Introduction to Management, Practice and Law

Part 1: Poetry in Architecture Part 2: Poetics of Movement with the analyse of the Mons train station designed by Santiago Calatrava.

Bodson Nancy Part 1: Poetry in Architecture

“Architecture is more than a science of rule and compass. It is a science of feeling more than of rule, a ministry to the mind, more than to the eye.(…) No man can be an architect, who is not a metaphysician. All the abuses in some degree can be prevented if attention is paid by our architects. All unity of feeling (which is the first principle of good taste) is neglected; we see nothing but incongruous combination: we have pinnacles without height, windows without light, columns with nothing to sustain, and buttresses with nothing to support (….) ` The streets of our cities are examples of the effects of this clashing of different tastes; and they are either remarkable for the utter absence of all attempt at embellishment, or disgraced by every variety of abomination.

We shall consider the architecture of nations as it is influenced by their feelings and manners, as it is connected with the scenery in which it is found, and with the skies under which it was erected; we shall be led as much to the street and the cottage as to the temple and the tower; and shall be more interested in buildings raised by feeling, than in those corrected by rule. We shall commence with the lower class of edifices, proceeding from the roadside to the village and from the village to the city.

John Ruskin, "The poetry of Architecture"

Cottage near la Cité, Val d'Aosta, 1838 Petrarch's Villa; Arquà.—1837 Old English Mansion. 1837

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 1 Poetry is the art of using words on a specific ways that allows people to get some feelings through this combination of words. Poetry in architecture is the art of using specific architectural language through forms, volumes, materials and colours that will allow people to get some feelings from it. Written poetry can also be seen as a place created by the poet. You visit this place when reading the poem. The place of the poem is not the environment it describes but a place from which you can see things you cannot from elsewhere. Every time you visit it is the same place but being a place you find new things by looking in a different direction.

When standing in front of a building of a specific culture we can sense ourselves in relation to the world in which it belongs. When architecture enables new views that affect what or how we see there can be poetry. See is used in its widest sense: understand, find, project, regard, determine, examine, experience, interpret.

Vitra Hous, Herzog & de Meuron, Switzerland MAM MuseumPaulo Mendes de Rocha + Metro Arquitetos Associado, Brazil

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 2 I was born and raised in Belgium. Belgium is a small country but has always been playing an important role in International Architecture: Victor Horta and Henry Van de Velde contributing to the birth of Art Nouveau style, the extended development of Art deco, and the modernism after the second world war represented by the work of Henri Van de Velde, Huib Hoste or Marcel Leborgne. It is also commonly said that "Belgian have a brick in the belly", illustrating their strong commitment of owning and building their own house.

Palais Stoclet, Josef Hoffman, B Maison de la Radio, Josef Diongre, B

Tassel House, Victor Horta, B

Art History Institute, H van de Velde, B Residential villa, Huib Hoste, B Residential villa, Marcel Leborgne,B

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 3 However, until late 90's, Belgium was a country with remarkable architecture buildings buried into a chaotic urbanism. Having the cities crossed over by trains racks only contributed to city centres facing many deteriorated buildings. All surroundings of the rails were deprived of any aesthetic preoccupation, were falling apart and impoverished. It was also unsafe to walk around these areas at night. Also, concrete social housing and residential towers were sprouting out of nowhere in the city centers of Brussels, Antwerp, Liege. It is only at the end of the 90's that Belgian ushered to plan massive urbanism plans. Improving train station surroundings became a priority.

North station area 1998, Brussels, Belgium North station area under redevelopment 2001, Brussels, B South station area 2001, Brussels, Belgium

Strangely, I didn’t intend becoming an architect at this time. I was 17 and never travelled. I was extremely naïve and this naivety was making me very modest. I was certainly not thinking of being able to make a (good) change in the Belgian chaotic urbanism. I believed the role of an architect was not stopping at the creation of successful houses or buildings. The role of an architect was also to transform the face of the cities. At this time, working on smaller scale was something I believed more manageable and enjoyable. I was really interested to create interiors that would stimulate people and give them a way to get a new experience. The early work of Philippe Stark greatly influenced me. His vision on hotel industry was new at the time and his use of scenographic style into interiors was something I absolutely worship. Finally, someone was transforming hotel industry. Going to an hotel was not about having just a place to stay overnight but part of an experience. I always found it important to experience things and help people to go trough this process. Experiencing helps to raise questions into somebody’s mind and go further in the discovery of the self.

