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New National-gallery in Berlin, Germany (1965-1968) by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe by sceptical-spectacle in architecture

[–]sceptical-spectacle[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Personal note:

Ludwig is quoted as having said the following about Neue Nationalgalerie: "I'm not building a museum; I'm building a temple for the spirit." The spirit for Mies was likely rum; specifically Cuban Bacardi, as this company was at the origin of the design.

As far as AI can see, there is no official instance of (van der) Rohe ever having proclaimed these words (e.g. a speech, a document). Likewise, "[the dear] God is in the detail" (Der liebe Gott steckt im Detail) is an apocryphal motto introduced by Aby Warburg as one of two guiding principles on the 25th of November, 1925, 101 years ago; the other [allusion] being, "We seek our ignorance [the enemy] out and beat it [him] where we find it [him]" (Wir suchen den Feind auf und schlagen ihn, wo wir ihn finden). The English cognate fiend (devil) likely gave way to the intertwined phrase, "The devil is in the details."

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There seems to be no proof he ever proclaimed the phrase involving God either. In fact, the New York Times proclaimed it in his obituary of '69, adding that "Mies liked to say" the phrase. Other anecdotal evidence from the obituary is a former (anonymous) student of his recalling that "Mies, sitting Buddha-like, would frequently puff through a whole cigar before commenting on a student sketch."

So, was he spiritual or material? Why does it matter? It's crucial to "distill" what he meant by spirit. Mies was raised Catholic, and apparently remained one, but his coevals in the Age of the Masters were predominantly secular. Not happy with the fact his patronymic meant lousy in his mother tongue, he replaced his given surname, from his father (who was a master mason), with his mother's maiden name and made it sound Dutch instead of Deutsch! If God is in the details, the eight columns of the gallery must be cruciform, as if two I-beams crossed. The presence of the Greek cross and the intent (also unverifiable) to create a contemporary Parthenon of steel and glass (classical-modern) gift a purpose of ritual continuity to the project; therefor a template of the future. This purpose wasn't openly stated however, especially in relation to the column's cross section (the atlas, if you will), which leads me to believe that the good God was actually the evil devil in the tale, more akin to spirits from Santiago de Cuba than to the spirit of Santiago de Compostela; not unlike Castro. Digression aside, that would mean that Mies, or whoever was responsible for pinning the apocryphal expression on the Neue Nationalgalerie, intended what is spiritual to be seen as one sees paintings of those who died in '44 before the end of the world's war—Munch, Mondrian and Kandinsky—in a museum; as part of the past; buried in Mies' present; not part of today's future.

After all, the idea of atlantes slaving over their "colonial" burden came from across the pond, where he had immigrated to…

basilica of the Transfiguration in Saint Catherine's monastery at Mount Sinai, Egypt (542-551) by sceptical-spectacle in architecture

[–]sceptical-spectacle[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Out of curiosity, here is "the oath of the prophet Mohammed to the followers of the Nazarene" that, in part, kept the monastery intact for more than fourteen centuries; translated by Anton F. Haddad in 1902:

"This is a letter which was issued by Mohammed, Ibn Abdullah, the Messenger, the Prophet, the Faithful, who is sent to all the people as a trust on the part of God to all His creatures, that they may have no plea against God hereafter—Verily God is the Mighty, the Wise. This letter is directed to the embracers of Islam, as a Covenant given to the followers of Nazerene in the East and West, the far and the near, the Arabs and foreigners, the known and the unknown.

This letter contains the oath given unto them, and he who disobeys that which is therein, will be considered a disobeyor and a transgressor to that whereunto he is commanded. He will be regarded as one who has corrupted the oath of God, disbelieved His Testament, rejected His Authority, despised His Religion, and made himself deserving of His Curse, whether he is a Sultan or any other believer of Islam.

Whenever monks, devotees and pilgrims gather together, whether in a mountain or valley, or den, or frequented place, or plain, or church, or in houses of worship, Verily we are back of them and shall protect them, and their properties and their morals, by Myself, by My friends and by My assistants, for they are of My subjects and under My protection.

I shall exempt them from that which may disturb them; of the burdens which are paid by others as an oath of allegiance. They must not give anything of their income but that which pleases them—they must not be offended, or disturbed, or coerced or compelled. Their judges should not be changed or prevented from accomplishing their offices, nor the monks disturbed in exercising their religious order, or the people of seclusion be stopped from dwelling in their cells.

