The other day, a friend of mine posted a rather humorous item titled “Religious Truths” on Facebook along with the … More
Category: unsolicited text
Tradition
It’s early January, and in Spain the Christmas shopping season is still in full swing. Aarrgghh! It’s all because of … More
Pure Shit (II)
This building in the Catalan Pyrenees is a perfect example of the kind of “pure shit” that, according to Frank … 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
Thinking Big: The City of Culture of Galicia as Regional Development Strategy
[Text originally commissioned in 2011 by a Swiss art institution for an exhibition that never materialized and for which I … 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
How to become a “public space” benefactor in 6 easy steps:
Pssst. Nouveau-riche and dying to go down in philanthropic history? Why not build a “public space” vanity project? It’s easy. Here’s how you do … More
Pure Shit
I couldn’t agree more, Frank.
Cities that Come and Go
Within walking distance of Barcelona’s historic centre, there lies a small satellite town that comes and goes with regularity. It tends to … More
Cruise Ships
Le Corbusier famously wrote in Vers une architecture that we should look to ocean liners as examples of a new, modern architecture. This … More
Morning Glory
It must surely be a signal from the cosmos. Yesterday, September 8th, at precisely 7:39 AM, I woke up, opened … More
Drawing Conclusions
Guerilla Architect
Al Jazeera is currently airing a series of architectural documentaries in six parts titled “Rebel Architects“, the first of which is … More
When in Rome
Barcelona’s public space is yet again being hotly contested. Protests against the many illegal tourist apartments in this city, sparked by last week’s publication … More
Criticism as Reality Check
As my article titled “Reality Check: Spain” in the current (at time of post) 50th issue of Mark Magazine hopefully makes clear, architecture … More
Architecture’s Prime Taboo, is one of its ‘Fundamentals’, too.
Russia’s pavilion at the 14th Venice Architecture Biennale, titled ‘Fair Enough’, is one of the few exhibitions in the entire Biennale … More
Some Reflections on Concrete Formwork
Every building material symbolizes something, and the most modern building materials are no exception. Glass, we have been told, is representative … More
Groupies: A Mark Magazine project at the Venice Architecture Biennale
We’ve all heard of ‘selfies’, perhaps even taken a few ourselves. So why not ‘groupies’? During the opening of the … More
Skin-Deep Beauty
Rambla de Canaletes, Barcelona. 8:30 AM. The morning light is shining through the window openings of a façade that has been … More
The Barcelona Brand
Barcelona is the sixth most powerful urban brand in the world, according to a report published today in The Guardian, … More