These two recent monographs from Princeton
Architectural Press feature two relatively young offices,
one from Ireland and one from Minnesota. While far apart
both geographically and conceptually, they both share a
number of traits: a careful response to context, an appreciation
of history, and fresh approaches that seem to belie the
previous two traits. The tension between history and progress
is easier to see in the Irish firm's work -- owing to the
country's deeper history -- though it can also be found
in the sensitive work of the Midwesterners.
O'Donnell
+ Tuomey was formed in 1988 in Dublin. From that inception
to 2004 (the date of the book's most recent project), the
firm realized the equivalent of one project a year, a quantity
that may sound small but is in now ways insubstantial. While
it is natural to overlay the quality of the work on top
of this quantity, it's also interesting to look at these
projects in their context, (something contributor Hugh Campbell
does at the book's beginning). For example, the first three
projects presented in the book are actually all on the same
block in Dublin: a film center, photography gallery, and
photography archive and school. Designed and completed within
a nearly ten year period, the executed designs illustrate
a way of approaching urban interventions, as incisions rather
than clearance and renewal. It is a method that is gaining
ground at a time when resources are scarce and local identity
is used as a marketing tool, attested by the success of
Temple
Bar.
Even with twelve other projects that do an admirable job
of building upon this interaction between history and progress,
their Glucksman
Gallery of 2004 is what most people think of when they
hear O'Donnell + Tuomey. This recognition is justified,
as the firm's creation is wonderful result of this tension,
recalling Le Corbusier's Carpenter
Center, but with a sensitivity and consideration of
its place that would make Kenneth Frampton proud. It marks
an important time for the firm, one that signals perhaps
larger commissions in the coming years and the concomitant
testing of their skills.
Across the Atlantic, the Minneapolis-based firm of Vincent
James Associates Architects started years later in 1995.
Like O'Donnell + Tuomey, VJAA's work is rooted in its place;
in this case that place is the United States, a much different
beast than Ireland. This difference is clear in the introduction
to each thematic section of their monograph, from rallying
against faux historicism or novelty for novelty's sake (Culture
Wars: Context) to the irrelevance of style and fashion in
architecture (Signs of Design). The designs presented tend
towards the unfulfilled project end rather than the presentation
of built works, but this does not diminish the firm's clear
attempts to create a sincere architecture that is of its
place in the United States.
Unlike O'Donnell + Tuomey's recognition, VJAA's came early
in 1996's Type
Variant House, a large assemblage of copper-clad boxes
in Northern Wisconsin. The assured skill of the design signaled
a new talent on the architectural scene, though it can be
commended to Vincent James and his partners that their approach
appears to opt for quality and stability over quantity and
growth, the last a characteristic of the American Way in
need of reevaluation.
An upcoming building that should cement VJAA's reputation
as skillful architects sensitive to context is the student
center (PDF link) at the American University of Beirut.
The firm's decision to break up the program into discreet
buildings for both environmental and social concerns, rather
than grouping everything under one roof, is at once fitting
for the place and unique in its composition, not appearing
derivative. This project illustrates that context does not
guarantee a successful building; having a design approach
that respects context without sacrificing the program at
hand is just as important.
or 
for O'Donnell + Tuomey
or
for VJAA
