Play Beautiful Concrete
You can find the lyrics on the previous post here
Achtung Architecture's improvised recording studioWednesday, April 27, 2011
Beautiful Concrete Released
Play Beautiful Concrete
You can find the lyrics on the previous post here
Achtung Architecture's improvised recording studio
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
On dreams and fountains: A (very) brief history of Greek Architecture in Australia
Sinn'd Ethics
Thy streets are but barbarian alleys
Without the sweet scent of olives
And white marble pillars
Thy streets are but barbarian alleys
Without the sweet scent of olives
And white marble pillars
But i made thee
Semi-electric fountain
Semi-electric fountain
To bring me the beauty
Of constancy
By R. Zaper and Z.Basic
Synthetic landscape: Longing for the distant home can reduce historical references to their face values
Photo by dw*c - Flickr
By R. Zaper and Z.Basic
Synthetic landscape: Longing for the distant home can reduce historical references to their face values
Photo by dw*c - Flickr
Death of Yellowtrace Architecture...
A recent Google search on the term 'Yellowtrace" revealed an Australian site about Interior Design and architecture of the same name (www.yellowtrace.com.au - the site was established some time last year). The owner was probably unaware (or perhaps ignorant) that another blog bearing the name of this peculiar, turtleneck-wearing architects' favourite paper, existed for sometime already.
It's a pity because this blog held number one ranking on Google, albeit when you typed in its full official name: "Yellowtrace Architecture and Urbanism". Because of these latest trends, it moved down to existential obscurity of the search results' fifth page.
I have to give some credit to the owner. Close inspection of the site revealed a dedicated, hard-working Interior Designer, a bit like a newly-graduated architect from Hong Kong or Jaipur.
She is one of the rare ones though. Quite an original. One that books with titles such as 8 Steps to Success use as case studies..
So it's with those words that I proclaim "Yellowtrace" bit of this architecture blog dead. From now on it shall be known as the "Architecture Lives..." like the zombies in John Carpenter's comic take on the capitalist society of the eighties.
Rest in Peace...
It's a pity because this blog held number one ranking on Google, albeit when you typed in its full official name: "Yellowtrace Architecture and Urbanism". Because of these latest trends, it moved down to existential obscurity of the search results' fifth page.
I have to give some credit to the owner. Close inspection of the site revealed a dedicated, hard-working Interior Designer, a bit like a newly-graduated architect from Hong Kong or Jaipur.
She is one of the rare ones though. Quite an original. One that books with titles such as 8 Steps to Success use as case studies..
So it's with those words that I proclaim "Yellowtrace" bit of this architecture blog dead. From now on it shall be known as the "Architecture Lives..." like the zombies in John Carpenter's comic take on the capitalist society of the eighties.
Rest in Peace...Monday, April 25, 2011
Beautiful Concrete
Inspired by comments from an Eastern European Architect (and to a lesser extent, a recent visit to Split, Croatia), a close friend of mine wrote a poem, boldly titled: Beautiful Concrete.
While the places mentioned are towns in former Yugoslavia, the poem is really an ode to a construction material that has fascinated architects, builders, dictators and planners of the last 100 or so years.
It's also a longing love song.
I'm currently writing the music. It's meant to be composed of simple acoustic guitar chords and sung, in a sort of douche-bag style reminiscent of John Mayer. One that young Daniel Libeskind-wannabes could sing on the lawn in front of nameless architecture faculties from Singapore to Berlin (just change place names), to an audience composed of two or three other Daniel Libeskind-wannabes. If their designs are any good, that is.
Here goes...
Beautiful, beautiful, concrete
What can you build instead?
If only we were so concrete
we would have it made
Out of all the places
I like Belgrade the best
It doesn't pretend that
all that green stuff is worth a damn
While the places mentioned are towns in former Yugoslavia, the poem is really an ode to a construction material that has fascinated architects, builders, dictators and planners of the last 100 or so years.
It's also a longing love song.
I'm currently writing the music. It's meant to be composed of simple acoustic guitar chords and sung, in a sort of douche-bag style reminiscent of John Mayer. One that young Daniel Libeskind-wannabes could sing on the lawn in front of nameless architecture faculties from Singapore to Berlin (just change place names), to an audience composed of two or three other Daniel Libeskind-wannabes. If their designs are any good, that is.
