... and the walls came tumbling down
Berlin Wall
Throughout various spotlights in history, you will see architecture as the backdrop to a whole variety of political, civil rights, and social justice movements. In many ways, this architecture is either an architecture of power, or an architecture of resistance. The Berlin Wall might be the most explicit example of how architecture can be utilized/manipulated/reused in an intense conflict over ideologies/politics/etc. At one point in its life, the wall was on the side of power, physically dividing the spaces of East Berlin and West Berlin from one another. But the very nature of a wall allowed it to be manipulated for other purposes.
While the wall was being used by power to divide, it was being used by the people to resist. Artistic expression through graffiti was plastered all over the solid surfaces of the wall as a way for the people to express their dissatisfaction with the political situation in East Berlin. Eventually this building pressure resulted in the collapse of the wall (and a nation), leading to the third act of the wall - memory. Pieces of the Berlin Wall are now used on display in various places throughout the world as a reminder of the lessons learned from this point in history.
The main point being - I think that places that seem decisively geared towards one public function, such as the wall, have the capability to be subverted for the good of the public. People are creative and intuitive, and will always be able to find ways to utilize their environment to their advantage. In applying this lesson to architecture, it shows that we as architects should learn that we can never fully realize or assess the impact of our projects. Something as simple as a blank surface on a building may become the canvas for someone else's message.
Hayden,
ReplyDeleteI think the Berlin Wall is a great example of architecture being able to change over time and multidimensionally reflect politics by capturing the past, present, and future all at the same time. Keeping the wall will help with preventing history from repeating itself in such situation.
You're right, the Berlin Wall was used for many different causes throughout its life. My mother has a piece, which she treasures as a broken puzzle piece, even though the wall was built with the worst intentions.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a great example of how architecture can be used as a backdrop for a political setting. Architecture (in a political manner) can change the fabric of a given place that can also change over time but the history of it will always stay. I think that its awesome that Kat's mother has a piece of the wall.
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