Paving the Future with Temporary Architecture

By: Khris Kirk

“The temporary pavilion has become unmissable, a rare opportunity to view the work of the finest international architects at first hand. This is how architecture should be exhibited and remembered.” Financial Times

A new style of architecture has become very huge within the past century, temporary architecture. Temporary architecture is a great way for an architect to present his idea to the public to see and experience firsthand. By the design being temporary, it forces the architect to use light materials and prefabricated materials. Also, the project being presented has a limited time of being available; therefore, the architect has to advertise his idea to the public effectively so it may take effect. 

A good example of temporary architecture is the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion. Ever since 2000, there is a new pavilion in front of the Serpentine Gallery. Each year an architect is chosen to design and build a pavilion that presents his idea of temporary architecture or pavilionaire architecture. Some well designed pavilions are Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2002
by Toyo Ito and Cecil Balmond with Arup, Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2005
by Alvaro Siza and Eduardo Souto de Moura with Cecil Balmond – Arup, and Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2008 by Frank Gehry.

Each of these pavilions was designed with a preconceived idea that the architects tried to represent in the architecture. For example, the 2002 pavilion by Toyo Ito and Cecil Balmond is derived from an algorithm of a cube that was expanded and rotated. This is evident in the many triangles and trapezoids seen on the skin of the pavilion. These triangles and trapezoids are the spaces created with the rotating and expanding cube. One does not see a cube on the outside of the building but the spaces created between the cubes. By the constant changing of material and shape, allows for the building to have a sense of motion.

Another example of these preconceived ideas being represented in the architecture is present by the 2005 pavilion by Alvaro Siza and Eduardo Souto de Moura. Siza designed the pavilion to work well with the permanent Neo-classical house that the pavilion sits in front of. These triangles and trapezoids are the spaces created with the rotating and expanding cube. One does not see a cube on the outside of the building but the spaces created between the cubes. By the constant changing of material and shape, allows for the building to have a sense of motion.

Another example of these preconceived ideas being represented in the architecture is presented by the 2005 pavilion by Alvaro Siza and Eduardo Souto de Moura. Siza designed the pavilion to work well with the permanent Neo-classical house that the pavilion sits in front of. Therefore he designed the pavilion in a rectangular grid like pattern, but distorted the rectangles to be individual when a person looks at them from below. The pavilion is moving with the landscape as if it was a part of the land instead of a focus point.

A third example of preconceived ideas is the 2008 pavilion by Frank Gehry. Gehry’s inspiration for this pavilion was from wooden catapults designed by Leonard da Vinci and striped walls of summer beach huts. This explains the random pattern of wooden and glass canopies that hang above the space and the structure above supporting the canopies.

Each architect has come up with an idea that they try to portray within their building. These are revolutionary ideas that have yet to be set to buildings in this way. These architects are paving was to abstract a building in such a way to present an idea of how the space should be felt and viewed. Also, by having these pavilions be temporary, it makes the architect explore a different approach on the type of material used in construction. Most architects have used prefabricated materials that are built off site and then assembled on site. For example, the 2005 pavilion is comprised of wooden panels in a grid pattern. All the builders had to do was piece the pavilion together like a puzzle, just like Gehry’s and Ito’s pavilions in 2002 and 2008.

If buildings are designed like this more often, it will allow for buildings to be built faster on site and have more available homes and public spaces for the future families of the world.     

Links:

Serpentine Gallery Pavilion