and its context should tell the story of its historic social struggle and cultural significance.
That said this building was an excellent opportunity to explore early modernism and one I truly loved, the building in all its oppressive 1930's character and fantasticNew York brutality combined with a very real Scottish personality of honesty and bravery is anational gem and really show be open to the public more often.
Let's look after it...
For the images of the building's interior you will need to access [http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/sah-70 ] - I was not permitted to take photos unfortunately.
My energy still crackling from my time travel, I walked through the medieval city of Edinburgh strangely moving forward and backwards in time architecturally.
The Newly Re-designed National Museum.
Thank God it is back! and accessible to the public again, I really missed its open spaces, amazing content, steel structure and beautifully naturally lit main hall.
Ok,so.... withouta working knowledge of the projects budget, client steering group requirements and design restraints the designers were under these are my initial feelings :
The Animalworld is amazing, I stood in that space with the suspended fish and birds above dinosaurs and elephants listening to the excited squeals of kids [and adults] as they cultural imploded with wonderment and anticipation. In fact the exhibitions were excellent, engaging and interesting. I strongly recommend a visit.
Animal Exhibit Scottish national museum.
The re-design was, of course was a tall order to ask. The building is an elegant national treasure and its character and aesthetic is fragile and tender, or at least that is the perception - in my opinion though, it is a passive aggressive bully of a space. I feel it could have been dealt with more aggressively design-wise.
The main issues I have is that the main central exhibition wall running from 0 to 5th leveldoesn't work aesthetically, in that it is not one wall but a series of walls broken or interrupted by the existing floors- why not puncture the floors as done with the glass elevator? The main problem I have is that it is not easy to read new from the old, therefore it's a mixed or confusedset of design messages sent when experiencing the 'Grand Gallery' space.
'Grand Gallery' space
Circulation is an issue too, the main choke point was where the gallery café dramatically obstructed flow around the gallery. There were long queue's for lifts and many people still tried to leave through the main door but were turned away by 2 staff stationed there as a temporary fix to the issue that the design of the space still orientates the user to use the original door rather than down the new stair system
traffic jam on the gallery
Lift Queues
no exit through these doors
The main exhibit of muffins and cake.
The most important and viewed exhibition space at the foot of the main stair's landing, a dramatic vaulted space and facade, glazed and a fantastic transitional element between the new subterranean floor and original ground leave, exhibits, not the T Rex or Scottish warriors of past but a nice array of scones, muffins and cake; yes, it is the glazed side wall of the cafe [what are we saying about our culture here folks?]
It feels to me the, cafes are an afterthought and in particular the design of those cafes are lacking the same integrity as the detailed thought gone into the exhibitions.
Inappropriate cafe design.
The last issue that jumped out as I visited this remarkable facility, was its street presents - I challenge you to walk past and know what wonderment exists within, without looking at the signage. Why are there no glimpses or tantalising views of the content from street level - I don't mean in a Disney or Hollywood manner, I mean subtle architectural aspects of design play that invigorate and stimulate the public's perception and mind before entering the building - after all the street is the ultimate transitional space or not?
I believe the Museum is a special and stimulating place and a real treasure to Scotland but I am left with a feeling of irritation that there was an opportunity missed with respect the refurbishment.
I am impressed with the exhibition design and its content, its interpretation and the lighting is successful. There are many positives to the project but i am left feeling unconvinced that the potential was met.
However, let us not forget that the Grand Hall is always beautiful in its diffused light and elegant structural system whilst brooding next door is the massiveness of its extension.
Stag's eye view
ST. Pauls Church
The last building is a glass of water and an oat cake between two malt whiskeys from Argyle and southern lowlands .it is a space of clarity, calm and reflection, accessed though a modest door off the Royal mile via the Carrubers Close. Go and have a look . If you have the time, open the door and experience the change in your mood as the modern world leaves you behind when the door closes and the silence, smell and scale of the space envelopes.....FHM
A beautiful
wee example of re-use by the not so wee architectural practice of Herzog&de
MeuronDerelict or abandoned buildings often
have a great deal to offer in terms of location and character and should be
viewed as opportunities rather than eyesores; Dovecote Studio, post-renovation,
photo: Haworth Tompkins
1930s Japanese Army headquarter
This fantastic
conversion of a 1930s Japanese Army headquarter into a 19-room boutique hotel,
located at the new Docks development on the South Bund District of Shanghai,
was designed by the locally based Neri & Hu Design and Research Office. The
architectural concept behind NHDRO’s renovation rests on a clear contrast of
what is old and new. It is very depressing however not to being able to see images
of the interior space, to see if the deign intent was continued within [or
should I say], throughout the project.
