Inga Saffron, Harvard graduate and architecture critic of the Philadelphia Inquirer, writes about urban design issues, usually in a weekly column, “Changing Skyline”, and has done so for over a decade. One of her latest pieces, Architects' Zeal for Detail Matched Founder's, is not quite a critique of architecture as it is the unveiling of the history of the new Barnes Foundation; more specifically the challenges faced by its designers and the controversy surrounding it, as well as a sprinkle of the history of the original. Her work seems to support the move of the Barnes Foundation and its new look -Saffron speaks of the architects who designed the new foundation in a positive light, comparing them with the original designer, Albert Barnes. Using a defining device, Saffron not only explains the concept of ‘slow architecture’, but also uses it to qualify the architects, describing what they and Barnes do as “close attention to the details, etching and scoring and hammering every surface of their buildings as if they were crafting fine leather bindings or handmade paper.” This gives an air of master craftsmanship to the architect pair, as well giving them the qualification to be the designers of the new Barnes Foundation. Through imagery, comparison, and rhetorical questions, Saffron describes the design for the new building, as well as the challenges faced by the designers, such as “Where would you enter the building?” and detailing how the architects solved the problem. Saffron ends the piece describing the controversy surrounding the building and the architects, but ends with a hopeful note with a quote from Williams, one the architects of the new building.
A link to the article:
http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/museums/20120503_When_the_letter_arrived_in_2007_inviting_Tod_Williams_and_NO_HEAD_SPECIFIED.html?page=2&c=y
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