Bellagio and random sketches from Moscow

I spent time in a unit where the tutor (who happened to be a very famous architect) tried to push into a new way of thinking about how to make spaces and how to see a particular site. Even though I passed the course I never really felt right about the unit’s work and I told my tutor that I didn’t think what we were doing was a good way to do architecture! I said to him a lot of it seemed random to me and I could easily use the same methadology to ‘create a form’ by using data taken from how much bread was eaten by the population of the town! He took it quite well!

Anyway, this is one panel from an detailed investigation of the city of Bellagio in Italy. I admit I do like the form but I’m not sure of it’s architectural value. Maybe I’m being too harsh, I don’t know anymore.

Something a bit more interesting perhaps, some sketches from my note book. These were carried out very quickly when I was in Moscow. I tried to take one glance and put down what I thought I saw so I only got flashes of what was in front of me.

 

 

2 Photos and some drawings

I found these two photographs today taken on my trip to Moscow. Unfortunately I can’t remember what these buildings were used for but I thought they looked really out of the ordinary so I snapped them.

Also scanned 2 pages from my sketch book that I used during my time studying architecture. Looking back at them now just makes me wonder what on earth was going through my head at that time!

I eventually built the chair which can be seen here:
http://spektreman.blogspot.com/2010/06/two-images-from-my-old-architecture.html

I just remembered, when I did my demonstration by rocking on the chair to show how the thing moves I ended up hitting one of my examinars on the head with that weight stuck to that long rod!! I still passed thankfully!

Adventures abroad

Two photos taken on a trip to Russia back in 2001. (Not sure where the 3rd is from. I think Spain)

This was a trip that I was looking forward to for many years having grown up hearing and reading about Russia, it’s history, it’s contribution to art, film and of course music! Rimsky Korsakov and Tchaikovsky were my particular favourites. I also remember watching Russian cartoons when I was a child and they were really completely different to anything you see in the West.

So this was brilliant, how can it go wrong? Well, I don’t know, it just was not what I was expecting I guess. Funnily enough take any Bond film and that will give you an idea of what Moscow was like. I found it cold and a little bit unwelcoming. It’s a pity because apparently I have something in my background from that region (Cossack hertiage maybe), or so I’m told. On the plus side I did go to St. Petersburg to see the Kirov Ballet perform Swan Lake which was ace.

Trip to Paris back in 95 or 6! I loved it for so many reasons. It’s just a beautiful city. I spent some time in a workshop run by an American architect who was trying to document the old areas in Menilmontant and that’s were the photo is from.

That statue below was taken in Père Lachaise cemetery.

The rest were taken in the Netherlands in Groningen again, and I think one in Rotterdam. The top left one is by Rem Koolhaas, I believe!

House in Russia

In 2007 I was asked by a landscape architect to help with a simple landscape proposal for a house in Russia, situated in forest just outside of Moscow designed by Zaha Hadid Architects. There were other people bidding for the job and we only had a few days to come up with a quick concept.

The client wanted to live there with his daughter. Having recently seen the film Pans Labyrinth, which was also situated in a think forest, I decided to create a secret garden for young girl that is separated from the rest of the grounds so she play there with her friends. The planting around that area would create a visual shield and a small river cut that area off from the rest of the house giving her a sanctuary space.The landscape architect has ideas about what plants to use.

The idea of adding a river was because I wanted it to appear as though it was cutting into the building and emerging on the other side. A swimming pool inside the house existed on the same axis and wanted that to form a virtual link to this river. There were lookout points, and paths that stretch across the site and various other bits and pieces that created links with views and created tension in various parts of the site.

The scheme was accepted by the client and the design was handed over to the landscape design company to develop with ZHA. As far as I know, the current design being built is has not changed much from the basic sketch above.

3 images from a rough model I worked on at the time. I was carving up the landscape to insert the river and the paths. (The original building model was created by ZHA)

Trips abroad

 
These are some photographs taken during some of trips abroad. The first two were taken in Japan. That castle was used in the Kurasawa film ‘Kagemusha’, and the other was in Nagoya.

The last image was taken in Paris, Menilmontant area. The time I was there the French Government was demolishing a lot of old buildings, many of which were full of history as this was the area normally occupied by artists.

The last one taken in Moscow in 2001.