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Photography & Modern Architecture in Spain, 1925–1965: Research Project
Get PDF!e study of architecture, and particularly of the great legacy of modern architecture, has substantially been achieved from its irrefutable documentary sources: the pho- tographs. Since the advent of photography in the mid-19th Century we are witnessing a blissful basis for its pairing with architecture. Once buildings were depicted, they could start to be studied, classified and dated. Later on, the revolutionary character that brought the modernists to the fore found in photography the opportune instrument to undertake its propaganda in mass media that valued these architectural objects as paradigmatic icons that should be emulated. At the same time, and apart from customer’s satisfaction, committed architects understood that the photographs of their buildings were the final crystallization of their work and what really remained beyond their personal satisfaction. In these reciprocal needs, the figure of the ar- chitectural photographer was consecrated as the technical — and even artistic — specialist in shaping this particular visual story
THE ‘SHELTER’ ALMOST SAVED BY HENDRICK DE KEYSER
No full textThe ‘Shelter’ is a fantastic example of a circular plastic house with a diameter of 8 m that is somehow comparable to the ‘Futuro’. It was conceived by the Dutch interior architect Kor Aldershoff, who developed a prototype in glass-reinforced polyester (GRP) shells held on a metal frame (1971). This kind of house is unique for the Netherlands and therefore of great importance. The ‘Shelter’ was meant for providing a home for refugees in Africa. The prototype was light and could also float on water. The production of the metal supporting frame was entrusted to the Nederlandse Dok en Scheepsbouw Maatschappij (N.D.S.M.) in Amsterdam-Noord and the GRP parts to the firm Resicon in Medemblik. The hall, living room and one bedroom were arranged around an empty column for the disposal of rainwater
ERASING OR RESTORING UKRAINIAN HERITAGE: From Stalin to Putin
Get PDFIn Ukraine, heritage has been a battlefield since World War II. In those years, the Kyiv reconstruction was dominated by Russian architects, and Ukrainian architects were marginalized in their own city. However, restoration of churches slowly became a topic where policy changed from Stalin’s doctrines to his successors’ principles, and where Ukrainian builders managed to gain some success in heritage protection. This prevailed more after independence in 1991. The present war that Putin triggered against Ukraine is accelerating heritage issues. The destructions of this war have hit all types of buildings, but some of the reactions of the people in charge should arouse worry for the preservation of the 20th century heritage. The obvious lack of interest for the modern heritage of the 1920s and 1930s, or even for the more classical Stalinist buildings of the 1940s and 1950s, expresses a kind of selective memory. Soon this may lead to regrettable deletions, adding more disaster to the destructive traces that the war has already left. Consequently, and despite the many ghosts left by the Soviet regime (something which understandably led to the controversial decommunization laws), more studies should be launched on the Constructivist and Stalinist legacy in particular, in order to help saving this significant part of Ukraine history. This research could be useful when the reconstruction and conservation of the damaged towns eventually begins
THE HEROIC PERIOD OF ARCHITECTURE IN UKRAINE: Early Modernism of the 1920s-1930s
Get PDFThis article is devoted to the search for answers to several burning questions: what is the uniqueness of the industrial, civil and residential architecture of Ukraine in the 1920s - early 1930s? Does it need to be preserved? Why did foreign architectural criticism call these years the “heroic period of architecture”, yet the early Modernism of that time is still not appreciated at its true worth in its homeland? What was ‘heroic’ in the architecture of Ukraine and its first capital, Kharkiv? A brief analysis of the political and economic situation in which the newly-born independent Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic found itself is given. The most striking examples of modernist architecture in Ukraine are selected for argumentation. These are industrial giants such as Dniproges and Kharkiv Turbine Plant, the new cities of Zaporizhzhia and New Kharkiv, grandiose metropolitan projects: the ensemble of Svoboda Square—the largest square in Europe, as well as other examples of avant-garde architecture built or developed in those years are presented in the article. The reasons for their loss of authenticity in subsequent decades are revealed. Finally, the problem of preserving the heritage of Modernism in Ukraine in the conditions of a new war is touched upon
Casablanca Chandigarh: Modern Planning: Exhibition at the Canadian Centre for Architecture, Montreal
Get PDFIn the editorial of docomomo Journal 28 , published in March 2003 and inaugurat- ing her tenure — as editor-in-chief of the magazine, Maristella Casciato undertook to consider “modernism outside the West” and to encourage “new cultures and new histories”, whilst simultaneously enriching the docomomo International network. She brought this intellectual endeavor with her to the position as Associate Director, Research at the Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCa) in Montreal. Working alongside Tom Avermaete, she co-curated the exhibition: How Architects, Experts, Politicians, International Agencies and Citizens Negotiate Modern Planning: Casablanca Chandigarh, presented at CCa during the Winter 2013–2014 season. They also co-authored Casablanca Chandigarh: A Report on Modernization, the book published to coincide with the exhibition. A preamble to these projects lies in the CCa’s acquisition, in 2010, of architect Pierre Jeanneret’s per- sonal archives, mainly pertaining to projects developed during the period from 1951 to 1965 when he renewed his association with his cousin, Le Corbusier, for the planning and construction of a new capital for the Indian Punjab following the Partition (1947)
OUR PLASTIC HERITAGE: WHERE ARE WE NOW?
No full textThis Docomomo Journal on plastics is the result of collaboration between two Docomomo International Specialist Committees1 (ISCs): the Committee for Technology (ISC/T) and the recently formed Committee for Interior Design (ISC/ID). The two ISCs hosted, together with the Dutch and Belgium Working parties, successive specialist events in October 2017 (TU Delft) and March 2018 (University of Antwerp) which served as a platform for networking, discussion and, subsequently, for dissemination of knowledge on plastics in Modern Movement architecture and design with in-person visits to relevant buildings, institutions and companies
COLLECTING PLASTICS IS COLLECTING DESIGN HISTORY: Conservation Practices in Museums
Get PDFFrom the 1950’s onward, the myriad qualities of all plastic objects were praised without a second thought. This enthusiasm significantly delayed the awareness of their enormous impact and it took almost half a century to consider these objects a part of post-war culture. This essay aims to sketch the history of the appreciation of the relevance of plastics in the museum world, specifically as a part of design heritage, seen from the viewpoint of the collector and the conservator-restorer. The case of the Design Museum Brussels, established in 2015, shows how a collaborative and interdisciplinary approach on conservation can be developed to the benefit of our plastics heritage