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As something radically different than for instance "Irish" or "Greek contemporary architecture", "Croatian contemporary architecture" does not exist. But something else does: distinct "Croatian architectural culture"; a complex of specific adjustments and adaptations to a web of relations that defines the way our physical environment irreversibly changes. Indicators Twenty most outstanding contemporary projects, each within its own specific conditions, illustrate the way architecture can deal with moments of substantial social change that happen in not always the most favorable circumstances, and are brought together by Croatian architect Krunoslav Ivanisin and A10 Chief editor Hans Ibelings. The manifold transitional state is the key condition. Twenty projects are not selected for illustrating some particular "style" or specific "school" of architecture, but because they work not only as paradigms of the current state of "Croatian architectural culture" but also as indicators of wider social situation.
Dobrović in Dubrovnik traces the past and the present of avant-garde modern architecture constructed in the nineteen- thirties, in the Mediterranean landscape of the south Dalmatian coast of the Adriatic Sea. Comprehensive historical, theoretical, and phenomenological readings of events and forms, in two essays by architects Krunoslav Ivanišin and Ljiljana Blagojević respectively, describe a specific yet, by its spirit, universal Venture in Modern Architecture. Spatially condensed to an area within ten square miles and temporally to less than ten years, these quintessentially modern villas, gardens, and hotels built seventy years ago by the architect Nikola Dobrović (1897-1967), are presented through previously unpublished original design drawings, black and white photographs from the period of their construction, and the contemporary color photographs by Wolfgang Thaler. The color plates depict precisely the beauty in decay of heroic works of international modern architecture and convey admirably their meaningful Mediterranean resilience.
If the 20th century can be characterised by theories and manifestoes, which emanated across every sphere of life from politics to the fine arts, the beginning of the 21st century can be distinguished by its very break from theory. This effective ‘theoretical meltdown’ has manifested itself in a period of uncertainty, which can be perceived in the way disciplines coalesce with each other and blur their parameters: fine art becoming indistinct from advertising imagery; architecture incorporating communication techniques; and sculpture dealing with living spaces; while architecture reshapes fragments of the natural environment. The issue topically calls the contemporary situation in architecture to account. Features writings by and interviews with some of the most remarkable protagonists of the debate: Ole Bouman, Ricardo Diller & Elizabeth Scofidio, Neil Leach, Bernard Tschumi and Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown. Acts as a barometer to architectural design, inviting 10 international critics to highlight the most relevant current work.
The Mediterranean Basin with its mountainous shores, high biodiversity and spectacular scenery is located at the intersection of Africa and Eurasia. Through the 8000 years of human development in this area, there have been tremendous changes in its history and biogeography. Approximately 300 million people live here today. Although the evergreen maquis, vineyards, olive plantations and natural woodlands cover the lands all over the basin, it is facing severe destruction of habitats due to deforestation, intensive grazing, fires, and in particular, a severe coastal degradation due to infrastructure development, which is changing the landscape. Both the historical heritage and geography of the land is facing a great threat due to urbanisation and fragmentation. Time has come for its inhabitants to weigh their impact on its ecogeography in order to save the biodiversity as well as the history of the basin. This book synthesises the knowledge from different disciplines so as to increase awareness among the humans in the basin.
Part of the Architectural Papers series, The Middle East explores the architecture of a nearly paradoxical region. Both the cradle of culture, where much remains of thousands of years of human society, the Middle East is also an area of great flux in contemporary history. This volume explores this dichotomy in three sections. The first, "Beyond the View," investigates notions of the Middle Eastern architecture through a comparative study of different parts of the Arab world. "Case Studies" focuses on three exceptionally different cities--Beirut, Amman, and Doha--through an investigation of recent and future building projects. The final chapter, "Limits" looks at the architectural practices of countries that constitute the geographic, cultural, and political limits of the region: Israel, Turkey, and Iran.
Architectural Papers series is edited by the Josep Lluís Mateo Chair at the ETH Zurich since 2005. Covering the wide range of topics related to teaching and architectural culture in general, it is aimed at expanding the narrow boundaries of the discipline. Its fifth issue concentrates around the new conditions for architectural practice and around the new epistemologies that may inform it in the next future. That is, in the period after the financial bubble has collapsed and living and working conditions have significantly changed. Essays, studies and interviews, along with a selection of indicative projects, tackle the actual issues of growth and shrinking, economy and ideology, craftsmans...