The structure was originally built to host international and domestic cricket matches. In the 1950s, the Cricket Club of Ahmedabad was granted 67,000 sqm of land to construct a Cricket Stadium. It was the country’s first “turf ground,” hosting the first cricket match in India. For the cricket community in the country, the SVP represents a venue that has nurtured and honed young cricketers from all over the state, and it has been graced by several of India's legendary players in both test and one-day cricket matches.
Auction houses, secondhand furniture stores, and realtors make small fortunes from a nomenclature that, despite the fuzziness surrounding its indeterminate span and whether everything made during its indefinite duration ought to be stamped with the same label, continues to demand attention. Years from now, serious collectors of architectural magazines may search for that single issue of the 21st century magazine Dwell, absent a major spread of a house designed in the midcentury modern (MCM) manner or a restoration of a building from that era. MCM is the very blood that pulses through the publication’s arteries, promulgating a view of a squeaky-clean and well-lighted lives lived almost invariably by (often childless) ectomorphic couples, blissfully happy under a flat roof with floor-to-ceiling windows affording fine views of distant landscapes best enjoyed behind insulated glass in an ambient temperature of 72 degrees Fahrenheit. But what are we to make of this term, this period—some even call it a “movement”—so well-known globally it goes by initials?
In the center of the city of Lugano, Switzerland, architect Mario Botta has designed a new housing solution on the foundations of the former Cinema Teatro Cittadella. Captured by Paul Clemence, this photo series displays the new residence in a city rich with an artistic and cultural past. The residential complex is located near the ancient basilica of the Sacred Heart of Lugano, nestled in a quiet area away from city traffic.
Tropical architecture, a term widely used in architectural discourse, lacks a consistent definition. The adjective ‘tropical’ relates to the zone between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, which covers more than 40% of the earth’s surface. Heat is possibly the only shared characteristic of this belt. The tropical zone holds a range of climates from arid to wet, as well as a variety of geographic, social, and economic contexts. Unlike in temperate or arctic zones, a single umbrella term is used to describe the architecture of the tropics.
Given that the architects of modernity were in search of purity of form, it stands to reason that the image of this modern architecture is almost inevitably rendered in white in the collective imagination. Relieved of superfluous decorations, modern architecture became associated with the predominant use of white surfaces to highlight the volumetric composition. Combined with the concept of “material truth” first articulated by Victorian critic John Ruskin, white-colored architecture is often understood as straightforward, clear, and sincere.
In her 1959 debut by Mattel, Barbie became a doll that transformed the toy industry and has been a popular culture icon ever since. 3 years later, the first accompanying Barbie Dollhouse was created, a home for Barbie representing her domestic, habitual, and day-to-day life. Over the past 60 years, Barbie Dreamhouses have changed and evolved, each iteration adopting the architectural and design fads of the eras in which they were produced. In fact, each dollhouse is an artifact of the unique blend of history, politics, popular culture, trends, and design styles that define architecture as we know it.
Barcelona Pavilion. @ Flickr Renato Saboya. Used under Creative Commons
The idea of integration between art and architecture dates back to the very origin of the discipline, however, it took on a new meaning and social purpose during the Avant-Garde movement of the early twentieth century, becoming one of the most defining characteristics of Modernism. This close relationship is evident in the works of some of the greatest modern architects, such as Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier, and Oscar Niemeyer, to name a few.
Chapel of Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp. Image via Maxpixel
One hundred years ago, in 1923, Le Corbusier’s “Vers une Architecture” was published in the magazine “L’Esprit Nouveau.” The controversial collection of essays authored by the Modernist master served as a manifesto for the development of modern architecture, influencing generations of architects and sparking polemics on the proposed principles of architectural design. The book advocates for the beauty of streamlined industrial designs, like those of airplanes, automobiles or ocean liners; it proposes a completely different way of building cities, favoring tall and slender towers surrounded by abundant greenery, and introduces Le Corbusier’s 5 principles for modern design.
Now, a century later, these theories have become part of every architect’s education, but they are also highly contested. Some critics argue that the rigid approach, especially in relation to urban planning principles, fails to engage the cultural and contextual nuances of different communities, leading to alienating urban environments. Still, the legacy of Le Corbusier is significant, serving as a constant point of reference for architects when exploring the balance between functionality, aesthetics, symbolism and the social impact of their designs.
The Chilean architectural practice UMWELT, together with the landscape architecture office LANDMRX and the renowned Mexican firm PRODUCTORA, have won first place in the competition for the transformation of the former Correos de Chile (Chilean Postal Service) building located in Estación Central, Santiago. In 2021, EFE (Chile's State Railway Company) acquired the property to convert it into their new corporate headquarters, where the company's employees will work in interaction with the nearby railway operations.
More than ten thousand kilometers away from the capital Brasilia, a jewel of Brazilian modern architecture overlooks the Mediterranean Sea. Located in another Brasilia, a district in Beirut named after the Brazilian capital, the Residence of the Ambassador of Brazil in Lebanon, designed by Olavo Redig de Campos, combines tropical modernism with elements of Middle Eastern culture.