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 4 It is only when I started travelling extensively that my interest for architecture grew bigger. Discoveries cities like Venezia, Firenze, Roma and the Amalfi Coast was a delight after having lived in what a called “grey brick and concrete environment”. These cities were bringing feelings of satisfaction and admiration. It was clear at this stage that architecture could bring poetry and than picturesque added to the poetry of architecture. The way buildings, cities set into their environment and natural surroundings was key to bring poetry in architecture. The unity found in these cities was providing a strong feeling about them. These cities had been carefully planned over centuries and the design unity only helped to maintain this admirative feeling. Every single building seemed to interact perfectly with the others. The unity in the design helped to see the city as a whole instead of seeing it in several separate blocks. Borromini or Palladio were obviously Poets-Architects and observing the palaces or churches they designed always brings strong emotional feelings, mix of melancholy, romantism and admiration . Other city discovered at this time was Paris. The unity of Haussmann buildings and splendor of some of the buildings near the seine river made me become a huge admirer of this city. Again, I was founding poetry in the city.

Piazza, Venice, Italy Piazza Di Spagna,Rome, Italy View from Notre Dame, Paris, France

Unfortunately, this enjoyment of Poetry in Architecture is stopping as soon as entering cities suburbs and withness how badly architects deal with the social housing system in the 60’s (HLM). Why did it seem impossible for architects and governments of the post war 20th century to deal with housing development? Why did we become so bad as urban planners?

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 5 "You need to live Architecture and travel to become a good architect. Books won't teach you the real thing" was what Jean Nouvel replied to me when asking him for some advices to succeed in my studies. I couldn't agree more. Without having travelled, I wouldn't have the same vision of the world and architecture, developed the same curiosity. After receiving my degree, I left Europe for Boston. Living in the United states for a year radically changed the opinion I had about architecture, the world and myself. Contrary to Belgian people, American believed everything is possible and that you can manage to succeed in everything as long as you try. This ambition is visible in their cities, buildings and talks. Also, architects are much more respected and honoured across the Atlantic. In Belgium, it is almost seen as something wrong to be ambitious. Belgians tend to be very modest about what they accomplish. Is it because of its strong socialist history or lack of nationalism? Belgium is a country that had issues between its cultural differences for decades. How would Belgian develop a strong nationalism in its troubled history?

Flat Iron, Daniel Burnham, NYC, United States Empire State Building, William F. Lamb , NYC, US Chrysler Building, William Van Alen , NYC, US

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 6 After having lived in the United States for a year, I returned to Europe and worked in Paris for about 8 years. I began working for Cartier and followed up with LVMH, hotel and residential industry. I began travelling extensively thanks to my work and developed a strong curiosity of foreign cultures and I also became more tolerant towards them. To witness what other cultures managed to build, the materials and technologies only raised more interest in architecture and building process. Working as an interior architect was not fulfilling me anymore and I increasingly became aware of the need to go back to University to become an architect.

Traditional Japanese house, Nara, Japan House by Yasuhiro Yamashita, Tokyo, Japan Inca architecture, Machu Picchu, Peru

Tods store, Toyo Ito, Tokyo, Japan Ming Architecture, Great wall, China Bank of China Tower, J Ming Pei, HK HK bamboo scaffoldings

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 7 As working as an interior architect, I developed a very high ability to represent my firms worldwide by understanding quickly the personality and psychology of the person if front of me. Adaptability is a key quality in our globalized world. I also developed a talent for negotiation and noticed how the commercial aspect of the work was appealing to me.

It has always been easy for me to do good marketing for an established firm. Mainly because most of the clients would already be convinced about the credibility of the firm. All I had to do was to confirm it. It has been far more complicated to prove to new clients that, alone, you could also manage to provide a high quality work and devotion. I experienced it when becoming a freelance and worked on my first own projects. Convincing reputable hotel industry that my design could be as good as well known architects was very difficult because they didn’t want to give me credits. But stubbornness is key in our work and I am definitively a very stubborn person. I managed to prove to my few personal clients that I was good at what I was doing and devoted to their project.

I am not afraid of working long hours and admit I am wrong. Being very modest and humble about my knowledge helped me to establish strong relationship with manufacturers and builders. Trust and respect is very much needed when working on a building site and team spirit is crucial for good results.

Far from me the idea to be a better architect than others but I know I am definitively able to contribute to the success of architects I admire. As soon as I am convinced that some work is successful, it is very likely that I will do everything to defend it. My commitment to a project is easily spotted by my co-workers, managers or clients. The part I am the best at is the managing manufacturing/building phase. I love to go fish for clients, do negotiations and marketing for the firm. I also enjoy very much going to building sites and manage the work. I am good at getting the work done on time and answering all requirements. I am aware that this managing part of the project is not the most appreciated one by my fellow colleagues. Most of them prefer to draw, design and stay in their design bubble environment. I know I am somebody who prefers to be outside the office, outside this bubble and interact with all the other counterparts that will take action in the building process. I have lots of confidence at organizing building/manufacturing process (operational process).

