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uhaniPallasmaa I
TheTemporal Place, Memoryand lmagination: Space, Space of Existential Dimension
in architecture Thetime perspective to terms;novelbuitdingsareunderstood is usua[[yseenin futuristic Architecture qualityis directlyassocireality,andarchitectural probe andprojectan unforeseen Modernity at largehasbeendominof novelty anduniqueness. withits degree ated of newnesshas probablynever atedby this futuristicbias.Yet,the appreciation imagery.In our architectural as in today'scult of spectacular as obsessive been globatized is not onlyan aesthetic and artisticvalue,it is a straworld,newness an inseparable and consequentty, of the cutture of consumption, necessity tegic materialist culture. ingredient of oursurreaI the past,and havealsothe taskto preserve However, humanconstructions Wedo of cultureandtradition. andgraspthe continuum enable us to experience reality,we alsoinhabitcultural,mentaland notonlyexistin a spatialandmaterial andconstantly and[ivedrealityis a thick,layered realities. Ourexistential temporaI and is essentially an art formof reconciliation Architecture condition. oscillating andbuitdusin spaceandplace,landscapes to settling mediation, andin addition of past the polarities of durationandtimebetween ingsarticulate ourexperiences and the arts,[andandfuture.In fact,alongwith the entirecorpusof literature of human scapesand buitdingsconstitutethe most importantexternalization who we arethroughour constructions, and remember We understand memory. throughthe evidandmental.Weatsojudgealienand pastcultures bothmaterial proiect Buitdings theyhaveproduced. structures bythearchitectural enceprovided enicnarratives. havea significant architectural structures In additionto practicalpurposes, spacefor humanoccupationby and mentaltask; they domesticate existential spaceinto distinctplacesof human uniformand limitless turninganonymous, theymakeendlesstimetolerableby giving and equallyimportantly, significance, Harries, thephilosopher, argues: AsKarsten its humanmeasure. duration or ratherarchitecturally, realitywith a theatrically, helpsto replacemeaningless Architecture kansformedreatity,which drawsus in and, as we surrenderto it, grantsus an illusionof intocosmos.' Chaosmustbetransformed meaning . . . wecannottivewithchaos.
s p a c e.l t i s al so a deep defence "Arch i tec t uris e not on l y a b o u t d o me s ti c a ti n g againstthe terroroftime", he statesin anothercontext.'
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A t to g e th e r, e n v i ro n m e n ts a n d b u i tdi ngsdo not onl y servepracti caIand uti l i tarianpurposes;they also structureour understanding of the wortd."[Thehouse]is an instrumentwith which to confrontthe cosmos".as GastonBachelardstates.3 The abstractand indefinablenotion of cosmosis atwayspresentand represented in our i m m e d i a tel a n d s c a p eE . v e ryl a ndscapeand everybui tdi ngi s a condensed wor ld,a mi c ro c o s mire c p re s e n ta ti o n.
Architecture andmemory W e all re m e m b e th r e w a y a rc h i te c tu r al i magesw ere uti l i zedas mnemoni cdevi ces by the oratorsof antiquity.Actualarchitecturalstructures,as we[[ as mere rememberedarchitecturalimagesand metaphorsseryeas significantmemorydevicesin three differentways: first, they materializeand preservethe courseof time and m ak eit v i s i b l e ;s e c o n d th , e y c o n c re tize remembrance by contai ni ngand proj ecti ng m em o ri e s ;a n d , th i rd , th e y s ti mu l a teand i nspi reus to remi ni sceand i magi ne, Memoryand fantasy,recollectionand imaginationare relatedand they havealways a s it ua ti o n aal n d s p e c i fi cc o n te n t.O n ew ho cannotremembercan hardl yi magi ne, bec au s eme mo ryi s th e s o i l o f i m a g i nati on.Memoryi s al so the groundof sel f' identity;we are what we remember. B u i l d i n g sa re s to ra g eh o u s e sa n d museumsof ti me and si l ence.A rchi tectural structureshavethe capacityof transforming, speedingup, slowingdownand hatting time. They can also create and protect silence followingKierkegaard's request: " Cr eates i l e n c e !" + In th e v i e w o f Ma x Pi card,the phi l osopher of si l ence:" N othi ng has c h a n g e dth e n a tu reo f ma n s o m u c has the l ossof si l ence.""5S i l enceno l onger existsas a world,but only in fragments,as the remainsof a world."6Architecture has to preservethe memoryof the world of silenceand to protectthe existingfragmentsof this fundamentalontologicalstate.As we entera Romanesque monastery