In times of
ecological crunches and economical collapses it is more than logic to discuss
reasonable re-use of existing architecture. The architects David Yocum
and Brian Bell from blgds turned this beautiful mid-century automotive electric
parts warehouse into their office and home.
This is the type of house, home and context, I often day dream about.
The Midden Court Symbister, Whalsay, Shetland Islands stands in ruins just now however Angela Tulloch an x-student of mine has an interesting proposal, we worked on the idea of a boat building workshop and museum in her final year at University and Angela developed a fantastic feasibility study for the site.
If I were a member of the Shetland community I would certainly be asking why this site is not redeveloped in such an exquisitely sensitive fashion. And as part of the coastal rowing community, I hope one day this idea will take form, if not on Shetland then in another, equally relevant site on the coast of Scotland where the craft and passions of boat builder, rowers and enthusiasts can visit or rather gather, for training, coaching and the sharing of their knowledge. The craft of boat building and local history should be shared through a museum and events centered around the re-use of a culturally significant site like Midden Court Whalsay.
Please Note, when I say museum, I mean a museum facility designed with equal detail, thought and precision reflecting that of the boat builder of old, not a dry and energy sapping couple of plasterboard partitions with images blue-tacked to the wall and a few glass cases where parts light up if you press a button..There is no need for that type of prosaic design and sadly it has infected many aspects of our nation's attempts to communicate its fantastic culture and history - Stirling Castle exhibitions for example [minus the blue tack that was poetic licence on my behalf].....FMH
Angela T states: The Midden Court is a series of out-houses to Symbister House (the lairds mansion) and has a rich and complex history. The building stands for alot of pain and struggle of the local community in years past but also of community strength and change. Symbister House, like Heidegger’s bridge, gathers its context and what has taken place, and thereby reveals its value as a symbol. And in turn the context has revealed its meaning. Symbister House sits as a memory of what has taken place and now, as the islands school, it stands for something else as “…taking place presupposes that the places conserve their identity during a certain stretch of time.Stabilitas loci is a necessary condition in human life.” C. Norberg-Schulz
the sliced up bunker forms a publicly accessible attraction for visitors of the NDW. it is moreover visible from the a2 highway and can thus also be seen by tens of thousand of passers-by each day. the project is part of the overall strategy of rietveld landscape / atelier de lyon to make this unique part of dutch history accessible and tangible for a wide variety of visitors.
Frank Gerhy was the first architect to
inspire me, like a first love, you never really forget the feeling of
the first architectural encounter to move you. I first encountered Frank's work
whilst travelling. I had no idea who he was at the time but in LA I was
astonished by three buildings to the point where I would make
excuses to walk past them and site having lunch in their presents. At night if
restless I would go for a walkwith at
least one of the on route. The first was a building built to look like a pair
of binocularsa the second a car park in Santa Monica and finally a beach house
near Venice beach.
Later as a student, in Edinburgh I learnt that
these building were designed by the same architect and that like me he was
starting out in architecture later in life. Gerhy 40 years old was a boxer and had an HGV licence too! and
that was it I was hooked. I wrote about
his deconstructive-ism and studied the sketches and images of the houses and museum he built.
Time has moved on and so has his architecture [and
mine], like an old flame you've rediscover on the internet, you can't hide the disappointment
as they have become a distant second to your memory and imagination, in many
ways Frank's architecture feels like that for me, full of steroid posturing and shiny Viagra fuelled
vanity I wish he would rediscover the energy the buildings gave the interior
spaces as well as the visual effect of the exterior. The full expression of
architecture, inside and out....FMH
Our external services may well one day come to us.
Space and time already at a premium, in the future our urban, high density
spaces, will be used to their fullest. Discarding any and all
none financially productive facilities. Perhaps opting to book transient spaces
when needed. Kitchens, boardroom, meeting and presentation areas will be booked-out
from an Urban bank of spaces, which will scuttle in from the country to facilitate
the business engine-room of society...FMH
On the a corner, half way down on Broughton
Street, Edinburgh is a characterless office block which replaces the St Mary's
Free Church [image below] Built in an old quarry site the original
church and manse construction was built from polished sandstone in the Gothic revival
style. The Church [St Mary's Free Church] was eventually demolished in 1983 and
a modern office block constructed in its place leaving the manse as the only
remaining part of the church.
Two beautiful ways to address space and void and its many wondrous nuances...FMH
In 1991RachelWhitereadconceived the idea of casting
the interior of a whole house. One became available— 193 Grove Road, Bow—in the
East End of London (an area with the highest concentration of artists in
Britain). It was the last of an old terrace of three-storey dwellings that was
being demolished to make way for a small park called Wennington Green.
