WHATEVER GOOD THINGS WE BUILD ENDS UP BUILDING US
There
have been several instances where I have had to explain what an architect is
actually entitled to do. I have always drawn parallels to the job of a movie
director. Both are captains of their projects and trying to steer their way to
a successful completion for an audience. Both their projects evoke emotions and
attract applause or criticism. Both the art forms are brought about by a host
of specialists, assistants and co-workers. One of the many reasons to take up art,
cinema & architecture was to experience the applause and criticism by
directing a movie and making architecture the centre piece, using the lens as a
medium to portray sentiments of architecture instead of a sketch pen.
As a student of architecture or a professional,
it is imperative to create stimulating architecture so the film makers can
capture it in time and aspire people from all over the world. In Pallasmaa’s
words, “In the same way that buildings
and cities create and preserve images of culture and a particular way of life,
cinema illuminates the cultural archaeology of both the time of its making and
the era that it depicts.” [i]
To illustrate, the Sydney Opera house is an example of a building that can
captivate the audience of both architecture and cinema. To reiterate, if the
perception of SOH is distorted for a movie then it can inspire a new generation
of architecture.
As architects, we offer to the
world, spaces with comfort and amusement, giving the person an opportunity to
dream of the environment before turning it into reality. Cinematic space brings
together the idea of perspective and perception to create a whole new vision of
dreams and reality as an additive.
It is reasonable to argue that sound is an integral part of
cinema along with architecture. Sound or music arouses the emotions of
audiences. A space can be disturbing if the sound experienced is unpleasant.
The same space can be comforting if birds are chirping outside with the sound
of gentle breeze blowing. Sound experienced by a space near the ocean compared
to the city has a varying contrast.
Michael Tawa mentions, how in cinema different art forms can
influence and inform us as architects. His four key relations between cinema and
architecture are Place, Space, Time, Framing & Assemblage.[ii]
Sound or music being one of the popular art forms is a vital component when
discussing relationship with cinema and architecture. Ironically though for
Pallasmaa, “In its inherent abstractness,
music has historically been regarded as the art form which is closest to
architecture. Cinema is, however, even closer to architecture than music, not
solely because of its temporal and spatial structure but fundamentally because
both architecture and cinema articulate lived space.” Also, Tawa indicates
the connection between people and nature through architect Peter Zumthor’s
work. Natural light in architecture and manipulating the same light for cinema
go hand in hand. Hence, light also forms a key relation with movies and spaces
in it.
They say eyes are windows to the
world. Every day we wake to the aspiration of looking at a beautiful world. We,
as architects, designers and planners are catalysts in shaping the environment
we live in. Every step towards the design process is a step towards a beautiful
mise en scène. It is imperative to bring
that idea into reality for the sake of audience of all seven forms of art. As
per Pallasmaa, “A great building makes us experience gravity, time and –
ultimately – ourselves.” [iii]
[i]
Juhaini Pallasmaa, “Introduction - Lived Space in Architecture and Cinema” in
The Architecture of Image: Existential Space in Cinema, Rakennustieto
Publishing, 2007, 13.
[ii]
Micheal Tawa, “Space, Place and Time – Exploring Precedents in Cinema,”
lecture, UNSW, Sydney, 2011
[iii]
Pallasmaa, “Introduction”, 36
