Docomomo Journal
Not a member yet
547 research outputs found
Sort by
Bridging the Gap
Get PDFOn July 30, 1870, a visitor to the Niagara Falls noted glumly in his diary that “the impression of the waterfall was gripping, but not what I had expected”. Having traveled from Northern Europe to reach this scenic spot, the traveler - a railway engineer - was frankly disappointed. The landscape was flat and dreary, and only seen from very particular angles did the falls live up to their sublime reputation. What consoled the disillusioned tourist, however, were the many beautiful bridges built to accommodate traffic, commerce, and sightseeing around the falls: “The proud Clifton suspension bridge with its 1269’ span, 300’ above the river, was light and beautiful. The picturesque bridges across to Goat Island and “Three sisters” - all in pleasant harmony - give to the place a decidedly attractive character” he enthused. Regardless of its reputation as the most spectacular natural scenery in the world, to our railway engineer, Niagara was saved only by the sublime spectacle of the bridges
Building Physics and its Performance in Modern Movement Architecture
Get PDFThe science of Building Physics was developed in Germany from 1880–1940 but its performance in Modern Movement architecture is considered immature and in aspects problematic. Still, some international pioneers found theoretical and practical ways to catch the theme
Architecture in Sudan: The Post–Independence Era (1956-1970). Focus on the Work of Abdel Moneim Mustafa
Get PDFThis article is part of a study on the Sudanese social and political context during the formation of the Modern Movement and the manifestations in built form and spatial expression during the period 1900-1970. The study has been on–going for several years and includes a literature search, local surveys (of unpublished and undocumented information) as well as photographs taken by the authors, sourced from architects or published material. It is argued that the Sudanese response to the International Style was in fact early experimentation in critical regionalism. The most notable architectural heritage in Sudan are the archaeological remains at Kerma and Napata as well as the remains of ancient Meroe about 180 km north of Khartoum. These cultures demonstrated sophistication in building materials and construction techniques. Due to climate changes, political changes and religious changes over a large stretch of time (642AD with the signing of the Bagt Treaty–1898 at the demise of the Mahdist era) the qualities of the built environment became more transient and rudimentary in character with a greater focus on manifesting tradition through body images, clothing and rituals that were not necessarily tied to a particular physical location rather than through monuments. With foreign interest in the strategic location of the Sudan, and as a part of the scramble for Africa, came specific stylistic and technical manifestations
Robert Maillart’s Innovative Use of Concrete
Get PDFRobert Maillart’s innovative views concerning the use of concrete come within the scope of the history of structures, structural materials and concrete as a material of structure. It will even lead us far beyond these issues. At the end, the point of view expressed in this article will be the view of a structural designer. When preparing this reflection, I realise that there is no straightforward answer to the question: “What is in fact Maillart’s real innovation considering all the contributions he made to the art of engineering?”
Putting forward the different aspects mentioned above as an introduction seems to be a more relevant way to find a contemporary answer taking time and context into account. Consequently the first part of this text is a general presentation of Maillart’s works. Following we will make a detour to make what I, and many others, consider to be the most revolutionary aspects of Maillart’s practice fully comprehensible. So starting from the historical development of reinforced concrete as a structural material, we will move to the contemporary context to figure out how the intrinsic structural complexity of concrete is managed today. We will see that some difficulties emerge from the behaviour of concrete in relation to the classic theories of mechanics. If some Modern theories find an answer to the problem, it will become obvious that Maillart had already found a convincing way of dealing with these difficulties. We will then return to Maillart’s works to answer the question through the status he was to give concrete when it came to structural design and the methods he used to achieve his objectives. I hope this will lead us to consider Maillart’s approach as one of the most visionary ever devised
The Work of Eugène Freyssinet: The Most Significant Bridges of his Career
Get PDFFrom 1904, when his career began, until 1962, when he died, Eugène Freyssinet did not stop building or advising on all aspects related with his work. To give an idea of his interest in the field of bridges, we selected the following: the Veurdre and Plougastel bridges as reinforced concrete examples and the Luzancy, the Marne and the Caracas La Guaira highway bridges as prestressed concrete works. In these brief descriptions, rather than the technical nature of the design, we have focused on intuition and innovation which made these works models and which inspired many engineers to continue working respecting quality
