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NOVEMBER 29 — MARCH 2, 2019 OPENING RECEPTION: NOVEMBER 29, 2018 6 - 9 PM THE CENTER FOR ARCHITECTURE 536 LAGUARDIA PLACE NEW YORK, NY 10012 The Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation and The Center for destrian circulation. The Bond Centre, which was completed Architecture are pleased to present Paul Rudolph: The Hong in 1988 in the Admiralty district of Hong Kong, demonstrates Kong Journey, an exhibition of previously unseen drawings, Rudolph’s response to unique conditions while holding fast to sketches and renderings highlighting a fascinating chapter in his theories of form. Rudolph’s working process illustrates his the architect Paul Rudolph’s dynamic and productive architec- concern for an architectural promenade capable of affect on a tural career. Curated by Nora Leung, this exhibition focuses grand scale. His drawings, from schematic design perspectives on three significant projects in Hong Kong—one of which, The to advanced planning drawings and intricate sketches of con- Bond Center, was built. This exhibition provides unprecedented struction details, bear witness to the extent to which Rudolph insight into Rudolph’s thinking and working process, illuminat- reconciled idiosyncratic and individual experience within the ing Rudolph’s belief that architecture can both excite and exist grand scale of a commercial office block. within the framework of functional requirements. The unbuilt Harbor Road and Plantation Road projects are A 1974 typewritten notes for a lecture, succinctly titled Space, two case studies of Paul Rudolph’s quest for what he termed Rudolph explores what he considers to be the paradox at the “Specific Space.” Rudolph’s design of a tower for The Sino heart of his work: the desire for unique and evocative form Land Company on Harbor Road created a highly distinguished and the necessary restrictions imposed by changing attitudes architectural form of tapering tower structure that was ap- and functions. He writes, “Our perceptions of architecture propriate to the situation, and unique to the harbor front site. change more than our perceptions of the other arts, in spite The design is emblematic of Rudolph’s iconoclasm. It is the of architecture’s relative permanence. This is because we must conclusive statement in his formal search for a tower struc- use architecture, and the conditions of that use are constantly ture that defied the simplistic ideas of the International Style, modified by matters both physical and spiritual. It may be the and refuted the eclecticism of the Postmodernists. Rudolph’s weather, the time of the year, our own particular time of life; accommodation for three families on Plantation Road, near the our personal activities; our mood; the economic, political or summit of Victoria’s Peak, shows Rudolph taking two alterna- philosophical twists and turns of fate; but, most importantly, tive approaches to human residential solutions on the same it will be modified by our particular reading, and re-reading, site: the first being a plan for three separate family houses; and of history.” Beginning in 1980 and spanning the remainder of the second showing a solution for apartment living. Precari- his career, Rudolph’s works in Asia were his most conclusive ously perched on a steep slope, the project is rife with virtuosic statements on the effects and affects of Architecture and solutions for a building with a complex structure and program. Urbanism, built on a scale that was no longer afforded to him in the United States. Paul Rudolph’s work in Hong Kong was designed to fulfill human needs at a particular time unique to a particular site. The Bond Centre (now known as the Lippo Centre), the unbuilt As we look back now, on celebrating the centennial of Paul Harbor Road Tower and the project for three residences on Rudolph’s birth, decades after these projects were first de- were all conceptualized for Hong Kong in the 1980s. These signed, we also look back at Rudolph’s fundamental principles three designs reflect considerations unique to the topography, of design. Within Rudolph’s designs exist elements of time- scale and climate of the territory. These predominantly vertical lessness, yet modified by the impact and conditions of human projects account for conditions in the dense urban center of experience. Hong Kong: its difficult topography and complex vehicular-pe- NORA LEUNG [BA(AS), B.Arch., HKIA] is an architect living and working