Norberg Schulz

Why has this author been drawn to Heiddeger’s ideas as they relate to today’s architects and their work.

Technology and globalization has made the human experience less and less about a specific physical place, and Schultz sees this as a concern.  There are many architects working today who are specifically interested in this idea of phenomenology which Schulz defines as “a return to things.” Some of these architects include: Tadao Ando, Steven Holl, Clark and Menefee, and Peter Waldman.  What these designers have in common is their desire to create spaces which are specific to a time and place.  They achieve this through materiality, craft, and contextual analysis. Many of Steven Holl’s projects are directly related to time and space in relation to the sun.  His Chapel of St. Ignatius was based on the idea of “seven bottles of light,” which he uses to capture different qualities of light from different times of the day.  This acknowledgment of time and space is one of the key traits of phenomenology in modern architecture.  The other key aspect in relation to architecture is materiality.  Both Holl and Ando use materials as a way to connect to a specific geographic location.  Ando uses concrete which is inherently connected to a site because it is made of sand, gravel, and cement, which are sourced locally in relation to a building site.  Even though Holl works on projects all over the globe he attempts to use material and craft as a way to connect to a specific location.  In a house which he designed in Korea, he lined the formwork with local bamboo which left its texture imprinted in the concrete after the formwork was removed.  So he used a local material which was crafted by local craftsmen to create a facade which was specific to that place.  I think that this emphasis on craft and place is ultimately what makes a project sustainable.

-Brandon Cari