In Madrid, another center of activity, the pivotal figure was Rafael Moneo. His critical writings and teaching also played a role beyond Spain, notably through his reflections on the permanence of architectural form, something exemplified, in his view, by the architectural palimpsest of the Great Mosque of Cordoba. His first large buildings had to do with the massiveness of their walls, continuing Kahn's legacy. They explored the resources of materials like brick, which he used to cover the simple volumes of the Bankinter in Madrid (1973-8) and the halls of the Museum of Roman Art in Merida (1980-6). The bays of the latter straddle the ancient ruins and shelter the archaeological pathway. Moneo also transformed infrastructure projects into authentic urban complexes: the Atocha Station in
Madrid (1984-92), built for the high-speed train to Seville, links clearly differentiated spaces and treats the station's most mundane components - parking lots, for instance - as architecture in their own right. At the San Pablo Airport in Seville (1987-92) Moneo provided a roof alluding to the Cordoba mosque. Together with city halls, museums have been among Moneo’s primary building types. He created original combinations of building envelope and natural lighting systems for the Miro Foundation in Palma de Mallorca (1987-92); the Davis Museum in Wellesley, Massachusetts (1989-93); and the Museum of Modern Art and Architecture in Stockholm (1998). The openness of his approach can be measured in his vastly different solutions for the Kursaal Cultural Center in San Sebastian (1990-9), a large lantern illuminating the Basque port that has come to represent the town much as Jorn Utzon's Opera House represents Sydney, and the Catholic cathedral in downtown Los Angeles (1996-2002), 544 an edifice infused with a spirit more Benedictine than Baroque and kept serenely bright by light falling through alabaster windows.
Madrid (1984-92), built for the high-speed train to Seville, links clearly differentiated spaces and treats the station's most mundane components - parking lots, for instance - as architecture in their own right. At the San Pablo Airport in Seville (1987-92) Moneo provided a roof alluding to the Cordoba mosque. Together with city halls, museums have been among Moneo’s primary building types. He created original combinations of building envelope and natural lighting systems for the Miro Foundation in Palma de Mallorca (1987-92); the Davis Museum in Wellesley, Massachusetts (1989-93); and the Museum of Modern Art and Architecture in Stockholm (1998). The openness of his approach can be measured in his vastly different solutions for the Kursaal Cultural Center in San Sebastian (1990-9), a large lantern illuminating the Basque port that has come to represent the town much as Jorn Utzon's Opera House represents Sydney, and the Catholic cathedral in downtown Los Angeles (1996-2002), 544 an edifice infused with a spirit more Benedictine than Baroque and kept serenely bright by light falling through alabaster windows.
No comments:
Post a Comment