Title

M-09
Spring 2002

 

Editorial |
Spring 2002 - José Juan Barba

 

Recently someone said that "the only possibility of acquiring knowledge nowadays is by accumulation". Said this way, it surprised me so much that I responded that it was not true, that saying "everything is OK" in order to produce the current culture, is one of those slogans which we use as jokers so as not to commit ourselves, in our case not to commit ourselves to any architectural analytical process.

It is true that the superposition of residue can generate energy. Obviously, the process of extracting  gases is well-known, by underground channels built with tyres in dumps, but, just as this rudimentary process has more sophisticated contemporary applications by means of systems of permeable nets, in all accumulation processes, to produce knowledge there must  be some kind of selection process and in our case analysis and criticism.

The accumulation of information only produces saturation, and with this I am not saying that there should not be total access to all types of information. It is far from my intention to applaud the "single way of thinking curators" now but it is certainly surprising  to want scientific, artistic or architectural knowledge to be gained by means  of the mere exhibition of the all that is done. The exhibition of everything is one more instrument to allow to access to certain culture or knowledge. Not all residues can be used to produce gas (energy).

Present thinking is hybrid; a  mixture of a lot of interferences. It is the result a complex reality, but again this does not mean that its result has to be eclectic, or that this process has produced "the end of history" and that everything is reasonably correct.

In this process of "everything is OK" and in contrast with those who prehistorically try to recover the knowledge of history, but only the history which interests them, some  at the other extreme show the disappearance of the knowledge of history, of thought or the technical process, as a formula to teach the actors of our society, with the alleged excuse of teaching them only to produce a better technical development. But better, than what? -if the knowledge of the previous does not exist. It is surprising that this is said by those who have acquired their own knowledge after long and intense processes of studies and analysis of the existing and already carried out .

I am allergic to pollen, but I would not understand, nor would I want a nose without smell, a nose that did not know to sniff.

Some only want to tell us, in a second-hand way, what Nicolau Maria Rubio expressed in 1931 to define his concept of "Actar" in contrast with the concept of architecture: a passive action of architecture which imitates movement, in contrast with an active action or, if you like, in contrast with "reactive architecture" or "endoarchitecture"; concepts that we have already defined on previous occasions. In this case it is always advisable to read the sources.

The idea of making us believe that everything is necessary, that everything that is exhibited is OK, is no more than an astute instrument to entertain the highest possible number of intentions in the stormy well of zapping, in an attempt to see everything. The end result is that you do not see anything.

Of course no one will recognise an attempt to stop all noses sniffing, it is not politically correct. Euphemistically they will only say that architecture, art or science find themselves in a process of decomposition, fragmentation, desegregation and multiplicity. Moreover, I am sure that some (like the man quoted in the first paragraph, although the idea was not his) do not even realize the bleak cultural plateau that their expressions, in reality second-hand expressions, verify. In this case again, I suggest the direct reading of the sources. History has not finished.

Spring 2002 - José Juan Barba

ISOLA _ MORPHING MODEL ON THE SEA (2001)

“BROACASTING STATION” AND “INTERNET CAFE”, MIKAN

“MAGNUM PHOTOS”. HEADQUARTERS. PARIS. FLORENCIA COSTA

'BANKSIDE POWER STATION - TATE MODERN' YEHUDA SAFRAN

“ORDINARY DIAGRAMS”. LOS ANGELES. CA. GORDON KIPPING

“ISSEY MIYAKE TRIBECA”. NEW YORK. GORDON KIPPING

REMODELLING IN TERUEL. DAVID CHIPPERFIELD, B720

MAR SOLIS, SCULPTOR

 

CONTENTS

 

METALOCUS-09 - José Juan Barba 4
 

P01. Box. Codex of connections - Sonia Cillari 14
 

P02. Isola _ Morphing Model on the Sea (2001) - Sonia Cillari 18
 

P03. Neutro _ Lights and Sounds Interactive Installation (2002) - Sonia Cillari 22
 

A01. “Broacasting Station” and “Internet Cafe”, Japan - MIKAN 24
 

A03. “Magnum Photos”. Headquarters. Montmatre, Paris - Florencia Costa 38
 

T01. “Bankside Power Station - Tate Modern” - Yehuda Safran 48
 

P04. “Ordinary Diagrams”. Los Angeles. CA. USA - Gordon Kipping 62
 

A04. “Issey Miyake Tribeca”. New York - Frank O. Gehry. GTects 66
 

A05. “DNA STUDIO Manhattan”. New York. - Gordon Kipping 72
 

P05. Remodelling in Teruel. - David Chipperfield, b720 76
 

P06. “Mestre Nicola,19”. Barcelona - b720 82
 

P07. “Urban reorganization”. Orodex. San Cugat del Valles. Barcelona - b720, Fermiín Vázquez 86
 

P08. “University Residence” Sant Jordi University and the UB-Media Headquarters. Barcelona - b720 88
 

T02. The cloudiness of landscape - Michèle Orliac 90
 

P09. MONOLAB. “Compressor” - Massimiliano Spadoni 102
 

P10. MONOLAB. “Body House”. - Massimiliano Spadoni 109
 

A06. Mar Solis, Sculptor. - José de Coca 112
 

T03. The unknown common root. Three warnings to Messrs Architects. - José Vela Castillo 122
 

P11. T.A.M.A. Temporary Autonomous Museum for All - Maria Papadimitriou 134
 

T03. Zafos Xagoraris. The building as device. - Spiros Papadopoulos 138
 

Useless shelves - Hwan Roldán Martín 148

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