Starchitect on Accident?

    According to Alejandro Zaera’s point that architecture falls into two categories, already something I am a little hesitant to swallow, it has always been difficult for me to decide what I believe and don’t believe. To better explain, he describes these two characteristics of architecture as either a social construct or something that is “determined by the inexorable laws of physics, economics, buildability, climatology and ergonomics.” I see this divide as too much of a forced narrative on the intention of architecture for either end. Ultimately I make my opinion on my initial experience with a building, and sometimes that opinion changes completely as I continue to connect with a space. Other times, each interaction with the same architectural environment (this includes outdoor parks and public spaces in which I frequently occupy) gives me a different perspective on how strongly I feel it’s political presence has on me.

    The idea that architecture is sometimes only meant to just be produced to provide a built environment is one that I can understand in certain cases. In other cases, it is loud and clear that the presented architecture is politically charged and its purpose is to provoke anyone who interacts with it. But to me, this spectrum has a third, blurry middle where the architecture is just plain architecture. It is designed for the people and crafted in a way that it is removed from only for structural purposes but also for a deeper meaning. The experience that the architect is trying to convey doesn’t always need strings attached. To me, these strings are the political ideologies. Oftentimes I feel a sense of a fabricated story, a poetic and scripted tale that is presented alongside starchitect projects. This makes it somewhat difficult for me to believe that all great architecture stems from political motives and theorized concepts. There has to be accidental architecture out there as well, where the design and production of the building came first and then the narrative shapes from the experience users feel with it, maybe even a political motive….right?