CRITICAL REGIONALISM

Kenneth Frampton,

"Towards a Critical Regionalism: Six Points for an Architecture of Resistance«

1983

What is the difference between culture and civilization?

When did that difference come about?

KENNETH FRAMPTON, CRITICAL REGIONALISM, 1983

Frampton in his essay argues that it is critical to adopt universal values of modernism, taking into account the geographical context of the building.

Frampton does not want to refer directly to "folklore", but to the climate, light, topography, and "local tectonic form", which should be understood as historical and geographical conditions of the construction industry.

MODERNISM vs. CRITICAL REGIONALISM

Frampton says that modernism is a dual-layer phenomenon:

1. A philosophy of progress (including social and technological issues, as industrialization and standardization)

2. A formal manner. If it is applied mechanically it results in uniformity.

Kenneth Frampton

The central principle of critical regionalism is “surely a commitment to place rather than space.”

Scenographic vs. tectonic architecture

Le Corbusier, Maison de Mandrot, Toulon, 1929-32

                  

                                          

Le Corbusier, Villa Savoye, 1929-30

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Alvar Aalto, Villa Mairea, Noormarkku, 1938

Alvar Aalto, Villa Mairea, Noormarkku, 1938

Alvar Aalto, Villa Mairea, Noormarkku, 1938

Alvar Aalto, Villa Mairea, Noormarkku, 1938

Luis Barragan, Own House, 1948

Georges Candilis, Housing, Casablanca, 1952

Candilis, Josic and Woods, Dice House, 1971 (p. 487)

Jose Antonio Coderch, Casa Ugalde, nr BarcelonaandTorre Valentina, 1950s

“…oscillation between “a mediterraneanized, modern brick vernacular” and “avant-gardist Neoplastic composition.”

Alvaro Siza, Housing in Quinta da Malagueira outside the ancient city of Evora, 1977. The morphology of original Roman settlement is preserved.

Morphology: The branch of biology that deals with the form and structure of organisms without consideration of function.

Alvaro Siza, House, Silver Coast, Portugal "All the dwellings on the 17 plots are placed so as to ensure that the lounge faces the lagoon in order to take advantage of the beautiful views that the location offers. The dwellings comprise two levels so as to keep the public and private areas separate."

Alvaro Siza, Swimming Pool, Oporto, 1966

Mario Botta, House, Riva San Vitale, 1972

Botta’s houses often appear as markets in the landscape, either as points or a boundaries.”

Mario Botta, House at Ligornetto, 1975“At Ligornetto, the pretext, the germinal idea, was imposed by the fact that the area is an outlying zone, which is the limit of the urban development that is possible in the area. In fact, the house itself indicates a sort of limit, a wall, beyond which lies the open countryside. This wall that has become a house is cut down the center, where there is a special, privileged relationship with the landscape which, in this case too, is a hill; it’s the only instance where the overriding theme of closure opens towards the outside, the overriding theme of the house as an expression of protection, which is provided by great lateral walls.”

Tadao AndoRokko Housing, OsakaChurch on Water, Hokkaido

Tadao Ando, Church of the Light, 1989

“Trans-optical architecture.”

Herzog and Meuron,

House at Tavola, 1988

Han Tümertekin, B2 Evi, Çanakkale, 2001

WHAT ARE THE ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CRITICAL REGIONALISM?

1. Combination of regional and modern (culture and civilization)2. Integration of regional materials with modern3. Emphasis on topography (consideration of geographical context; compatible with the environment/nature)4. Tactility5. Emphasis on place (not space)

Film: Globalization and Critical Regionalism

(15 minutes)