JUNKSPACE IS DOOMED
When we think of every decade of history, there are certain architectural styles that can be paired with every type of building, from small houses in the country to skyscrapers of the city. For instance, Queen Anne style was a very popular housing style from 1880 to 1910 because English Architects were inspired by Medieval architecture and Jacobean styles. Culture changes and technology advances causing new fads to become popular. In Rem Koolhaas' essay, the architectural style of today is “Junkspace.” It is the forgettable shopping malls, billboard advertisements, and the sprawling badly-designed commercial buildings . There is no character in “Junkspace” because everything is temporary and repetitive. But what if junkspace is just a fad of our time? As we continue to evolve as a society, I believe that construction will be rethought to be more sustainable. However, I think that there will have to be an incentive for developers and designers to build more sustainably. Right now, everyone makes a large profit off of building fast and superficially. Once more weight is put into each construction project and how it affects the environment, there will be less “Junkspace.”
Zoe, you make a great point on how architecture in the past has always reflected the style around them. When technology started becoming popular it has changed the way we lived and Koolhaas explains how Junkspace is a reflection of our failure to society. Development of these new shopping malls is a start to something new that could lead to bigger problems that is less meaningful to the people and the environment.
ReplyDeleteZoe,
ReplyDeleteI think you are definitely right! The era of styles evolves so quickly, and even now, as we discuss this in class, the mall era is fading. While I would like to think that our generation of designers will contribute better Architecture to the world, I also think that what we think of good design will always be evolving and improving. Sustainability is just one example like you said, there are many more factors that designers think about today that weren't really considered back in the day. I hope that design continues to evolve and that it doesn't just stop with us.
I agree. I think that the early stages of modern technology and architecture were large learning curves for us. It is easy for us to look back now and make a statement. However, in the past it was ground breaking and revolutionary. Who is to say that in the future people may look back and say that we let too many factors alter our original designs and we created the new junk space. I think that we will continue to evolve but must take great care in the contributions we take in evolving architecture.
ReplyDeleteHey Zoe, great blog!
ReplyDeleteI definitely do agree that we are highly influence by the decade that we live in. That we use our resources not to advances the field of architecture, but to neglect it. We are building too fast, and quality has become repetitive. Less is More!