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Patent Constructions: New Architecture Made in Catalonia,
edited by Albert Ferré, Ricardo Devesa &
Jaime Salazar.
Innovation in architecture is a double-edged
sword: it can provide improved solutions to problems, but
in many cases it can create new problems or come at the
expense of time-tested methods. In modern and contemporary
architecture innovation is viewed as a necessity, as modern
life has spawned new problems that require new solutions
(a situation of one innovation spawning another problem).
Innovation also finds roots in the exploitation of the possibilities
of industrial and computerized processes. The results of
which can be found in the numerous books presenting novel
and sometimes "smart" materials that act as inspiration
for designers as much as they are responses to specific
problems. Regardless of the veracity of these justifications,
innovation is entrenched in most contemporary architecture,
from its production to its construction.
In this collection, the various "products,"
buildings and environments found in Catalonia are presented
as "proving grounds of architectural innovation."
They are structures, skins, habitats, and landscapes. These
are suitable categories for the roughly 35 projects, dealing
with how buildings find stability, regulate inside and outside,
enclose space, and shape our natural surroundings. The products
and such are not an exhaustive reference for the designer,
though the editors have admirably compiled a varied selection
of architectural designs that illustrate the myriad ways
of tackling similar problems. In some cases this variety
comes by the same designer in one locale, such as Batlle
| Roig's vegetal walls that explore three ways of incorporating
plantings into retaining walls, and the multiple innovations
of Villa
Nurbs's skin.
As mentioned, the variety of the
projects included is commendable, as is the fact that all
are built, so even innovations rooted in computer algorithms
are presented in the real world, not as sexy screen captures.
Some of the usual Catalan suspects are found in these pages:
EMBT,
Josep
Lluís Mateo, Carme
Pinós. But much of the information within will
be new to those outside Spain, like the 34 apartments by
Guallart
Architects (featured in this
week's dose), a complex by Coll-Leclerc
featured previously,
and the wonderfully clever Laus
Night 06 by BOPBAA,
where exhibition design and dinner merged surprisingly and
seamlessly. The projects are aided by a clean and simple
layout and a subtle drop-shadow on the drawings. The book's
design may not be as innovative as the architectural designs
purport to be, but it doesn't have to be when the quality
is high.
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