Pacific Coast

Bienvenue à Paris!

Paris One | Notre Dame de Paris

After a rather interesting experience boarding the Easy Jet flight from Berlin, our small group arrived in Paris at dusk.  We were delightfully surprised to realize that our hostel was only blocks away from Notre Dame de Paris and many other Parisian delights.  In a haze from the days travels, we made our way to the cathedral.  Up to this point I had only imagined what Paris would be like, and was all at once in love with its romantic beauty.  My first encounter with the Paris of my imagination was one of the most iconic and breathtaking structures on Earth, and I couldn't have asked for a better introduction.     

This House

Berlin Six | Auf Wiedersehen

Here are the last few offerings of photo documentation from Berlin.  The city was abound with facades of every color and political proclamation, including the declaration above which translates to "This House Previously Stood in a Different Country", referencing the Berlin Wall.  Other punctuations in the facade narrative were not so politically charged and made statements through color and mural.  However, an old squat tenement found in former East Berlin had the words "Soldiers are Murderers" emblazoned on its facade, only steps away from a military cemetery.  Even buildings that are charged with such history as the Reichstag have taken on a new persona.  Once used for propaganda purposes in World War II, Germany's parliament building now emphasizes the transparency of government and accessibility to its people by means of Sir Norman Foster's glass dome addition.  Whether transparency in the parliamentary government is actually true is yet to be determined...  

Until next time, auf wiedersehen Berlin!

In Memoriam

Berlin Five | Eisenman + Libeskind

The following images are of The Holocaust Memorial (Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe) by Peter Eisenman and The Jewish Museum of Berlin by Daniel Libeskind.  Eisenman's project employs a field of concrete columns at different heights across an undulating ground condition to create a haunting labyrinth in which one is completely consumed by the columnar landscape.  Libeskind's museum, on the other hand, uses a serpentine building with pierced "voids" to articulate the emotion and experience of the Jewish people.  Neither space can be summed in words or images, but rather is an experience one must have.  Acknowledging the tension between Berlin's, and Europe's, violent past and hopeful future, the memorials convey different articulations of the Jewish experience through an architectural language.

Hamburger Bahnhof

Berlin Four | Museum für Gegenwart

Here, I believe, the images can mostly speak for themselves.  Above is from instillation db by Ryoji Ikeda.  In a stark white room, prints of pi are hung on the walls, as a speaker emits a high toned sound.  Images alone are not able to capture the experience of the space, but the clean, simple arrangements of objects in the room are only complimented by the monotone ring that accompanies them.  The following images are of miniature light models that were only accessable through openings in a wall.  

click through for more photos.  

Atelier Katharina Große

Berlin Three | Atelier Katharina Große

One of the keystone projects of the Spring 2012 semester was a case study in the city of Berlin.  My partners and I chose the private residence/studio of artist Katharina Große, designed by augustin und frank architekten, completed in 2007.  The building anchors the corner of an historic industrial neighborhood, and is surrounded by established Prussian brick buildings.  The site was once occupied by a tailor shop, on which the current building's foundation now rests; while the atelier itself hovers over the remaining exterior brick wall of the shop that stood there before.  

While in Berlin we were able to make a site visit to the building that we had spent weeks modeling at 1:50 scale (photos after the break) and see it in its full glory.  And my how glorious she was.  Not only were we able to get a much more intimate viewing of the building we had studied so deeply; but we were also fortunate enough to meet Katharina Große herself!  Unfortunately, we were not able to take a tour of the building, but she was gracious enough to come to the door and politely turn down our request. 

Click through for more photos

A House for All

Berlin Two | Nordic Embassies

Designed by Alfred Berger and Tiina Parkkinen, the Felleshus/Pan Nordic Building was completed in 1999 and houses the embassies of Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Finland, and Sweden.  Felleshus in Danish translates to a house for all, apropos for a building harmoniously connecting the delegations of the Nordic region.  The embassies' spatial arrangement is consistent with their geographical positions, all of which are contained within the serpentine copper wall which surrounds them.  The entrance facade of the building is a composition of maple and glass, which opens to reveal an interior of concrete and glass details.  The Nordic Embassies are are a rich space of texture and light, and among the more intriguing spaces to explore in Berlin.

Click through for more photographs of the Pan Nordic Building.

Interbau '57

Berlin One  | Hansaviertel IBA '57

Boldly responding to the socialist developments of the GDR and East Germany, West Germany celebrated democracy and modernity through the International Building Exhibition Interbau.  Opening July, 1957, the IBA brought together world renowned architects for housing in the Hansaviertel neighborhood; which was nearly destroyed during World War II.  With designs from Oscar Niemeyer (above), Fritz Jaenecke and Sten Samuelson, Alvar Aalto, and more; Hansaviertel became a destination for over one million visitors.  With a chairlift meandering through the projects, the IBA was a spectacle of the modernization of the west.  

More photos of the Oscar Niemeyer project after the break, as well as projects by Jaenecke, Samuelson, and Aalto.

Architecture Austria

Wagner and Loos and Olbrich, oh my!  Vienna has been home to some of the world's most influential architects and, in addition, some of the most influential architecture.  Here we have a visual offering of several examples including the Postal Savings Bank by Otto Wagner; the Goldman and Salatsch Building by Adolf Loos; and the Secession Building by Joseph Maria Olbrich.  While refraining from becoming a weepy architecture nerd, it was incredible to be able to visit and experience buildings that we have been studying for so many years.  On that note, click through to see more photos of Vienna's amazing architecture.

