Discussion // Rem Koolhaas: Atlanta

Been busy lately, but I came across an old essay written by Rem Koolhaas about Atlanta. Truth be told I'm really surprised I've never read it before, or even heard of it.

You can read it online at Google Books, here. Really recommended.

Theory // Materialism, Paul Rudolph, & Politics

MATERIALISM

I've had the privilege at USC to be exposed for the first time to architecture in terms of philosophy. Not philosophy in terms of architecture, which tends to explain design through top-down, esoteric means while glossing over pragmatic intention, but rather a way of thinking that exposes the root  self-organizing generators of cities and buildings as functions of the behavior of people and their various hierarchical structures (government, regulatory agencies, neighborhood councils, etc.). In other words, in many real cases the question has to be asked, where does architecture come from? As opposed to, what is it, or what is it trying to be, or why does it appear a certain way. This approach to understanding architecture holds great appeal for me, as I am strongly interested in the connection between life, particularly American life, and the built environment.

[Manuel de Landa, trying to communicate his theories to architects...]

Discussion // BOOM & Street Art

BOOM!!!

I was astounded, shocked, appalled, surprised, inspired...a whole host of verbs...to see a proposal on ArchDaily for a new large, low-lying luxurious residential / resort complex in Palm Springs entitled "BOOM." Geared towards retirees from the LGBT community*, the project is a bold and creative approach to the standard American mega-development, and raises some fascinating questions about economy, sustainability, timeliness, sexuality and social living.

[*Palm Springs is a mecca for LGBT's on the West Coast / in LA]

The "fact sheet" is standard for recent models of  high-end, large-scale development in the United States: not-too-densely-packed apartment and condo units; unique internal "neighborhoods" each designed by a different well-known architect, in this case by boundary-breaking contemporary firms including Diller Scofidio + Renfro, J Mayer H, Joel Sanders, Surfacedesign, Lot-Ek, etc; and a variety of amenities including swimming pools, gyms, restaurants, nightclubs, and on and on. I've worked on a similar project, albeit of different scope and style (think: New Urbanist) that has collected dust on the drawing board for the past three years; landmark proposals of this sort are common, but not often built.

Discussion // Contractors, Politicians, Education...and Diversions

Building A Better Education

Is architecture to blame for the decrepit state of American education?

Well, from the position of the designer, no. But the process by which public educational facilities are built, especially on public campuses of all levels of education, is certainly part of the issue. In the LA Times this morning there was a terrific series of thorough and informative exposés revealing wasteful spending, poor planning, potential corruption, hidden agendas, and during a decade of expansion on Los Angeles's community colleges.

[Suits and s***. Hope you kids like a leaky roof!]

Part I - Overview: here

Part II - Case Study: here

Contractor Kickbacks: here

Future Articles: here

Not all educational projects that require the services of an architect run into budget issues (I have had very positive experiences in this regard). Not all contractors are cheapskates (lots are) or incompetent (many are actually very very good) and not all politicians are corrupt (ahem). But when political and financial argy bargy / backroom deals begin to stain the process of building public facilities, which, by their nature, are to be cost-effective, efficient, durable, and well-suited to their tasks, huge problems can arise. Unfortunately, I believe these conflicts are more prevalent than one might imagine. They are damaging to the people who are supposed to benefit from facilities expansion, and damaging to the reputations of all parties involved (architects) no matter how much sway each held in making decisions.

Discussion // Residential Towers

In response to the need for architectural compromise (as directed) and other ideas of scale and aesthetic I enumerated in the previous post, I've diverted my approach to answering the question of urban housing in the United States from the all-encompassing block plan and instead begun to explore the viability of residential towers in relatively low-density neighborhoods. The first order of business, I suppose, is to come up with a sort of ad-hoc list of advantages and disadvantages of the tower typology, and to find ways of enhancing the positive aspects and reversing the negative. I've also listed a wide variety of potential precedents; any suggestions for others would be appreciated.

[Literal translation of the Morphosis model.]

Discussion // Potpurrtecture

Wide range of topics on tap for today, starting with some links...

