Rising out of Chaos: Extricating Religion from an Architecture of Complexity

Authors

  • Michael Ostwald Newcastle University
  • John Moore Newcastle University

Abstract

Bernard Tschumi's design for the 'Pare de la Villette' in Paris consists of a series of fragmented constructivist follies, each painted blood red and situated on points across the site defined by a grid. Each folly is linked to the others through the arbitrary ordering power of the grid and then through a series of cinematic promenades which open and close vistas in the park obstructing spatial perceptions. Built on the site of the Parisian slaughterhouses, the 'Parc de la Villette' project is emblematic of recent architecture which relies upon complexity and contradiction. Tschumi's 'Parc de la Villette', like his Manhattan Transcripts, consciously seeks to deconstruct the manner in which people use and experience space; violence and pleasure are the keys he claims to forming his architecture.

Author Biographies

Michael Ostwald, Newcastle University

Newcastle University

John Moore, Newcastle University

Newcastle University

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