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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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 Posted: Wed Mar 18, 2009 9:30 am Post subject: Looking for creative routines in landscaping |
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I write just to say hasta la vista because I feel the dialogue in forum became a Speaking Corner jaja and this is not very democratic, and disturb other interesting participations. It is true than there is a little bit of interest (i.e. publicity in the web) and than some people/organisations contact me via “alternative forum”(my email) but this excludes bring these conversations here. One, two occasions is ok but no more. So if real and active participation do not appears just let me share some ideas more about standardised architecture tools.
Many thanks to architecture Week staff and forum participants for help launch to discussion the idea of big scale sustainable landscaping.
Looking for creative routines in landscaping:
What is better, discover new sensations creating on real time new architectural projects (Gaudí changed their projects on real time because them were more artistic) or representing them before via computers/others? or both? A rich perspective of human landscape always consider all possibilities for choose depending the circumstances. The choice is always limited, try choose between all the existing models of a spoon a you will see is impossible know how many are, so may be what is really interesting is choice freely and enjoying it. Like I suggested in a previous reply (4th February), “standardism” is only a tool, “What can be standardised in architecture and what not? If you think that nature consists in a continous recombination of elements, you can choose the level you want standarize if you have the technology and know how”
Then which are the limits of landscape architectural daily routine, how manage the old and new together, which framework of reference is used in the city/suburbia/village?
For answer this I´d like argue than individual and collective liberty is irrenunciable, imprevisible… and unmensurable?, remember than in science only exist theories…
or not?
so, because the question is a matter of personal attitudes (framework?) and experiences, maybe the first answer is open to dialog. There are two interesting initiatives in architecture for to dynamize public dialog:
The first is the Ecostatuto of Gubbio, Italy (1990-1996, architect Massimo Bastiani, Gubbio City Council, in Ecourbanism. Sustainable Human Settlements:60 case studies, p.164, Miguel Ruano, Ed. Gustavo Gili, Barcelona 2005), I copy “Gubbio has recently refurbished the by-law model as an instrument for urban planning which, by means of participation and involvement, reflects the residents´s interests and concerns while at the same time ensuring its application as an agreed (not imposed) framework of reference for urban development”.
The second is the Spanish administrative figure called fomento (something like promotion) used i.e. for develop renewable energies without disturb other energy sources, so people can freely and quietly choose between different alternatives and big changes are getting in form of pleasant debates and initiatives.
Coming back to sustainable architecture tools I´d like comment some ideas about big scale creativity. Once the basic needs are meted in a society productivity became secondary for some products and fashion appear, like everybody must not think too much in elemental commodities the attention is focused more on aesthetic: i.e. few years ago Benetton was first global clothes company thanks may be to two aspects, a hyper-automated and versatile factory following Japanese principles of “just in time” and some publicity campaigns which played dangerously with emotions. But Zara, H&M, Mango and others moved Benetton not via productivity but via fashion (the two first produces 20.000 new designs each year without hyper-automated factories) and focusing on the emotional aspect of wear design clothes at popular prices (an idea for TV publicists, between this an violent videogames for children which global society are we building?).
In addition comment than Japanese tried copy Italian system of clothes production (a high competence between 300 companies mixing art & technology) but they were enable maybe because creativity can be not promoted via conventional ways inside their society, and the same could be said respect the Chinese competence for Zara and the others companies, what is more the prestige of European clothes design has been enhanced; probably in next future these Oriental societies an others will look for new ways, the creativity like consumers is high like shows the younger Japanese urban tribes http://asiapacifico.bcn.cl/en/articles/japanese-urban-tribes-oshare . Then productivity itself is not necessary the answer in commodity-satisfied societies, even for growth.
The implications of this in architecture was already suggested, i.e. http://www.hoteles-silken.com/HPAM/index.php (I forgot mentioned the Moscow underground like example of more massive daily use of architecture and crafts http://engl.- abuse alert -/).
Luxe for everybody? It means than architectural technology is being moved to a second place in architectural design? Maybe the standardised commodities are loosing value in over consume societies and the unique important now respect them is manage services of use related with them, property begins to be secondary (like I suggested, handy, cars, http://www.betterplace.com/ etc )
A new form of communism? Who knows, but the ownerships of Betterplace sure celebrates new contracts with champagne, some hippies changed into yuppies and probably some ecological anti system citizens will be managers of eco multinationals soon thanks to their experience, like advanced social activists became managers of worldwide NGO and volunteer net, assistance groups and social consultants. May be some people continue helping in shantytowns worldwide learning something new, I mean Marx wrote their theories in much better contexts (and living conditions were important), today world economic media class and neo populism political parties in developed countries do not want really accept the bigger urban challenge of the history, but the communication is open (i.e. http://www.anf.org.br/ )
But is sure communism will not appear in Spain, Franco lost the battle of “authoritarism” but won the war of conservadurism “fomentando” the general property of houses for Spaniards, so maybe you can see many “modern” initiatives on my country but if an art tendency or performance put in doubt this status quo will not be too much supported, and is the same in others fields (try arrive more than 0.7% of disinterested AID and you will see the canines). But this Spanish insurance life begins to be mortal in a growing dessert country after pay too much policy. Sancho Panza is riding Rocinante but who is more mad, the mad itself or that than follows the mad? Fortunately no others industrial countries followed the model (Portugal, France, Italia, Croatia, Greece, Turquey, etc) because their speed to change landscape is bigger. During 2008 spanish construction developers moved faster and began build thousands of residential houses in East Europe because migrant workers got savings during the Spanish boom working in construction, but now is beginning to stop too. The other way out consisted in develop resorts in Latin American coasts and other places, following another 40 years of uninterrupted business before collapse other places.
But where the illness is more serious usually is where the remedy try knock the door before:
First, in this point is where international architectural god practices must be actively exchanged. Like I think I commented the highway A-7 advances near the coast in all the Spanish Mediterranean coast except the province of Girona in Catalonia, and is the unique big area where the coastal landscape still remains very attractive; that is way in Monteverde (Costa Rica) people do not want loose their sand road, and why in many eco resorts do not want golf, tennis, etc, an why in some areas do not want big hotels or big ports.
So if you want keep some place make access difficult, without doubt it, because standardised and predator (like a bus driver told me once when I was working like tourist guide) is lazy and wants everything near of the hand. Is better continue in this way till tourism became responsible (i.e. http://www.icrtourism.org/ there are many initiatives now, including that about eco tourism; note if a country like Costa Rica lives from eco tourism they will try to keep the country intact for them and their descendents, and the probability of manage better climate changes will be bigger, anyway in case of severe climate changes everybody will tend to go to the mountains even in the tropics, but if trying avoid a desertification a galciation arrives from European Gulfstream the sandwich can be tremendous because then mountains will be much less habitable, anyway if you consider these hypothesis absolutely absurd welcome to XXI century club).
Even the mochileros – backpackers are many times standardised, i.e. a worldwide specialist told me than Lonely Planet guides tends to include hostels where some type of yoghurts and other commodities are served, and in general Tourist Guides tends to propose standardised routes, plans and shops inside the cities and villages, but never explores the standardised suburbia.
In the other hand redesign Spanish coast (and Llley Project focuses too in this point, I forgot comment than you will know the meaning of this word if you spell it singing flamenco at same time, is a tribute to andalusian humour and art) can proportion numerous ideas for the biggest tourism challenge of the next years, I mean design real –I underline this – eco resorts in the projected Chinese (and Indian and SEAsian?) mangle coast after the Indonesian tsunami experiences.
Although if they follow developing their furniture industry, the biggest of the world, trough illegal exploitation of Borneo jungles for get construction boars for everybody, or destroying a forest for get some teka? trees for everybody too, begin all the area to prepare the bill of growing typhoons. Why not develop sustainable tropical architecture, http://www.inta2009.arch.ku.ac.th/?page_id=11, developing bamboo even for infrastructures http://viterbi.usc.edu/news/news/2007/astani-department-engineer.htm , and avoiding exchanging materials with prudence (a tree specialized insect caused some dead in Venezuela years ago when the wood was moved for build in other areas of the country, a warning for import exotic products both for housing or adapt gardening for save energy or climate change reasons, what is more plagues like that of tiger mosquito http://whatsyourecotype.blogspot.com/2007/09/tiger-mosquitoes-tour-italia.html ).
