Peter Zumthor's first completed building in the UK opens this Friday, July 1: the 2011 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion. The concept for this year’s Pavilion is the hortus conclusus, a contemplative room, a garden within a garden. One enters the building from the lawn and begins the transition into the central garden, a place abstracted from the world of noise and traffic and the smells of London – an interior space within which to sit, to walk, to observe the flowers. — bustler.net
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as always, there's only one way to really find out how this feels - another london summer trip is in order.
i wonder if they will control the number of ppl in at any one time. it might lose the serenity aspect if too crowded?
having not seen this in person, all I can say is "meh"
I guess it's one of those "acquired tastes" that I don't have. Having visited a couple of his buildings, all I can say is Zumthor is the most overrated starchitect of his generation.
classical?
Having not seen any of his work in person, and not being exposed to his work whilst I was in school, I shall be going to see this on the weekend with an open mind. I'm quite looking forward to it, though the previous years of pavilions have been disappointing with perhaps only the SAANA scheme being of interest.
I like the overall op-ed meaning of this work. Zumthor clearly frames the ubiquitous circulation of 'back to nature and harmony with the man made' discussion. If it was not generated by him and the Serpentine, it would be yet another pictorial blog feature, only.
There is also this, which I favor for the said discussion...
he writes, talks and teaches about how he builds, thats why he is great
yes, and in this project what you are saying done really 'nicely.' this piece is an op-ed. an architectural opinion piece, architect's message. this particular one is a captivating positivist approach and also a resistive and suggestive against the concrete urbanization (the capsulated composition, purely spatial capture of the semi open interiors and higly manmade framing of nature, a definite nod to urbanization and an emotional claustrophobia it imposes.) he uses many references, beautifying tools and rules of architecture, masterfully of course. this is a very oriental space as well. being in england, it is very interesting that way. very chinese, as i imagine.
so, that is this year's "serpentine" and it will be recorded pretty much like that and that's how it works every year. it supplies content to a particular discourses within architecture and their media presence. it is a big seller and big spectacle. it is a powerful show that has to do with the "look" of architecture. this look then, directly or not, distributed to all the way down to classrooms of architecture schools. it influences building material manufacturing (where the money is,) all the way down to new formica samples reps brings for designers' libraries and paint counters at home depot. it sounds very fashion business like assembly line but true. its reach and its influential value is huge.
the op-eds like these count big time.
it's the atrium & garden in a roman house.
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