By Iria Chen
As one of the representatives of the era of deconstructivism, Rem Koolhaas creates architecture which inverts the impossible. Having graduated from the Architecture Association in London, he founded the OMA in 1975. His remarkable works, which manifest themselves in both the East and West, unanimously presents the essence and features of deconstructivism. Some masterpieces include De Rotterdam, Maison a Bordeaux, Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Seattle Central Library, Fondazione Prada, China CCTV, and the list goes on. Let’s delve into the his two aforementioned work:
China CCTV Headquaters:
Many recognize the iconic facade of China CCTV headquarters. Connecting two slanted towers, the facade acts as an open structure like a television frame. The design represents the concept of journalism and communication. The entire television process is shown – it links the discrete and scattered signals of single location to a giant web which mirrors its function of international connection. The architecture opposed classicism and turned to postmodernism. Without the traditionally perceived “beauty” of building – being symmetric and geometric, Rem Koolhaas and his team designed it in a new form of beauty which struck the minds of the public.
TaiPei Performing Art Center
TaiPei Performing Art Center is located in Shilin, Taipei. It has an eyecatching facade which combines a sphere, a cube and some rectangular blocks. Three main auditoriums – The Grand Theatre, the Multiform Theatre and the Proscenium Playhouse are combined to the center cube which connects to the back stage. Different observations can be made from different angles when you look at the TaiPei Performing Art Center. Encouraging more visitors and the public to get in touch with the architecture, the art center provides a public loop path for citizens who have not acquired a ticket. Rem Koolhaas and his partner acutely utilises all the space inside the art center for different uses and function of art performance. The Multiform Theater and The Grand Theatre can be used together to form a larger space for performers to perform. The concept of the design is not symmetric nor in line with traditional thoughts towards architecture. The simple combination of geometric shapes creates a complex space for performing. The concept of deconstructivism can also be significantly presented in this work.
Apart from architecture, biography and numerous valuable editions as well as books are written by Rem Koolhaas to uphold his concept and values, such as Elements of Architecture, Delirious New York:A Retroactive Manifesto for Manhattan and S,M,L,XL etc. This is also solid proof of Rem Koolhaas’ prominent contributions to the era of deconstructivism.
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