Coming back to urban fashion, which are the limits of beauty you can enjoy daily? In my case I suffer the first hours each time I travel to Italy. Is not a Stendhal syndrome http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stendhal_syndrome , the beauty attracts to me so I begin to see architectural details or shop products an after two hours I am tired to see, I like see beauty with more transition between point an point because I love sceneries but not collapsed sceneries. In addition the roman-renascentist style is so much homogeneous pass sharply to modernity, with few exceptions like some oriental atmospheres in Venice and others medieval maritime republics, or northern filo - german styles. I learn see diverse beauty without be tired when I look nature. And it is true than in this case Spanish nature is better for landscapers because still in many areas there are not buildings or human presence. So final conclusion is that without doubt the real beauty, that you can see with passion without be tired both in urban and countryside areas, are Italian women (in Spanish we call women “monuments”, the architecture is just only buildings).
It is curious see how in France new urban codes like Loubotin´s shoes are been launching recovering some old traditions like fan with new aspect.
Coming back to stone daily routine, which applications can be waited from computers for manage architectural beauty? That you can wait for represent something, via computers or others.
I.e. http://www.advancedarchitecturecontest.org/ I copy,
“Self-sufficient Housing:
THE SELF-FAB HOUSE
The Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia is issuing an international summons to architects, students and designers from around the world to invite proposals for the construction of self-sufficient dwellings, in which the emphasis will be on exploring people’s capacity to construct their own homes, especially through the use of digital technologies.
The IAAC is now proposing to carry out an investigation of projects at the global level with a view to fomenting sustainable development and, at the leading edge, the self-sufficiency of the houses we live in; this research will be addressed in terms of environmental, economic and social considerations.
On this occasion the competition aims to stimulate specific investigations into construction techniques and processes that will encourage individuals all over the world to build houses with the means available locally. We are interested, then, in everything from the intelligent application of traditional techniques to advanced digital processes in which digital fabrication entails the use of computers not only as design tools but also as tools for self-production.
The objective is to design, in any part of the world, a single dwelling or a residential building in which there is specific development of innovative construction proposals in relation to the use of new materials, the integration of energy systems in the construction, the insertion of the architecture in the landscape, or any other strategy that serves to enhance self-sufficiency.”
An interesting example for design virtual building factories is http://www.automation.siemens.com/_en/simatic/automation-designer/produkte/digitale_fabrik.htm
David Sifry, founder of Technorati, suggested than in future you could produce the goods you need, did you heard something about tele-building or tele-tunning? Can be interesting for develop domotic, or in extreme circumstances like emergencies
(in Spanish http://www.elpais.com/articulo/portada/David/Sifry/fundador/Technorati/soy/editor/siglo/XXI/elpcibpor/20060601elpcibpor_1/Tes, it is curious heard how the first language for blogs is japanese, the urban tribes are preparing new aesthetics?)
Few years ago Tom Hanks presented a TV series about daily life of USA spatial projects, after the movie Apollo 13. In the middle of technology many human routine details were introduced, so the important was not the errors – continuous - but the will for solve them. So representation of machines for fabricate new universes can be great if they are on Earth, cities each time more live in a ignorant-I underline this –burble and the risk of develop the argument of Network movie, the risk of be living in a screen is great (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074958/ ). Anyway today the opposing party to the unconscious world economic media class is nature, so is interesting learn this case management called sustainability. Nature is both fix and moving, so why not adapt us too?.
When Chandler draw the organization charts of USA railways companies in XIX century the result was similar to a tree. From then management books shows than everything is flexible, than information flows through the tree…and than the tree can be represented growing/adapting economical circumstances like a fractal design? Each organisation has it´s own fractal design?. For me not, dominate nature do not means destroy it and do not means too imitate it, we are not trains.
Like I commented some books has titles like “Project with nature” and so, but how many are called Project/Design with animals, with trees, with birds, with insects, with rocks, etc?
This is a new field for explore, we are many millenniums late, I we change is a splendid present or our descendent (like learn to ageing in modern societies stopping progressively our job activity but not sharply, o learning maneuver the increasing capability of machines, like Marvel heroes said, you know new superpowers requires new responsibilities, I see ourselves like children that are learning to run, many times it looks we are going to crash with a column but finally in the last minute-better than second- we change the direction)
Thera are some indirect sources for develop urban/countryside landscape design creativity about fauna&flora behaviour, laboratories http://www.the-aps.org/pa/action/exercise/book.pdf , http://www.cis.upenn.edu/~matuszek/cit594-2002/Slides/animals-design.ppt , zoos (i.e. see list of Countdown2010), open air experiments, cattle flows (http://www.wisc.edu/dysci/uwex/mgmt/pubs/DesigningFacilities.html
In a previous article I discussed Expansion Alternatives in a general way. I mentioned that facilities should be designed to provide cow comfort, worker comfort and labor efficiency. I mentioned that it is very important to check building plans to insure they correctly support the ‘6-flows’: animal flow, people flow, equipment flow, feed flow, manure flow and air flow. In this article I’ll explore some of the considerations relating to these issue), imitating some natural processes (http://www.asknature.org/) I developed some of the ideas about flexible architecture thanks to the USA-Canadian firm Don & Donna Brevitt Architects/Engineers Associated (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_Frog ), and considering inside the architectural process http://www.sustainablebuild.co.uk/DesigningWithNature.html
Representing through machines are only downsize the vision world represented trough architecture?
Who knows, in my case are useless for talk about extreme landscaping (I only talked about this in the file attached on 11th February called Reflections about the architecture of the world).
It is possible not only represent architecture but make architecture itself transparent. Once I was in a tourism bus in Amsterdam and the guide told due to beliefs the interiors of some houses could be seen from the street for show purity, and many rooms were visible, corridors and even bathroom (fortunately empty); in the other extreme only one room was visible in the Red Quarter. The project of Toyo Ito and Andrea Banzi includes a transparent facade in an astonishing interactivity with the rest of public spaces http://www.danda.be/reviews/forum_by_toyo_ito_and_andrea_branzi/ increasing the possibilities of many buildings which used glass for get the less effect, most if eco designed architextiles are used (note than in “Shelter” book –1973 - a continuous LCA applied to architecture I explicitly suggested).
Transparent architecture do not implies necessarily leave the fearful architecture. The Mongolian yurta has not keys so everybody can enter continuously, but practically nobody went to conquest nomad tents of a fierce nation situated far away of many places and with a difficult weather. Once a old Spanish man told me than in his village when he made like children something bad all the people was police.
Now the architecture of the world has some time for think in future after crisis, or better how manage this crisis time for leave with same changes respect entrance. Time is not ours, even if we consider it gold: I remember the big watch I saw in Pompidou Centre in Paris, waiting for this century, few after the cero hurricanes devastated French forests, and storms damaged the Chinese New Year before their Olympic celebration, so this is a golden time for avoid necessity justifies madness.
