Archinect - News

The politics behind China's ban on "weird" architecture

2016-03-01T19:38:00-05:00

...eye-catching edifices began as China’s way of announcing its arrival as a powerful player on the world stage. Now, however, the Chinese government has changed course: It has officially declared this to be “weird” architecture that must be stopped. Chinese leaders have turned their backs on these structures, a shift that underscores China’s new conception of itself and its ambitions for the future [...]

"But the government’s mandate explicitly addresses both the function and form of new buildings, and the planning imperative seems designed to go beyond improving the quality of life. The end of “weird” architecture ties in to the government’s recent efforts to champion frugality, revive traditional values, and keep foreign ideas at bay—priorities that have assumed even greater importance in the midst of China’s ongoing corruption crackdown and fears of an economic slowdown."

For more on China's turbulent relationship with contemporary architecture, check out these links:

Koolhaas rewrites script with blockbuster buildings

2012-10-03T12:54:00-04:00

Scriptwriting also taught him something about architecture. "If you write a script, you try to stitch episodes together so that, at the end, you have a sort of suspense to a conclusion or a climax," he says. "Architecture is very similar: You create a series of spatial moments and find a way to relate them to each other with the same purpose. An architect writes scripts also, but for people, not for actors."

CNN's "Great Buildings" series asks famous architects about their favorite self-designed projects. Today they feature Rem.

Architect Rem Koolhaas and the Next World Wonder

2012-07-16T13:16:00-04:00

The building has two colossal, uneven leaning towers (the highest rises 768 feet) that are conjoined at the top by an enormous angular bridge. Conservative estimates put the cost at nearly $900 million; Koolhaas, for his part, says he has “no idea” of the price. What is certain is that the CCTV building now dominates the skyline of Beijing, just as it dominates the airwaves of the country.

Attached are some photos of the CCTV building that I recently took while in Beijing.

CCTV 2012 LOW RESOLUTION ROUGH CUT by Tomas Koolhaas

2012-05-29T22:03:00-04:00

Low resolution rough cut of footage I shot at the CCTV building in Beijing in Feb 2012. This footage is part of a documentary I am making about my father Rem Koolhaas.

OMA-designed CCTV Headquarters in Beijing completed

2012-05-16T13:40:00-04:00

It is a very big day for Rem Koolhaas and the entire OMA team, as their iconic CCTV building in Beijing—OMA's largest project so far—is being officially completed today.

↑ CCTV/OMA, photographed by Iwan Baan

Here is the official release we just received from OMA:

Today OMA participated in the official construction completion ceremony for the China Central Television (CCTV) Headquarters in Beijing, which will start to be used later this year. Designed by OMA as a reinvention of the skyscraper as a loop, construction on the building began in 2004. At approximately 473, 000m2, CCTV – accommodating TV studios, offices, broadcasting and production facilities – is OMA’s largest ever project and its first major building in China.

↑ CCTV/OMA, photographed by Iwan Baan

CCTV defies the skyscraper’s typical quest for ultimate height. Rising from a common platform, two towers lean towards each other and eventually merge in a perpendicular, 75-metre cantilever. Th...

Lego Architecture with Rem Koolhaas

2012-05-02T05:08:00-04:00

How to confirm one's role as a starchitect? Appear in the Simpsons. In its last episode the Simpsons featured a split-second of Rem Koolhaas/CCTV. The architect, not seen sporting any Prada though, is instructing, eyes closed, a group of nine pupils. Next to him, a vegan buffet and 'Junior TED Talks' - anyone recognizing Bjarke Ingels up there?

The scene: Rem Koolhaas is working - on a cruise ship notabene - as an instructor - probably in iconographic buildings - in KIDZONE ELITE. The ship, just like CCTV, is an emblem of closure. The architect, so can be seen in the above image, has a half-bald hairstyle and is holding a couple of lego-bricks in his left hand while seeming to fix something to the back of the building. A CCTV made out of lego-bricks is also structurally different than the original. Lisa seems to have her eyes fixed on the back of the architects' head. The appearance of Rem Koolhaas is of no further importance for the rest of the storyline of this episode.

As s...