we can still experience the benevolentsilenceof the universe. T h e rea re ,o f c o u rs e ,p a rti c u l abr ui tdi ngtypes,suchas memori al s, tombsand m us eu msth a t a re d e l i b e ra te l cy o n c e i vedand bui tt for the purposeof preservi ng and evo k i n gm e m o ri e sa n d s p e c i fi ce moti ons;bui l di ngscan mai ntai nfeel i ngsof gr iefan d e c s ta s yme , l a n c h o la y n d j o y , as w el Ias fearand hope.A tt bui tdi ngsmai np e rc e p ti o n t ain ou r o fte m p o ra ld u ra ti onand depth,and they recordand suggest c ult ur a la n d h u ma n n a rra ti v e sWe . c a nnotconcei veor rememberti me as a mere phy s ic a d I i m e n s i o nw ; e c a n o n l y g ra spti me throughi ts actual i zati ons; the traces, plac esa n d e v e n tso fte mp o ra lo c c u rr ence. JosephB rodskypoi ntsout anotherdefi c ienc yo f h u m a n me mo rya s h e w ri te s about the composi tei magesof ci ti esi n humanmemoryand finds these citiesalwaysempty:"[Thecity of memory]is empty bec au s efo r a n i m a g i n a ti o ni t i s e asi er to conj ure archi tecturethan human being5 ." lzs th i s th e i n h e re n tre a s o nw hy w e archi tects tend to thi nk of archi tecture m or ein te rmso f i ts ma te ri aeI x i s te n c e than the ti feand humansi tuati onsthattake plac ein th e s p a c e sw e h a v ed e s i g n e d ? ArchitecturaIstructuresfacilitatememory;our understandingof the depthof time would be decisivelyweaker,for instance,withoutthe imdgeof the pyramids in our m i n d s . T h e me re i ma g e o f a p y rami dmarks and concreti zes W e ti me. al so
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SPACE,PLACE, MEMOFY AND IMAGINATION
re me m ber our own c hitd h o o dl a rg e l yth ro u g hth e h o u sesand pl acesthat w e have l i ve di n . W e hav epr oje c te da n d h i d d e np a rtso f o u r l i vesi n l i ved l andscapesand h o u se sex , ac t lyas t he o ra to rsp l a c e dth e me so f th e i r speechesi n the contextof i ma g i ned buit dings T . h e re c o l l e c ti o no f p l a c e sa n d rooms generatesthe recal l o fe ve ntand s people. of its fittedwiththecoolness filledwiththememory of itssmells, I wasa childof thathouse, it tife.There waseventhesongofthefrogsinthe thathadgiven haltways, filledwiththevoices pools; theV came to bewithmehere, A nt oinede Sa i n t-Ex u p 6 ry th,e l e g e n d a ryp il ot and w ri ter,after havi ng re mi nis c es wit h his ol a n ei n a s a n dd e s e rti n N o rthAfri ca.B cra sh -landed
Thementalpowerof fragments ln his noveITheNotebooksof Malte LauridsBrigge,RainerMaria Rilkegivesa simi l a rl ym ov ingr ec or dof a d i s ta n tme mo ryo f h o m ea n d sel f,ari si ngfrom fragments ' s s ei n th e p ro ta g o n i s t'me s mo ry: o fth egr andf at her hou it isallbroken up memories, it isnocomptete building: mychild-wrought AsI recover it inrecalling piece does not connect these two ofhatlway that there a room, andherea inside me;here a room, withinme. . . allthat byitself.Inthiswayit isalldispersed asa fragment, rooms butispreserved, picture house hadfallen of this the cease to bein me.lt isasthough isstitlin meandwitlnever ground.e my very against intomefromaninfinite height andhadshattered im agea ri s e sg ra d u a ttyp,i e c eb y p i e c e,fromfragmentsof memory Th ere m em ber ed p a int ed Cubis tpic tu ree me rg e sfro md e ta c h e dv i s ualmoti fs. a sa I hav e wr it t en ab o u t my o w n me mo ri e so f my grandfather' shumbl e farm point edout th a t th e me mo ryh o u s eo f my e arl ychi tdhoodi s a col tageof h o u seand , fra g me nt ss,m ells ,c on d i ti o n so f ti g h t,s p e c i fi cfe e ti n gsof encl osureand i nti macy, b u t ra r elypr ec is eand c o mp l e tev i s u a Ire c o l l e c ti o n sM. y eyeshaveforgottenw hat th e yo nc es aw,but m y b o d ys ti t[re m e m b e rs . Buit dings and t hei rre m a i n ss u g g e sst to ri e so f h u m anfate,both realand i magand to i n a ry.R uinss t im ulat eu s to th i n k o f l i v e sth a t h a v e a l readydi sappeared, have eroded setti ngs a R u i n s a nd i ma g i net he f at e of t he i r d e c e a s e do c c u p a n ts . p o w e r; i magi ne. fo rc e remi ni sce and th e y u s to sp e ci alev oc at iv eand e mo ti o n a I l n co m plet enesand s f r a g m e n ta ti opno s s e s sa s p e c i a Ievocati vepow er.In medi eval and Rena i s s a n cpea i n ti n g sa rc h i te c tu ras le tti ngsare oftendepi ctedas i l tu strat ions a me reedgeof a wall o r a w i n d o wo p e n i n g ,b u t th e i sol atedfragmentsuffi cesto s etti ng.Thi s i s the secretof e f a c o m p l e tec o n s tru c te d co n j u r eup t he ex per ie n c o a rc h i te c ts s , u c h a s th e a rt of c o[ [ agebut a l s o s o me ,| ohnS oaneand A l varA al to p o w e r fragment.R i tke' s o f th e a rchi tecturaI o f e m o ti o n a I h a vetak enadv ant age th i s house i n d e m o l i s hed tri ggeredby the im a g e s o f l i fe l i v e d a d e script ionof t he house, i s a stunni ng w a l l o f th e n e i g h b ouri ng lef t o n th e e n d re ma i nsand s t ains m e m o ry : wav s of hu m a n re co rdof t he