How Skyscrapers Can Save the City (The Atlantic)

A sociocultural look at the benefits of high-density living, the article makes some interesting points about the perceived economic influence of scale and provides a counterpoint to the timeless cries of Jane Jacobs for preserving the scale of the street. The author is correct in his assertion that "historic districts," though they acknowledge the sanctity of heritage, actually become completely unaffordable in comparison to more dense models. The authors suggestions are not so helpful - if neighborhoods are allowed to determine the extent to which their individual characters are maintained, the status quo will unquestionably be maintained - but they at least make for stimulating debate. The article also ignores the technical aspects of tall buildings - production, fabrication, transportation of materials, assembly, carbon footprint vs. sprawl, etc. I'm not an expert on the science so it's not my place to critique tall buildings on it.

I have mixed feelings on the subject. First, it's obvious and irrefutable that our current use of land is wasteful and destructive. LA, naturally, is the poster child for a decaying ecology as a result of sprawl. Second, it's impossible to ignore that there are problems with housing of any typology without adequate transportation infrastructure. Skyscrapers demand a high-speed, 3d mass transit system of multiple levels. Unfortunately, these types of systems are fading away in the United States, leading to more and more surface sprawl - it's difficult to blame someone for destructiveness when there are so few alternatives, but our thinking definitely needs to change fast.

[Wouldn't be so bad to live here, don't you say? PSFS, Philadelphia, Howe + Lecaze, 1932. Can we update this model to fit our needs? Interesting that this pathfinding building is also in one of the most historical and traditional cities in the U.S.]

There are, of course, examples of good residential density at the skyscraper scale - Hong Kong, Singapore, New York (somewhat) - but also a lot of bad examples. And, tragically, there's no good way to hide a poor skyscraper as opposed to say, a cheaply-built Type-5 courtyard box. So who gets to design these things? How can we be sure that the design will (1) address urban and human scale on the ground level, (2) be as sustainable as possible, to whatever extent technology will allow, (3) be sensitive to surrounding urban fabric, (4) be affordable to a large sample of the population and (5) respond to the future to the degree that the building will initiate positive changes in infrastructure and land use? A tough task, indeed.

Project // Housing

First look at new mixed-use/student housing project (location: Vermont Ave. & Santa Monica Blvd, East Hollywood / Los Feliz, Los Angeles). Though I've spent most of my working career picking apart real projects of this type, I'm looking forward to rethinking it in more "exciting" terms...

Lifestyle // The Romanesque Romantic...or Don Juan de Stijl?

Architecture and romance maintain a curious and often tenuous rapport. One would expect, for example, that architects are tremendous lovers. After all, they work extensively with their strong but delicate hands. They have impeccable taste which has been cultivated through a broad and cultured education. They have an artistic sensibility and an appreciation for the sensuous qualities of form (body) and material (skin). And, of course, with an intimate knowledge of construction, they are handy to have around the house at all times of the day - or night. All these facts must have been considered when some Dutch academic journal recently listed "architect" as the world's sexiest profession. So not only are we (architects) great lovers, we're also the sexiest people. As if I didn't have enough already going for me, eh? Hardy har har...Tom-Cruise-lookalike my ass.

[House of the Century by Ant Farm. Is that a building or are you just excited to see me?]

Unfortunately for me, these qualities have not reversed to even a single degree my recent  fabulous failings in the world of love and romantic conquest. They should at least allow me to overcome my ice-cold first impressions, mumbling, constant looks of bitterness, anger, and/or consternation, and lack of emotional openness, right? Well, first I'd have to ask myself if it is even possible to live up to the standards set down by the egghead sociologists in Amsterdam or wherever and what possible misconceptions contribute to these illusory statements.

Place // The Amazing Parking Lots of LA

If I'm ever bored and on a computer - wait, when am I not? - I like to take a personalized tour of the various neighborhoods of LA through the vistas of Google Earth. Seriously, I could roam the LA stratosphere for hours. You really get an idea of the incredible topological and infrastructural forces that have shaped the city over the past 100 years. One facet, or byproduct, of these forces, which almost always defer to the automobile, is the existence of gigantic parking lots, some right in the middle of the city and some large enough to give you the feeling that you could see them from outer space! I've posted a few of my favorite parking lot overheads, and though there might be some more dramatic ones in the peripheral communities in Orange County, San Bernardino, etc. I've purposefully chosen lots near downtown LA. These lots demand a ludicrous amount of land and really destroy what is otherwise decent urban fabric in their particular contexts.