Designing is another story. I always tend to think I could do better and that the design is not good enough. I have very high demands on myself and being a good critic towards my work is quite challenging for me. I know it is my weakness and that I need to gain confidence in my artistic value as an architect/designer, especially if I want to own my own firm .

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 8 I hope to become an architect who will be able to communicate feelings and energy through my buildings. I have a lot of admiration for these architects who managed to provide strong emotions and feelings to people through their architecture, through their Poetry of Architecture. Oscar Niemeyer, Luis Barragan, Frank Loyd Wright Oscar Niemeyer, Antonio Gaudi, Tadao Ando, Shigeru Ban, Kengo Kuma, Toyo Ito or Santiago Calatrava are among them. Their buildings are whether sculptural, full of energy, colours or movement. Their work are arousing curiosity, feeling and life.

MAM , Oscar Niemeyer, Rio, Brazil Brasilia Cathedral, Oscar Niemeyer, Brazil Guggenheim Museum, F L Wright, NYC, US

Torres Satelite, Luis Barragan, Mexico San Cristobald Ranch, Luis Barragan, Mexico Tlalpan Chapel, Luis Barragan, Mexico

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 9 Parc Guell, Antonio Gaudi, Barcelona, Spain Sagrada Famiglia, A. Gaudi, Barcelona, S

Great bamboo wall, Kengo Kuma, China Hyogo MuseumTadao Ando, Japan Church of the Light, Tadao Ando, Japan

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 10 Architecture, in this new century, needs to provide more strong feelings and reactions. Architecture needs to continue surprising people and raise emotions. Architecture needs to do so in order to still be perceived as an Art. Architecture cannot be only about functionality. It is important for Architecture to remain poetic. Poetry of Architecture is about FEELING. The meaning of some words can only reach some extent when put together on a way that the reader understand it properly and start getting some feelings out of it. It is the same with architecture. Some designs help you to understand the relationship between the building and its surrounding, between you as a person and the rest of the world.

Architects cannot continue to be so selfish about their work and see it isolated from the city. The work needs to fit perfectly into the surroundings and landscape and take acknowledgements of the people’s needs. Bringing a new building in a city should be seen as working on a geographical and social issue first before starting to think about the design only. From big scale buildings easily seen from main part of the city, obviously, as to smaller scale like houses.

By adding art into the world by changing the aspects of buildings we live or visit, people can only be more aware of their surroundings. By trying to improve the beauty of their surroundings, the poet-architect can only improve the state of mind of the inhabitants,

Architecture is a powerful but also dangerous art. Modifying people surroundings can seriously affect the way they feel about their environment. It is key to make sure the building will only improve the spirit of its residents. Some architecture can be perceived as positive and energetic one. Some architecture can only bring morosity. Society feels in harmony when evolving in beautiful and inspiring environment. It is the architect's duty to bring positive feelings such as joy, curiosity, energy in new buildings. An architect is not only a builder, he is not an engineer, he remains an artist.

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetry in Architecture, Pg 11 Part 2: Poetics of Movement By 2015, the town of Mons (in Wallonia, Belgium) will be the European cultural city and should have a brand new railway station designed by Santiago Calatrava. The mayor sees the redevelopment of the station site as a strong asset for the event. The main feature of the station will be the walkway linking the historic town to the "Grands-Pré" new commercial site. The Grand-Pré is currently an unsafe, impoverished area of the city and under serious redevelopment. Beside the new commercial area, a congress centre financed by the EU and a hotel should be built for 2015. The walkway will shelter the travellers moving from station to train/buses platforms and going to the Grand Prés area.

Site view, Mons, Belgium

Site Plan, Mons, Belgium

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 1 Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 2 The shape of the station is designed to remind the one of a dragon, symbol of the town of Mons. This shape similarity is strongly enjoyed by the residents of the city that assisted to the numbers meeting giving by Calatrava himself to present the project and convince them.

Each year, Montois still celebrate the Doudou tradition consisting in St Georges delivering the city of the dragon.

The mayor wants the new station to bring a feeling of safety and conviviality. On models and images, the dragon seems to embrace and welcome visitors. Travellers can shelter themselves underneath him to access platform or the commercial site. However, it also gives the strange feeling that we are going to travel "through" him to get to the opposite site. I am wondering if this dragon is supposed to Mons Train station model, sept 2010 make us feel protected or just swallowed up.

