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Rintala Eggertsson Architects
Architecture of Israel #
108
|
February
2017
|
page
english
rintala eggertsson architects
the unpredictable
green & grey urban forest
Locality
Every locality has visible and invisible
aspects. The landscape, climate, its unique
light, and building materials are visible to
the eye, as opposed to social and cultural
values and the unique needs of the user,
which are yet to be revealed. The critical role
of the architect is to reconcile these factors
through a monitoring and editing process,
in accordance with priorities determined by
circumstances.
Society
Part of the invisible site terrain that needs to
be understood. The human being is a social
animal, one of some 20 among all living
creatures on the planet, able to allocate
tasks so that the whole society / tribe
becomes more competitive. However, a
biological residue of ego-centric genes there
is, which strongly opposes co-operation in
favor of survival. I should state that we are
in favor of ensuring that there are strategies
available to support the social side of our
species.
Compact
When thinking of creating sustainable
structures, size/scale is perhaps the most
Rintala-Eggertson Architects was established in 2007 by Finnish architect Sami Rintala and
Iceland architect Dagur Eggertson. Soon after, they were joined by Norwegian Architect Vibeke
Jenssen. The three met at the University of Helsinki when students of Architect Juhani Pallasmaa,
who published the book: The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses, which has contributed
to the development of phenomenological theory. The partners teach at the Academy and, based
on what they learned from Pallasmaa, share the design process with their students and, no less
important, with their clients as well. Thus, the firm challenges what the mainstream takes for
granted: design teams are re-formed for every project, making it a one-time event, in accordance
with the phenomenological approach. The firm has won several international prizes and designs
in Scandinavian countries as well as in Canada, Chile, and China. Sami Rintala lives in Northern
Norway, Vibeke Jenssen and Dagur Eggertson live and work in Oslo.
In an internet interview we asked Sami Rintala to relate to popular terms:
important; in other words: simply not to build
too much when less is adequate. Less size
affects all stages of the building life-cycle,
decreasing transport, use of raw materials,
and energy.
Minimal vs Maximal
Modernism, or indeed the logic of our
western production and transportation,
favors simple, minimal landscapes that
resemble designed deserts. Architecture
should be a counter-force, creating cultural
and biological biodiversity, like small forests
where non-productive thinking and other
forms of existence may flourish.
Green vs Grey
An interesting pair of words that could
be understood in many ways. Perhaps
not versus, since both have positive
architectural associations of landscape and
aging with dignity. To come back to the idea
of the forest utopia - an urban" forest space"
would be an unpredictable combination of
technology and nature - grey and green.
Eternal vs Perishable
Nothing lasts forever and it would be
misleading to call something human if it
Dr. Hillit Mazor
27
is made to be eternal. On the contrary, I
believe that most of our produce should
decompose quickly and become something
else. And that something else could then be
better adapted to a contemporary situation.
Essential vs Creative
Every design is, I believe, a creative act, and
in this context, so is the way in which we
communicate today. This is also true about
things we perceive as positive, because the
decision regarding what is or isn’t positive is
made intuitively.
Personal Style
Style is a positive component as long as it
is attentive to the context. In other words,
style is relevant as long as it evolves as a
natural part of the design, not complicating
things but making them more interesting
and meaningful, like storytelling.
Good Building
One that people love using and living in
enough to take care of. This makes the
building last for generations.
Fine illustrations of these principles appear
on the following pages.