My country must reaction respect our mad construction model, we have good building/ architects, in fact recently MOMA dedicated a seminar to them http://artipedia.org/artsnews/exhibitions/2007/01/25/new-architecture-in-spain/ but I hope soon other will be organised for city planners/architects. If not next assault will be again the coasts and the north (soil has been approved for 3 million new houses, http://www.greenpeace.org/espana/campaigns/costas/destrucci-n-a-toda-costa , http://colabora2.greenpeace.es/costas/ ). In Ronda area nobody crossed the Sierra Bermeja in 1500 years, the first were the phenicians, in fact due Liban cedars they were the first forest rangers in history, and their descendants from Cartago leades by Annibaldo not doubt in cross the Alps with elephants. And after romans controlled the Mediterranean sea but few mines of importance were found in the Sierra. The sea became dangerous after them for many centuries, and the industrial wave injured part of the forest in the area for produce metal for Navy, Gibraltar was near; after, the romanticism of XIX, after the Civil War of 1936 from which the city never recovered, and now the services way, tourism, which wants go to interior climbing water, dams, forest, landscape, cheaper prices, security, golf camps, etc, passing all the Mediterranean litoral Spanish range mountains once the coast is collapsed. Thanks to the crisis and the fact than Sierra Bermeja is toxic for humans (peridotites, volcanic rocks) the territory keeps safer, including migratory birds and the best forest of Spain, aprox. 60 X 30 kilometres). A new payment highway is projected for cross Sierra Bermeja. People thinks this rock are insecure because has been falling for 30 years but it is just opposite, are so stable that illegally were dynamited during Franco era (1974), in fact a free highway was projected in the side of mountain but the minister finally arbitrary refused, the present project goes by the worst environmental way, the Guadalmina river just for avoid as much as possible the rocks. Other alternatives are possible (Llley project). If you see the importance of the area for stop desertification in Andalusia, migratory birds and help change landscape in the coast too, you can see how strategic is the area both in Europe and Africa. There are some studies about flow of biodiversity (and indirectly general dampness) and future infrastructures (in Spanish, see pages 57-60 http://geofocus.rediris.es/2008/Articulo3_2008.pdf ) but few public debate has been launched respect this point, less than in Centroamérica (Biomeso and Plan Puebla-Panamá PPP).
But important is than maybe we can face up to our secular fears, after conquest the biggest part of the territory during 8 centuries, may be now we must discover our land for live an even receive others, coming back to the Transición period (after Franco); British may be are closing too a period of empire (Henry VIII a non-standardised husband began it an Elizabeth I built it, now other Elizabeth is dismantling it an other non-standardised husband king is coming; USA was near to follow us in this crazy race and some architectonical symbols can help them to reflect them about the consistence of human rights both inside and outside the country, I mean three buildings, one park and one city (the first in Ohlahoma, the others the Twin Towers, Central Park http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F03E0DD1639F930A1575AC0A9649C8B63 and Sant Louis),and spam can balance why after two revolutions (from left and right) they are in some aspects in the same point.
With this open panorama free of extreme tensions is easier begin design together nice landscapes like ever. Olé. Nice to meet you,
Javier
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justellus
Joined: 22 Jan 2009
Posts: 200
Location: World Wide
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| Posted: Wed Mar 18, 2009 8:31 pm Post subject: |
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As your name implies, (Ronchamp) some of the great and most well known architectural achievements of the past were produced with this ideal in mind - producing architecture as a unique craft, rather then as a standardized machine.
Interesting how Le Corbusier produced the Chapel of Ronchamp with such a mindset..... :
http://www.galinsky.com/buildings/ronchamp/index.htm
and yet also proceeded to advocate the mechanistic view of man in the center of modular construction that could be fitted to human proportions, but also allow for the benefits of the machine age by the introduction of more efficient construction technology. Thus, the hybrid ideas of combining craft with machine age wizardry seem to have won out in the end, and continue to this day.
Then we have The Sydney Opera house, that produced with such a mind-set, became a world known landmark. Certainly it did not lead to efficiency and went seriously over budget, nearly costing the architect his reputation for some time, but isn't this the risk of innovation?
Today with the new directions of the world economy, efficiency, speed and cost control are and will continue to be determining factors in many cases. However, for prodigious famous architects, the desire for individual expression will continue, and many a lavish works by these great names will continue to super-impose the idea of individual expression and craft over mere mechanistic machine age determinants of mass production.
As Walker pointed out, architecture is essentially a craft and one cannot allow these imperatives of mass production to reign over individual expression.
Now standardized architecture could be equated with the "cookie cutter" developments of the past, seen by large track builders. In this sense, individual expression is frequently attempted when the exteriors are allowed to vary to some degree. Yet with the driving imperative remaining - financial gain and efficiency superceding the craft itself.
Thus, one can see various streams of architecture, with some architects acting with more freedom in the independent "craft" mode, and others operating more in the "efficiency mode" as demanded by mass production or client demands for the bottom line and cost reduction. Builders and their architects will frequently fall into this category. This does not exclude the possibility of the craft mode also operating with the "efficiency mode" imperatives, as can be seen in leading examples of the profession, and in peculiar cases.
There are builders and architects, however, that value customization and individual expression and are able to perceive the high value of placing these up-scale developments at the top of the market, thus affording to the inhabitants a better quality of life. These are the builders who stand out, appealing to a higher level of clients and thus a more exclusive market. Then there are the builders who appeal to the average market, where economics rule.
In the end, the search for a more craft rooted architecture is no more then an ideal, if a professional is not operating in that reality. Each professional can segment out and determine the type of market he desires to reach and the type of clients to take on, and thus the future of his own work. He can decide if it will be craft oriented or merely oriented towards the primary forces of efficiency and cost reduction/ implementation of mechanistic mass production as a means to achieve efficiency.
Further, not only the materials, but the methods of construction will dictate which model is being favored - the one of the craft, or the one lead by the efficiency of mass production. An organic construction can be lead by the principles of efficiency and mass production to the same degree that it can be lead by the craft. Each architect and project/ client must determine this. It is not some theoretical debate on the value of the craft that will dictate the results, but the real world constraints, and individual decisions on the part of all involved.
Another interesting discussion some might like to consider:
http://arch.DesignCommunity.com/viewtopic.php?t=24432
and this one as well:
What is the Optimum Model for Design Firms and Society?
http://arch.DesignCommunity.com/viewtopic.php?t=24441
and some interesting discussions/ ideas can be found in this forum as well:
http://arch.DesignCommunity.com/viewforum.php?f=9
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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| Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2009 6:07 am Post subject: Virtual-ly a real architectural world |
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Aloha!
Somebody participated in this subject of the forum, great!. Initially I thought do not participate more with only one answer due the post Speaking Corner effect, but time and a visit to Toledo (Spain) helped change my attitude.
Let me downsizing more about standardised architecture, till the limits… of our perception?.
Virtual-ly a real world
If in a society everybody has luxury commodities the luxury itself, crafted or standardised, will lost it social importance, and then new tendencies will appear for those who want just feel individual and do not want be just a luxury number more, be just regarded like a VIP.
Talking now about productivity via nanoworld we can design in next future ultra flexible machines, even handle construction precision machines/eco-machines, able of transform our next environment at very little scale with the final impression than frontiers between natural and transformed objects will begin loose sense, I mean we will not able to recognise with the senses if something we see or touch has been modified or not, and the barrier between natural and standardised modified world will decrease. Of course many parts of natural world has been always modified via crafts during millenniums.
So maybe in future individuals, VIP or not, will look for natural world more than for crafts, standardised world, luxury, art, etc. Paradoxically pure nature will be the most valuable thing in the world after all our historical transformation process. Pure life? All the air of Earth is more or less polluted, the purest is that coming from Antarctica to Tasmania; respect where is pure water I don´t know, the town council with world longer expectancy of life is Lanjarón, (Granada, Spain) and people says id due their homonymous water trade mark but an epidemiologist said me was due their lifestyle in the quiet Sierra Nevada, etc, so if you want something pure maybe the best investment is collaborate with the rest of humanity till pure things loss value again. Do not surprise for paradox, in architecture is the same, the people who abandoned their villages wanted live better in cities, and when collapsed then moved to suburbia for the same, and some came back to the village but the majority now do not know where to go for find a nice equilibrium between countryside, urban life and nature; but they – all us – knows we must anyway manage our environment better…
What is more, the part of nature used for represent in a standardised way the rest of reality –computers, telecommunications – is each time more inside all types of machines – other part of nature standardising modified - and soon will be inside consume products thanks to nanoworld, I mean intelligent consume products, so a new frontier for marketing appears, polyvalent final products…and new risks too, nanoplagues (mechanical or biomechanical).
