Vitruvian Man for scale
“Junkspace is where you live. Only, you probably don’t know it yet.”
-Rem Koolhaas
What is Junkspace and what does it mean for the future of architecture? Koolhaas argues that bigness has become the definitive trait of contemporary architecture. The new buildings emerging follow no rules, have no inherent order, and no connections between their parts leading to a “rich orchestration of chaos.”
As cities evolve and the buildings keep growing in a race to touch the moon, more people are leaving cities for small towns that offer a life that fits the human scale. A place where you have yard space and can interact with your neighbors. Many people transition in and out of cities multiple times in the span of their lives. Does the idea of new urbanism work because society wants a different atmosphere during different phases of their life or can we as architects create a sense of home within the city proper to allow people to grow in place and remove junkspace?
Michaela,
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to junkspace, I think most architects love to jump at the opportunity to create large intricate spaces. Even as students are are highly subject to the open atriums and public spaces within buildings which in some cases allow light and interesting moments but at other times just straight up waste space. In cities sometimes there is only one way to go and thats up. For example, New York is so expensive on a black by black basis that it makes more sense for sky rises to emerge than simple 4 story buildings. But you're right, it completely changes the atmosphere and the comfort of living in a suburban home becomes lost in the penthouse ideology. Is there any way to make these highrises feel more "homy"? We cant stop the continual emergence of high rises but how do we design them differently to adapt to a more rural landscape?