preserve the modern

2007-08-27T08:00:00.000-07:00

Left off at Stuttgart and am now in Vitra's Boisbuchet (www.boisbuchet.org) meeting with Alexander von Vegesack (aka alexander the great). Alexander deserves the moniker 'alexander the great' as he sold a portion of his design collection to purchase an estate in the south of france and transform it into a retreat for design + architectual innovation. It is over 300 acres and includes a chateaux, stables, outbuildings, lakes and specimin trees. Each week in the summer young designers from around the world (around 40 each week) come together to take workshops lead by master designers - this week is Aldo Cibic (Italy) and the the campana brothers (BraZil). Funny thing is I ran into eames dimitrios' sister who is here at the workshop.....Anyhow - many partnership opportunities for GH and the trust as we move more deeply into modernism and toward the cultivation of talent.

I didn't finish my full Berlin travels - so I should regress a bit and finish up. After Stuttgart however we really only had 1/2 day on our own. Of course yours truly went to the galleries and was trapped in some adorable stores. Don't know how that always happens. But it was sunday and so I did have the weekend off. So now I am the proud owner of 2 flapper hats and a berlin nutcracker for my son..... The evening was spent at the pergamon musuem - which if you are a modernist you might overlook but DON'T. It is a series of 100-600BC temples and buildings which were excavated by the german archaeological armies at the turn of the century. When you walk into a babylonian fortress from 600 BC, in Berlin, it is a bit breathtaking.......For our young modernists looking to learn from the past I can hardly begin to point to all of the architectural and design antecedents - but everything from the arcades, to the spaces designed to evoke a sense of grandeur could spawn from here. I have to say that saying goodbye to all of the SAH people was quite sad - our little community of compatible interests really had a wonderful time.

Tomorrow I'm off to paris to meet Mattia Bonetti who was a great friend of David Whitney and is in our collection - then home. More from Paris.

2007-08-24T12:36:00.000-07:00

I'm a day behind - so again I'm going to merge two days. I know armchair travelling - and keeping up with this veneer of an intellectual discourse - is challenging. But stick with me here as we are wrapping up at the best sites of all.

The high level? Obviously it takes a group to define a movement - of course this is a repeated phenomenon seen here with Gropius, Mies, Klee etc at the Bauhaus or with "the kids" at the Glass House.

So our morning is spent driving to Dessau to see the Bauhaus. Breathtaking. This school moved in 1925, giving it a unique opportunity to build their building + housing in a style evocative of the new movement they were defining. New technical maneuvers (glass curtain wall suspended in front of the load bearing framework) and new functional order (separating workshops from classrooms from office all have distinct visual translations.). May all seem standard practice to us by now but even the view of art, architecture and design together was entirely unique.
Of course Mies didn't design the Bauhaus - Gropius did, as he lead it and then later came to America to head Harvard into the modern movement, which we all know is where our friend PJ went. (Excuse the shorthand as I'm typing this on my backberry so you are all sympathetic).

Mies did, however, lead the Bauhaus later, and then coming to America lead IIT's program and designed much of that campus. We visited the Bauhaus masterhouses - where such people as Kandinsky, Klee, Schlemmer and Feininger lived. Also visited the Kornhaus, steel house, then Gropius' Torten estate (Levittown for germany in the 1920s) and employment office (which uses this brilliant full skylight ceiling (also 1920s).

Light on details but I'm getting to a highlight whcih was a boat tour of the Woerlit gardens. SPECTACULAR. Phyllis Lambert said that this 18th century landscape and its many follies was much loved by PJand was a source inspiration for the Glass House site's follies such as the ghost house, the lake pavillion and the Kierstein tower. Not a surprise as it was captivatingly beautiful, at each moment of just recovering from one beautiful folly another one would reveal itself. Little hamlet bridge, landscape, glorious castle in the distance, more landscape, another hobbit type bridge, landscape, tyrolean stick bridge............

The boats had an oarsman - our was lucas the near olympic rower - and a table set down the center. Outside eating we drank every bottle on our boat and had the inkling of capsizing another boat as they were so much slower on the draw. Two glasses went sideways which is a near miracle given the tenderness of our vessel - but sweet lucas told us that was rare (he must have meant our rare form).

A stumble to the room only to wake about 4 hours later to get on the plane to Stuttgart. Sheer dedication. Our first stop was the Mercedez Benz museum designed by UN studio. Not Mies - just fantastic. The connection might have been use of materials and of course using the new technical tools of the time (or engineering concepts) to interpret space. Second stop was werkbundausstellung weissenhofsiedlung (yes I checked the spelling and think that is right - and of course saying this just sounds as sexy as marbles). For those of you who are modernist junkies this is heaven: JJ Oud, le Corbusier (I should have listed him first!), mies, gropius, sharoun, behrens and taut. A sick list for sure. This german werkbund was founded in 1907 by 12 artists and 12 firms to increase the collaboration between artists, craftsmen and industry to increase the quality of germany's products, buildings and overall design. Mies was the director of this werkbund in 1927 when this experimental settlement was designed. This "new dwelling" has an attmpt at slight community design but is overall more of a showcase for these architects who would exhibit this new "international style."

This community was denounced by the nazis and slated for demolition as they preferred the classic pitched roofs - but the war got in the way - some were damaged and a number remain and are beautifully restored.

We left to go to the Staatsgalerie designed in 1977 by James Stirling and Michael Wilford. Postmodern even turning Schinkel's Altes museum inside out or reversing the sequence and leaving the rotunda (Schinkels point of arrival to the art) as an empty center (a loss of the center - much debated in texts). By now we are so damn tired that we tell our leader that the CIA recently released a report where lack of sleep and forced marches qualify as torture. And in true stockholm syndrome of course we all love our torturer.......