Bollnow
conceives the human experience of space not merely as a philosophical problem
but also as an extension of his research into psychology, human behavior, and
the conventional domains of architecture: living in a building, in an
apartment, in a house.Human Spaceis a remarkable investigation
of space as we experience it, by a man many consider to be the father of spatial
and architectural anthropology.
Olympic
Medal winner and record
breaker Chris Hoy learned
his ‘trade’ on the boards at Meadowbank. It seems likely that he would still be
based in the City if Edinburgh had had an all-weather track. He now does most
of his training in Manchester.
The
Medowbank track has been neglected and taken for granted since 1969 even at that , it has been the training ground for
Scotland's elite sportsmen and women.
There
is now plans afoot for demolition without any real exploration as to how
this culturally significant structure can be re-used and regenerated
to continue in its function to facilitate and inspire a generation of world
betting talent.
Really?
come on guys re-use and regenerate the space lets use the memories invested by
our champions and spectators. Let's build on its raw and unapologetic character
to underpin or new stars bravery and endeavour....FMH
Before the demolition of another high rise in Edinburgh 'downtown' I was granted access to document the interior living space of its inhabitants, only a few days after they left for other accommodation. Much like the Gracemount high-rise there was ample evidence of tradition, memory and decoration which reflected instruction by mass media. In this flat it was very interesting to explore the interiors from different cultural groups and to discover the subtle differences in the priority given to their living space. Sadly there was a marked difference in the flat's general personality which had developed from the sum of all the internal parts within. Whereas Gracemount Flat in the South reflected general everyday life, holidays and pastime interests this flat had a darker more sinister character with little evidence of positive living. An unhealthy proportion reflected despair, escapism, alternative realities and violence. As I documented the interior, the spaces whispered of dark secrets and I could feel the isolation for society. An altogether disturbing place to be [of-course amplified by the fact that I was the only one in the building]
Why did this flat differ so must from the Flat in Gracemont?
After a little digging I found that the demographic was different and that the Sighthill flat was mainly a combination of young parent families, ex-trouble tenants and re-located foreign settlers.FMH
Just before the demolition of yet another of Edinburgh’s block of flats I was granted access to the interiors, stripped of furniture and possessions each interior still reflected the memories of its past inhabitants, the smoke stained walls revealed ghostly shapes of picture frames, ornaments and behavioral patterns . The decoration and a human need for tradition shone out as an example of our need for connection to a childhood memory or a preconceived idea of normality, the need of false fire places and net curtains in a high-rise is more psychological than practical. Take a trip through the spaces and identify with the owners and their lives, spaces which are forever lost. These images which show a meagre summary of years of in-habitation are an interesting tapestry of clues which are easily connected. FMH
In 1922, a number of buildings and a portion of land, which had been part of the airfield, were given over to create the East Fortune Hospital. This acted as a tuberculosis sanatorium for the southeast of Scotland. After the War the hospital was re-instated, but by 1956, as the number of tuberculosis patients began to decrease, the hospital changed its function to house the mentally handicapped. The hospital closed in 1997 and the remaining patients were transferred.
The Opportunities for re-use and intervention projects there are incredible and varied - lets use it !
The Buildings at Risk Register has been in operation in Scotland since 1990 in response to a concern at the growing number of listed buildings and buildings in Conservation Areas that were vacant and had fallen into a state of disrepair.
The Register is maintained by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) on behalf of Historic Scotland, and provides information on properties of architectural or historic merit throughout the country that are considered to be at risk.
Saturday 16th saw the launch of the new book we were co-editor for; Interior Tools, Interior Tacticsdescribes the new professional
boundaries, research territories and educational horizons and
speculates on how these spheres will collectively determine the future
strategies of interior design / interior architecture in the 21st
century. The book contains contributions from some of the leading
thinkers in the field of Interior Architecture and Design including:
Julieanna Preston, co-editor of Intimus, a Design Theory Reader; Fred Scott, author of On Altering Architecture; Graeme Brooker and Sally Stone, co-authors of Rereadings: Interior Architecture and the Design Principles of Remodelling Existing Buildings, alongside contributions from higher education. But
theory cannot exist without practice; and the book also features a
series of debates held between these research contributors and
practitioners renowned for their interiors work, from Val Clugston of
NOMAD, to Antonia Cairns of DEGW, Kevan Shaw Lighting, NRS Nicoll
Russell Studios and the architect Richard Murphy. The rare combination
of academic speculation and professional rigour takes the book beyond
academia to practitioners of interior design.