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'192
Thestubborn lifeof theseroomshadnot of all werethewallsthemselves. Butmostforgettable had beenleftthere,it stood out.lt wasstillthere;it clungto the nailsthat tetitsetfbetrampled it crouched underthe corneriointswheretherewas hand-breadth of flooring, on the remaining 0ne coutdseethatit wasin the paintwhich,yearbyyear,hadstowly stitta tittlebit of interior. green, greenintogrey,andyellowintoan old,stalerottingwhite.'o altered:btueinto moldy
of memory andsituationality Spatiality O ur r e c o l l e c ti o n a s re s i tu a ti o n a Ia n d spati al i zedmemori es,they are memori es places and events.lt is hard to recall,for instance,a familiaror iconic attachedto phot og ra p ha s a tw o -d i m e n s i o n ai lmage on photographi cpaper; w e tend to rememberthe depicted object, person or event in its full spatial reality.lt is pi ctori alspace,i t i s obv iou s th , a t o u r e x i s te n ti asl p a c ei s n evera tw o-di mensi onal and intenby memories a tived and multi-sensoryspacesaturatedand structured I we encounter, everything projecting to meaningsand signification tions. We keep gods, but my house one of Brodsky, haverarelydisagreedwith the viewsof Joseph when he arguesthat after having seen touristicbuitdings,such as Westminster Abbey,the EiffelTower,St Basil's,the Tai Mahal or the Acropolis,"we retainnot l g e b u t thei r pri nted versi on" ,and concl udesthat t heir t h re e -d i m e n s i o n ai ma "stricttyspeaking,we remembernot a placebut our postcardof it",* | haveto dis' agreewith the poet.We do not rememberthe postcardbut the real placepictured in it. A recailedimageis alwaysmorethan the once seen imageitself.In my view, Brodskypresentsa rushedargumenthere,perhapsmisguidedby SusanSontag's ideas o f th e p o w e r o f th e p h o tographedi mage i n her semi nal book 0n Photography." thi ngs,al l serveas condensati on P i c tu re s o, b j e c ts ,fra g m e n tsi,n si gni fi cant poet, writes about the roteof Finnish Laine, the centresfor our memories.Jarkko objec t si n h i s me mo ry : pleasure their in them. . . nordo I recall I don'tseekaesthetic I tikelooking at thesethings. poem A real and imagined. memories, they atl arouse important. But even so thatis not origins: ad in thewindow . . . Thethings things memories of realandimagined is a thingthatarouses in window.'3 things the . . . I sing of the poem. do not reftect anything images that likea They are T h e s i g n i fi c a n c eo f o b j e c ts i n o ur processesof rememberi ngi s the mai n reasonwhy we like to collectfamiliaror peculiarobiectsaround us; they expand and reinforcethe realmof memories,and eventually,of our very senseof setf.Few of the objectswe possessare reallyneededstrictlyfor utilitarianpurposes;their functionis sociaIand menta[."l am what is aroundme", arguesWallaceStevens,'4 wher e a sN d e [A rn a u d ,a n o th e rp o e t,cl ai ms:" l am the space,w hereI am." ' 5These condensedformulationsby two poets emphasizethe intertwiningof the wortdand groundof remembrance and identity. the self as well as the externalized byturni ng and takeni nto one' spossessi on A ro o mc a n a l s o b e i n d i v i d u a l i zed and dreami ngare i nterrel ated, ; e a c tso f memori zi ng it int o a p l a c eo f d re a mi n gth the As Bachelardputs it: "The house shettersdaydreaming,the house protects
SPACE, PLACE,MEMORYAND IMAGINATION
d re a m ert he , hous eal l o w so n e to d re a mi n p e a c e ." ' 6 A fundamentalqual i tyof a l a n d sc ape, hous eand r o o mi s i ts c a p a c i tyto e v o k ea n d contai na feeti ngof safety, fa mi tiar itand y at - hom e n e sasn d to s ti m u l a tefa n ta s i e s. W e are not capabteof deep i ma g i nat ion out door si n w i td n a tu re ;p ro fo u n di ma g i nati onca[[sfor the focusi ng i n ti ma cof y a r oom .F o rm e , th e re a l m e a s u reo f th e q u ati tyof a tow n i s w hetherI ca ni maginem y s et f at ti n gi n l o v eth e re .