2007-08-22T12:22:00.000-07:00

Since we have been keeping the hours of 8am-10pm I am merging two blogs from the days. I have been capturing some of the hilarious quotes (which may be conveyed quite flat outside of context) as well as my amateur observations about the Schinkel, Behrens, Mies trilogy.

First let's just start with a bit of description of our group - the Society of Architectual Historians. As mentioned an esteemed group of herding photographers and intellectuals. Never have I been crowded out of a shot of doorhardware until now. A searing gaze from an SAH member as you step near the corner features of a drain pipe can literally set one back 2 years in esteem (if you were so fragile). Of course like any travelling band of marauders we have developed our own sense of family, community and characteurs. Frasier is the photog - first on the scene at the hardware, corners and vistas; Phyllis is the barb; 4 long-married couples who gently play off one another; Monty is the hip young talent, Mr Ed is the eager intellectual, Brian the man with the dry humor zingers- the list goes on and on. I'm sure I'm the caffeinated lurker as I try not to ask too many questions as each house our leader gets peppered with: is this more Persius or Schinklesque? Who owns the note on that development? What was the rate on the note? Etc etc.....

But at this point our little community is saying stuff like: "not another damn pergola" "imagine that - another excedra" "seen one mies you've seen them all" - which was a starting quote but now clearly not true as we have been exploring the early Mies's and he clearly didn't pop out of the womb as a modernist (or execute in that exact style).

In the past 2 days we have seen a number of the earliest Mies homes - including his very first professional commission - Haus Riehl. This home is in the section outside of berlin which was separated to the east and is only now undergoing its renaissance at the assistance of resident "investors". (Taking 2-10 years to research and restore their homes). Mies was 21 - and given his young position and lack of experience, the Riehls sent him to Italy to look at the work being done. As in the other dozen early commissions, Mies has a very trational style (eyebrow windows, shutters, classical axes) but is working out the use of geometry for order and embellishment, sharp insets for bookshelves, windows and other features, and creating a space which extends to the edge of the land - creating a near premontory. This house is english country charming with the whisper of other ideas in its bones.

All in all once you see house Riehl, house Mosler (his largest commission - and still very traditional), house Urbig (also traditional), house Eichstaedt (traditional), house Werner (yep you guessed it - traditional), and house perls (can you believe we have seen all of these?).

What is interesting, it seems, is that Mies is accommodating his clients traditional needs, doing what he knows, and the work which inspires him toward the modern is - oddly - Schinkel. It is Shinkel's stark classicism and formal set-up which simplifies Mies' outside pillars and sets up his symmetry. Namely the new pavilion at Charlottenburg (Schinkel) which is a square, with inset balconies, strict symmetry and continuous movement between inside and outside spaces.
That single fact - the relationship between nature and living - defines Schinkel's sans souci Charlottenhof Palace - which is later emulated in both Behrens and Mies. Thus the trilogy. The living/dining room extending from inside to the veranda, on axis to the fountain and excedra (aka curved bench) - all at Schinkels palace - would be found at nearly every early Mies home we have seen. So there you have it armchair travellers - inside, outside, down the line to a cap. It has worked for years.

Some of the other extraordinary buildings we have seen - which advise the context of the time - are: the turbine factory by Behrens in 1909 (artistic sucess in steel and glass construction and reshaping use); villa wiegand by behrens (so you know he was Mies' employer and a design bridge from schinkel to mies' emerging modern style); to Mendelsohn's einstein tower from 1921 (and amorphic telescope observatory set into a surprising landscape).

So one of the funnies was the discussion about what Frank Lloyd Wright was doing at the time of all this transition toward modernism - and we figured he was off with his mistress in europe. One of the wise cracks being "yes that is a new service being built into the standard architectural contract."

2007-08-20T11:46:00.000-07:00

A good night sleep--thank god. Today was another whilrwind of 7 sites, some by Mies and some by a contemporary of Mies, Hans Scharoun.

Thinking about how this modernist travel blog was born, out of the desire to connect classic sites with young, computer arm-chair travellers, I realize that one might learn about both sides of the modern spectrum today. Mies, who is technical, minimalist and a master of simplicity; and Scharoun who organizes design from the inside out and organically.

Mies:
Afrikinische Strasse housing complex (1925-27) Mies is 31 / Haus Lemke (1932) Mies is 38 / Neue Nationalgalarie (1968) Mies is 76

The first - a housing project is the first project where Mies realizes that he can really begin to interpret his new vision of modernism. The result is a simple execution of affordable housing. The second was a family home created on a small budget - 1400sf of beauty and modernism extending into nature. The third is the nations art gallery and a technical feat in engineering.
(Photos forthcoming)

Scharoun:
Philharmonie (1960-63) / Private home (1932)

The Philharmonie is the nation's philharmonic concert hall and is located next to Mies Neue Nationalgallerie. Frank Gehry stated it was his inspiration for the Disney Concert Hall in LA. It is organized from the outside in, focusing on circling the audience around the orchestra and establishing pitches to create the appropriate acoustical pitches.

The private home - simple on the outside - unfolds to reveal an organic interior with crazy amazing details. From hand crafted built-in spice racks, to ceiling lights out of reverse arm lamps, swooping bannisters and flwright like built-in furniture. Outside modern, inside fiesta.

For our arm-chair travellers - like all of these sites, it can hadly be captured in pictures. And how we access technical feats such as Neue Gallery or the details of Scharoun's private home can only be by memory.

