Cathedral of St. Etienne at Bourges

If there's any buildings on my hitlist right now, it would be the Cathedral of St. Etienne at Bourges. I discovered it's existence while doing research for a history essay and it's a place I'll have to visit at some point. Initially erected as a Romanesque temple, it was later remodelled at a larger scale in the Gothic style, and the construction of it spanned centuries.

The building itself if breath-taking, with its paired aisles that rise in height to support the high vaults, and one of the broadest Gothic facades in the world. The nave itself is striking in its height, which is also matched by the flanking aisles, an unusual solution that allows an even longer view towards the altar. Thanks to this, the spatial effect is one of breadth and expansiveness.

Guess it's time to start saving up for next summer!

Summer.

Well... the summer is coming our way big time, and to be honest for the first time I'm starting to get excited about the architecture I will experience this time round. It will be hard to beat the Gaudi trail I followed through Barcelona last year, but with visits in Turkey and homeland Poland lined up I'm not complaining. If somehow I manage to sketch in the impossible heat of Turkey and gether enough money, there'll be no stopping me from having a cheeky wee visit to Istanbul.

 And when it comes to Poland, it'll be time to revisit the city I have been to so many times but never actually seen it - Breslau.

I'll probably be posting about it later on in the year. Excited!

Final.

With the end of year review approaching, its hard to wrap your head around the work that were expected to present to do ourselves justice for the year's work we'd done.

 It's also quite funny realising that here were are, at the end of year one already, even though it feels like we'd only just got here. Exciting but at the same time quite scary that were on the brink of being second years, with new challenges and much higher expectations, knowing that we won't be able to hide behid the fact that we're new to this anymore. I can't help but look out to next year with a kind of nervous excitement, not knowing what projects are coming our way. Just at the end of one year, we'd learned so much already, but it just makes us realise that there's still so much more out there to find out, with the summer just approaching, full of possibilities for our own research.

Research retreat

The new design project we have undergone in second semester is 'Research Retreat', and it concentrates on a building to cater for artists: with studios and gallery spaces, but also accommodation. I've been faced with many decisions and constraints throughout this project. What spaces should get views? Should the bedrooms be integrated with studios or completely separate? Which spaces should be private and which public? Faced with all these decisions I came up with a semi-courtyard design that embraces the trees in the centre of the site.

I found the location quite spooky so I wanted my design to create a sense of security within it. That idea continues on to the roof shape, which slopes quite oddly, creating a variety of different planes that define the spaces within the proposal. Overall, I think the design fits well within the site, although a further study of the structure is required, should it be exposed and create a rythm within spaces.

Future

It seems to me that in the architectural world of present time, it seems much the case that once an architect makes an exeptional building, they can do no wrong with future projects.

While it is always a plaeasure to see magnificent examples of architecture in the modern world, the sheer mass of horrible buildings just makes one wonder: is there any hope? Can a mere student hope to give the discipline a better name out there, or will we just be another cog in the council machine to build cheap and economically efficient buildings without any flare or philosphy? Just as an idea, take a walk down a familiar street. Notice the number of leaky roofs, stained walls, ridiculous extensions that don't belong anywhere.

So unless your one of the lucky few that have fame in their favour and unlimited supplies of cash, is it possible to escape the commercialism in modern day architecture driven by small budgets and large expectations? Guess we'll see.

Home?

There are many factors to consider when designing buildings and spaces within them, and all of them add up to create great architecture. A careful selection of materials, structure elements, lighting etc. can aid the formation of various atmospheres within spaces.

 All this is very important in creating unforgettable buildings. However, the real question is, what is the ingredient that makes a house a home? After all, it's the person or people that inhabit a building that make it their own - create their own memories, making it a home rather thatn just a cold piece of construction. It is our job to make it as comfotable and enjoyable for them to settle within the design that came out our heads.