Doudou celebration week Mons Train station 3D image, sept 2010 2010 Advertising, Mons

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 3 Mons Train station model, sept 2010

Mons Train station model, sept 2010

The town side "head": we access the entrance by conveyor belts, lifts and stairs. The main entrance is a rotunda with balcony overlooking the city.

The Grand Prés "head": we find an elevated, covered, courtyard underneath the walkway. On this elevated courtyard is the access to the parking and maintenance space. The extremity of the walkway will offer a panoramic view of the commercial site.

Mons Train station 3D image, sept 2010

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 4 The project for the new station list a lot of new requirements:

•To reduce the number of parkways for merchant trays in order to raise the value of the commercial potential and visitors.

• Re-shape spaces around the station to allow the double access (from historic centre and under development commercial area).

• To create a link between the historic centre of the town and the commercial site to be.

Mons Train station & Place Leopold 3D image, entrance, sept 2010

Mons Train station entrance, 3D image, sept 2010 Mons Train station & platforms, 3D image, entrance, sept 2010

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 5 • Uniform the length of the platforms (350m) and the width (8.50M).

• Allow the raise of speed at the entrance of the platforms for high speed trains entering the station (Thalys).

• To improve the quality of the infrastructures access and the norms for reduced mobility people access.

• Plan a parking allowing capacity of 800 people.

All platforms will be covered and accessible: lifts, escalators and stairs. The base of the platform structure will integrate benches.

Mons Train station platforms,3D image, sept 2010

Mons Train station platforms,3D image, sept 2010

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 6 Design of churches in cities, always brought strong emotional feelings, mix of melancholy, romanticism and admiration. Nowadays, in countries such Belgium, many people are loosing their enthusiasm and faith for Catholicism. Churches and cathedrals are loosing their strategic social and cultural position. Belgium being such as small country and in the centre of Europe, travelling became an habit. Belgian are constantly travelling in and outside the country for social, cultural and economical reasons. The train station, apart from being the entrance of a city, became the most busy public building of the cities. Nowadays, train station replace cathedrals. As Calatrava says: “Nowadays, the train station is the bigger public space in the heart of a city. It is progressively taking the space and importance of what the cathedral used to be in a city.” However, the main difference between a cathedral and train station is that the last one is representative of the movement of a city, its residents and visitors.

Calatrava excels in the Poetics of Movement. All of Calatrava’s work celebrates movement, but none more fittingly than the Liège-Guillemins station. The station is also literally looking like a cathedral, with its arches and openness. The soaring ribs of its massive roof and the repetitive arches of its auxiliary spaces’ long, arcaded sections are making you feel into a grand cathedral. Nothing about the structure, which appears to change shape at every angle, is static. The station seems to be in perpetual movement as other projects of Calatrava. For all its exuberance, Calatrava’s design is highly rational and legible, an absolute necessity for orienting arriving passengers. Auxiliary spaces include offices, parking, and bike and luggage storage. The opening of Liège station definitively improved the vision of the city, by its visitors but also residents. A new pride for their city is spotted with this new ambitious public building. The once impoverished train station area with its bordellos and ghost buildings has been cleaned up to provide an appropriate entrance to the medieval city.

Liege Train station model Liege Train station building site Liege Train station summer 2010

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 7 Calatrava’s projets recall the way the body of a complex living organism is put together. This is one of the reasons his buildings fit and enhance the landscape like enormous organisms growing out of it or living with it. His forms are not mimetic. It is not “an organic style”. His plans draw on nature replicating the way the skeleton, the circulatory system and the skin of organisms function and flourish. He is in search to develop a morphology of movement. When placed in forgotten parts of a city, Calatrava’s creations bring hope and renew desire. Calatrava’s projects seem to operate on three levels: as constructions (or how stable they are), as containers (or how successfully they accommodate people and their activities) and as envelopes (or how adequately they cover a space). Calatrava seem to contribute to all three aspects of structure. Calatrava is one of these rare architect not to have made a choice between engineering and architecture. Such as Antonio Gaudi, Luigi Nervi, Felix Candela, Calatrava belongs and excelled within this tradition of syncretists. Being an architect and engineer allows him to innovate more than main architects. Calatrave introduces movement into the three aspects of building: construction, vessels & envelope. Through them, movement plays a functional or symbolic role. Calatrava’s structures renew our curiosity and manage to surprise us while responding to our aspirations and needs. Calatrava overcame rigorism and superficiality by giving a more profound role to architecture and design, a new poetics of exploring and questioning, a poetic of movement.