Then the increasing feeling of isolation than micro-directed machines produces because we interact less and less with them, can develop more the urban burble respect nature, between others aspects. Isolation here is not only respect representation, but intermediate machinery and final product too. Then laziness can be bigger respect our sense of nature management. Eco-machines produces directly such feeling too, who intuitively understands a machine with millions of living gears? - note than natural plagues are molest too because are impossible to manage with senses, and by the same reason we usually refuse investigate water, air, or soil micro organisms -, who wants live and work in a house/office/factory/countryside/nature like that?
If a solution of future consists in bring nature (flora, fauna, wildlife corridors) again to our daily life after millenniums expelling them, perceptions of invasion can appears too together with the aspects commented…isolated by technology, isolated by nature, always looking for limited and unique commodities without definitive satisfaction…then which is our place?
Note than nanoworld and nature are so natural like our daily life scale of activity, all are just possibilities for enjoy and realize us. The problem is than the two first are usually less friendly, and the third is not sustainable in general terms.
The historical standardization wave we promote advances with our increasing capacity of transform the environment, and usually the front advances first via little world for get after more skills in big world scale.
Nature can be considered too both stable and dynamic and maybe now the second aspect begins to be more relevant although not unique, precision in nature management begins to be more important than the mere capacity of force, which is historically more related with get basic needs in an environment perceived like stable.
I proposed to forum participants sustainable landscaping like a party, I just collecting good practices and thinking on them looking for ingredients to get a good cocktail while I dance in the party. Mine of course is not better or unique, I just try enjoy taste an comment flavours with others, like we say in Spain “cada uno cuenta según le va en la fiesta”. Mi cocktail idea consists in no renounce to any ingredient although I do not necessarily mix together, I have some preferences, but balance in landscaping between nature, craft and standard is always moving inside the cup, depending of the music.
Like architect, are you looking for perceptions, for sensations, which is your mix?
Architect Mangano asked himself, “Is the artificial reproduction of a natural process possible? This is an old, unattainable aspiration of architecture” (http://www.fmangado.com/), his comments about Spanish Pavilion for Expo Zaragoza 2008 are soaked in his attempt, together with Cener (http://www.cener.com/en/index.asp ), of reproduce nature, transforming her. A curious way to look for beauty transforming beauty, the pillars are covered with ceramic forming a pottery tree over water and covering polyvalent crystal elements.
With more separated pillars the interior shadows and a open floor may be is possible delineate a changing new element in urban landscape with the sun movement, suggesting than interesting proposal launched by Lucky 10, http://arch.designcommunity.com/topic-24540.html can be applied to internal shadows of a building too.
A terracotta skyscraper is been building is Seville by Pelli and Bruce Banit made a very interesting clip about the possibilities of tele-building, still in a virtual world, a fascinating subject launched by arc3d (World Builder http://arch.designcommunity.com/topic-24534.html), imitating both real world too through two different standardised ways.
Respect Pelli he tries camouflage his building works into nature
(in spanish see i.e. “The art of mimicry in…” in http://www.arqchile.cl/cesar_pelli.htm), but the scope of his initiative is not precisely discreet, and public dialogue appears, (in spanish http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Triana). Anyway he is not the first in the city, Isabel la Católica had a singular intention respect the construction of the Cathedral of Seville, the biggest gothic building in the world, “hagamos una obra tal que en el futuro piensen que estábamos locos”. I´ll translate it surely bad, “let´go to do a building work so vast so in future people will think we were mad”, (anyway cathedrals or skyscrapers are built for be seen mostly from land, the unique exception of massive vertical landscaping I know is one reference of a medieval chronicler I saw in the Madrid exhibition art society I referred on 16th February, when a quick an expanded massive building of churches crossed Europe just before year 1.000 A.C.)
Banit offers new perspectives in virtual-ly real architectural worlds, specially in interface between both. Like I suggested in other reply, collective videogame inspiredin initiatives like that together with international good practices (U.N. Habitat program, etc) could be launched in shantytowns, note there media consume products are usually a priority.
But Banit´s work introduce too to another aspects of daily interface. How manage information daily. Joe Hynek designed fashionable products, i.e. a solar - suspected forum abuse - http://www.solarjo.com/index.htm which can be used for handy. Here productivity, fashion and sustainability are closer, it is a so interesting tendency, an intelligent consume product?, but maybe still eco design is waiting (LCA) together with electromagnetic influences on health.
And precisely these two points are meted (?) too in another interesting initiative, Singularity University, http://singularityu.org/ , which focuses in the fact than nano technology, biotechnology, robotic, neuroscience and others disciplines advances faster than social standardised job routines perceive. May be soon consumers must look if a product is natural, modified, bio, crafted, eco, light, LEED or similar, nanoprocessed, and that includes architecture too…it looks than will remain forbidden for science and marketing the initiatives like Reach respect chemicals products influence on human health, it looks than still exists a correlation between faster productivity and rubbish, unfortunately the unknown world of label consume product & instructions manual will continue being the last frontier of science and economy, and over all social participation.
Productivity advances fast in nanoworld and this influences on the rest of economy. Some weeks ago I went to a conference of ex-Governor of Banco de España, Luis Angel Rojo, and he explained the present crisis beginning talking about IT productivity in second half of 90´s an finishing with financial crisis and perspectives of recovery using the word disheartening. I remembered this two words, productivity and disheartening and then I wrote here the reply called General productivity and standardised architecture.
Note than nanoproductivity is real but financial innovation productivity usually has been not, the social consequences are rather different. Some years ago AFL-CIO talked about income differences between ownerships and employees in IT sector and the risks of social divide. I talk about real salaries not share, two families, Wallenberg and Oppenheimer, are ownership of a very high percentage of industrial companies share in Stockholm and Johannesburg Stock Exchange, but social implications were different in past in both due social level of participation.
Having in account these facts, how manage in architecture –and the rest of economy – the mix social participation, IT productivity, natural elements, crafts, standardised elements, nature?. I only know implicit or explicit, unconscious or conscious, ahrd or soft dictatorships lives from silence, the first the individual ones.
And this last question invites to balance which is the real scope of the standard concept in the reality. In past societies the simplification of life through single-crop farming, i.e. wheat, was an instrument of accepted social control and public order, today happens the same with the continuous search of standards in industry for keep employments. If I understood well the initiative of Freiburg authorities respect Solardsiedlung (http://www.solarsiedlung.de/ ) was not look for an specific standardised solution respect get an surplus energetic quarter in relation with the rest of the city, but focuse on the on the objective of get the surplus, whichever way you do it. And note than many of solution elements approved were standardised.
What I mean standard idea is only one to manage in architecture, not “the idea”, and may be the important point is how balance all the aspects for avoid social excluded in each standardised wave.
Maybe complexity is closer to reality than reductionism, this is most related with control and simple standardised routines. Of course metals and fossil fuels forms part of our richness but probably they are not balanced, and sustainability helps to it. I.e. if you are looking for geothermal energy and you practise holes in terrestrial surface without consider close immediately them in case of non standard seismic movements, you are only creating new and unexpected vulcan in case of hard climate changes.
Clicking on Jacques Fresco reference in wikipedia I found a link than I reproduces only in part (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technocracy_movement ) “Donald Stabile argues that engineers were faced with a conflict between physical efficiency and cost efficiency in the new corporate capitalist enterprises of the late nineteenth century United States.[27] Fundamentally, price systems have been around for as long as there has been an intermediary device used in trade, such as money.”
I think debate must include too sustainability and other aspects commented respect natural, transformed world, world economic media class, fashion, etc. In Llley Project was analysed how an important number of people were moving through decades between minorist transport sector,tourism, construction and some services, together now with the inmigration that arrive in last decade, some million of persons more. And suggests proposals for general development using developing tools are easier than using conventionals. And the implications in architecture and city planning are strong. Ask yourself i.e. how really Dow Jones reflects the flowing economy,and how is related with housing (i.e. http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/dow.html).
