Giving it a Name
“If space-junk is the human debris that litters the
universe, Junk-Space is the residue mankind leaves on the planet” – Rem Koolhaas
While reading Koolhaas’s essay on junk-space I found that
the description of Junk-Space was often unclear, vague and reiterated in
arbitrary analogies. I found his most apt analogy to be the one above. Junkspace is the artificial, soulless debris
that liters our cities and suburbs, from the shopping malls to domestic
airports, we can hardly even argue that while these spaces don’t elicit an
emotion function that must at least function perfectly given their
program. I believe that junk-space is
more about creating artificial spaces with false realities. A prime example of
this is Las Vegas’s ‘Venetian’ hotel. A
dense shopping mall setting on its first levels in a grossly artificial
landscape intended to mimic the western city of Venice, Italy. This is the epitome of junkspace. Unlike
other suburban shopping malls, this shopping center is meant to elicit the
experience of shopping in the ancient cities of Italy. Its artificiality is
what makes it junkspace. So, if I may further define junkspace, let it be this….Junk-Space
is the creation of space without the intent of authenticity, function, or
experience.
The Venetian in Las Vegas
Venice, Italy
I think you nailed it when you said Junkspace is more about the artificiality/inauthenticity. I'm sharing an excerpt from an interview I'd come across:
ReplyDeleteSPIEGEL: You coined the term "junk space" in Lagos. What does this mean in Europe?
Koolhaas: The expression describes the effect commerce has on architecture, how it affects the beauty, authenticity and acceptance of a building. [...]
I agree with your thinking about the authenticity. The city of Venice is attractive for people is because of the natural context. But for the artificial one, it is just work for the commercial capital.
ReplyDeleteI like your comparison between artificial and authentic but is this just something we are able to figure out when we look back on buildings. Yes, the venetian hotel was obviously made to be an imitation but the some of the "junkspace" that has been built probably intended to be authentic, but we view it as articifial. How does one design authentically without crossing the line to artificial?
ReplyDeleteI think the relationship between last weeks Learning From Las Vegas and this weeks Junkspace readings are interesting. One week an author hails Las Vegas as a place to learn from while the author this week laments about junk spaces. I can see many of these Las Vegas casinos becoming junk spaces if they ever go out of business.
ReplyDelete