Five Minutes and an Egg

This little piggy went to market... in Europe!  My very first trip across the pond and destination one was Vienna, Austria.  Sent overseas to research Berlin for our spring architecture studio, I was able to visit Austria, Germany, and France during a two week manic sight seeing expedition.  This first set of documented experiences follows adventures in Viennese food and represent the small amount of photo editing I have been able to do at the end of this semester.  Starting with the breakfast above which is known as 5 minutes (the toast) paired with a boiled egg and grapefruit half, through a small street market, where there were far too many tasty looking treats.  Click through for photos, with more adventures from Europa to come soon.

Chinese New Year

What happens when you make a Saturday trip to the city and there's a celebration in the streets?  You make a detour!  Luckily, this one in particular coincided with the Chinese New Year celebration and parade in San Francisco.  The excitement was immeasurable since I had thought that it had been the weekend before.  Traipsing through the streets of Chinatown, here are some of the sights to be seen.

Neopan City

After a particularly arduous semester of graduate school, I have been able to finish and develop the roll of Fuji Neopan that had been too long ignored.  These were taken over the last several months of residing in The Bay.

got woods?

Excursion to Muir Woods not too long ago.  Found time in a moment of procrastination to edit and post some snaps.
 

Tune In Tuesday

In the last several weeks, three albums have been released from two old favorites and a remarkable newcomer.  With releases from SBTRKT, Fink, and Little Dragon streaming from my speakers and headphones daily, I felt the compulsory need to 'share the wealth'.  To say that I am a music critic would be a sham; and I don't have half the nerve to even try.  However, in a few paltry lines I will try and impart what has made the current releases from these artists significant to me.  Click through the album art to purchase from iTunes.  (Where you get your music is your business, but pilfering from torrents is neither encouraged nor condoned)

SBTRKT / SBTRKT / 6.24.11

This self titled debut album released June 24th has been playing on repeat generously these last few weeks.  SBTRKT was first brought to my attention by a one Daniel Stromberg by means of their single Wildfire, featuring Little Dragon.  To say that the track is intoxicating falls short.  I cannot explain how a song that seems so simple could be so brilliant.  The album in its entirety is quite extraordinary and a standout in the electronic scene.  Although traveling through SBTRKT's instrumental tracks as well as those featuring vocals from Sampha, Jessie Ware, and Roses Gabor; the album stays in stride nicely.   

Watch the accompanying music video for Wildfire, directed by Sam Pilling, below.

Port of Wonder

The California Academy of Sciences was one of the stops made during my sister's visit not too far back.  This multidisciplinary museum is located just across from the de Young in Golden Gate Park, and seems as though it has risen from the grassy hills itself.  Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano, The Academy is an all encompassing scientific wonderland.  Under its roof, the academy houses a rainforest ecosystem, a planetarium, aquarium, a natural history museum, theater, and thousands of live animals, as well as the requisite over priced restaurant, cafe, and gift shop.  We began our journey in the rainforest.

To Market

My bounty from Saturday's Berkeley Farmers' Market: heirloom carrots, red potatoes, summer squash, radishes, tomatoes, and two of the most delicious peaches to have ever been grown.  Some of these went into a downright delicious dinner last night, and the remainder will be enjoyed for the rest of the week.  That is, until I can return next week and plunder the riches of California's locally farmed produce even more.

Into the Abyss

This past Saturday my sister and I jaunted into the city to take in some sights.  She, having never been to The Bay, was in for quite an adventure.  All morning long  clouds rolled in and made themselves quite comfortable while we made our rounds through Golden Gate Park, visiting the de Young and Japanese Tea Garden.  Once we began to make our way North, it was clear that some of San Francisco's famous fog would be keeping us company on our visit to The Golden Gate Bridge.  

Adios Albuquerque, Bonjour Berkeley!

 

Has it been an inexcusably long time since my last blog post?  Yes.  Do I have an excuse?  Of course!  July has marked the beginning of a remarkable journey in which I have bid farewell to my hometown of Albuquerque, and hello to a new life in California.  My journey to Berkeley has been to pursue a Masters degree in Architecture, and begin an odyssey into a new chapter of my life.  My mom and I loaded up a moving truck, I took the reigns, and we drove across the country to sunny California!  I will have to say that one of the most strenuous parts of any move involves the packing and unpacking of stuff.  The unbelievable amount of stuff that one accumulates over the course of many years can be nothing short of overwhelming.  Without having too much of this 'stuff' to pack, I somehow still ended up with boxes upon boxes piled in my apartment.  Very slowly these boxes are being unpacked; and I am attacking them with the same ferocious procrastination as I attack most things. 

Beauty and the Badlands

 

Several weeks ago, Mike and I took an excursion West to El Malpais National Monument, just outside of Grants, New Mexico.  El Malpais, otherwise known as "The Badlands" is an expansive landscape of beautifully carved sandstone, jagged fields and tubes of lava, and captivating ice caves.  On this particular trip we traveled to the Natural Arch and the sandstone bluffs, overlooking basalt lava fields that stretch out as far as the eye can see.  It was a beautiful day to visit, albeit a bit windy for my taste being so high on the bluffs.  Regardless of its forbidding moniker, El Malpais is a powerful and stunning place, and a ceaseless reminder of the beauty to be found in New Mexico.

Seasonal Switch-Up

If there's one thing you can count on in Albuquerque, it is the unpredictability of the weather.  Spring not only shepherds warmer, longer days and relief from bitter winters; but also wild weather fluctuations.  It is also not entirely uncommon for the mid-year snow storm to blow into town, and turn things upside down.  This climactic curiosity came about in mid May, when a snow storm rolled over the Sandia Mountains and left a decent dusting of fresh snow.  Luckily, I was caught in the middle of it, and was able to experience a high-desert snow storm in the throws of Spring.  Photographs taken with Minolta XE-7 on FujiPro 800z film.