In Spain franco made politics through housing, banking is made in part through housing too (I forgot said Banco Santander financed it expansion selling ofice banks but being renting custome, now they haveonly one historical building in Santander city), leisure is made in part through housing (200000 bars, restaurants, disco, pubs), etc, and growing infrastructures (in same aspectsgrowing than UE media) looks develop productivity trough flowing. And which relationship has Ibex 35 respect that? (this year more than 50% of income and benefits were got abroad for first time in history.
For non disturbing marketing, and reflecting about, the growing complexity, it is true than machines can be crafted. Few years ago I was travelling in Tuscany like guest in an Alfa Romeo of the 20´s. I was surprised because spontaneous reaction of people was a smile of complicity, nobody refuses see the car in terms of social prepotence, people loves all machines may be too because they can understand, handle mechanics is more friendly than nanoworld. In the other extrememany years ago I was climbing the hills to Castelo de Sao Jorge in Lissabon in a tram when suddenly electricity went down.In 0.5 seconds the tram driver,a man around 45-50 years, stand up and knocked a crank and we continued. During the following 0.5 seconds first thinking was no think, just see, next 0.5 seconds I thought I formed part of a living misil, next 0.5 seconds all the passage congratulate ourselves about the good physical form of the tramdriver, no sciatica appeared, and the rest time of the day the best thinking was better not think about it, and the wonderful Lissabon helped (this suggestion makes the machines more home-made and less perfect, in architecture too?, maybe, it is true than the magic of West is the most powerful of all, everybody exclaim an ooooooohh the first time see at tv, but keep me the secret, if you organise an art exhibition of European folklore and you change the location names and races protagonists, majority of people will say “yes, yes”, http://www.funjdiaz.net/8_enlaces.cfm )
The reflections about friendly machines can be applied to architecture? Note than skyscrapers are mostly residential in Asia and than machines in building are perceived in different terms, usually ventilation is natural. Note too than for dismantle a skyscrapers you are playing with two different times,the industrial-modular ( Empire State Building was first in use this methodology) for build it,and the artisan for dismantle it (in Operación Vicálvaro the high elements of the cement factory was dismantled one per one using egyptians techniques I mean forming sand mountains for let specialized cranes dismantle elements at artisan speed, conventional explosion was not a technical alternative). May be solution can be build and dismantle skyscrapers with modular, interchangeable units,and who knows, with friendly machines. Try paint a skyscraper city in the night without buildings and furniture and you will see a magnific wiew of millions of people sleeping quietly covered by sheets floating on the air.
Looking machines at http://www.ifema.es/ferias/climatizacion/default.html maybe ideas like termical inertia of walls can be changed by dynamic osmosis into the elements of a house, I mean air condition holes in rooms can be too osmosis distributor supported by home renewable energies, including entrances and windows, http://www.magazine-entree.com/issue2/innovativerevolvingdoorconcept.asp, and balancing microclimas with friendlymachines without risks for health, http://www.ingeniatrics.com/
And solar home gardens can be used for lie fallow together with initiatives in gardening in order to increase local dampness. I went to Genera in Madrid two years ago looking for architectural solar cells and I did not see practically nothing, it was like a - spammed by idiots - line production open air to be installed in the middle of countryside. I hope in next edition next may landscaped renewable energies will appear http://www.ifema.es/web/ferias/genera/default_i.html
Talking about big scale sustainable landscaping I´d like contact with interdisciplinary groups´- including of course architects - that are initiating in this field for work with them, while public big scale initiatives are launched and discussed, some months like minimum. It is true that at 40 I have not patient now for begin study an academic career after another and 15 years of research, but I have skills dealing with complexity, landscape and communication.What it lacks to me is more experience in complex areas respect complete wildlife chain, so maybe I´ll go in next months to Slovenia, Croatia, Costa Rica if I do not find working groups in the line referred.
I am a bon vivant looking for ingredients that balance the flavour of my cocktail drink. So I´d like ask the rest of the persons in the party about some doubts, the other day I went to Toledo and, thinking in nothing, I saw a street and thinking in urban landscape I imagined continue empty terracotta walls, and with a plaster pencil I began design details,including rain fountains, green details and flowerpots, sculptures, etc, but all linked horizontally or forming aesthetic curves by a tiny plaster line decorated with filigrees. I just wanted avoid the collapse visual effects of Italian imagination – beforeI hadnot this feeling, maybe I´m getting old) flowing details trough urban space, in order to facilitate transition between atmospheres. Somebody recommends me some ingredient?
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solidred
Joined: 05 Jan 2006
Posts: 728
Location: Scotland
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| Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2009 6:35 am Post subject: |
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Erjavi,
I'm only speaking for myself but, as someone who contributes occasionally to other forum threads but not latterly to this one, even though I find the topic interesting, my only problem is the length of your contributions. It's just my own habit but, with any reading material over about one page in length, I prefer to read the text in the form of printed material. My own use of forums is conversational and so I prefer a back-and-forth discussion of paragraph-or-so length segments. In this interactive situation, even to read a long, considered piece of text (if I were, say, to adopt the simple expedient of printing the thing out) demands a long or, at least well-considered concision of response, if a response is to be posted at all. And so I've shied away here.
Of course, the internet is a perfectly legitimate 'forum' for the latter sort of exchange and I, for one, hope you feel free, and welcome, to continue in this vein. Just that, for similar reasons to those I've offered above, it may take a while before you get the encouraging sorts of response you probably deserve. If it's any consolation, I got into the habit of writing 1000+ word blog entries elsewhere and I noted, with envy, that people writing short, gossipy stuff got all the feedback whilst I was ignored. I've therefore written about 30,000+ words of text since late January this year, none of which I've posted on the internet. Which doesn't mean I've taken umbrance against a superficial, soundbite society. Simply that I'm getting more realistic about the various dynamics of communication. 
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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| Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2009 1:33 pm Post subject: thanks for your contribution |
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Hi, Solidred,
for introduce new ideas may be same time I feel it´s better make a detailed introduction, a change of perspective has many implications. In these last 6 months some people/organisations reactioned in different ways so I took this habit. Participate in this forum let me get more clear ideas, and new ones.
Now I think I tried show the panorama, from big scale to nanoscale, this initial and fascinating moment probably has finished.
Thank you for your words and for share your experience in internet, it is true I have not practise in forums.
Regards,
Javier
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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| Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2009 6:07 am Post subject: just two brief subjects |
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Hello!, this time I´ll be brief, just expose two subjects.
First is the case study of Ronda for andalusian people who is reading this forum: alternative to speculative new PGOU (thousands of new houses in new city critical areas, while exists numerous empty houses and old promotions not developed able to receive many thousands of people, while census estimated for next years is just only +2,000 new citizens) consists
in develop 3-4-5 sanitary residences for people with respiratory diseases, helped by local university nurse school http://www.eueronda.com/ , integrated not only with landscape (see building works harmony with rocks) but with wildlife corridors (the city are located in a hub, I mean, -15 ºC Celsius, subtropical vegetation, Mediterranean weather, dehesa, bot fir, etc, of course I´m very friendly challenging you, world architects)
in promote cinema landscapes, helped by the other local university, http://www.mediaschool.org/ and others https://www.unicaja.es/promocion/certamen_cine/eng/pagina.html . Note than people in tourism patrimonial cities tends to standard real estate – or initial luxury ones but with the same final result) if money from tourism is not partially invested in cultural formation of inhabitants, like ancient library of Alexandria people do not move a finger when the fire arrives (a increasing possibility with the world dryer spider´s web urban model), doing opposite means talk about the present possibilities, the net study of the city. Look alliances with tourism authorities, in theory they work with the postal card.
So you can read crisis news on newspaper or begin surf with nature for forget it. It is a pity North America people do not download Llley Project, you´d understand better what I mean when I talk about agriculture, million of bison, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogallala_Aquifer and begin inverse climate changes.