-Christy MacLear

2007-08-19T11:33:00.000-07:00

I am Christy MacLear, the executive director of the Philip Johnson Glass House in New Canaan, CT. I am taking a tour with the Society of Architectural Historians (an esteemed group who has kindly let me join them) led by Barry Bergdoll (MoMA and columbia) and Dietrich Neumann (Brown). Having arrived without an ounce of sleep I think its safe to say I will not say one intelligent thing all day today....

We started in immediately with a walking tour to over a dozen sites - but the net of today was "inspiration." This seems particularly relevant as our young modern leaders identified that our youngest professional architects don't visit the historic sites or often study architectural history - that their inspiration is focused only on the new ideas and new tools. For young Mies (and so many others) the architect who we saw today was the source of inspiration - Karl Friedrich Schinkel who practiced in the early to mid 1800s.

I'm only going to show two of the projects - the famous Neue Wache (built by Schinkel in 1816 and renovated by Mies in 1930) and the Altes Museum (built by Schinkel in 1823).

Schinkel was given the task of designing a soldiers guard house. Boring challenge for sure. With such a minor commission the only way you can make it interesting is to rethink how it should be done. Schinkel's inspiration? Redesign the concept of the guard house and apply the formal strength of a roman castrum to represent the recent victory over napolean. (Photo forthcoming)

Later in 1930 Ludwig Mies van der Rohe won a competition to redesign the interior to commemorate the fallen soldiers of wwI. I'm calculating that young mies is about 36 - and has worked on things about town but not in his full swing of modernism. His submission was the most minimalist - and his executed design seems to incorporate a skylight from tessenow's submission. (Photo forthcoming)

Of course here is where we are all listening to Barry and Phyllis Lambert hashing out the details of the surfaces and the overblown sculpture - similar to the volumiing of the Nadelmans in Lincoln Center. Clearly two people who know what they are talking about.

Altes Museum
Schinkel (1832-38)
One of the first freestanding museums - and an important statement about how one experiences art. Schinkel sets up a formal experience through 3 grand gestures - a double colonade (which also featured works showing art in context + importance of our lives), a double staircase (providing a view of the city) and a rotunda (providing 3 entry point options). In this set-up it is said that any architectural inspiration can be found in this project. (Photo forthcoming)

Funny - Schinkels works are found throughout Philip's architectural library and it is routinely the book architects and publishers pull out to look. It is the source of inspiration for generations of architects.

Here again - no models for museums - Schinkel designs a museum in a way which elevates art and creates a pedestal for its viewing.

Enough for one day. Sleep

- Christy MacLear

2007-07-30T13:30:00.000-07:00

It is my last day enjoying the “joie de vivre” in France before I leave Paris for the United States. Over the past three weeks, I have been traveling in and around Paris, Lyon and Nimes to document modern structures on this blog, hoping to raise awareness of the international modernist movement’s historical importance. I believe that, in France, modern architecture continues to be viewed as an experiment, only to be found in secluded fields and alleyways or designed so as not to detract from the splendor of older historic buildings. Those modern sites that are neither hidden nor unobtrusive (such as the Centre Pompidou and Firminy Site) appear to receive more censure from the French people, who describe these sites to be “laid” (ugly) and “étranger” (foreign). Still, these modern structures should not be overlooked, for they represent the ever evolving modern lifestyle and how people throughout the twentieth century responded to the changing social conditions. What I love about most French modern architecture is that its designs are often heavily influenced by the past, almost always paying homage to the country’s historic background that allowed these cities and towns to develop politically, economically, socially and, most importantly, architecturally (this is most evident in the Lyon Opera House and Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes, but smaller historical influences do exist throughout the other buildings as well). For me, it is the reverence for history and the desire to combine the old and the new that creates a unique idiosyncrasy in French modern architecture apparent in most sites I have seen.

I would also like to conclude my trip with a few words of advice on traveling in France. First of all, no pair of shoes (no matter how durable, expensive or chic) can withstand the wrath of French streets. Sadly, I had to lay my walking shoes to rest today after I noticed that they were literally torn to shreds. Secondly, the rental bike system in Paris, though ingenious and very useful, suffers from poor bike craftsmanship, which forced me to dismount twice in one day due to a broken steering wheel and, later, a flat tire. And, lastly, no matter how valiant one's efforts are, it is impossible to avoid the irresistible lure of a pain au chocolat.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-27T13:39:00.000-07:00

After waking up early in Arbresle, I left via train for Lyon, where, after arrival, I then departed for Nimes on the TGV. An hour later, I arrived in Nimes, ready to embrace the warm sunshine, olive groves and abundance of seafood. Nimes is located in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France and is famous for its Roman ruins, most notably the Colosseum and Maison Carrée. The Maison Carrée, a Roman temple built circa 20 B.C.E, is often studied by art history students like myself because it remains largely intact and is a paradigm of the Etruscan and classical Greek influences on Roman architecture. Today, however, I was viewing the Maison Carrée from another angle, noticing how this historic site influenced Sir Norman Foster when he designed the Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes (Musée d'Art Contemporain de Nîmes), which is located in the Place de la Maison Carrée only three hundred feet away from the temple’s doors.
The museum (finished in 1993) houses art from the 1960’s to the present, showcasing approximately 250 works of art in its permanent collection. Like many modern structures I have seen in France, the Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes is linked to older styles of architecture, attempting to bridge the gap between modernism and historic tradition. Sir Norman Foster underscored this balance between the modern and the ancient when he described his design for the site, stating “the challenge was to relate the new to the old, but at the same time to create a building that represents its own age with integrity.” The design of the museum is very classical, with a large portico, supporting white columns and a rectangular foundation – three principle elements of Roman architecture that are seen in the Maison Carrée. Foster also continues this classical influence into the museum’s interior mainly through the large staircase centered in the building. Though it is not in the exterior, this staircase is similar to that found on the entrance into the Maison Carrée, both of which lead visitors to the heart of the buildings (one being an art gallery and the other being a temple). Yet, the Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes is not simply a replica of Maison Carrée. The museum’s design is more of a response to Roman architecture expressed through modern architectural forms. Unlike the solid, heavy appearance of Maison Carrée, Foster’s museum is lighter, primarily using glass and steel (painted white) throughout the entire building to create a sense of transparency. Foster also plays with light with the steel beams that cast shadows over the museum’s flat, glass façade. As a result, the Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes is a unique and important site because reveals a different side of modern architecture, one in which the focus is to redefine older architectural forms instead of creating new ones.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-24T18:13:00.000-07:00

