Description of project by SO-IL
In conjunction with Making New History, the second edition of the Chicago Architecture Biennial, SO–IL and artist Ana Prvački will debut a special project during the Biennial’s opening week. Titled L’air pour l’air, the project aims to ensure the continued legacy of musicians as our cities’ atmospheres grow more polluted.
Inspired by the abundant plant life in the Garfield Park Conservatory, SO–IL and Prvački have created an ensemble of air-filtering mesh enclosures, designed to clean the air through breathing. Part mask, part shelter, the enclosures will be worn by an ensemble of saxophone, flute, trombone, and vocals from the Chicago Sinfionetta. Through performing an original composition, De Aere (concerning the air), by composer Veronika Krausas, the musicians will “clean the air that produces the music.” The installation and performance encourage its viewers to meditate upon the complex notions such as the relationship between purity and pollution, and the distinctions between self, body, objects, and nature.
Enlightening our senses has been a consistent endeavor of SO-IL. Prior to L’air pour l’air, SO-IL has created Passage, a reflection on the spatial qualities of the ramp, for the Chicago Architecture Biennial in 2015.
In response to a perceived incline and distance, one’s navigational sense corrects one’s movement by adjusting pace and posture. This installation endeavors to interrupt this automatic response by heightening an awareness of one’s body in space. The Biennial selected Passage to remain on site, which is now on view at the Chicago Cultural Center.
Solid Objectives – Idenburg Liu (SO – IL) is an idea-driven design office founded by Florian Idenburg and Jing Liu in 2008, and is currently led together by Ilias Papageorgiou. With a global reach, it brings together extensive experience from the fields of architecture, academia and the arts. The firm has extensive recognition and prizes, including the Emerging Voices award from the Architectural League, the MoMA PS1 Young Architects Program Award, and the AIA Young Architects Award. The office has received praise for many of its works including the design of the Frieze Art Fair New York, and for their largest building to date, the Manetti Shrem Museum of Art at the University of California at Davis.
Partners.
Florian Idenburg, principal. Florian Idenburg (1975, the Netherlands) holds an MSc. in Architecture from Delft University of Technology. Prior to founding SO–IL, Idenburg gained eight years of experience at the practice of Pritzker laureates Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa / SANAA. Idenburg is a recognized voice in academia and has held teaching positions at Harvard, Columbia, Princeton and the University of Kentucky.
Jing Liu, M Arch, principal. A native of China, Jing Liu received her education in China, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, concluding with a Master of Architecture from Tulane School of Architecture in New Orleans. Liu has been a faculty member at The Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University since 2009, and advises the Master’s thesis at Parsons The New School of Design. In addition to her professional and academic pursuits, Liu serves on the board of the Van Alen Institute.
Ilias Papageorgiou, partner. He was born in Athens, Greece. He holds a Diploma in Architecture from Aristotle University in Greece, and a Master's in Architecture from Harvard University. Papageorgiou has been with SO–IL since its inception in 2008 and has played a key role in the firm’s recognition and success. He became a partner in 2013. Besides practising, Papageorgiou is a frequent lecturer and visiting critic at various universities and has taught design studios at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation.
Team.
Sooran Kim, associate, joined SO–IL in 2011 and relocated to Seoul to oversee the construction of the Kukje project. Sooran holds a Master of Architecture in Urban Design from Harvard University.
Ted Baab, associate, joined SO–IL in 2011. Ted holds a Master of Architecture from Harvard University.
> 2013.
