Josef Koudelka, The End of the Prague Spring, Prague, Czech Republic, 20-21 August 1968
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chronicling an eclectic labyrinth of architectural + personal contemplation based in atlanta
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Plan of the Fortress / Concentration Camp, Terezín, Czech Republic, c. 1944
Reblogged from allthingseurope
Charley Yelen, View of Novina, Czech Republic, c. 2012 (via allthingseurope)
Ossuary Chapel, Sedlec, Czech Republic, c. 1250-1750 CE (via archinect)
“An ossuary is a chest, building, well, or site made to serve as the final resting place of human skeletal remains. They are frequently used where burial space is scarce. A body is first buried in a temporary grave, then after some years the skeletal remains are removed and placed in an ossuary. The greatly reduced space taken up by an ossuary means that it is possible to store the remains of many more people in a single tomb than if the original coffins were left as is.”
EM2N, Keystone Office Building, Prague, Czech Republic, 2012 (via subtilitas)
Žižkov TV Tower, Prague, Czech Republic, 1985-92
“The structure of the tower is unconventional; it consists of three concrete pillars that carry cabinets for the transmitters, a restaurant and cafe, and three observation rooms. From afar, the tower resembles a rocket launchpad. Elevators, equipped with speedometers, transport passengers to the different levels at a rate of 4m/s. The tower weighs 11800 tons and is also used as meteorological observatory. It is a member of the World Federation of Great Towers.”
Wilhelm Stiassny, Jubilee Synagogue, Prague, Czech Republic, 1896-8
Josef Chochol (1880-1956), Cubist House Neklanova, Prague, Czech Republic, 1912-4
Alphonse Mucha (1860-39)
Mucha “was a Czech Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist, best known for his distinct style and his images of women. He produced many paintings, illustrations, advertisements, and designs.” His Four Seasons juxtapositions are among his most famous.
Josef Chochol, Cubist Villa, Prague, Czech Republic, c. 1910-4
Astronomical Clock, Prague, Czech Republic, 1410
“The Orloj is mounted on the southern wall of Old Town City Hall in the Old Town Square and is a popular tourist attraction. The clock is composed of three main components: the astronomical dial, representing the position of the Sun and Moon in the sky and displaying various astronomical details; “The Walk of the Apostles”, a clockwork hourly show of figures of the Apostles and other moving sculptures; and a calendar dial with medallions representing the months. The astronomical dial is a form of mechanical astrolabe, a device used in medieval astronomy. Alternatively, one may consider the Orloj to be a primitive planetarium, displaying the current state of the universe. The astronomical dial has a background that represents the standing Earth and sky, and surrounding it operate four main moving components: the zodiacal ring, an outer rotating ring, an icon representing the Sun, and an icon representing the Moon.”
Hidden Pivots (via subtilitas)
- Grosfeld van der Velde Architecten, University Library, Utrecht, Netherlands, 2009
- Steven Holl, Franz Kafka Society Center, Prague, Czech Republic, 2007
- Isay Weinfeld, Livraria da Vila, São Paulo, Brazil, 2009
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“Defenestration is the act of throwing someone or something out of a window. The term “defenestration” was coined around the time of an incident in Prague Castle in the year 1618. The word comes from the Latin de- (from) and fenestra (window or opening).”
Adolf Loos and the Medieval Origin of Minimalism
Its often occurred to me how Adolf Loos and several of the other Rationalists and Functionalists could get such a distilled, austere aesthetic. They clashed directly with the neoclassical monstrosities of cladding in the Ringstrasse (such as the Össterreichische Parlamentsgebäude (1885) by Theophil von Hansen and the Burgtheatre (1888) by Gottfried Semper) lurking around the corner. However, when I came upon this castle called Festung Hohensalzburg (literally “High Salzburg Fortress”) constructed in piecemeal by various Salzburg Archbishops from 1017-1515, I knew I was on the right track. Loos’ formal simplicity and conception of interior v. exterior / private v. public as a Raumplan in the Villas Moller (1928) and Muller (1930) owe much more to a medieval mentality than either the Neoclassicism or Jugendstil against which he rebelled. In his writing he hints at a Classical predilection, not that of the revivalists but the ancients, but there cannot be any sort of medieval ignorance with a juxtaposition such as these Austrian masterpieces from the early part of the millennium to the end. The more I think about Loos, the more I begin to dig his aesthetics.
- Portrait of Adolf Loos (1870-1933)
- Festung Hohensalzburg, Salzburg, Austria (1017-1515)
- Theophil von Hansen, Össterreichische Parlamentsgebäude, Vienna, Austria (1885)
- Gottfried Semper, Burgtheatre, Vienna, Austria (1888)
- Adolf Loos, Villa Moller, Vienna, Austria (1928)
- Adolf Loos, Villa Müller, Prague, Czech Republic (1930)
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