Thelivedworld Wed o not liv e in an o b j e c ti v ew o rl d o f ma tte ra n d facts,as commonpl acenarV e re a l i s mt ends t o as s u m e .T h e c h a ra c te ri s ti c a lhl yu man mode of exi stencetakes p l a cei n t he wor lds of p o s s i b i ti ti e smo , u l d e db y th e human capaci tyof rememb ra n c e, f ant as yand im a g i n a ti o nW . e Ii v e i n m e n ta lw orl ds,i n w hi ch the materi al a n dthe s pir it ua[ ,as w e l l a s th e e x p e ri e n c e dre , m e mberedand i magi ned,consta n tly f us eint o eac ho th e r.As a c o n s e q u e n c eth, e Ii v e dreal i tydoesnot fol l owthe ru l e so f s pac eand t im e a s d e fi n e da n d m e a s u re db y the sci enceof physi cs.I w i sh to a rg u et hat t he I iv edw o rl d i s fu n d a m e n ta l l"yu n s ci enti fi c"w, hen measuredby th e crit er iaof wes t er ne mp i ri c a sl c i e n c e .In fa c t, th e l i ved w ortd i s cl oserto the re a l i tyof dr eamt han a n y s c i e n ti fi cd e s c ri p ti o nIn . o rderto di sti ngui shthe ti ved sp a cefr om phy s ic atan d g e o me tri c asIp a c e ,w e c a n c atIi t exi stenti alspace.Li ved e xi stent ial s pac eis s t ru c tu re do n th e b a s i s o f m e a n i ngs,i ntenti onsand val ues re fl e c t ed upon it by an i n d i v i d u a [,e i th e rc o n s c i o u s lor y unconsci ousl y; exi stenti al sp a ceis a uniquequa ti tyi n te rp re te d th ro u g hth e memoryand experi enceof the i n d i vi d uatE. v er yliv ed e x p e ri e n c ta e k e s p l a c ea t th e interfaceof reco[l ecti on and i n te n tion,per c ept iona n d fa n ta s y ,m e m o rya n d d e s i r e.T.S .E ti otbri ngsforth the pair ingof opp o s i te si n th e e n d o f h i s fo u rthq uartet," Li ttl eGi ddi ng" : i mp o r t ant Whatwecallthebeginning isoftentheend.Andto makeanendisto makea beginning . . . We notcease shalL fromexploration. Andtheendof all ourexptoring willbeto anivewherewe started. Andknowtheplace forthefirsttime.'7 On t he ot her han d , c o l te c ti v eg ro u p so r e v e n n ati ons,share certai nexperi e n ce sof ex is t ent iaIs p a c eth a t c o n s ti tu teth e i r c o tl e c ti vei denti ti esand senseof , e l d to g e th e rb y o u r sharedmemori esmorethan to g e ther nesW s . e ar e, p e rh a p s h b y a n i nnat es ens eof so l i d a ri tyI.w i s h to re c a [[h e rethe famoussoci ol ogi cal study b y Maur ic eHalbwac h sth a t re v e a l e dth a t th e e a s e of mutual communi cati on b e tw eenold P ar is ians l i v i n gw i th i na d i s ti n c tq u a rte rw a s groundedi n thei rri chand sh a re dc ot lec t iv m e em o ri e s . Th eliv eds pac eis a l s oth e o b j e c ta n d c o n te x to f b oth the maki ngand experi encingof art as well as architecture. Art projectsa lived reality,not meresymbolic re p re s ent at ions of lif e.T h eta s k o f a rc h i te c tu rea,l s o ,i s " to makevi si bl ehow the w o rl d touc hesus " , as M e rl e a u -P o n ty w ro te o f th e p ai nti ngsof P aul C 6zanne.' B We l i ve in t he " f les h o f th e w o rl d " ,to u s e a n o ti o no f the phi l osopher, and l andsca p e sand ar c hit ec tu res tru c tu rea n d a rti c u l a teth i s exi stenti alfl esh gi vi ng i t sp e ci f ichor iz onsand m e a n i n g s .
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1s'4
Experience as exchange o f a p ta c eo r s p a c ei s al w aysa curi ousexchange;as I settl ei n a T heex p e ri e n c e s pac e,t h e s p a c es e ttl e si n me . I l i v e i n a ci tyand the ci tydw el l si n me.W e are i n a the setti ngand w i th o u r s e tti n g ss; i muttaneouslwye i nternal i ze c ons t a n e t xchange pr ojec to u r o w n b o d i e s ,o r a s p e c tso f our body schemes,on the setti ng.Memory and ac t u a l i ty p, e rc e p ti o na n d d re a mm erge.Thi ssecretphysi catand mentaIi nter" In ,| oseph t wining a n d i d e n ti fi c a ti o na l s o ta k e s ptace i n al l arti sti cexperi ence. B r ods k y ' sv i e w e v e ryp o e m te l l s th e reader" B e [i ke me" .' eH erel i es the ethi cal powero f a l l a u th e n ti cw o rk so f a rt;w e i nternal i ze themw i th our them and i ntegrate very senseof self. A fine pieceof music,poetryor architecturebecomesa part of m y phys i c a al n d m o ra ls e l f.T h eC z e c hwri terB ohumi lH rabalgi vesa vi vi d descri pt ion of t h i s b o d i l ya s s o c i a ti o inn th e a c t of readi ng: in mymouth andsuckit likea fruit sentence read;I popa beautiful WhenI read,I don'treatly mybrain and infusing dissolves inmelikealcohol, untilthethought droporI sipit tikea liqueur vessel.'o totherootofeachblood heart andcoursing onthrough theveins Re m e m b e ri nigs n o t o n l y a m e n ta levent;i t i s al so an act of embodi mentand processes pr ojec ti o nM . e m o ri e sa re n o t o n ty h i d deni n the secretel ectrochemi cal of t he bra i n ;th e y a re a l s os to re di n o u r skel etons,muscl esand ski n.A tl our senses and or g a n sth i n k a n d re m e m b e r.