The other subject is receive via forum or email some news about interesting tendencies or general good practices about contract http://www.ifema.es/ferias/casapasarela/pdf/congreso_contract.pdf , tomorrow I´ll go to http://www.ifema.es/ferias/casapasarela/default_i.html but seating capacity is full.
Thanks
Javier
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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| Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2009 3:16 pm Post subject: Standardised proceedings |
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Downsizing more my exposition till the limits of undernanoworld, the standardised lineal/circular philosophical/scientific thinking arrives to extremes. But then the extremes became blurred, always in the limits the standard-axiomatic walls became hurdles, so is possible pass them and following enjoying landscape.
In physics, with all the implications in architecture, overall in representation of objects trough computers, the standard extremes get mixed with singularities, relativizing? the entire quantum-relativism model.
Wester culture is bigger than axiomatic walls than Greek philosophers (I am not talking about spirituality). In the attached file –sorry, in spanish, for be precise I prefer it - I include some last minute ideas about quantum computer(read page 28 and precedents) , and possible new interactions between real and nanoworld-real world. (Thanks again to math researchers Abel Martín and Hideshi Fukaya for their open minded attitude to new contributions without autorithy argument, http://classpad.mforos.com/1659031/7792420-en-los-limites-de-las-matematicas-no-hay-leones/ )
Visual precedents of outsiders respect lineal-standard thinking (lineal-static or circular-dynamic) in arts are the perspectives showed in Las Meninas of Velázquez, some Escher works, etc. I ask myself which are the precedents in architecture, call we it intuitive architecture?.
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djswan
millennium club
Joined: 17 Aug 2007
Posts: 1119
Location: Montana, USA
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| Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2009 6:10 pm Post subject: |
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I call it carpenter's intuition.  hmmmm, got singularities on your mind?
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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| Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 2:46 pm Post subject: Looking for Architectural attitudes and singularities |
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Hi Djswan,
Who is Carpenter? I saw in internet somebody called William Benjamin Carpenter, a doctor of XIX century. Or you refer some architect and his/her building work?
Respect me, like I suggested at the end of the last attached file I posted, I´m beginning think about complexity like idea, after apparently see, the interface between mathematics and their limits in the same text. Deal complexity with words is a daily matter for everybody, but it helps me other ways, like art, i.e. Chillida. And I ´d like see too building works because sometimes the type of perceptions I feel with architecture is really pleasant.
In fact I got something better than singularity, see the example of attitudes of many people that, a whole life doing basically the same thing, began to do something different in benefit of all.
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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| Posted: Sat Apr 04, 2009 11:59 am Post subject: Social standardised routines |
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“In fact I got something better than singularity, see the example of attitudes of many people that, a whole life doing basically the same thing, began to do something different in benefit of all.”
I think I can write better this phrase.
The question launched for Ronchamp is only partially an architectural question, and at this point, the relationship between personal attitude and singularity in architecture shows more “unknown parameters”.
During 4 years I wrote a guide about older people of 20 countries which changed their routines for volunteer in benefit of all. When Bismarck invented the Social Security system he did one thing good and one thing bad: the good thing was protect old people unable to work at machine/standard time, the bad was cut sharply the human activity paying for it. So the people I studied looked for new ways for solve the situation. They changed social standardised routines.
What inspired me? A single phrase. I read a book of Eric Hobsbawm or Peter Kriedte about economics where author said than in agricultural times people progressively left hard works, changing to another more related with the home surroundings, so passed few time between the stop doing activity and death, the process was natural. An USA researcher on age empowerment, Henry Pratt, once asked himself why in the XIX-XX century transition women, workers, consumers and other social groups got a more active social participation, and why retired did not. Somebody from AARP told that AARP was a business - was initially designed around aspects like insurances –, so older people still is mainly perceived like economic and vote force, but not like a participative agent. The economy and social sector is standardised full of strange institutions representing in fact them.
With large difference, is the biggest black hole in modern democracies and a dangerous precedents for all that than do not get participate sufficiently or even form a business around their participation. So the new ways open by older volunteers are much much valuable. Other exceptions are artists, businessman, or some temporal social policy I mean if they are too much older people, by art of magic they can work 5 years more and are integrated again, or opposite.
The Bismarck divide is getting bigger, after second World War many families sent their sons out of home to University and now sons send parents to residence, some older people there is frequently angry; and what is worst, in some houses people do not put on the table their older people when they receive guests if they have a non aesthetic handicap. Standard beauty means perfection, image. Each time more some older people prefers “disappear” if they perceive they are not seen like standard by society. And this is other dangerous precedent for all that groups not sufficiently beautily standardised (like no born children?), doctor Fronkonstin became doctor Frankenstein thanks to social laziness, and nazism and communism are winning the war of laboratories and propaganda/media (see the movie Network, the world is a collective society of economic middle class just looking for entertainment) after lost the battle of democracy.
The conclusion is why we destroy beauty when we are looking for it.
In landscape happens the same. We destroy a jungle for get a few trees without think in restore them, we kill many fishes species for get one or two, we transform nice places into desserts for produce today a little bit more, we destroy fertile soil with a dryer model of houses and infrastructures for enjoy a little bit more, we work fertile land thinking than geometrical burrows brings more fertility instead promoted general dampness and produce small scale microclimate (it is possible produce food in Spain for 300 million people), we destroy flows of fauna and flora without know they potent a soil which is hot (full of micro organism, living and moving vertically and horizontally), we build over a soil thinking than is fix but no dynamic …
In general terms the conclusion in architecture is the same, why we destroy beauty when we are looking for it. Like older volunteers an older professionals, the way is look the good practices.
Standard, complexity, etc, are just tools. If Ronchamp make the same question adapted to another field, in another forum, I think the final answer is the same, finally is a question of attitudes. And architects do not only build for themselves, they build for everybody.
When people decide begin change routines, the panorama, the landscape opens, in fact always has been open:
When I wrote the “Operación Vicálvaro” for Portland Valderribas (http://www.valderrivas.es/Portland/HomePort.nsf/wfInicioPresentacion?ReadForm) I met with an USA photographer than realise the image works for the company, Robert Royal (http://www.robertroyal.com/ ) Like him, many people was reflecting about building works, looking how a cement factory was dismantled and recycled on site. Some machines employed were world biggest prototypes but were used like surgeon instruments. During two years the factory produced cement while was dismantled used ancient Egyptians methods. Each time I enter in the engineers office I saw people not only motivated but really worried because the immense factory was wall to wall with the houses of the city, the workers were conscious they were playing a chess game, it was an artisan work where cement flowed everywhere. There was only a soft labour accident in a difficult building work. Afterwards, for build the new quarter over, six workers died in stupid accidents.
During the job I knew the intention of Robertson about methods for dismantle skyscrapers while introduced vans and vans of cement inside the Twin Towers after the first terrorist attack. Due the catastrophe may be many people do not perceived the buildings were near the sea so many materials were expelled by ships, and the rest were transported by road without social problems respect traffic.
I finished the two annotated photographs book some month before 11-S. When I saw it by TV, my first question was: how many buildings?. I mean few years before I reading media a report of USA engineers claiming for low maintenance of infrastructures and the cases of some bridges than fall, and I remembered the script of The Towering Inferno http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Towering_Inferno dealt about the same subject. Some months ago Bob told me skyscrapers falls vertically because beams do not support big lateral tensions, and I knew the island of Manhattan was strong not only because many skyscrapers are over, but too because Robertson was thinking in tunnels for expelling materials and introduce new ones. So I was worried for the maintenance, or better the laziness of maintenance of buildings and the effect of the impact over the soil. Fortunately the domino effect was not produced, only 5 buildings were few affected in their structures, the maintenance was ok.
Between the end of the work and 11-S I got a preliminary copy of the two books, luxurious ones not for selling, whit some folding photography near of 1 meter long, and I showed to my father, just before he retired. Between 3 days and two weeks after, I do not remember exactly, I come back his home for get the books, I was thinking just say hello and go.