in Hong Kong. After graduating from The University of Hong Kong she acquired first-hand experience working with Paul Rudolph on The Bond Centre, from the design’s conception through its construction process. In 1990 she published Experienc- ing The Bond Centre (Watermark Publications), a detailed account of her experiences and insights of the project, which has received both local and international acclaim. She is a Director for the firm Chau Ku & Leung Architects and Engineers Ltd., where she has implemented projects of high complexity including Whampoa Garden Development, the Bond Centre and the China Ferry Ter- minal Development. As Director of Chau, Ku & Leung, Architects & Engineers, Limited, she is directly involved in all aspects of design, detail planning and implementation of major projects. PAUL RUDOLPH HERITAGE FOUNDATION www.PaulRudolphHeritageFoundation.org NOVEMBER 29 — MARCH 2, 2019 OPENING RECEPTION: NOVEMBER 29, 2018 6 - 9 PM THE CENTER FOR ARCHITECTURE 536 LAGUARDIA PLACE NEW YORK, NY 10012 PAUL RUDOLPH (B. OCTOBER 23, 1918, ELKTON, architecture drawings (for which he became famous)— KENTUCKY – D. AUGUST 8, 1997, NEW YORK, NY) he gained more varied and ambitious commissions for was a prominent & prolific American architect, known for schools, churches, government, and corporate clients. creative designs, boldly expressive forms, dramatic and complex spaces, and innovative use of materials. Rudolph’s prime period is generally considered to be the 1950’s - 60’s. During this time he became one of the During the post WWII period, when Modern architec- country’s most famous and successful architects. He’s ture became formulaic and dull—architects were mainly considered the embodiment the heroically individual- art- “thinking inside the box”—Rudolph’s work was full of ist-genius architect, during that “Mid-Century Modern” dynamism: strikingly sculptural in his handling of form, era. But Rudolph’s career extended further—over a and dramatic in his shaping of space and use of light. A half-century—with projects all across the US. As Chair of highly productive and practical architect, he worked on Yale University’s Department of Architecture (1958-1965), hundreds of projects across a half-century career, and he made a significant impact on architectural education, completed a great variety of commissions: educational making Yale the most exciting and intellectually stimulat- buildings, homes, churches, corporate centers, laborato- ing place to study. While there, he also designed one of ries, government centers, and skyscrapers. Moreover, his the 20th Century’s truly most iconic buildings: the Yale interest in design was comprehensive: embracing urban Art & Architecture Building. With shifts in the social-po- planning, and the design of exhibitions, interiors, furni- litical culture, and the advent of Postmodernism, by the ture, and lighting. 70’s Rudolph largely fell out-of-fashion in the US—but he continued to be appreciated in Asia, engaging in signifi- The son of a preacher, his father’s itinerant vocation cant commissions during the last decade-and-a-half of his allowed young Rudolph to see architecture across dif- career: in Singapore, Jakarta, Japan— and, most notably, ferent parts of the South—and a key early experience Hong Kong. There, he completed the double skyscraper was visiting a house designed by Wright, whose mastery towers of the Lippo Centre (a.k.a. The Bond Centre). of space fascinated him. Studying architecture at Au- burn University, he then attended the Harvard Graduate Rudolph was the subject of an Academy Award-nomi- School of Design (under Walter Gropius, former director nated documentary: Spaces: The Architecture of Paul of the Bauhaus). He left to serve in WWII as a Naval offi- Rudolph (1983)—and, in recent years, there’s a revived cer, engaged in the repair of battle-damaged vessels; and interest in him among a new generation of architects later returned to Harvard, receiving his degree in 1947. and scholars. Fresh research has commenced on his He came to professional prominence in Sarasota, Florida, extensive oeuvre, and this acknowledgment of Rudolph’s designing residential projects renown for fresh layouts, importance is shown through books, articles, seminars, clarity of structure, and a strikingly modern look. With and exhibits. a rising profile—in part due to being widely published, stimulated by his compellingly beautiful perspective PAUL RUDOLPH HERITAGE FOUNDATION www.PaulRudolphHeritageFoundation.org.