Inherited Toxicity: An Expanded Concept of Sustainability for Preservation
Get PDFSustainability is a concept that has been accepted as a foundation for professional practice, and toxicity of materials is gaining concern. While the topic of material toxicity is generally addressed with regard to new materials, the built environment represents a history of embedded toxins. However, this aspect of ‘inherited toxicity’ is scarcely addressed. Considering the toxic potential associated with 20th century building materials, this will grow more critical for the preservation field to address in coming years. In response to the increasing regulation of copper in both Europe and the US, the case study at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Price Tower (1956) is an exploration of whether or not an acute environmental impact from the building’s exterior copper elements exists, the results of which are assessed based on an expanded toxicology of copper
Eïtai and Kiyosu Bridges over the Sumida: Japanese Bridge Design in the 1920s
Get PDFAfter the earthquake of 1923 which devastated Tokyo, Japanese engineers worked on reconstruction to generate a new Modern landscape in the capital, taking into account various arguments ranging from science to culture. The construction process of the Eïtai and Kiyosu bridges over the Sumida River are indicative of this development. This paper will describe this process to better understand Japanese bridge design in 1920s in terms of technology and aesthetics
Concrete’s Furthest North. Early 20th Century Heritage of Modern Civil Engineering in Iceland
Get PDFIn 1935–36, the English writer and design critic Philip Morton Shand (1888-1960), proponent of Modernism, translator of Walter Gropius and founder of MARS group (Modern Architectural Research Group) published two articles in the magazine “The Concrete Way”. The first one was entitled “Concrete´s furthest north”, highlighting the advanced and wide–ranging use of concrete construction in Iceland. With the second article were photographs of newly built public buildings by architect Sigurdur Gudmundsson (1885-1958) as well as bridges designed in the 1920s and 1930s by the engineers of the Icelandic State Highways Department. Shand was impressed by the work of the “gifted and thoroughly modern minded architect such as any country might be proud of” as well as the work of “first rate–engineers” of this “geographically remote island which at that time had only 100,000 inhabitants and 2,000 motorcars. He also points at the photos "as evidence of the wonderful clearness of the air which is characteristic of Iceland´s brief Arctic summers.
Modern and Green: Heritage, Energy, Economy
Get PDFBuilt between 1963 and 1971, the Lignon satellite precinct in Geneva (Georges Addor, Dominique Julliard, Louis Payot, Jacques Bolliger) is regarded as the most spectacular housing development in post–war Switzerland. For some, it is an energy–guzzling black hole; for others, an historical monument. Either way, the Lignon has been in the spotlight. Faced with new imperatives to reduce energy consumption, a pilot project in the area of “conservation and thermal improvement” of the Lignon façades has been carried out by the Laboratory for Techniques and Preservation of Modern Architecture at the École Polytechnique Fédérale of Lausanne. The aim of this study is to introduce measures that will allow us to conserve the outer skin of the existing façades, while respecting energy standards, thereby guaranteeing the consistent level of intervention, across all 100,000 square meters of curtain walling, that the site deserves
The Tugendhat House: Between Craftmanship and Technological Innovation. Preservation as Sustainable Building Policy
Get PDFThe architecture of the Modern Movement is today often seen as synonymous with technical innovation and experimental techniques. This view is supported by the Dessau Bauhaus itself and its programmatic “break” with tradition. Technical inadequacies and shortcomings, particularly from the perspective of today’s energy standards, serve as an argument to formulate criteria specific for preserving the architecture of the Modern Movement, different from “normal” and more generally accepted preservation principles. Are the materials and techniques of modern architecture really as innovative as they are alleged? The Tugendhat House in Brno, listed as an UNESCO World Heritage since 2001, and other structures of classical modernism, as for example, the Bauhaus in Dessau (1925–26) and the pavilions of the Brno fair grounds (1926–28), may serve as evidence that not everything was technical innovation, but that rather the traditional craft techniques in the Modern Movement have played a major role. Modern preservation is not limited to the presentation of the artistic idea, but sees the monument as a comprehensive resource of cultural activities and their material expression. Generally, the preservation of monuments can be seen as a paradigmatic form of a sustainable building policy