Then my father began talk me about his first building work, the airport of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, a canary island, at 31, after study some years of Math and became aeronautical engineer. He worked for Dragados, now part of ACS, and all the building works of the company were deficit in economical terms because the island is volcanic and the sand was transported by ship, and was very expensive. In addition the machinery was breaking while operators tried build the landing strips. A ruin.
So my father decided stop the works (3000 construction workers) and analyse those vulcan rocks than not appeared in construction manuals for airports but offered good coefficients of resistance. 42 years ago, two geologists of IGME (www.igme.es ) were mad looking worldwide bibliography and they found the little airport of Caribbean island Grenada was similar, and aircrafts were ok. Worked continued. Additional material was collected from a mountain called Marfú, and the rest were a vulcan stones (bolos) expelled by eruptions, expanded in the beaches and underwater in the area comprised between the airport (north) and the beaches of the south (Playa del Inglés).
Nobody was in the beaches because of the bolos, they were molest for walk or swim, and there was many crops of local tomatoes. Then he proposed to a multinational of Minnesota ( I do not remember the name) develop an amphibious prototype for rescue the bolos under the sea, if they were successful they made the work free for Dragados, and the patents of machinery was for the multinational. And was an exit. The ownership of tomatoes crops were highly motivated because the beaches were free for tourism, and they developed real-estate promotions in near 30-40? Kilometres of virgin beaches.
For avoid the problem of sand he went to the army installations of the island, they were ownerships of one of the biggest sand beaches of the island, untouchable. My grandfather was military engineer and he built all his life for the army, so the son knew how deal with military in Franco time. Was easy. What can I do for you? Then military had few budget. This, this and this. Ok, I want sand. Ok. The cost of buildings for army was i.e. 20 units, and the benefit of sand i.e. 300.
After three months stopping building works, paying 3000 salaries and researching vulcan rocks, the airport was quickly finished, the benefit not only cover the loss of the rest of jobs in the island but got more benefits, the tourism was massively launched in the island, R&D machines were developed…he was a good engineer, so the company sent him build a dam in Turquey in the first international contract of the bigger Spanish construction company, airports in Libya, etc.
(In Ronda arrived many foreign specialist for study how build the road of San Pedro de Alcántara over peridotites, around 1972-74?, nobody knew what too so they illegally dynamited the rocks and people thinks till today are instable, is just opposite, aprox. 30 years without maintenance, no one crack, the rocks than still falls is consequence of dynamite together with road traffic vibrations and meteorological elements)
The two books of the “Operación Vicálvaro” showed frequently an intense red colour, product of the recycling operations and land movements (around seven times the Picasso Tower). After talked me this story, he put his hands over his chest and claimed: “¡esto me sangra!” (this bloods me?) Like many engineers, he faced the bankruptcy of a model, the model of “desarrollismo” (I do not how translate it, developing?), a certain faith in science, machinery, progress, etc, without nature. And now he was looking how this model was recycling itself, and he read indirectly something about Robertson ideas about dismantling skyscrapers…all a vision, all a mental landscape rationally developed was simply imperfect…”¡La obra te envenena!” (the building work poisons you?), he meant you put all your energies in a project, you transform nature at big scale, and you dream alive with faith in technique. That is why I told with a game word (post of 27th February) you pay the price, then I was thinking in tell you this story but I decided write it now than I see panorama better. You pay the price if you do not balance your work with other aspects like social subjects, sustainability, fashion like self expression, etc, engineers pay if they forget than standard process is not reduce or simplify things, standard process is, like my unknown Scandinavian architect friend exposed in 1938, promote richness and creativity (trying too promote social participation), standard process is not a control ones than destroy beauty on the way.
Architects, engineers, marketing staff, artists, artisans, etc, all them, all us will loose a part of their dreams too if they look for ways of participation like older volunteers and others does. Are you surfing or be drowned?
And precisely because people can reaction after a whole life of doing the same, we can surf today, tomorrow, with or without climate change tsunamis, etc. My father, like everybody, had more perspectives, so in only 3 days- two weeks he was able to accept with humidity that a part of his dreams down, others need less time, other more, but everybody can. His other dreams, like the airports, dams, etc, remains, like this experience. I leaved his home shocked, I did not expected this dialogue, it was the unique time he talked with me about building works, we talked many many times about aeronautical subjects, but this was the first, and unique time about building. Few after he died.
A last comment. Few after I began prepare with Bob another job about an arid plant south Madrid property of Portland Valderribas, Aripresa (http://www.aripresa.net/ ). After exploit some area the firm continued diving near, but the water of rivers Jarama-Manzanares appears in the old holes so a natural lagoon was formed. The rivers are pollutions after cross Madrid, no fish, but the lagoons are opposite, the sand filters water and has been introduced vegetation and fauna, so when the weather is dry some birds from southern National Park find refugee there, together sometimes with till 100.000 seagulls (gaviotas reidoras) that live in the area in winter. If you visit Madrid and you walk on the axis Plaza de España – Palacio Real – San Francisco you can see in the morning or the afternoon group of them looking for the waste areas north of Madrid, still not hermetically closed. In case of change of use of installations, change of GPS agricultural lands, do not forget than in addition to natural wildlife corridors we are not alone in the cities. Finally I did not the work. After this (2002), I think I did not saw Bob more.
Like you can imagine, after be tired seeing how older people reaction after a routine-standard life, after touch with my hands the rests of 70 abandoned Spanish villages and all the symbolism associated with them, so I accept the idea than my country, yours, my continent, yours, can be abandoned but humanity continue, after see how the architectural-industrial vision of developing (desarrollismo) is changing an many totems are falling but cities remains, after see how nature is now moving at big scale even inside our cities, after learn and share with you surf with climate change tsunamis, and equal with tools like standard, complexity or whatever, the perspectives are much nicer and bigger that ever I imagined, and I´m understanding it while I´m writing it.
So singularities are ok, human curiosity is fantastic, but I think I explained better now the last part of my previous reply, why I got something better. I supposed when people decide change something about routines, may be new knowledge appears, may be some singularity is explored by someone and our perspective of landscape became bigger, but respect the act of feel always free for change I think the other is secondary.
Today I´m still worried with the building work recycle center in Parauta, it has only 6-7 years but when I visit it with an architect and a builder businessman we saw, apparently, very few things recycled, no recycling machinery, many rests forming steps and covered with arid, water is ok but these places are always located Murphy´s law, in the worst places, over 40 metres of limestone rocks and a underground water distributor potentially affecting 3 million people…I have not any data for be worried today, but tomorrow? Many constructions workers in Ronda knows few things are recycled there, and ecologist ignored it, in a city of 40.000 inhabitants. Standardised lack of communicatio?, how are we going to surf together? The future of Ronda is not put a hand for receive money while the tourist pay for see while eating, a sleeping city for a sleeping tourist.
The future of tourist is not too see the sea. Can I recommend you a nice holidays? Meet with some friends and organise by pairs: you rent a yacht, a fisher boat, etc, and travel two consecutive years to Terranova, Greenland, Iceland, Svardvald, Nordkapp, Murmansk, etc, for a nice cruise. In the way you get some ocean measures, and the next year you repeat with a member of other pair for introduce and pass the torch. Better before Autumn. Coming back to the port, your sons or grandsons will ask you: What did you see? Many things, I was not sleeping. And then pass the data worldwide, there is climate change conference in Denmark this winter, more useful data more information society. In the good sense of meaning, do not wait anybody for do it, each year without a nice cruise is a lost opportunity for enjoy.
Like you can see I imagine many things, you know writers, landscapers and all that. Some years ago some professionals made a measure, somebody asked them to do a perforation of 100 metres in the airport of Son San Joan, in Palma de Mallorca ( Balearic islands). Well, it was an error, only 10 metres was needed. Did you know what they found? A potent underground watercourse, I think do not appears in IGME; I do not know I´m always mistaking. Fortunately, I´m not standardised. But the interesting was than the analysis revealed than the water was very pure, very similar to that found both in Alps and in Libyan underground reserves, but you know, in Mallorca island always run the legend of oak tree leafs in the fountains and all that, just legends. How it is said in English vasos comunicantes? Impossible! (http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasos_comunicantes )
But the following story is true, believe me. I tell you exactly like I heard it. Many years ago a jew who worked in Libya for the Continental company (now I think form part of Conoco) discover water instead of oil, and he kept silence. So when Gaddafi expelled oil foreign companies the jew said: I know where is water, ten years more pumping oil for get water in the dessert.