The embodiedmemory I c an r ec a l th l e h u n d re d so f h o te Iro o m saroundthe w orl d,w hi chI havetemporari l y w i th thei rfurni ture,col ourschemes inhabit e dd u ri n gm y fi v e d e c a d e so f travel l i ng, and t igh ti n g ,b e c a u s eI h a v e i n v e s te dand l eft partsof my body and my mi nd i n The protagoni stof MarcelP roust' s/n t t hes e a n o n y mo u sa n d i n s i g n i fi c a nrooms. similarlyhis veryidentityand locationthroughhis Searchof Lost lime reconstructs em bod i e dm e m o ry : ofits to construe fromthepattern withsleep to move, wouldendeavour Mybody, stilltooheavy ofthewall, thedirection timbs, inorder to deduce therefrom tiredness theposition ofitsvarious in whichit tay.lts to thehouse to piece together andgivea name thelocation ofthefurniture, offered it a whole its shoulder-blades, memory of its ribs,its knees, memory, thecomposite walls, shifting and slept, white theunseen ofrooms inwhichit hadatonetimeoranother series whirted it inthe roomthatit remembered, to theshape ofeachsuccessive adaptingthemselves of thestyleofthebed,theposition woutd recall fromeachroominsuccession dark.. . mybody, wasa passage came inatthewindows, whether there atwhich thesunlight thedoors, theangte whenI awoke." andfound there whatI hadhadinmindwhenI wenttosleep outside, that bri ngsto mi nd a fragmented W e a re a g a i n e n c o u n te ri n a g n e xperi ence Cubis tc o m p o s i ti o nW . e a re ta u g h tto t hi nk of memoryas a cerebralcapaci ty,but t he ac t o f m e m o rye n g a g e so u r e n ti reb o dy.
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"Body memoryis . . . the naturalcenterof any sensitiveaccountof remembering",phitosopherEdwardS. Caseyarguesin his seminalbook Memorizing:A Phenomenological Study,and concludes:"Thereis no memorywithoutbody memory."" Inmyview,we c out ds aye v e nm o re ;b o d yi s n o t o n ty th el ocusof remembrance, it is alsothe siteand mediumof al[ creativework,includingthe workof the architect.
Memoryandemotion Ina d d i tiont o beingm e m o ryd e v i c e sl,a n d s c a p eas n d b ui l di ngsare al so ampl i fi ers o fe mo t ionst;heyr einf o rc see n s a ti o nos f b e to n g i n g o r a li enati on, i nvi tati onor rej ection,tranquillityor despair.A landscapeor work of architecturecannot,however, create feelings.Throughtheirauthorityand aura,they evokeand strengthenour own emotionsand projectthem back to us as if these feelingsof ours had an external source.In the LaurentianLibraryin FlorenceI confrontmy own senseof metaphysis ca lme lanc holy awak en e da n d p ro j e c te db a c k b y M i c h el angel o'archi tecture. The o p ti mi s mt hat I ex per i e n c w e h e n a p p ro a c h i n th g e Pa i mi oS anatori umi s my ow n The senseof hope evokedand strengthened by AlvarAalto'soptimisticarchitecture. hill of the meditationgroveat the WoodlandCemeteryin Stockholm,for instance, evokesa state of longingand hope throughan imagethat is an invitationand a p ro mi se.T his ar c hit ec tu rai lma g e o f l a n d s c a p ee v o k essi mul taneousl rememy n s th e c o m p o s i tep a i n te di ma g eof A rnotdB rj ckti n' "sl sl and b ra n ce and im aginat io a o f D e a t h"A. ll poet icim a g e sa rec o n d e n s a ti o nasn d m i c r ocosms. . * @.
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GunnarA spl undand S i gurdLew erentz, T he M ed i t a t i o nG r o v eo n t h e h ill is a n im a g e o f h o p e a n d r e su r r ecti on. The Woodland cemeterv. Stockholm,1915/1932
sug" " H o u s e ,e v e n m o re th a n th e l a ndscape,i s a psychi cstate" , B achel ard ges t s .2In 3 deedw , ri te rs ,fi [m d i re c to rs,poets,and pai ntersdo not j ust depi ctl andc physi calsetti ngsof the events s c ape so r h o u s e sa s u n a v o i d a b l eg e ographi and emoti ons,mental T of t he i r s to ri e s ;th e y s e e kto e x p re s s,evokeand ampti fi human s t at esa n d me mo ri e sth ro u g hp u rp osefuldepi cti onsof setti ngs,both naturaIand m an-ma d e ". L e t u s a s s u mea w a [[:w hat takes pl ace behi nd i t?" , asks the poet J eanT a rd i e u ,'bau t w e a rc h i te c tsra re l ybotherto i magi new hat happensbehi ndthe are usual l ymereaestheti by archi tects wallsw e h a v ee re c te dT. h ew a l l sc o n cei ved c iz edc o n s tru c ti o n sa,n d w e s e eo u r crafti n termsof desi gni ngaestheti cstructures r at he rth a n e v o k i n gp e rc e p ti o n sfe, e l i ngsand fantasi es. of pl aceand humanmi nd,memoryand A rti s tss e e mto g ra s pth e i n te rtwi ni ng do, and that i s w hy theseotherart formscan des ir e ,mu c hb e tte rth a nw e a rc h i te cts educa' pr ov i d es u c hs ti m u l a ti n gi n s p i ra ti o nfor our w ork as w el l as for archi tectural capaci tyof arti sti ccondensat ion. T h e rea re n o b e tte rl e s s o n so fthe extraordi nary t ions i n e v o k i n gmi c ro c o s mi icma g esof the w orl d than, say,the short stori esof A nt on C h e k h o va n d J o rg eL u i s Bo rg es,or Gi orgi oMorandi ' smi nutesti [[ l i fescons is t in go f a fe w b o ttl e sa n d c u p so n a tabl etop.
