The Barcelona Pavilion is as white as Greek yoghurt right now. All the Roman travertine, ancient green marble, green Alpine … More
Category: rant
Archispeak in Political Propaganda
The Catalan independence movement has for years been churning out a great deal of propaganda in order to win over … More
Award Politics
Architecture’s top award is the Pritzker Prize, as we all know. Often referred to in the media as the “Nobel … More
Why Be Normal
Recently, I visited two buildings that provoked me to seriously question everything I learned in school. One is a student residence … More
Inteligencia empresarial / Corporate Intelligence
[English text follows below] Ya sabemos que hoy en día está muy de moda llamar ‘inteligente’ o ‘smart’ a todo … More
But is it Architecture?
The recent adjudication of Britain’s Turner Prize to some Liverpool houses regenerated through neighborhood participation by a young collective known as Assemble speaks … More
Twisted Logic: Turning Torso as ‘Innovative’ Housing?
I recently had the pleasure of visiting Malmö, Sweden; best known –in terms of contemporary architecture– for its Santiago Caltrava-designed … More
Why is BP sponsoring an architecture biennial?
Why is BP sponsoring an architecture biennial; specifically the Chicago Architecture Biennial, titled “The State of the Art of Architecture”, … More
Design and Decadence in Sabiñanigo
The land-scars of Spain’s construction boom-gone-bust have been documented photographically to great extent. More typically than not, these images portray a landscape of newly built … More
Sign o’ the Times
Isn’t it great when something that looks ‘arty’ turns out not to be art at all? A well-designed object that … More
New ‘Public’ Space in Barcelona
“The goal is to turn this old, unloved port into the best super marina in the world, to integrate yachting … More
From Baukunst to Kunstwelt: The Biennalization of Architecture
There is no doubt that architecture is an art. The eternal question is which kind. Is architecture a building art? A … More
Taste
RCR, the Catalan architectural firm known for its love of Corten steel, has an exhibition in Barcelona’s Palau Robert that … More
The Tall Building Politically Reconsidered
The tall building has been an expression of machista one-upmanship since its earliest beginnings. San Gimignano’s stone towers are a built testament … More
Death of a Manifesto
“Architecture Must Blaze” is the title of a 1980 manifesto by Coop Himmelb(l)au. In it, the architects declare: “we don’t want to exclude everything … More
Seeing Things
Mountain architecture is very different from its flatland counterpart. This may be stating the obvious, but I’m referring here to … More
Seriously now, folks.
The other day, a friend of mine posted a rather humorous item titled “Religious Truths” on Facebook along with the … More
Tradition
It’s early January, and in Spain the Christmas shopping season is still in full swing. Aarrgghh! It’s all because of … More
The STEM Turn
STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. It’s an acronym that can be heard a lot coming from the … More
Barcelona’s Disappearing Green Façades
Barcelona’s ‘green façades’ are disappearing at an alarming rate. A part of this city’s vernacular tradition, the small balconies typically used by apartment … More
Criticalista 