Quilting
You know, I really wish we’d talked about this topic before
the Career Expo—I’d have had a much more concise answer for a lot of the firms
that asked me how I thought my history degree informed my architecture. It is nice to have a name for my architectural
philosophy: critical regionalism is exactly what I’ve been trying to do in my
design work since I learned exactly how to design—that is to say, second
semester. I’m not of the mind that
anything I design should stick out. I
mean, hell… the project we’re doing for Comprehensive is almost completely hidden
behind the historic burned-out walls of the old Abney Mill.
And, yeah, I probably have a long way to go to
keep literal metaphors out of it, but it’s nice to have a name for
it. I mean, why wouldn’t you use
context clues to inform your designs?
And I don’t mean architectural context… rather that’s not all I
mean. I mean use scraps from the history
and the community and the setting and the topography and and and and and.
It's what I’m calling “quilted architecture.” Manifesto to be published next year.
Critical Regionalism. Although I find it admirable to create a solution that tries to not stick out, I find it hard for the solution to be impactful without it being critical of the context and thus standing out. The point of a solution is to mend the existing problem. A quilt for example is a solution that makes a very loud statement which a simple sheet, or blanket can not fix. Therefore, rather than trying to ‘blend in with the problem’ I think it’s perfectly adequate for critical regionalism to make a statement and stick out. I applaud your application of the quilt making mentality to your project and would even suggest to make it stand out more as this does have major historical significance in the area.
ReplyDeleteTo add up to Pancho's comment. It especially can stand out when most of the surrounding buildings in an area do not adhere to critical regionalism. I mean, if all buildings in Anderson were built under a critical understanding of the area, then yeas. A building that you design following the ideas of critical regionalism should not stand out. As that is not the case, but quite the opposite, I think making a statement would be a powerful and appropriate move.
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