For the first time, the house will be open to the public through guided tours focused on historical heritage. Geared towards architecture, design, and art professionals and students, the visits will be guided by Dr. George Arbid, director of the Arab Center for Architecture, a renowned institution in modern architecture in the region.
At the beginning of 2022, curator Lesley Lokko announced the title of the 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia: “The Laboratory of the Future.” The theme’s intention is to highlight the African continent as the protagonist of the future, a place “where all these questions of equity, race, hope, and fear converge and coalesce,” in the words of the curator. As the fastest urbanizing continent, Africa is viewed as a land of potential, but also of challenges, where matters of racial equity and climate justice are played out with a significant impact on the world at large.
Yet in the late 1950s, another laboratory of the future was taking shape, one where the novel ideas of Modernism produced grand monumental designs and complete urban structures at an unprecedented scale: India. In the search for a modern and democratic image, the newly independent country welcomed Western architectural masters such as Le Corbusier and Louis I. Kahn and entrusted them with a wide range of commissions, from the urban layout of Chandigarh and its major governmental buildings to universities, museums, and smaller scale domestic projects. The result is a mixture of cultures, influencing one another to unexpected results.
Ayrson Heráclito, "O Sacudimento da Casa da Torre e o Sacudimento da Maison des Esclaves em Gorée", 2015, video installation. courtesy of the artist
Questioning the canonical history of architecture and shedding light on long-invisible spatial practices, Gabriela de Matos and Paulo Tavares propose the exhibition “Terra” [Earth], at the Brazilian pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2023. "It's our way of shaking things up," say the curators, who turn their attention to ancestral ways of dealing with the land, aiming for more fair and complete possibilities for the present and future.
Addressing "earth" in all its meanings, the curators overlay issues related to soil and territory with the planetary problems. They propose an approach to reparations and decoloniality - emerging in Brazil - with broad topics such as decarbonization and the environment, decisive in the contemporary global debate. The Brazilian Pavilion titled Terra [Earth], won the Golden Lion for Best National Participation at the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale, on Saturday 20th of May, selected by a jury comprising Italian architect and curator Ippolito Pestellini Laparelli as president, Nora Akawi, Thelma Golden, Tau Tavengwa, and Izabela Wieczorek.
https://www.archdaily.com/1001311/earth-as-ancestral-and-future-technology-an-interview-with-gabriela-de-matos-and-paulo-tavares-curators-of-the-brazil-pavilion-and-winners-of-the-golden-lion-at-the-2023-venice-biennaleRomullo Baratto e Victor Delaqua
Though lesser known, the Hungarian city of Veszprém is one of the oldest and most important cities in the country. Designated as the European Union Capital of Culture for 2023, Veszprém boasts a longstanding history, visible through its evolving, yet well-preserved architectural monuments. In fact, one of the first notable observations as one walks through the city streets is its eclecticism and layers of historically diverse buildings, that sporadically arise. Despite the difference in styles and architectural languages, they collectively tell the story of the county and its spiritual and political relevance. Its pedestrian-friendly streets, many parks and public spaces, connect the Veszprém monuments, as one delves into a historic promenade.
The Copan is a landmark in Sao Paulo. Even those who have never entered the building know its curves from afar. Amid the intense verticalization of the city center, the horizontal brise-soleils reinforce the building’s presence on the city’s horizon.
I first went to China in 2002, a year after the International Olympic Committee awarded the 2008 Summer Games to Beijing. That initial trip was about exploring nature, cuisine, ancient temples, archeological sites, and, in general, experiencing lifestyles in China, mainly outside of its major cities. I was motivated by the pure curiosity of a Western tourist driven to an Eastern country in search of the old world, the exotic, hoping to catch a glimpse of a rich traditional culture on the cusp of its inevitable radical transformation. At the time, there was no modern, or rather contemporary, architecture in China to speak of. There were only the promising first hints of the development of a potentially new architectural language being undertaken by just a handful of independent architects almost entirely under the radar.
Villa Badran. Image Courtesy of Rare Books and Special Collections Library American University in Cairo
While Egyptian architects were exercising their understanding of modernism in the urban fabric in the 1970s, a “chubby rebellion” in the form of Villa Badran defied the standardized curvilinear forms and rigid geometry. Gamal Bakry dived deep into his imagination to construct this unique piece of architecture that still stands as part of the city of Cairo today. With curving and free-flowing facades, Villa Badran drew inspiration from natural forms. In an attempt to create a living space that was more natural in its essence, the bubbly intervention puts in place a monolithic composition that hosts a two-story detached home for an Egyptian family.
The legacy of the Modernist movement is a complicated one. Spanning a diverse assortment of fiercely debated sub-categories and styles, the Modernist style has established its presence in virtually every continent. Although the movement's origins may be rooted in Europe and the U.S., outside of the Eurocentric canon architects have redefined and re-established the definition of a "Modernist" building. In Sri Lanka, for example, architect Geoffrey Bawa's sensitive, nature-inspired architectural responses gave rise to the "Tropical Modernism" label. Over in the African continent, it is in the East-African country of Tanzania that some highly unique examples of Modernist architecture are found – headed by architects Anthony Almeida and Beda Amuli.