Here goes...
Beautiful Concrete
Arriving in Zagreb by aeroplane
We would surely crash
If it wasn't for the
concrete runway
Went to see the old town
But got lost on the way
Stayed in Avenue Mall
and got some Gucci history instead
Ban Jelacic wasn't so bad
We would surely crash
If it wasn't for the
concrete runway
Went to see the old town
But got lost on the way
Stayed in Avenue Mall
and got some Gucci history instead
Ban Jelacic wasn't so bad
But after hours of walking
I really dig the
concrete stairs
Beautiful, beautiful, concrete
What can you build instead?
If only we were so concrete
we would have it made
concrete stairs
Beautiful, beautiful, concrete
What can you build instead?
If only we were so concrete
we would have it made
----------------------------------------
When I went to Rijeka
the fumes weren't so bad
I actually swam and watched the
oil tankers ahead
But nothing beats Split,
you can split for the riva
just enjoy the heat
far from any forests or trees
I asked my friend if i should travel
to Sarajevo instead
When I went to Rijeka
the fumes weren't so bad
I actually swam and watched the
oil tankers ahead
But nothing beats Split,
you can split for the riva
just enjoy the heat
far from any forests or trees
I asked my friend if i should travel
to Sarajevo instead
He told me the war is over
and there is some nice buildings being made
and there is some nice buildings being made
But can he guarantee
it isn't going to be a waste
Paying for a trip and being
knee-deep in nature instead
it isn't going to be a waste
Paying for a trip and being
knee-deep in nature instead
Beautiful, beautiful, concrete
What can you build instead?
If only we were so concrete
we would have it made
Out of all the places
I like Belgrade the best
It doesn't pretend that
all that green stuff is worth a damn
Isn't it much nicer to wonder in the streets,
to look up and see stuff that
will be around for
another 70 years...
by R. Zaper
to look up and see stuff that
will be around for
another 70 years...
by R. Zaper
Index of place names:
Zagreb - Capital of Croatia, not much interest there, smooth concrete observed upon landing
Belgrade - Capital of Serbia and concrete fetishists paradise
Sarajevo - formerly war torn capital of Bosnia, now a speculative backyard of property developers with curious aesthetic tastes
Rijeka - Croatia's biggest port city; If you dig oil tankers, rafineries and ocassional feces in the sea, you wont mind this Czech tourists' favourite holiday spot
Split - Seaside town that abounds in Roman history and is contemorary Croatian architects' favourite concrete experimentation playground. The world famous historical Riva was recently dug out, and ancient stone pavers replaced by concrete ones. It's called progress.
You tube video clip to come...Zagreb - Capital of Croatia, not much interest there, smooth concrete observed upon landing
Belgrade - Capital of Serbia and concrete fetishists paradise
Sarajevo - formerly war torn capital of Bosnia, now a speculative backyard of property developers with curious aesthetic tastes
Rijeka - Croatia's biggest port city; If you dig oil tankers, rafineries and ocassional feces in the sea, you wont mind this Czech tourists' favourite holiday spot
Split - Seaside town that abounds in Roman history and is contemorary Croatian architects' favourite concrete experimentation playground. The world famous historical Riva was recently dug out, and ancient stone pavers replaced by concrete ones. It's called progress.
Architecture in the service of post-war reconstruction efforts. This too was made possible by concrete. The Twisted Tower of Sarajevo - Twisted Indeed
Photo By Brian 395 - Flickr
Photo By Brian 395 - Flickr
Friday, April 22, 2011
It's only Architecture...
It's late afternoon somewhere on the western freeway in Victoria. There are five of us in the car, heading out to climb some rock faces in the rugged Grampians ranges of Western Victoria. We are passing the outlaying suburbs of Melbourne. A well familiar sight to anyone in Australia, the US and anywhere where cars have shaped city growth. Suburban sprawl as its known, areas filled with single story houses connected by vast network of highways. A sea of terracotta-tiled and metal roofs copied and pasted as far as the eye can see.