SPACE,PLACE, MEMORY AND IMAGINATION
Slowness and remembering - speedand forgetting "There is a secretbond betweenslownessand memory,betweenspeedand forgetl the i ntensi tyof memory: ti n g. . . t he degr eeof s l o w n e s si s d i re c tl yp ro p o rti o n at o l th e i n te nsi tyof forgetti ng"suggests , th ed e g r eeof s peedis d i re c tl yp ro p o rti o n ato Mi l a nKu nder a. 'W 5 it h t h e d i z z y i n ga c c e l e ra ti oonf th e vel oci tyof ti me today and l a l i tyw , e a re seri ousl ythreatenedby th eco ns t ants peedingup o f o u r e x p e ri e n ti are a g e n e raI c ult ur aIam ne s i aIn . to d a y ' sa c c e te ra teldi fe ,w e can fi na[[yonl y percei ve, n o tre m em berI.n t he s o c i e tyo f th e s p e c ta c l ew e c a n onl y marvet,not remember. Sp e e dand t r ans par en cwy e a k e nre m e m b ra n c eb,u t th ey have been fundamental fa sci n at ions o f F .T.Mari nettii n the Futuri st of m oder n i tys i n c eth e p ro c l a m a ti o n has beenenri ched ma n i fes talm o os ta f u[ [ c e n tu rya g o :" T h ew o rtd ' sma g ni fi cence b ya n e w beaut y ;t he b e a u tyo f s p e e d " ,' 6a n d l (a r[M a rx' sprophesy:" E verythi ng seeksthe sensati on th a ti s solid. . . m elt sin to th e a i r." ' 7 T o d a ye,v e na rc h i tecture o fsp e e d,ins t ants educ ti o na n d g ra ti fi c a ti o na,n d tu rn sauti sti c,as a consequence. thi s asoi rati onfor draIh e a rchit ec t ur aI c onf ess i o o n f C o o oH i m m e l b l a ui l l u s tr ates ma ti zear d c hit ec t ur al ac ti o na n d s o e e d : in tiledhospital The Theaesthetics ofdeathin whitesheets. Death rooms. ofthearchitecture pierced death Death froma rib-cage bya steering shaft. architecture ofsudden onthepavement. Thepathofthebulletthrough a dealer's headon4zndStreet. Theaesthetics ofthepeep-show plastic boxes. 0fthebroken tongues andthedried-up eyes.'8 sexinwashable i s i n h e re n tl a y s l owand qui et,emoti onal l ya In my v iew,howeve r,a rc h i te c tu re low-energy art form in comparisonwith the dramatic arts of sudden affective impact.lts rote is not to createstrongforegroundfiguresor feelings,but to estabThetask of archi tecture is l i shfra m esof per c ept io n a n d h o ri z o n so f u n d e rs ta n d i n g. n o tto m ak eus weepor l a u g h ,b u t to s e n s i ti z eu s to b e abl eto entera[[ emoti onal sta te s.A r c hit ec t ur eis n e e d e dto p ro v i d eth e g ro u n d and proj ecti onscreenof re me mbr ancand e em ot i o n . I b e liev ein an ar c h i te c tu re th a t s l o w s d o w n a n d f ocuseshuman experi ence has to safeguard i n ste a dof s peedingup o r d i ffu s i n gi t. In my v i e w , a rc hi tecture me mo ries of human experi ence. and pr ot ec tt h e a u th e n ti c i tya n d i n d e p e n dence Arch i te c t urisef undam e n ta tty th e a rt fo rm o f e ma n c i p ati on, and i t makesus underwh o w e a re . sta n da nd r em em ber
Architectural amnesia i n re l a ti o nto memory:one that cannot Th e rea r e dif f er entk ind s o f a rc h i te c tu re re ca lol r t ouc h upon t he p a s t a n d a n o th e rth a t e v o k e sa senseof depth and conth a t s e e k sto re m e mberIi teral l y,l i ke the archi ti n u i ty.T her eis als oan a rc h i te c tu re wor k s of P os t m o d e rn i s m, a n d a n o th e rth a t c re atesa senseof deep ti me, te ctu ral as the w orksof A l varA al to, a n de p i cc ont inuit ywit h o u ta n yd i re c tfo rm a Ire fe re n c e, D i mi trisP ik ionisand Ca rl oS c a rp aT. h e s ea re p ro d u c tsof a " poeti cchemi stry"to , not iono f B a c h e l a rd .'Ev e e rys i g n i fi c a nand t truew ork setsi tsetfi n u sea n e v oc at iv e
