Comments on: Dubai Tall Emblem Structure / Francois Blanciak Architect

By: Ralph Kent

Ralph Kent — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:56:22 +0000

George – what *precisely* is the vision here? As far as I can tell, as David said, this is just folly, building in a climate that increasingly will not be fit to inhabit, a crass one-liner of an attempted icon, a cynical five minute thought process diagram which the architect lazily wants translated verbatim into a building, funded exclusively by oil money, using huge amounts of air-con no doubt, so ex-pats from Microsoft and the like can go out to the Middle East and earn out their share options free of income tax / capital gains whilst living in gated communities insulated from all those nasty, aggressive arab people who want to kill them for being American or European. Sounds like nirvana, eh, never minding the 45′c heat which means you can’t step outdoors during the day. But Dubai wasn’t the point of my ‘shame’ comment.

All jokes aside, if you think that’s vision and architecture, I think you need to do a little more reading. Where, specifically, is the architectural merit of building a donut on a stick in the Middle East.

By: David

David — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 08:36:33 +0000

then what is the name for a man who calls somebody expressing his thoughts shameful? creating architecture is a process of thought, not a whimsical act of fancy encouraged by BIG money,

By: George

George — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 22:51:16 +0000

Men with no vision and a negative outlook on life as yourself are the shameful ones!

By: George

George — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 22:47:35 +0000

Bravo!

By: George

George — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 22:43:47 +0000

Dubai is an amazing city with amazing architecture! What are all these hater comments about? We in the U.S. should be so lucky to have as many cutting edge buildings planned and in the process of being built. These comments in general have the air of being motivated by envy and jealousy.

By: Ralph Kent

Ralph Kent — Tue, 26 May 2009 08:27:27 +0000

Has it really come to this? Some people clearly have no shame.

By: dustin

dustin — Sat, 16 May 2009 16:40:53 +0000

I just realized this is the same guy who did the pile of terds proposal for the Tapei Performing Arts building… Wow.

By: francis

francis — Sat, 16 May 2009 16:03:53 +0000

Hold on a min… I take my comment back. 100K USD 1st prize, 50K 2nd, and 3 x 20K prize …. who sucks, weep, half-toned, meaningless now aye?!? See my meaningless cul-de-sac winner in the next comp. Ha ha ha ha AHHH ha ha ha! Yes, I am a whore. 5 years and more I’ve given architecture … I weep.

By: ct

ct — Sat, 16 May 2009 15:23:53 +0000

Here is another interesting tower design by the same architect:
http://www.blanciak.com/Incheon3.html

By: Nick Downes

Nick Downes — Fri, 15 May 2009 11:39:02 +0000

RT @ShedDesignLtd ARCHITECTURE NEWS: More Dubai crazyness: http://bit.ly/15JE5D

By: niamhhughes

niamhhughes — Fri, 15 May 2009 09:45:53 +0000

It seems a giant dog at Francois Blanciak Architects lost his bone in Dubai! http://bit.ly/15x49Y

By: Shed

Shed — Fri, 15 May 2009 09:13:18 +0000

ARCHITECTURE NEWS: More Dubai crazyness: http://bit.ly/15JE5D

By: glenn rummler

glenn rummler — Fri, 15 May 2009 01:54:25 +0000

OK. crazy building http://bit.ly/15JE5D

By: Peter

Peter — Fri, 15 May 2009 00:47:15 +0000

Ultra Man, I think we agree on this point. In no way was I suggesting that HDeM were just button pushing, much the opposite. Also, as for CCTV I’m aware of where from, how, and the role of those at Arup had in the generation. I should have been clearer, i wasn’t trying to imply they were just making a graphic doodle. There’s a great interview in Domus with Rory McGowan, of Arup-China, specifically about the genesis and challenges of that facade.

O+C, actually I didn’t know that specifically about HDeM, but I don’t begrudge them for it. I don’t think one should consider the subcontractors somehow less invested or complicit in the design process…any quick look at an el croquis presentation of one of their project seems to imply that there’s more going on then just chucking a half-idea to some disinterested sub.

By: Dweld

Dweld — Fri, 15 May 2009 00:43:39 +0000

Sorry, making something big does not make it monumental or great. Really, not a very good object even if small, would make a bad sculpture at any scale and as for a building well… I think most everyone agrees.

By: o+c

o+c — Thu, 14 May 2009 19:40:00 +0000

Peter writes:
“We’ve all been led, specifically by the stunning work of Herzog & DeMeuron to desire these graphic/architectural fusions. HdeM graphic fusions go through stage after stage of refinement and study (given their notoriously rigorous aesthetic requirements). But rarely (maybe the Tenerife waterfront aside) do they allow a simple photoshop trick to be the final result; and even in that case, the technique is reinvested into the design process to produce a mutually reinforcing design.”

Actually in some cases HdM has handed over Photoshop files to subcontractors, and the subs have done all the work that you are referring to as ‘technique’.

By: JJ

JJ — Thu, 14 May 2009 18:05:32 +0000

Davide, I agree with you completely. I’ve been finding more and more that the simplest and best way to weed out the crap from the real architecture is merely to ask the question “why?” If that can be answered meaningfully in one sentence, then I think you have a piece of architecture. I imagine the response to the question for this thing would be a long pause and a befuddled expression.

Oh, and BTW “because you can” does not qualify as a response in my book.

By: Someone from somewhere

Someone from somewhere — Thu, 14 May 2009 18:02:43 +0000

take a look at the winners and laugh:

http://www.e-architect.co.uk/awards/thyssenkrupp_elevator_award.htm

By: BROSALIN

BROSALIN — Thu, 14 May 2009 17:20:03 +0000

ybabuf? это крутейшая говнина!!!!!!

By: Bo Lucky

Bo Lucky — Thu, 14 May 2009 15:15:01 +0000

I think the Client deserves this kind of “architecture”. Money well spent…