Questo che vedete qui sotto è l’interno di un ufficio a Tokyo, opera dello studio di progettazione Nendo:

Quando il leziosismo prende il sopravvento (”uuuh, che figata gli archi al contrario…gajàrdo!“) succede che un elemento progettuale altrove funzionale (esempio: le paratie delle imbarcazioni, che non solo le dividono in ambienti, ma servono innanzitutto per irrigidire la struttura dello scafo.) viene trasposto in un contesto completamente avulso, con il risultato che al “segno stilistico” (bello quanto vi pare, per carità.) si aggiunge purtroppo anche la beffa nei confronti dell’utente ultimo dell’architettura medesima (ricordiamo alla gentile clientela che l’architettura è un’arte-scienza dedita in primo luogo al miglioramento dell’esistenza abitativa dell’uomo. Insomma: dev’essere bella, sì, ma pure comoda.).

E tanti cari tanti saluti all’accessibilità e all’universal design.

(via dezeen)

It seems dissing Italy has become a favourite sport worldwide.

Newest kid joining in the dissing game is The Guardian’s John Hooper, with an article comparing Italy to Spain, most of which is trite news but, sadly, also so hurtingly truthful.

I won’t go into politics et al as that’s the agreeable part of the article (yes our politicians are old. Very. Yes, Festival di Sanremo is boring. Tell me something I don’t know.), but since this blog is on architecture I feel the urge to point out something I disagree with.

Hooper claims the only piece of contemporary architecture in Rome is Richard Meier’s Ara Pacis museum. It’s true there isn’t much noteworthy contemporary architecture over here, but I’m surprised he forgot to mention Renzo Piano’s Auditorium - oh, right, that one’s been designed by an Italian, so it probably doesn’t count. Also, he fails to understand tourists coming to Rome don’t travel to see Richard Meier’s white concrete and glass box, but what’s inside it, i.e. the real Ara Pacis (yes - it’s not the box that’s called Ara Pacis, but its content. Surprise!), which, incidentally, dates back to some 2000 years ago.

Italy in general, and Rome in particular, is an old (aka “ancient”) place, which doesn’t necessarily mean decrepit to the point it has to be tore down by bombs or any other available means in order to make room for new, shiny stuff that glitters - thank God this is not Las Vegas. Most of the times that means it’s a place that retains history in the form of art and architecture. Some of it has been there for centuries, twenty of them (that’s two thousand years, again) if you think of Colosseum. I’m not quite sure which contemporary architecture masterpieces will be able to claim the same in twenty years’ time, let alone in two thousands - especially since I know some of them are already leaking just three years after they’ve been completed.

Being old is not always a bad thing.

p.s.: as for the “the Italian language has remained unaffected by recent changes in the status of women (…) so a female lawyer, for example, is still an ‘avvocato’” bit, I must say I’m thankful for that, as I’d be embarrassed if people started calling me an “architetta“.

(image via The Guardian)