Today, I left for Arbresle, a town one hour outside Lyon that houses the La Tourette Priory built by Le Corbusier between 1953 and 1959. The priory is a large, concrete structure built into a hillside over looking the rural countryside and is open to visitors as well as overnight guests. I, in fact, am spending the night here in a small, dimly lit monk cell. I have never slept in a place like this before and, I will admit, it is quite eerie. I also happen to be reading the most recent Harry Potter, so I imagine (inspired by tales of magic, death and danger) that a bloodthirsty friar is waiting to attack me while I rest.

Earlier today, I took a tour of the site following a long walk up the hill leading to the priory. The tours, conducted in both French and English, are very informative and help to explain the history of the La Tourette Priory. The Dominican monks founded the priory in 1943 on the property of an older estate built in the 1700’s. Marc-Antoine Claret de La Tourette, the original owner of the estate from whom the priory gets its name, was a botanist who meticulously altered the landscape with vegetation, walls and gardens in order to continue his studies of plant life during the decades following the French Revolution. As a result, Le Corbusier paid careful attention to the surrounding environment when he chose the location of the priory, understanding that the forests, trees and plants should be involved in his design. This respect for the landscape (unlike his Firminy site) is most evident in the layout of the building, which is initially two levels at the top of the hill and gradually extends to five levels at the bottom, using pilotis to support the structure in order to minimize its impact on the surrounding environment. However, Le Corbusier was not chosen as the architect because of his appreciation for the landscape. Instead, Marie-Alain Couturier (the head friar of the priory at the time) chose Le Corbusier to introduce Christians to modern art and architecture, hoping to promote modernism and to “demonstrate that prayer and religious life are not bound by conventional forms and that they can harmonize with the most modern architecture”. As a result, Couturier was able to look past Le Corbusier’s secular life in his desire to modernize Christianity. Without a religious background, Le Corbusier manages to successfully create numerous religious elements and statements throughout the La Tourette priory (not including the obvious chapel, church and crypt), illustrating modern architecture’s ability to reflect a function or purpose despite its simplified and often austere forms.

The most conspicuous example of these religious undertones in the La Tourette priory is the location of the church, which is the only structure in direct contact with the ground (the other three wings remain elevated on pilotis) and serves as a fourth wall that encloses the three residential wings by creating a central courtyard. As a result, Le Corbusier not only promotes the church as a sanctified space by digging its foundation into the earth, but he also makes the church a shielding structure in order to imply that God protects Christians from danger and harm. The symbol of the cross is also repeated throughout the building in intersecting shadows and covered walkways that converge in the center courtyard, once again strengthening the religious nature of the building. Furthermore, Le Corbusier uses concrete pillows, flowers (a term Le Corbusier coined to describe the sheets of concrete that protrude diagonally from windows) and ledges to create framed images of the landscape that reduce the possible distraction of nature on the friars. This was necessary in order to force the monks to continue their studies and religious obligations without completely eliminating the presence of the outdoors in the interior spaces.

I personally find the La Tourette priory to be one of the more interesting structures I have seen on this trip because of unusual sense of space that is created from a rare interaction between shapes and dimensions. Unlike other Le Corbusier sites I have documented on this blog, La Tourette is governed by a strict set of mathematical proportions. Le Corbusier combined the measurement of one meter and eighty-three centimeters (roughly Le Corbusier’s height) and the golden ratio of proportion to dictate the dimensions of many of the floor tiles, corridors and cells. Consequently, shapes are repeated throughout the priory, though the size of these shapes almost always changes. Le Corbusier then plays with this mathematical exactness by distorting the sense of space, often incorporating slanted ceiling or floors and conjoining rooms with different heights to alter the viewer’s sense of perspective. Occasionally, Le Corbusier disregards these ratios by adding circular spaces such as the meeting room and crypt, which use round forms to create a sense of intimacy that is missing in the rigid, rectangular rooms. The pyramidal roofed chapel and cylindrical and triangular skylights also interrupt these sets of ratios and proportions, once again changing the sense of space in unexpected ways.

Like all Le Corbusier sites, the La Tourette priory uses color and light to add warmth and depth to stark, concrete walls. For instance, in the church and crypt (which are adjacent rooms open to one another though they are on different levels), Le Corbusier paints slits in the walls and ceilings to give the impression of stained glass and to reveal the depth within the cavernous, dark space. Furthermore, to achieve a greater sense of depth in the priory, Le Corbusier had to modify the five points of architecture (pilotis, roof garden, free plan, horizontal window and free façade) by making the pilotis more noticeable and adding concrete pillow blocks and “flowers” to cast shadows that break up the flat façade. It seems as though Le Corbusier relied on light to achieve the sculptural forms of his earlier works like Villa Savoye and Villa La Roche. Light and color are also used to show a change in the function of space. This is most apparent in the chapel and organ, where shadows separate the non-secular and secular divisions of a room.

