Evo sta kaze Jacques Herzog na te stvari prevedeno sa Nemackog:
Lukas Gruntz (Architektur Basel): You could say that architecture is primarily a social commitment. Would you agree to that?
Jacques Herzog: “That would be the wish that it should be understood that way. The fact is that building is also an industry and a human necessity. But actually, if you understand architecture not just as a building but also as architecture, then you can and should see it in the context of the society for which it is built. In our view, an enlightened and democratic society, architecture must be anchored in the population, ideally emerging from the needs of the population. This explains the success of our buildings, especially those that affect the public, such as museums or stadiums. But there are other concepts of architecture - in dictatorships, monarchies or other non-democratic systems. Architecture is rather determined from above, with power and also to express this power in architecture and urban planning. ”
What does that mean?
"St. Petersburg, Venice, Rome or Paris in the 19th century arose in such power relationships. Often with ruthless consistency, when you think of Haussmann's boulevards in Paris. However, the result was unprecedented, incomparable beauty, which still attracts and inspires people more than the cities created today, which emerge from the bottom-up culture of our democracies. Tourists from all over the world always look at the same beautiful cities of the past. Perhaps there is more beauty in the non-democratic context because the context is more extreme, more radical. ”
“Many buildings are simply produced. Then it is
just the way it is. "
If I take up your thoughts, the question arises whether our direct democracy is a good breeding ground for architecture at all?
“Many projects around the world are not what we want. Many buildings are simply produced. Then it's just the way it is. After all, it is always possible to create places and buildings that are exceptions: they were also created in a democratic society, but with a short and direct route between the architect and the client. Consensus in a group, but without a referendum. In this way, questions can be discussed on a small scale and decisions made more directly. We have experienced this ourselves, for example at the Tate Modern in London, a non-governmental museum, or the private Schaulager in Münchenstein - in both cases with an exceptionally committed and intelligent client. The Fondation Beyeler in Riehen is also a good example, where the architecture was created in close collaboration between Ernst Beyeler and architect Renzo Piano. One could speak of a kind of complicity between the client and the architect, where everything is negotiated much more directly. And yet always embedded in the existing democratic structures of the zone regulations and building laws. ”