How to become an architect? As Covid-19 is well past, students and their parents have resumed visiting university campuses. To my delight, students are showing a growing interest in architecture programs.
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Jacques Gubler: what does an elegant solution mean in architecture? During a visit to Basel, Switzerland with a colleague of mine and architecture students, I rekindled my relationship with Jacques Gubler, an esteemed history and theory faculty who taught at the EPFL when I was a student there. It was a wonderful fully-packed afternoon, with visits to key architecture projects, a critique of the new annex designed by Christ & Gantenbein, followed by a tour of the Kunstmuseum Basel (Image 1).
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Prague: a lesson in stairs (Josef Plečnik). There has always been for me delight in discovering in-situ urban places when studying famous, or not so famous, and, even better, relatively unknown architects. I will admit that I favor anonymous architects, as many of them have created stupendous works in silence; away from the unnecessary disturbance surrounding today’s star architects.
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Some thoughts on cooking from an architect’s perspective. Ever since I was a kid, I have loved hanging around the kitchen and watching dishes being prepared. Dabbling at first by helping my mom bake brownies and later a kid’s generic pasta dish with butter and parmesan—which I still love when in need of a quick carb rush—cooking evolved to become a lifelong hobby, and eventually a commitment that is practiced daily.
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David Chipperfield, Am Kupfergraben, Berlin. During a recent trip to Berlin, Germany, I made a point to revisit the Gallerie Am Kupfergraben (Berlin Mitte district), completed between 2003-2007 by British architect Sir David Chipperfield. This was not the first time that I had paid a visit to the building—both for the inside and outside architectural qualities. Disappointingly, the Gallery was closed the day of my visit this time.
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Murals at Hong Kong Central station. One of my favorite pastimes in a city is losing myself by walking streets and alleys, gardens and parks, and through public spaces such as urban plazas. This is true for most cities I visit, but Hong Kong’s urban streetscape has always offered something even more tantalizing: from glimpses of contradictory views and lush green pockets with century old trees to fabulous bakeries and shops selling traditional medicinal products, not to mention the shopping mall meccas that bring shame to even the most luxurious American mall.
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Hong Kong trams, a way to travel. When strolling in Hong Kong, it barely takes a moment to encounter one of the iconic trams that travel up and down the island’s northern coastline along the main arteries of Des Voeux, Queensway, and Hennessy Roads.
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Dubulti train station at Jürmala, Latvia: Part 2. Continuing my thoughts on train stations and arriving now to the one in Jürmala. By the time of my visit to Jürmala (meaning seashore in Latvian), the station was of the Soviet era.
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Dubulti train station at Jürmala, Latvia: Part 1. Growing up in Europe, traveling by train was part of my childhood memories. Especially in Switzerland where I lived, trains served to connect major cities, towns, and villages seamlessly linking urban and rural landscapes.
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Resting pods at Lisbon airport. Traveling by train or by air remain my favorite modes of transportation, and this despite that I am scared to death to fly. Ironically, I love to see airplanes land and take off and during my wait time at most airports, I am an avid flaneur.
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