Public fountain in Kaunas Lithuania. The identity of cities is profoundly shaped by the interplay of enclosures, both public and private. These various degrees of interaction contribute significantly to a city’s unique character and the way its inhabitants and visitors experience it.
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Herzog et de Meuron: Between Coffee at Tai Kwun, Hong Kong. Over the last decades, museums have evolved with the realization that patrons demand more than renovated galleries with endless rooms where they can admire provocative and renowned art.
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Swiss white wine glasses. There are myriad vessels from which we are accustomed to taste the elixirs of the gods or savor sophisticated cocktails. If one enjoys even the slightest sophistication in life you know that glasses can be categorized by shape, size, and intended use.
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Carlo Scarpa, Venice entrance pavilion. Over the years, I have noticed that small, unobtrusive interventions are no longer discussed. Many of the intellectual riddles—especially in academia—now focus on the plethora of new, unexpected, bizarre, and even the fashionably ugly. If this is true, it is sad that what is now understood as architecture often no longer relates to how, in particular, small works of excellence contribute to the built environment.
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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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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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