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A t the sameti me a r es p e c tfudI i a l o g u ew i th th e p a s t,b o th di stantand i mmedi ate. i t revi vesand t hat t h e w o rk d e fe n d si ts e l fa s a u n i queand compl etemi crocosm, r ev it a l i z eth s e p a s t.Ev e rytru ew o rko f art occupi esa thi ckand l ayeredti me i nstead of m er ec o n te m p o ra n e i ty . i mages, memory.A rchi tecturaI Th e rei s y e t a n o th e rd i m e n s i o ni n archi tectural begi ns or ex p e ri e n c e sh,a v e a h i s to ri c i tya n d ontol ogyof thei r ow n. A rchi tecture the fl oori s the " ol dest" wit h t h e e s ta b l i s h m e notf a h o ri z o n talpl ane;consequentty, Thew a[[i s morearchai cthan the dooror and m o s t p o te n te l e m e n to f a rc h i te cture. Moderni tyhassuft he wi n d o w ,a n d p ro j e c tsa d e e p e rm e ani ngas a consequence. el ementsand i mageshave f er ed f ro m a n o th e rk i n d o f a mn e s i aas archi tectural The essences. bec omea b s tra c te da n d d e ta c h e dfro m thei rori gi nsand ontol ogi caI , a s fo rg o tte ni ts o ri gi nas l evel l edearth,and turnedi nto mere f loor ,fo r i n s ta n c e h humanconstructi ons suggests, c ons tru c te h d o ri z o n tapl l a n e s .In fa c t,as B achel ard of the technologicalage haveforgottenverticalityaltogether,and turnedinto mere and havelostthe consistof stackedhorizontality horizontality. Today'sskyscrapers , e fu n d a me n taIontol ogi caIdi fferencebetw eenbel ow and s ens e o f v e rti c a l i tyth . s o ,th e fl o o rand the cei l i nghavebecomei denti cathori abov e ,H e tla n d H e a v e nAl z ont a Io l a n e s .T h ew i n d o wa n d th e d o or are oftenmerehotesi n the w al l . I do not hav e th e s p a c eh e reto e l a b o ra teo n thi s theme of the hi stori ci tyof archi tectural im age sa n d th e c u rre n ta rc h i te c tu raaImnesi aresul ti ngfrom the l ossof the hi stor of thi s di mensi on. ic it yof e x p e ri e n c e sI ;me re typ o i n ta t t he mentalsi gni fi cance
The tensesof art I ventureto suggestthat in its very essenceartisticwork is orientedtowardsthe pas t r a th e rth a n th e fu tu re . Bro d s kyseemsto supportthi s vi ew as he argues: i f onl y because " T her ei s s o me th i n gc te a rl ya ta v i s ti cin the processof recol l ecti on, p ro c e s s remembers, the ctoserperhaps n e v e ri s l i n e a r.A l s o the moreone s uc h a one is to d i e i n g ." :" i nter' ln a n y s i g n i fi c a net x p e ri e n c ete, m porall ayersi nteract;w hat i s percei ved A n arti sti c w i th the archai c. , e n o veIshort-ci rcui ts ac t sw i th w h a t i s re me mb e re dth persona. i nsi de one' s adul t ex peri e n cael w a y sa w a k e sth e fo rg o ttenchi tdhi dden and art that are fl at and T h e rea re fa b ri c a te di ma g e si n today' sarchi tecture novel i mages that resonatew i th wit ho u t a n e mo ti o n a le c h o , b u t th e re are al so fami l i ar, obscure and cl ear,at the r em emb ra n c eT. h e l a tte r a re m y s te ri ousand emoti ons and associ ati ons, s am eti m e . T h e ymo v e u s th ro u g hth e remembrances provided it move novelty can us only and empathythat they awakenin us. Artistic profound p o ssess E very arti si n our very bei ng. t ouc h e ss o m e th i n gth a t w e a l re a d y Aftistic grows invention. from rootless intellectual from memory,not tic work surely oceani cw orl d, wor k sa s p i reto b ri n gu s b a c kto a n u ndi vi dedand undi fferenti ated poi nt " the from w hi chthe w ri tes about, T hisis th e Ome g ath a t T e i l h a rdd e C hardi n wor lda p p e a rsc o m p l e tea n d c o rre c t" .3' W e a re u s u a l tyc o n d i ti o n e dto thi nk that arti stsand archi tectsoughtto be addr e s s i n th g e fu tu rere a d e rsv, i e w e rs,and usersof thei rproducts. JosephB rodsky " W henone perspecti ve: poet' s temporal is v er y d e te rm i n e d i,n d e e d ,a b o u t t he
MEMORY AND IMAGINATION
Look ingt h r o u g h a w i n d o w i s a p r o fo u n da r ch ite ctu r ael n co u n te rr a therthan a vi sualdesi gnof the w i ndow i tsel f Cas parDa v i dF r i e d r i c h",F r a u am F e n ste r ",1 8 2 2