The possibility for positive, beneficial redevelopment, whether architectural or landscaped, constitutes the future for many of these lots. This potential is compounded by the increased emphasis on storm-water management and responsible treatment of local ecologies. I believe there is already a plan in place for the lot in Inglewood, though I'm not familiar with any of the details.

[Dodger Stadium. Giant parking lot on the top of a hill in Echo Park. Drainage issues? Maybe. Might explain the existence of the reservoir to the east.]

Project // Fall Semester Recap

[View from the penthouse of City National Plaza, where our final reviews - called "Blue Tape" - were held. More information on the event here and here.]

Fall semester at USC was like a romantic fling; at first, school work occupied my every thought, consumed my time and required my physical presence at all hours of the night, but I needed the pace - after all, I hadn't been in school for a long, long time. So I wanted it, and I got it. Hard. And then the semester crept along, and it became more and more difficult to maintain the pace that seemed so natural at the beginning. At certain points, I had to ask myself, "Why even bother? What am I getting out of this? I'm so busy I can't even think straight!" Towards the end, fatigue and frustration made the work unbearable, but I had to give it once last necessary push at the end, if for no other reason but to test myself. Then it all came to a halt - done - over. While in a way its saddening to detach yourself from the routine and the familiar faces, the end also brings a sense of incredible relief and a release of a massive burden. It's at that point you sternly assert, "I never want to go back to school ever again!!!"

But enough of the amorous conceit. I won't spend too much time discussing the work, just displaying it and providing some background. I would prefer to respond to comments rather than wax poetic about my own feelings, as conversation is always preferred to dictation. So, my loyal readers (all three or four of you), let me know what you think and I'll be happy to explain or clarify any confusing points.

First, some quick thoughts:

Place // San Diego, CA

Though there are few truly vital reasons to leave LA's urban soup for San Diego's relative towniness, there are a few compelling ones. Most of them involve fantastic CaliMex food, the insane Tijuana border--for which I had neither the stones nor the time to visit, instead choosing to guide my lovely female companions to relative safety/sanity--and NFL football, SoCal-style. But if you're a student of architecture, conquistadors, or just like the beach, it's worth a look. But first a little history...

The area was first explored by Spanish explorer Sebastian Vizcaino in 1602 and named for a Spanish saint, San Diego de Alcalá. In 1769, a group of Spanish missionaries established a permanent colony on a site now known as "Old Town" San Diego. Later, the colony transformed into a military outpost, displacing the missionaries a few miles to the east, and was the location of a few small skirmishes between Spanish soliders and the indigenous Native American tribe, the Kumeyaay. Mexico gained indepedence from Spain in 1821 and San Diego progressed under Mexican jurisdiction until the resolution of the Mexican-American War in 1850 (known as the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo) ceded the city to the U.S.

Update // Happy New Year!

Yes, the blog was left fallow through the end-of-semester madness and various holiday adventures. Apologies to all. But now it's time to pull up the weeds and get it crankin' once again! I have made it part of my resolutions to write more regularly - or at least as regularly as I used to - but it remains to be seen whether I have the fortitude to make it stick. I usually fail when it comes to resolutions, though I am a bit more optimistic about this year. The economy seems to be turning around, say the crackpot number doctors on Capitol Hill, which should make anyone in the architecture business smile a little (though it is unclear if this improvement will lead to more design jobs). And at long last, one of four semesters of M. Arch is in the books, and I have grown accustomed to the grind. 

Other resolutions: explore more of California and the Southwest. Trips hopefully in store: San Diego / Salk, Santa Barbara, Pacific Coast Highway, San Francisco, Vegas, Phoenix. At least one of these is sure to happen in the next month or so...updates on that later. Also, better health and more romance. Can't promise any (detailed) updates on that.

Visited the new LA Holocaust Museum this afternoon. Interesting building by LA firm Belzberg Architects...Mr. Belzberg was a visiting professor for the undergrads this fall. The surfaces and lines are soft and sinuous and the interior volumes are terraced, sunken into the ground and covered with grassy vegetation, creating a seamless transition to the undulating hills of Park La Brea on whose north end the museum sits. Shot-crete construction facilitated these formal gestures, and the hard nature of the material contrasts with the smooth curves. Philosophically, this is a vastly different approach than, for example, the obvious symbolism of Libeskind's jagged, violent forms in Berlin. Yet while it's a perfectly fine building in and of itself, it does leave me wanting a little bit more visible emotional content.

[Sunken entry.]