Frazer Macdonald Hay & Ed Hollis together with the publisher presenting at the launch in London
The Interior and Architecture Show at Free Range: Free Range at The Old Truman Brewery, London. This is Europe's largest graduate art and design show and the oppertunity to sample the graduates work. There is a link to the exhibiting institutions and their graduates work - This year was the best I have seen, the graduates and their work are developing a sophistication and confidence which can be felt throughout the exhibition. There is defiantly an Interiors movment happening - from student to professional - where is a momentum and excitement about the profession. FMH
The 1929 Michigan Theatre
in Detroit was left abandoned for years due to the city's
economical decline but has now been revived and serves as a city car
park. To many this might seem like a sad fate for such a grand building
but I personally love the idea of giving it a second chance at least be re-using we haven't lost it to demolition or worst still private accommodation - the public still get to enjoy the spatial memory.
Structural surgeons are required to address buildings that no longer work properly
or have become old, week and disabled, surgeons that understand their
structural make up and capable of biomechanics, bionics,or even plastic surgery in an architectural
sense.
Opened in 1939 with 1040 seats. Architect was a Mr Wilson, ARIBA.
Closed in the mid 1970s.
Poorly converted for amusements with some of the decoration covered up,
the
stalls floor leveled, and the foyer greatly remodeled. It lay derelict from 1985, now gone, due to a lack of creative ideas and open mindedness for re-use proposals. criminal?!
Tarlair pool is set in a spectacular location in a rocky bay to the East
of Macduff, to which the design of the pool responds well. The pool has
been disused since 1995. A small number of alterations and additions
have taken place since it was built (most notably to the paddling pool,
and the addition to the tea pavilion), but these alterations are of a
superficial nature and its appearance has changed very little since it
was photographed in 1935. Its state of intactness, simple yet stylish
design, early date and magnificent location all contribute to make this
pool the outstanding surviving example of its type in Scotland
(Historic Scotland)
So how do we re-use it ? ! if we don't we will lose it to neglect and erosion - let the public re-engage with an amazing building of cultural significance
We
are Just back from working in Malaysia for Nottingham and Tent University [NTU].
We were validating design and architecture courses at KBU. Also visited the Architectural
festival there where sustainability and
energy were the key topics. Interestingly after a meeting with the director of
architecture and innovation conservation is soon to be on the agenda and we at
Big Stone are invited to collaborate.
KBU
and its executive board are progressive, ambitious and professional with their
eyes firmly on post graduate studies and international collaboration. The principle
and chief executive are particularly interested in high calibre collaboration and
academic excellence.
Kuala Lumpur is an incredible melting pot of
design ideas and architectural confidence and the festival was nestled beneath
the spectacular Petronas Twin Towers. FHM
Well apart from being intrigued by Greek mythologyand the tale of Sisyphus.
For me it’s hard to ignore the fact that stone has been central to human culture from as far back as making use of its caves for dwelling within. We are and have been obsessed by stone, we have carved it, mined it, worshiped it, we use it to build with, we extract our iron from it, we make concrete from it and wondrously we live on its many elemental states whilst 70% its surface is covered with water. This fantastic big stone orbits the sun at 107,000 kilometres per hour, whilst spinning on its own axis. Amazing!
There is no real metaphorical reason for the name or deep meaningful comparisons to be made - the company’s name naturally evolved from my experiences, passions and interest. It fits, and for me,it seems to reflect architecture and culture on many levels. FMH
After many years of working for design and architectural practices, on projects such as the new Scottish Parliament Building , Stirling Tollbooth's performing arts center andthe Gerechtsgebow, Harlem NL.and after seven years of educational practice nationally and internationally,Frazer MacDonald Hay has begun his own design practice. 'Big Stone collective' is split into three main subject areas which offer Consultancy, Research and Education.
Big Stone collective, can provide 'small scale' domestic to 'Large scale' corporate design consultancy from interior to architectural intervention.
'Big Stone collective' offers workshops, lectures, summer school and architecture and design excursions.
'Big Stone collective' also have many research activities resulting in a wide variety of academic publications, mainstream magazine articles and exhibitions which address subjects such as building re-use and regeneration, architectural surgery and hotel design for example.
" we provide a creative solution to design and architectural issues.Whether small or large scale we can provide design and architectural consultation , critically we are also actively engaged in design and architectural researchwhich underpins our consultancy and which is passed on to youthrough our educational programme of CPD courses, workshops, summer school and seminars". FMH
AS IT IS NOW.....
PROPOSAL
Drent Museum, Assen NL
Animal Exhibit Scottish national museum.
'Grand Gallery' space
traffic jam on the gallery
no exit through these doors
The main exhibit of muffins and cake. 
Inappropriate cafe design.
Stag's eye view
This fantastic
conversion of a 1930s Japanese Army headquarter into a 19-room boutique hotel,
located at the new Docks development on the South Bund District of Shanghai,
was designed by the locally based Neri & Hu Design and Research Office. The
architectural concept behind 
