Less Is More

Great photo essay by Christopher Hawthorne in Slate about architecture's new trend: Modest and even introverted design, over spectacle, which he calls "The Om Factor." Two polar opposites in museum design he cites are Guggenheim Bilbao and Dia: Beacon.

Read Felix Salmon's essay about the Dia:Beacon. Gothamist went to the similarly minimally designed Mass MoCA.

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By Jen Chung in Arts and Events on August 7, 2003 4:44 PM

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fud

sure thing dude

calavera

tracing trends in architecture requires looking at far more than museums. While it is quite true that many cities began to explore the possibility of drawing new tourism to them with 'signature' works such as Gehry's clusterf**ks, there have been many other new projects popping up across the globe that are beginning to break the bounds of rectalinear construction. To call the O|K Apartment shown on the cover of the Tomorrowland issue 'excessive' is partially true, but not representative for the mentality that is pushing architectural exploration of new forms.

All of these factors lead to the understanding that there is still a growing interest for innovative forms in architecture, and a further exploration of the possibilites and atmosphere created by such spaces.

FDL

I think that's the great big Bourgeois spider that has been travelling all around the world since it premiered at the Tate Modern in London a few years back (it was built to commemorate the opening). It was also at Rockefeller center for a while, and who knows where else.

Jen

Isn't there some sort of sweeping Serra sculpture at the Bilbao?

Felix

Two observations: 1) Didn't the Dia's director, Michael Govan, used to be at Mass MoCA? 2) Do you find it interesting that both the Guggenheim Bilbao (judging by the photo here) and Dia:Beacon (judging by the photo here) have a Bourgeois spider? I wonder what other duplication of artworks there might be.