The La Tourette priory is also an interesting site because of the obstacles the friars and French government face with preserving the building. Because of the low budget and poor materials used to construct the priory, much of the structure suffers from water damage and electrical issues as well as the many problems associated with the crumbling concrete walls, ceilings and roofs (largely caused by the vegitation that grows on the roofs). To fix these issues, the priory has launched a 2,915,000 euro restoration that will replace the roof, windows, concrete on the building’s exterior and electrical systems. Like so many modern buildings, the La Tourette priory was not built with the proper materials and now relies on an expensive restoration to preserve its integrity and ability to function. As the twentieth century progresses, I believe it will become more and more important to preserve modern sites like the La Tourette priory because of the ideas and social transformations that they represent.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-23T22:39:00.000-07:00

Lyon is a two-hour train ride south of Paris, located in the Rhône Alps region of France. This city itself lies between the Rhône and Saône rivers, which allowed the city to prosper during its early founding period as the capital of Roman Gaul, Lugdunum. The remains of this ancient city still exist and are a great excursion as is the city’s main modern attraction, the Lyon Opera House. More recently, Lyon has become famous for its food after local chefs like Paul Bocuse helped to redefine French cooking through Nouvelle Cuisine – a style of cooking that deviates from the traditional heavy and rich French food by utilizing lighter sauces and healthier ingredients.

Today, I visited the Lyon Opera House in the morning and then took an hour-long train to Firminy after lunch to explore a large Le Corbusier site. The Opera House is an interesting building because it was originally built in 1830 by architects Chenavard and Pollet but was later renovated by Jean Nouvel in 1993. The four façades and the foyer are all that remain of the original structure while Nouvel’s renovation encompasses the rest of the Opera House (which now includes a total 18-levels that are mostly underground). Unfortunately, the Opera house is only open to visitors on Saturdays and Fridays at 1 p.m. and, since today is Monday, I was unable to go inside. From the outside, very little of Opera House appears to have a modern design except for the steel and glass curved roof that protrudes far above the older façades. Like I.M. Pei’s Pyramid in the Louvre, this roof reveals the modern renovation without destroying the building’s historical exterior design. This unification between modern and traditional architecture once again exemplifies the blending of architectural styles that I saw throughout Paris, proving that modern design can be applied to other traditional architectural forms. It was even Jean Nouvel’s hope to achieve this sense of unity in the Lyon Opera House, stating he strove to establish a “dialogue between history and modernity”. As I glanced through the windows, I realized that this “dialogue” is also apparent inside. While the new entry is quite modern and incorporates ramps, black curved walls, glass and steel into the design, the original foyer (which is the entry into the actual theater) is decorated with crystal chandeliers and Napoleon III style architecture. While these two contrasting styles are not completely unified, they do manage to coexist. The Lyon Opera House is the most shocking synthesis I have seen between modern and traditional architecture because the two styles are forced together without any sense of separation, seeming as though the building’s modern forms are growing out of the older architectural features. For any modern-seeking traveler, I highly recommend this site in order to see a unique adaptation of modern architecture that, unlike other structures I have seen on this trip, is governed by an older style of design.

After a great Lyonnais lunch, I headed over to station Lyon Part-Dieu and departed via train for Firminy, a town south west of Lyon. Before I continue, there are two important things to mention to any traveler going to these French suburbs: first, train ticket prices ared greatly reduced if you are under the age of twenty-five or have a student I.D. (also true for most museums) and, second, most suburbs do not have taxi services, so you must either take a bus or ask for directions and walk. Since most of these sites are significant tourist attractions, there are many signs to lead you in the right direction but I have found the help of a local is always appreciated. Anyway, today the bus service was not working so I ended up walking three kilometers to the Le Corbusier site through the torrential rain showers that previously had been flooding southern Britain. Fortunately, the sun broke through the clouds just minutes before I arrived on site, giving me time to dry off before I stepped into the first structure on the grounds, Saint Pierre Church. I was then told to walk up a hill to another building to get my entry ticket where I finally began my visit. The Firminy Le Corbusier site is the largest urban Le Corbusier site in Europe, containing a stadium, cultural center, housing unit and a church. However, the cultural center (Maison de la Culture) is the only structure on site not to be completed posthumously, since it was finished in 1965 just months before Le Corbusier’s death. Yet, the Firminy site did receive recognition before Le Corbusier died, winning the Grand Prix de l’Urbanisme in 1961. It was not until the late sixties that the stadium and housing unit were completed, while the church was recently finished in 2006 after beginning construction in 2002. All the structures on site are constructed with concrete and reflect Le Corbusier’s later style of architecture that I find to be more heavy and prominent than his early works such as Villa Savoye and Villa La Roche.

The cultural center, for instance, acquires its imposing appearance from its long, horizontal layout and extensive use of Mondrian style windows that lessen the glass' transparency. This architectural effect is also repeated in the stadium, housing unit and church to create a series of unforgiving architectural forms that seem to control and shape the landscape. You, the viewer, first notice the building’s dominance over the land in the cultural center, where a massive slanted wall protruding over a cliff seems to undermine the limitations of the landscape. As your eye moves down to the stadium, you cannot avoid noticing how the concrete wall sheltering the track scoops out the surrounding land into large berms, once again reflecting the complex’s impact on the land. And then, lastly, the church rise above the horizon to carry your attention to the housing unit situated in the background. This layering of architecture in the landscape creates depth and order in Le Corbusier’s design, though the buildings themselves appear to be follies (a term Philip Johnson used to describe a few of his structures) that burst from the hillside. As a result, there is an apparent contrast in the Firminy site between the obtrusive individual structures and the unity of overall layout.