I know that very soon this landscape will change dramatically to one I'm more at ease with: endless eucalyptus woodlands and grasslands. Ah, the countryside.
I'm in the back of the car, daydreaming, while the driver and another passenger are engaing in a debate. One of them, a German, is obviously irritated by the strange look of this built landscape outside. These houses are substandard and dysfunctional. The proud Aussie, however, defends the houses. After all these are cost effective buildings that rely on 100 year-old construction techniques. The astonished German wonders what architects do in this country. The Aussie reassures him that architects are "just" designers. How could they possibly improve these buildings, or these places? The German becomes uncomfortably quiet. Indeed they are designers. How could design be of any value...?
Thoughts in my mind are on the 5% of new houses that are actually designed by architects (and probably none in suburbs such as the one outside).
We pass the last Victorian era-inspired new estate.
Why is it that in the second decade of the 21st century, the overwhelming majority of new buildings is still ignorant of architecture, unmindful of the context and, to cite Robin Boyd - downright ugly? Why is it that architects are thought of as "designers only". Why is design considered unimportant, and is it architects' fault? These are the questions that bother me as scenery gives way to romantic albeit harsh Australian landscape.
Maybe we expect too much from architecture. Architects tend to be idealistic, yes I know that. I also know that some Politicians like to think that new developments or renewal of urban spots will "enliven" these places and even whole towns. OK, it may even do so, superficially at least, but I don't believe it's architecture's main objective (let alone that of any new built work) to enliven an environment. Whatever that means...
A friend of mine comes from a tiny picturesque village in the Adriatic (right accross from Venice). He frequently jokes about locals' unenthusiastic view of life, endless complaints about the (few) tourists that somehow end up on this island, the lack of fish, and complaints about the tourists when they don't appear at all. Those damn tourists...
Closer to home, I've stayed in locations far from cities, worked on farms surrounded by acres of unspoiled forests, and seen occupants equally unhappy. They like to complain about city folks in Sydney and Melbourne.
Yet to anyone outside, these places are paradise. Clearly, environment by itself, both built or natural, does not provide a good indication of people's happiness. Yes, you can give a beggar new clothes, it may even put a smile on his/her face, but it will probably not change much. People always want more.
So if architecture can't bring happiness, why bother then?
Because happiness in the above sense is a superficial notion, and architecture and design go deeper than that. Because buildings and the state of our environment is a reflection (a mirror) of ourselves. And we surely don't like what we are seeing: materialism, conformism, meaninglessness, superficiality...confusion? Ehm, not quite how you like to see yourself. I don't.
If there is one thing that drives me in life it is my core values, my world view (which is quite flexible, something I learned the hard way - link). To have a purpose in life or a driving force is often regarded as a goal in individuals life, to have a meaningful existence. I would often feel depressed during periods when I felt my work was of no value, that my life was being wasted. Jobs that paid reasonably well, but which left me completely drained and unmotivated.
Design reminds us of those core values. Societal and our own.
But if majority of buildings speak materialism, boredom, and regularity, then it only reinforces those things in us. Add to that the confusion that many "designed" buildings bring and no wonder we have cities of today: A hotchpotch of styles, messages and confused looks. Confused building in a confused environment. We are indeed screaming back at ourselves à la Edvard Munch's well known painting.
In Australia, we like to call strangers mates but at the same time our fences are growing steadily higher. In the large cities neighbours rarely speak to one another. We don't like to see ourselves that way, so can architecture help? Can good design remind us of those values we think of as our own? Perhaps we are not giving architecture a fair go.
The three days spent hiking and climbing in Grampians had recharged my batteries and reinstated my confidence in this life (not that I was exactly suicidal), throwing into disrepute my theory on environment and happiness. But I know reality will quickly strike, when we begin to pass those same Quasi-Victorian developments on the outskirts of Melbourne. Those same houses that you encounter in Alice Springs, Kalgoorlie, Cairns, and Sydney, in desert and tropics alike, completely oblivious to their surroundings.
Yet I also know there is hope because change starts at home. It just takes effort and time. That and being true to our values. Always.
In the meantime, we'll just blame the architects...
