Mound, hearth, enclosure, roof, and column. The way we see it, Gottfried Semper and scholars already figured out what makes honest tectonic form. We're looking for the element that satisfies our primitive urge to value architecture that's good.

January 5th 2012

25 notes

Capela Árvore da Vida
by: Cerejeira Fontes Architects - Imago Atelier de Arquitectura e Engenharia
in: Braga, Portugal

This hefty timber chapel located inside the existing Conciliar Seminary of Braga serves as a small space for mediation and worship for residents.  Called the “Tree of Life Chapel”, we love the way the 20 tons of wood appears weightless, while still feeling like it would offer a warm, intimate embrace.  The elevated platform and slatted enclosure pulls people up and inside to the central gathering space.  It’s constructed without fasteners and stacked in a way for both natural light to enter and for a soft glow to radiate outwards.  We sure hope its visitors have counted their blessings for such a stunning space, but given the user group, we’re guessing that’s probably not an issue.

Posted at 2:54pm and tagged with: mound, enclosure, hearth, wood, braga, portugal, Cerejeira Fontes Architects, architecture, chapel, design, worship, meditate, interior, religious,.

Capela Árvore da Vidaby: Cerejeira Fontes Architects - Imago Atelier de Arquitectura e Engenhariain: Braga, PortugalThis hefty timber chapel located inside the existing Conciliar Seminary of Braga serves as a small space for mediation and worship for residents.  Called the “Tree of Life Chapel”, we love the way the 20 tons of wood appears weightless, while still feeling like it would offer a warm, intimate embrace.  The elevated platform and slatted enclosure pulls people up and inside to the central gathering space.  It’s constructed without fasteners and stacked in a way for both natural light to enter and for a soft glow to radiate outwards.  We sure hope its visitors have counted their blessings for such a stunning space, but given the user group, we’re guessing that’s probably not an issue.

January 3rd 2012

11 notes

The Obliteration Room
by: Yayoi Kusama
in: Queensland Gallery of Modern Art

What do you get when you give countless kids sheets of stickers, put them in a white room and say “have at!”?  You get this…this glorious mess of color and energy that only a gaggle of toddlers could create.  Kusama organized the room to resemble a typical dwelling - complete with furniture, houseplants, dishes, knickknacks, and fixtures - and painted it all white allowing it to become a 3D canvas.  The space becomes dynamic, changing over time as more layers of color are added.  While this installation is not architecture per se, we wonder if the concept of user generated/defined finishes could work in buildings. (We’re thinking foot traffic floor patterns or blank canvas corridors.)  Buildings are static, users are not.  Maybe it’s time to figure out how to bridge the gap between the two…. and perhaps art (or a few hundred 4 year olds) is the answer.

Posted at 12:48pm and tagged with: Queensland Australia, color, enclosure, interior, obliteration room, queensland gallery of modern art, stickers, white, yayoi kusama, kids, museum, art,.

The Obliteration Roomby: Yayoi Kusama in: Queensland Gallery of Modern ArtWhat do you get when you give countless kids sheets of stickers, put them in a white room and say “have at!”?  You get this…this glorious mess of color and energy that only a gaggle of toddlers could create.  Kusama organized the room to resemble a typical dwelling - complete with furniture, houseplants, dishes, knickknacks, and fixtures - and painted it all white allowing it to become a 3D canvas.  The space becomes dynamic, changing over time as more layers of color are added.  While this installation is not architecture per se, we wonder if the concept of user generated/defined finishes could work in buildings. (We’re thinking foot traffic floor patterns or blank canvas corridors.)  Buildings are static, users are not.  Maybe it’s time to figure out how to bridge the gap between the two…. and perhaps art (or a few hundred 4 year olds) is the answer.