In this sense, these buildings’ characteristics signify a drastic change in Le Corbusier’s style. However, there are some unifying features between these newer structures and those completed around the turn of the century by Le Corbusier. While none of these later buildings has the five points of architecture, they do frequently incorporate Le Corbusier’s signature highlights of color into their designs. Located either in window frames or walls, these accents of bright, vibrant colors (usually, red, green or yellow) add warmth to the harsh, concrete exteriors and interiors and also help Le Corbusier play with light. This is most apparent in Saint Pierre Church, where Le Corbusier punctures the side of the walls with painted concrete tunnels to bring light and color into the interior spaces. Consequently, the concrete becomes warmer and less austere as colors radiate on the ceilings, walls and floors.

All in all, the Firminy site is a fantastic place to see examples of Le Corbusier’s later work. Only an hour away from Nouvel’s Lyon Opera House, this destination reflects the shocking transformation of modern architecture between the turn of the century and the 1960’s.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-19T19:32:00.000-07:00

The past two days have been largely consumed with thwarted attempts to see modern sites. In particular, IRCAM and Maison de Verre (built by Charueau in 1932) proved to be difficult to contact and visit since both sites limit public access. IRCAM only opens to public visits several times a week with guided tours, due to the need to maintain a level of privacy for the musicians and administrators involved with the institute. Maison de Verre, on the other hand, is best described as a semi-private home, whose new owners decided to preserve its integrity and spirit by also reducing the amount of onsite visits. When I called Maison de Verre and no one answered the phone, I decided to métro (yes, it is a verb now) to it’s location on the left bank only to find that the site is hidden by a large, antique façade sheltering the home from curious pedestrians. International modern travelers should note that many modern sites are still private residences or administrative buildings, making it for them difficult to function as proper museums. This has been somewhat of a problem for me during my trip, often being told that cameras are not allowed inside or that I will have to wait an hour, a day or even a week to visit because the site is closed for meetings, church services, undisclosed reasons, etc.

I did manage, however, to visit Atelier Brancusi, the reconstructed studio of Constantin Brancusi, who as I said in a previous blog entry, donated his property to the French government upon his death in 1957. The building was designed by Renzo Piano (one of the architects who designed the Pompidou Museum) and sits in the Place Georges Pompidou adjacent to the museum, so it is a must see when visiting this center for modern art. Modern enthusiasts will be happy to know that the Atelier Brancusi is free to visit, offering sun bathers, musicians and roaming tourists who congregate in the square a great opportunity to see some of Brancusi’s most celebrated works. I personally found the miniature museum fascinating because it reveals the painstaking detail with which Brancusi placed his sculptures and tools around his studio. To me, the sculptures and array of materials (wood, marble, iron and bronze) synthesize into a single, architectural form that seems almost as if they were the walls and ceiling. While each work is great by itself, the unified amalgamation of objects had a greater effect on me.

I also visited “Paris Plages” – a section on the right bank of the Seine where, since 2002, the French government sets up of five kilometers of beach-like activities during the summer. In 2006, four million people visited the site, enjoying boardwalks, beaches, rock climbing, lounge chairs, water activities, rollerblading, dance studios, cafés and miniature amusement parks. This year, it is just the same. It was a strange feeling to be in the middle of urban Paris and see hundreds of sunbathers along the Seine and children building sand castles modeled after Notre Dame (though it is quite fun none the less). I even saw one man become so inspired by the lively atmosphere that he jumped into the Seine, then quickly scurried up the riverbank wall and vomited all over himself. The Seine is rather polluted, I guess.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-17T17:17:00.000-07:00

I was particularly excited today about visiting Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye because the trip freed me from the Métro and the hours I would have spent underground. Villa Savoye is located in Poissy, a Parisian suburb northwest of the city that can be reached from the RER line A. Once in Poissy, I took a taxi to the site, arriving just 40 minutes after I had left Paris. Unlike the other modern structures I have documented on the blog, Villa Savoye is removed from a city landscape and rests on acres of property covered with gardens and trees. As a result, this home leaves a different impression on the visitor because the design is more oriented to the outdoors than those found within Paris. For example, when compared with Villa La Roche, Villa Savoye feels more open, allowing its many windows, terraces and roof gardens to bring light and air into the house. Le Corbusier even commented on Villa Savoye’s flowing layout, noticing that, “…the air circulates everywhere, the light is in every corner, penetrates everywhere. The flow provides architectural impressions of a diversity that disconcerts any visitor unfamiliar with the architectural freedoms provided by modern techniques.” These “modern techniques” are fully exploited in Villa Savoye through reinforced concrete, which allowed Le Corbusier to open up the floor plan and support his “five points of architecture” (pilotis, roof garden, free plan, horizontal window and free façade). Villa Savoye, built between 1928 and 1931, is in fact one of the first structures Le Corbusier built after officially defining these five essential architectural elements that he repeats in all of his designs. For Le Corbusier, the “five points of architecture” were crucial to further the development of design away from traditional theories. As he states in his seminal compilation of essays Towards A New Architecture, “Architecture is stifled by custom. It is the only profession in which progress is not considered necessary…A cathedral is not beautiful….and Rome is the damnation of the half-educated. To send architectural students to Rome is to cripple them for life.” It is clear that Le Corbusier believed architecture must evolve and continuously adapt to the ever changing and developing society. The challenge for Le Corbusier, then, was to transform architecture so it reflected modern thought. In this sense, Villa Savoye is part of Le Corbusier’s architectural revolution, thus requiring the attentions of any traveler interested in the progression of the modern lifestyle.