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letalone is notone'sowncontemporaries, audience writes,one'smostimmediate posterity, "No realwritereverwantedto be contemporbut one'spredecessors.'32 Thisviewopensanotheressential arguesin thesamevain.33 ary",JorgeLuisBorges workis co[a[[ creative perspective and roleof remembrance; on the significance with the past and with the wisdomof tradition."Everytrue novelist laboration wisdom[thewisdomof the nove[],whichexplains listensfor that suprapersonal thantheirauthors.Novelists why greatnovelsarealwaysa litttemoreintelligent thantheirbooksshouldgo into anotherlineof work", who are moreinteltigent great is equatly trueof architecture; Thesameobservation argues.3a MilanKundera of a collaboratheyareproducts arefruitsof thewisdomof architecture, buitdings as muchastheyareworksof withourgreatpredecessors tion,oftenunconscious, diatogue with Onlyworksthat arein vitaIand respectfuI creators. theirindividuaI [isviewers, to survivetimeand stimulate theirpastpossessthe mentalcapacity in thefuture. readers, andoccupants teners,
NOTES 1
2
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5 6 Z 8 9 10 77 12 tj 74 t5 t6 77 18 79 20 27
in DavidSeamon(ed.),Dwelling, KarstenHarries,"Thoughtson a Non-ArbitraryArchitecture" Ecology,Albany, NY:State Universityof Seeingand Designing:Towarda Phenomenological NewYorkPrcss,7993,p. 47. lournal KarstenHanies,"Buildingand the Terrorof Time",Perspecta:TheYaleArchitectural Blackwell, Cambridge: 79,1982.As quotedin DavidHarvey,Ihe Conditionof Postmodernify, 1 992,p. 206. GastonBachelard,ThePoeticsof Space,Boston,MA:BeaconPress,1969,p. 46. 1988,p. As quotedin Max Picard,TheWorldof Silence,Washington,DC:BegneryGateway, lfI writes:"Thepresentstateofthe wortdandthe whoteof lifeis diseased. z3r. Kierkegaard were a doctorand were askedfor my advice,I shouldsay:CreateSilence!Bringmento silence." ln MaxPicard,TheWorldof Silence,p.227. ln Max Picard,Ihe Worldof Silence,p.2L2. fosephBrodsky,"A Placeas Goodas Any" in On Griefand Reason,NewYork:Farrar,Straus and Giroux,1997,p.43. Books,r99r, p. 39. Wind,SandandStars,London:Penguin Antoinede Saint-Exup6ry, RainerMariaRitke,TheNotebooksof Malte LauridsBrigge,M.O.HerterNorton,trans.;New Yorkand London:W.W.Norton&Co.,t992,pp.30-31. Ritke,Ihe NotebooksofMalteLauridsBrigge,pp.47-48. "APlaceasGoodasAny"in OnGriefandReason,p.37. losephBrodsky, Harmondworth: PenguinBooks,1986. SusanSontag,OnPhotography, 6, t982, pp.323-24. JarkkoLaine,"Tikustaasiaa"in Parnasso Poems,NewYork:VintageBooks,r99o, p. 85. WaltaceStevens,"Theory"in TheCollected NodlArnaud,as q uotedin Bachelard,ThePoeticsof Space,p. t37. Bachelard,ThePoeticsof Space,p.6. Publishers, SanDiego:HarcourtBraceJovanovich T.S.Etiot,FourQuartets, ry7\pp.58-59. "C6zanne'sDoubt" in Senseand Non'Sense,Evanston,lL: North' MauriceMerleau-Ponty, westernUniversityPress,1964,p. t9. p. zo6. OnGriefandReason, JosephBrodsky, lnc.,1990,p. 1. SanDiego,CA:Harcoutt BohumilHrabat,Ioo Louda Solitude. Kilmartin, MarcetProust,In Searchof LostTime:Swann'sWay,C.K.ScottMoncrieff& Terence House,1992,pp.4-5. TheRandom trans.;London:
PIACE, MEMORY AND IMAGINATION SPACE,
S. Casey,Memorizing: A Phenomenological 22 Edward Sfudy,Btoomington,lN: IndianaUniversityPress,2ooo,p. r48, t72. ThePoeticsofSpace,p.7z. 23 Bachelard, 24 Asquotedin GeorgesPerec,Tilojaja avaruuksia,Esp6cesd'espaces,originaltitle; Helsinki: Loki-Kirlat, t992,p. 72. Slowness, NewYork: HarperCotlins 25 MilanKundera, Pubtishers, 1966,p. 39. 26 A s qu ote din Th omM ay ne, "St at em enl"inPet er Pr an , L i g a n g Q u i : D U T P r e s s , 2 0 0 6 , p . 4 . pre.iudices 27 "Allfixed,fast-frozen relations, withtheirtrainof ancientandvenerable and opinions,aresweptaway,all newformed onesbecomeantiquated beforetheycanossifi7. Al[ that is solidmeltsintoair,all that is holyis profaned, and men at lastareforcedto face. . . the realconditions of theirlivesandtheirrelations withtheirfellowmen." "Die Fascination der Stadt"in AnthonyVidler,TheArchitecturalUncanny, 28 CoopHimmelblau, Cambridge, MA:TheMITPress,1999,p.76. 29 GastonBachela"d,Waterand Dreams:An Essayon the Imaginationof Matter,Dallas,TX:The Pegasus Foundation, ry83,p.46. 30 JosephBrodsky,LessThanOne,NewYork:FarrarStrausGiroux,1986,p. 3o. 31 Asquotedin TimoVatjakka(ed.),JuhanaBlomstedt:muodonarvo,Helsinki:Painatuskeskus, 1995. j2 Joseph Brodsky, "LettertoHorace"in OnGriefandReason,p.43g. The Ecco 33 Asquotedin NormanThomasdi Giovannief a/. (eds),Borgeson Writing,Hopewell: Press, t994,p.53. he elNewYor k : Har per Co l l i n s P u b l i s h e r s l n c . , 2 1o 5o 8o . ,p. 34 Mila nKu nd era ,Th eAr t of /t Vov
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