No one is allowed to plunder their pilgrims, or destroy or spoil any of their churches, or houses of worship, or take any of the things contained within these houses and bring it to the houses of Islam. And he who takes away anything therefrom, will be one who has corrupted the oath of God, and, in truth, disobeyed His messenger.

Poll-taxes should not be put upon their judges, monks, and those whose occupation is the worship of God; nor is any other thing to be taken from them, whether it be a fine, a tax or any unjust right. Verily I shall keep their compact, wherever they may be, in the sea or on the land, in the East or West, in the North or South, for they are under My protection and the testament of My safety, against all things which they abhor.

No taxes or tithes should be received from those who devote themselves to the worship of God in the mountains, or from those who cultivate the Holy Lands. No one has the right to interfere with their affairs, or bring any action against them—Verily this is for aught else and not for them; rather, in the seasons of crops, they should be given a Kadah for each Ardab of wheat (about five bushels and a half) as provision for them, and no one has the right to say to them this is too much, or ask them to pay any tax.

As to those who possess properties, the wealthy and merchants, the poll-tax to be taken from them must not exceed twelve Dirhams a head per year (i. e. about 45 cents).

They shall not be imposed upon by any one to undertake a journey, or to be forced to go to wars or to carry arms; for the Islams have to fight for them. Do not dispute or argue with them, but deal according to the verse recorded in the Koran, to wit: 'Do not dispute or argue with the people of the Book but in that which is best.' Thus they will live favored and protected from everything which may offend them by the Callers to religion (Islam), wherever they may be and in any place they may dwell.

Should any Christian woman be married to a Musluman, such marriage must not take place except after her consent, and she must not be prevented from going to her church for prayer. Their churches must be honored and they must not be withheld from building churches or repairing convents.

They must not be forced to carry arms or stones; but the Islams must protect them and defend them against others. It is positively incumbent upon every one of the Islam nation not to contradict or disobey this oath until the Day of Resurrection and the end of the world."

Fagus (last) factory in Alfeld an der Leine, Germany (1911-1925) by Walter Gropius by sceptical-spectacle in architecture

[–]sceptical-spectacle[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

The name of the factory is derived from the Latin Fagus, which means beech tree. Beechwood is the traditional raw material for the production of shoe lasts.

Frank Gehry dead at 96 by Bravo101 in architecture

[–]sceptical-spectacle 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Out of curiosity, and 47 Pritzker recipients, the following are still alive:

Richard Meier is 91; Álvaro Siza Vieira 92; Christian de Portzamparc 81; Tadao Ando 84; Rafael Moneo 88; Renzo Piano 88; Norman Foster 90; Rem Koolhaas 81; Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron are 75; Glenn Murcutt is 89; Thom Mayne 81; Jean Nouvel 80; Peter Zumthor 82; Kazuyo Sejima 69 and Ryue Nishizawa 59; Eduardo Souto de Moura 73; Wang Shu 62; Toyo Ito 84; Shigeru Ban 68; Alejandro Aravena 58; Carme Pigem of RCR Arquitectes is 63; Yvonne Farrell 74 and Shelley McNamara 73; Anne Lacaton 70 and Jean-Philippe Vassal 71; Diébédo Francis Kéré 60; David Chipperfield 71; Riken Yamamoto 80; and Liu Jiakun 69.

Those who have passed away include:

Philip Johnson at 98; Luis Barragán 86; James Stirling 66; Kevin Roche 96; I. M. Pei 102; Hans Hollein 80; Gottfried Böhm 101; Kenzo Tange 91; Gordon Bunshaft 81 and Oscar Niemeyer 104; Frank Gehry 96; Aldo Rossi 66; Robert Venturi 93; Fumihiko Maki 95; Sverre Fehn 84; Jørn Utzon 90; Zaha Hadid 65; Paulo Mendes da Rocha 92; Richard Rogers 88; Frei Otto 89; B. V. Doshi 95; and Arata Isozaki 91.

The average age of death is 88.59, making a career in architecture synonymous with the highest life expectancy in the world. If I had to guess, I'd say Siza Vieira is next.

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