Rheims Cathedral, France Felix Candela, Iglesia de la Virgen Milagrosa, Mexico Santiago Calatrava, Liege station, Belgium

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 8 Felix Candela, Oceanographic in Valence, Spain Santiago Calatrava, Mons Station, Belgium

Antonio Gaudi, Parc Guell Barcelona, Spain Santiago Calatrava, Liege station, Belgium

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 9 Luigi Nervi, Turin Exhibition lBg, Italy Santiago Calatrava, Liege Station, Belgium

Luigi Nervi, Hangar in Orvietto, Italy Santiago Calatrava, Liege station, Belgium

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 10 The Petition: Beginning 2004, Euro Gare believes the station of Mons should be modernised. The welcome areas for travellers, access and relationship between the station and the city should be improved. June 2006, Calatrava was chosen among 14 architects to improve the station while keeping the existing station built in 1948 by René Panis.

Mons Train station, 3D images and model, June 2006

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 11 In 2009, the pilot study of Santiago Calatrava has changed and includes the demolition of the existing station to accommodate at his best the list of requirements. According Calatrava, the station wouldn't be properly used since the access to the platforms would be made trough the walkway, standing beside the station. Keeping the existing station wouldn’t allow the perception of the walkway as a direct link between the historic and commercial site. Also, keeping the existing station wouldn't suit the planning of having a bus platform built next to the train platforms. For traffic practical reasons, bus platforms need to be on the historic side of the city, not the commercial side. Space is needed in order to add the bus platform and demolishing the existing station would provide the required extra space. Euro gare and the mayor of Mons agreed on the change made by Calatrava but not all Mons inhabitants. 1.500 people signed a petition in order to save the existing building. 1000 signatures were needed to freeze the project. Beside the will to keep the architecture of Rene Panis, the existing station is still entirely operational. An additional concern is the reason to spend so much money for such a small station. Why spending so much money when Belgium already has such an important public debt? The answer of the mayor (and wallonia’s socialist party president) is that the money was given in 2004 to build the station. If Mons doesn’t use it, the Belgian railways will use it for another city. And it will certainly be a city of the North (Flanders part of Belgium). Another reason is that Mons has always been trying to compete with the city of Liège. The new station built by Calatrava in Liège only brings more stubbornness from the mayor to compete in designing something as beautiful and ambitious for its smaller fief.

Mons current train station built by Rene Panis in 1948 Mons train station project, Santiago Calatrava, Sept 2010 Mons Mayor:Elio di Rupo

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 11 Mons Railway station is the 5th busiest in Wallonia and the 15th busiest in Belgium. The SNCB (Belgian railway) have allocated a budget of 155 million Euros to implement this project . The original budget was 37 millions. Calatrava's Liege station was supposed to cost 150 millions and ended up costing 437 Millions. The station was completed in 2009 and the construction work lasted 8 years. Antwerp station renovation and extension cost about 1.6 Billion and was completed in 2007. The construction lasted for 8 years.

Belgium is now facing its most challenging political and economical crisis. Is spending so many millions in small stations really relevant when the capital, Brussels, has only unremarkable buildings as train stations? 1,000 trains pass every day between Brussels-South and Brussels-North stations. Brussels South is the busiest train station in Belgium with domestic trains and high speed trains coming from France, UK, Holland and Germany.

Calatrava's project are definitively improving the aspect of impoverished areas of cities like Liege and Mons. The projects definitively help to connect different areas of the city and do a massive urbanism improvement. These train stations area will be safer, more convivial and more useful to travelers. Tourism development can only benefit from these architectural and urbanism changes. However, spending so much money into a station in Mons doesn’t make any sense. It is a very pretentious and ambitious project leaded by a incompetent political figure who prefers to improve the look of its city than the state of his country.

Why money isn't spent to improve Belgium busiest train station , in its capital? Is it because politics already bet on a scission of the country? Why is Flanders and Wallonia investing so much money in their respective city and not into "neutral" Brussels?

It seems architecture landmark are sprouting in the respective Wallonia and Flanders, letting its residents and visitors wonder why so much change is done into small provincial cities (also the fiefs of respective party leaders). Is the money not supposed to go first to the improvement of its capital representing the Union of the country and the capital of Europe? The strong language of these ambitious architecture projects might tell us what we do not want to hear: politicians gave up the hope of unity in Belgium and only build for future Flanders and Wallonia countries.

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 12 Brussels Midi Station, December 2010 Brussels Midi Station, December 2010

Brussels Midi Station, December 2010 Brussels Midi Station, December 2010

Introduction to Management, Practice and Law Poetics of Movement, Pg 13