If somebody discover some connexion between European mountains and Sahara underground waters please tell me, Libyan Government wants build many houses in Benahavís, and maybe an eco-agreement could be thought and launched. The Mediterraneum sea is not a barrier.
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
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djswan
millennium club
Joined: 17 Aug 2007
Posts: 1119
Location: Montana, USA
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| Posted: Fri Apr 10, 2009 11:56 am Post subject: |
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You bet count me in.  We share big ideas.
These guys know how to party.
http://www.tfguild.org/
I like thier standards
I figured it was good timing to get in my shameless spamming. 
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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| Posted: Fri Apr 10, 2009 4:44 pm Post subject: Dancing in the party |
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Great Djswan, people is enjoying there!
In climate change the best new is not news, and sincerely, in global party the best one is the local.
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erjavi
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 229
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| Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 10:35 am Post subject: Managing movement in patrimonial cities |
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Hi again Djswan! I´m sorry , I answered you yesterday night and I was tired, but I thought few after you was talking about carpenter by trade, not somebody called Carpenter, you know I associate Saxon genitive to a place or a person, you know my Fresh Water English Level (FEWL jaja).
So I´m interested in know your experience between carpenter´s intuition and singularities, may be some examples can help me. The work of http://www.tfguild.org is really original and exploration of forms they do is not just be out of standards forms working with wood, but, for me, introduces to space like atmosphere and meeting point in new forms.
I´d like ask you and http://www.tfguild.org about ideas respect other questions. Let me introduce you with the brain storming I´m passing now.
Thinking in propose health residences and the new hospital of Ronda near the older one, but without affect the hub of soft climate tsunamis are meeting there, I reflected about the job of Angela García de Paredes and Ignacio García Pedrosa. They build a fantastic “floating”, camouflaged and landscaped building thought for see the soil, roman mosaics (in Spanish http://www.elpais.com/articulo/cultura/Mosaico/romano/vanguardia/elpepucul/20090328elpepicul_1/Tes , http://www.dip-palencia.es/villaromana/portada/?lang=en ). I linked the idea of not affect the hub using flexible and lights elements like eco-designed lamps (http://www.aquagallery.com/beta/ , www.añosluziluminacion.es ), light eco designed furtinures focused both in empty and occupied spaces (www.flexiblelove.es ) and in-building transportable green areas (http://www.hune.org/vernoticia.php?tipo=evento¬icia=40 Guiomar Contreras is the lady transporting the man over the portable grass, but in the original prospect appeared a dog, I prefer do not develop more this idea).
So Djswan, the second question is than the floating building could be developed to into palafitta or aerial residences for preserve soils dynamic movements, an I´like ask you and your partners for some crafted solutions, Ronda is a patrimonial city. The renewable wood there is the cork oak. Thank you very much.
Like I suggested in other reply the problem of patrimonial city is than they tends to be considered by naturals like a shop or a open air museum, not a living city, heightening a more general problem of modern cities which is climbing the burble of consume-finance-IT forgetting other real aspects of economy.
The unique city in my life which I felt for some minutes in past centuries was Venice many years ago, I arrived in October and there was very few people, no radio, no TV, no handy, so I felt really really a privileged, and more open for understand other realities. But then Venice was dying, only 4000 inhabitants in the city and 1000000 around. The reason? Transport the materials for repair housing in gondola is very expensive. The other dying of the city, sinking in the swamp, is secondary respect Venetian sense of adventure.
In Spanish we say frequently a Venetian phrase, those who do not risk do not cross the sea (quien no se arriesga no cruza la mar). In the other hand many people cross the sea for arrive Venice too. The city is built over millions of stakes for support platforms, and platforms hold up buildings: marble over wood. To those which support other materials, do you have some idea for avoid sinking? (http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palafitta http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palafito)
The Venetians cut the natural water flow of delta, and probably the “Aqua alta” can be managed better redesigning water flows an cleaning neck bottles; in former Sancti Petri tuna village (Chiclana de la Frontera, Cádiz), some years ago was abandoned an now reoccupied) the “caños” of marisma were collapsed due leisure real state developments and big ships, even manoeuvering , can not advance, and Cádiz city expansion has many problems with the sea too.
May be it is possible locate artificial docks for stop Aqua alta like in Monaco (http://www.cemento-hormigon.com/contenidoPag.asp?id_rep=369, http://www.aim.es/publicaciones/bol5/07_Dragados_Monaco.pdf ) even fulling water blocks for build a water dam for stop the sea level, this is a variant of flexible dams useful for Netherlands maritime dams, in Ebro river appeared icebergs during http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Ice_Age )
The other possibility could consist in to raise the city. Inject a foam on swamp is complicated, maybe a pilot program can be developed. But stop the sink thanks to an Eskimo snowshoe linking horizontally critically steaks can be easier. Djswan, I saw in your local party they are descendents of Hanseatic cities, peat swamps and others, what think the “Tedeschi” quartiere about it?. Even with hydraulic jacks platforms - like a mangle tree fractal basement - can be elevated and assured thanks to timber crafts linking Eskimo snowshoes.
Expand stakes like Chinese imported pasta is more difficult, but who know show how far are China connections http://www.gavinmenzies.net/
Other possibility could consist in craft stakes with Murano glass, Italian ceramic forming a pottery forest like Manglano Spanish pavilion in Water Expo Zaragoza, etc, who knows, may be the real richness of the city consists in integrate nature with construction for re-launch past initiative awaking the city from her lethargy. In Istambul, - Il moro di Venezia?, I know, I know, Turkish are… -, the deposit of foreign currency under the Grand Bazaar is bigger than in Central Bank, the real economy is closer to real activity, maybe an architectonical suggestion for avoid securitize complexity, see how we are now with standardization, the good contract practices are needed in architecture, we do not must forget subprimes.
Complexity, little concrete docks for transport massive building materials together with vaporettos, and other flow initiatives http://www.kindadekmarine.com/?gclid=CODEyZ3r6JkCFUEt3godjydPSA may be can help Venetians to value their inner city, establishing new dynamic relationships with the modern one, http://media.wiley.com/product_data/excerpt/77/04700663/0470066377.pdf.
Recently in Toledo I saw restorations works in a chuch, I do not remember the name; between others, morocco workers were dealing with a partially floating building too, a part of basement was on the air, supported by stakes, stakes than were loading a concrete top, covering a basement angle. Down passed a little water course. Thinking in L´Aquila, and together with NASA magnetic maps and contributions of nanoworld tools of Singularity University http://singularityu.org/ , overlapping structures and other architectural solutions for avoid human dramatic consequences of earthquakes, can be thinked taking advantage of coming restoration.
You see Djswan, now music in party is mixing. The Montana melody help me dance better, I was half blocked.
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djswan
millennium club
Joined: 17 Aug 2007
Posts: 1119
Location: Montana, USA
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| Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 1:49 pm Post subject: |
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I have really enjoyed reading your thoughts on the beach, I truely wish I was there. Montana is starting to shine in the spring, a bit muddy.
I'm a low level self-appointed TFG "agent", charged with education in the art and craft of timberframing. Promoting timberframing and the Guild is in line with that. I would give the TFG a call for a brainstoming session, they love that stuff. I'll help with what I can, but don't what to speak solo for an idea that is bigger than me. (name drop) Frank Gehry has recently made a scene there. I missed the Western Conference again, time, money, family thing.
a singularity is a point in space where the laws of the universe no longer apply, and thus does not exist. an intuitive guess. and I never rule out me being wrong.
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