I know that very soon this landscape will change dramatically to one I'm more at ease with: endless eucalyptus woodlands and grasslands. Ah, the countryside.
I'm in the back of the car, daydreaming, while the driver and another passenger are engaing in a debate. One of them, a German, is obviously irritated by the strange look of this built landscape outside. These houses are substandard and dysfunctional. The proud Aussie, however, defends the houses. After all these are cost effective buildings that rely on 100 year-old construction techniques. The astonished German wonders what architects do in this country. The Aussie reassures him that architects are "just" designers. How could they possibly improve these buildings, or these places? The German becomes uncomfortably quiet. Indeed they are designers. How could design be of any value...?
Thoughts in my mind are on the 5% of new houses that are actually designed by architects (and probably none in suburbs such as the one outside).
We pass the last Victorian era-inspired new estate.
Where the suburbs dream of city, and the fence tames the outback...
Why is it that in the second decade of the 21st century, the overwhelming majority of new buildings is still ignorant of architecture, unmindful of the context and, to cite Robin Boyd - downright ugly? Why is it that architects are thought of as "designers only". Why is design considered unimportant, and is it architects' fault? These are the questions that bother me as scenery gives way to romantic albeit harsh Australian landscape.
Maybe we expect too much from architecture. Architects tend to be idealistic, yes I know that. I also know that some Politicians like to think that new developments or renewal of urban spots will "enliven" these places and even whole towns. OK, it may even do so, superficially at least, but I don't believe it's architecture's main objective (let alone that of any new built work) to enliven an environment. Whatever that means...
A friend of mine comes from a tiny picturesque village in the Adriatic (right accross from Venice). He frequently jokes about locals' unenthusiastic view of life, endless complaints about the (few) tourists that somehow end up on this island, the lack of fish, and complaints about the tourists when they don't appear at all. Those damn tourists...
Closer to home, I've stayed in locations far from cities, worked on farms surrounded by acres of unspoiled forests, and seen occupants equally unhappy. They like to complain about city folks in Sydney and Melbourne.
Yet to anyone outside, these places are paradise. Clearly, environment by itself, both built or natural, does not provide a good indication of people's happiness. Yes, you can give a beggar new clothes, it may even put a smile on his/her face, but it will probably not change much. People always want more.
So if architecture can't bring happiness, why bother then?
Because happiness in the above sense is a superficial notion, and architecture and design go deeper than that. Because buildings and the state of our environment is a reflection (a mirror) of ourselves. And we surely don't like what we are seeing: materialism, conformism, meaninglessness, superficiality...confusion? Ehm, not quite how you like to see yourself. I don't.
If there is one thing that drives me in life it is my core values, my world view (which is quite flexible, something I learned the hard way - link). To have a purpose in life or a driving force is often regarded as a goal in individuals life, to have a meaningful existence. I would often feel depressed during periods when I felt my work was of no value, that my life was being wasted. Jobs that paid reasonably well, but which left me completely drained and unmotivated.
Design reminds us of those core values. Societal and our own.
But if majority of buildings speak materialism, boredom, and regularity, then it only reinforces those things in us. Add to that the confusion that many "designed" buildings bring and no wonder we have cities of today: A hotchpotch of styles, messages and confused looks. Confused building in a confused environment. We are indeed screaming back at ourselves à la Edvard Munch's well known painting.
In Australia, we like to call strangers mates but at the same time our fences are growing steadily higher. In the large cities neighbours rarely speak to one another. We don't like to see ourselves that way, so can architecture help? Can good design remind us of those values we think of as our own? Perhaps we are not giving architecture a fair go.
The three days spent hiking and climbing in Grampians had recharged my batteries and reinstated my confidence in this life (not that I was exactly suicidal), throwing into disrepute my theory on environment and happiness. But I know reality will quickly strike, when we begin to pass those same Quasi-Victorian developments on the outskirts of Melbourne. Those same houses that you encounter in Alice Springs, Kalgoorlie, Cairns, and Sydney, in desert and tropics alike, completely oblivious to their surroundings.
Yet I also know there is hope because change starts at home. It just takes effort and time. That and being true to our values. Always.
In the meantime, we'll just blame the architects...
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