Once again, Villa Savoye reflects this architectural transformation through its urban layout, filled with ramps, repeating rectangular lines, and simplified forms that are comparable to features found in the Parisian Métro, city streets and buildings. However, I believe these somewhat harsh and bold architectural elements are softened by the landscape, which is visible from inside the home and serves to provide an interesting juxtaposition between nature and technology.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

Today’s agenda focused on visiting Villa Jeanneret and Villa La Roche - two adjacent Le Corbusier sites in Paris. While Villa Jeanneret is closed to the public since the Le Corbusier Foundation uses the space for its offices, I was able to visit Villa La Roche. This home was built between 1923 and 1925 for avid modern art collector Raoul La Roche, whose only requirement for Le Corbusier was the need to display his art collection. Left practically unconstrained by his client, Le Corbuiser proceeded to create a sculptural design for Villa La Roche, incorporating ramps, convex walls, curved surfaces and accents of bright colors to bring depth to the all white exterior and interior. Though it was two years after the completion of Villa La Roche that Le Corbusier formulated his essential “five points of architecture” (a roof-garden, open plan, free façade, horizontal windows and supporting columns, or pilotis), these architectural elements have a discernable presence in the home. The gallery/living room, for example, is pierced by a row of horizontal windows and raised above the ground by five visible pilotis, thus giving Villa La Roche an urban-like appearance similar to a train car or Métro station. To me, Villa La Roche seems to be an early attempt to apply urban design to a private residence and therefore is a key modern site in Paris.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-15T21:27:00.000-07:00

Over the past two days, my travels have been limited since much of Paris is closed for Bastille Day. However, I have discovered some great Parisian activities unrelated to this blog’s modern focus. For example, I am very excited by Paris’ new rental bike system that was launched on Saturday. With over 350 stations and thousands of bikes, this system allows Parisians and tourists to rent bikes and pedal around Paris, eventually return them to any bike station. This all part of Mayor Bertrand Delanoë’s plan to rid Paris of cars eventually. In fact, Mr. Delanoë is Paris’ first socialist mayor since 1871 and plans to develop more programs and events for the entire city. One such event will begin on July 20th and includes filling the right bank of the Seine with sand in order to create a beach for those who cannot afford to go south on vacation and lessen the cultural divide between French natives and immigrants. I personally support this socialist endeavor and look forward to my beach party.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-13T18:32:00.000-07:00

I spent the majority of today planning visits to Le Corbusier sites in and around Paris. Le Corbusier (Charles-Edouard Jeanneret) is considered by some to be the father of modern architecture and was very active in Île-de-France (the region of France that encompasses Paris), designing many homes, apartment buildings and offices. On my list of must-see Le Corbusier sites are Villa Savoye, Villa Stein, Villa la Roche, Villa Jeanneret and Immeuble Molitor, all of which are either in Paris or can be visited after a quick trip on the RER – a network of trains running to the Parisian suburbs. I am also hoping to see Le Corbusier’s Chapelle Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp France, near the Swiss border. I have been told that this a long day trip but definitely worth the effort.

Here is a link to the Le Corbusier Foundation website: www.fondationlecorbusier.asso.fr

On another note, tomorrow is Bastille Day, celebrating the beginning of the French Revolution. Red, blue and white banners are everywhere and all of the local supermarkets are running out of wine, so I am sure it is going to be a “festive” night.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-12T17:30:00.000-07:00

Today’s entry will be short due to the inclement weather that has made it difficult to explore. I did, however, easily take the Métro to La Défense – an area west of Paris that serves as the city’s financial center.
From a modernist’s point of view, this area could be the most exciting in Paris due to recent plans to revamp the site by renovating and building structures with a focus on "modern creativity". Unparalleled skyscrapers, over sixty museums, residential districts, concert halls and limited automobile access will make La Défense a unique and unrivalled business district, symbolizing the economic aspirations of the French government. Though La Défense is somewhat removed from Paris, it remains very much so linked to the city’s center as a result of the massive, elevated squared Arche de la Défense (La Grande Arche), which appears to be a symbolic gateway into Paris and is directly aligned with the Champs-Élysées and the Louvre. Designed by Johann Otto von Spreckelsen and completed in 1990, La Grande Arche is an amazing 108meters wide, 110meters tall and 112meters deep, housing government offices and an exhibition center inside. In keeping with the current theme of unity between the new and old styles of architecture in Paris, this structure was intended to be a modern interpretation of the Arc de Triomphe, representing humanity instead of military victory. It is appropriate that even in the most modern districts in Paris, there is still an emphasis on the city’s historic background.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-11T16:39:00.000-07:00

My main goal for today was to revisit the Louvre, the Pompidou and IRCAM in order to better understand the modernist elements at all three sites. Before I relate to you what I found, I would just like to say how important comfortable walking shoes are in Paris. Because of my unyielding love for Birkenstocks, my feet are now covered in blisters and I am quite unhappy.

Pompidou (Round II):

Today, I managed to go inside the Pompidou Museum, climbing seven stories up the exterior escalator before I reached the first gallery. The museum’s collection of modern and contemporary art dates back to the early 1900’s and is an amazing compilation of works reflecting the progression of modernism, dealing with a range of artists such as Henri Matisse, Cy Twombly and the more recent Annette Messager. However, I was most intrigued by the galleries devoted to modern architects such as Jean Prouvé. These galleries featured original drawings, models and essays created by a handful of early modern architects, revealing how modern architecture was first established. It was fitting to be viewing this exhibit in the Pompidou, built 1977, within a room that looked over IRCAM, finished in 1990.

IRCAM:

The IRCAM (Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique/Musique) building is located at the Centre Pompidou and is dedicated to the research and creation of contemporary music. Designed by Renzo Piano, Richard Rogers and Partrick and Daniel Rubin, this site was first envisioned in 1973 but was eventually completed in 1990 after the addition of the brick tower. With six of its nine stories underground, the IRCAM building is a testament to the advancement of modern architecture, allowing city planners to maximize IRCAM’s resources while minimizing it’s impact on the surrounding Marais district.

Unfortunately, I was unable to gain access into IRCAM and I am still waiting for a reply concerning a possible tour. I am also waiting for a response from the Atelier Brancusi, which is located on the opposite end of the Centre Pompidou and hosts the permanent collection of the works of Constantin Brancusi. Also designed by Rezno Piano, the structure is a replica of Brancusi’s original studio and attempts to recreate the atelier as it existed when Brancusi donated it to the French government.

Pyramid at the Louvre:

The pyramid at the Louvre is one of the most recognizable structures in Paris and has become a symbol of French modernism ever since its inauguration in 1989. Designed by Chinese-American architect I.M. Pei, the pyramid received at first harsh criticism for its incongruous, geometric forms that seemed to clash against the museum’s ornamental Napoleon III style architecture. Yet, this 21meter high steel and glass structure is now indispensable to the “Grand Louvre”, having successfully served almost twenty years as the entrance to the museum. However, unknown to most travelers, I.M. Pei’s design includes more than just this architectural icon. Besides the main pyramid, I.M. created an additional three, smaller pyramids in the Louvre’s main courtyard to emphasize balance and symmetry within his design and to add light to the subterranean Cour Napoléon, which holds shops, cafés and the official museum entrance. Lastly, there is a fourth inverted glass and steel pyramid between the Louvre and the Tuileries that is best known as the location of the denouement in Dan Brown’s novel The Da Vinci Code and provides an interesting contrast to the main pyramid. For me, I.M. Pei’s pyramid complex at the Louvre embodies the unification of modernism and more traditional architecture that is evident throughout Paris. Glass and Steel, the two materials used in the designs of the pyramids, serve not only as purely functional sources of light, but also allow for a sense of transparency that adds to the grandeur of the Louvre without diminishing the impact of the museum’s marble façade. In fact, when I asked a handful of resting tourists for their opinions on the pyramid, the most negative response I received was “unsure”, while the rest agreed it is “great”.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-10T18:27:00.000-07:00

Well, it is my first full day in Paris and I am exhausted. My apartment, located in the 15th arrondissement, is a far walk from most sites and other tourists attractions, so I scrambled my way into a crowded Métro car before heading off to today’s destinations: the Pompidou, IRCAM and Louvre. To officially jumpstart my morning, I grabbed two chocolate croissants (one for immediate consumption, the other for a late morning snack, which began two minutes later) from a local pâtisserie. I then arrived at the Louvre – camera, satchel (NOT fanny pack), notebook and map ready – and learned that like most museums in Paris, the Louvre closes on Tuesdays. Today is Tuesday. So, I hurried to the Centre Pompidou (once again via hectic Métro), only to find that it is closed as well. As a result, for today’s entry, I have only given you my write up for the Pompidou since I could observe the most from outside its closed doors.

Centre Pompidou:

The Centre Pompidou (Centre national d'art et de culture Georges Pompidou) is a prominent modern structure in Paris and serves as the country’s center for contemporary art. From my much loved Ferris wheel view, the Centre Pompidou rises above Paris’ low-lined sprawl of Haussmann-style roofs, competing in scale with the Louvre, Opéra Garnier and Notre Dame de Paris. However, the building’s colors and design are what strike me the most. The colors – bright red, yellow, green, blue and white – are all assigned to specific structural features in the cultural center (for example, yellow marks electricity cables and blue marks air ducts) and add splurges of color uncommon in the stone and white plastered Parisian buildings.

However, the design is what is most impressive, reflecting Pompidou architects Richard Rogers and Renzo Piano’s abilities to fully exploit the notion of “form follows function”. By placing typically interior features such as stairs, walkways, steel supports and piping on the museum’s exterior, Rogers and Piano succeeded in creating more space for galleries while simplifying the building’s interior design. The Centre Pompidou – full of color, shape and contrasts – seems to exemplify modernism’s redefinition of living space and how we use it. This site is crucial when touring Paris. Not only is its art collection a key attraction, but the center is also a paradigm of the synthesis between the traditional and the modern styles.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern

2007-07-09T17:22:00.000-07:00

My name is Ian and I am working in conjunction with the Philip Johnson Glass House Museum to explore international modernism, starting with France. I am a senior in high school traveling abroad and will be staying in France for most of July 2007. Art History has always been an interest to me, but it was not until after I studied abroad for four months during my sophomore year that I began to focus on modern art and architecture. My interest in languages also draws me to France, but, as I have discovered, French is a formidable opponent.

Besides Paris and the Parisian suburbs, I will be traveling to Lyon and Nimes to document numerous sites on this blog, hoping to inform you of the vast and eclectic response to modernism that is evident in almost any country around the world. The following modern structures are vestiges of the social and political events that transformed the twentieth century, and therefore, I believe, should become just as important to the international traveler as are other remnants from the more distant past.

While in Paris, I recommend that you manage to see the city from above, be it through a monument, a blimp or, my favorite, the Ferris wheel in the Tuileries (summer time only). The view, which is already incredible, will give you a better sense of the lay out of Paris and how these modern sites interact with their surroundings. I also highly recommend becoming acquainted with the Métro – it saves time, money and your soon to be sore feet.

Enjoy!

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern