Editorial

Since the time of Vitruvius an „adjustment according to size“, which he further describes as „the measure derived from the members of the work itself“, has formed one of the bases of architecture. To take measure is one of the most fundamental elements of architecture. But it seems that what is regarded as measured and appropriate is subject to the zeitgeist. In recent years the mega-structures of the 1960s and 1970s have attracted considerable interest once again, and more than just a few contemporary buildings flirt with large dimensions, lengthy facades and a massive appearance. It is generally planners that decide upon the density of development - the architects are then entrusted with formulating the proportions and the expression of the buildings. The apparent size of buildings determines their reception more strongly than their absolute dimensions. It is only through the design of the individual parts, often the windows and doors, that ratios of scale are made visible and size becomes perceptible. According to the particular intention in the design, the building is anchored in its context, modulated and differentiated, its monumentality exaggerrated, or, alternatively, its size is disguised and even played down. At some places the designer attempts to achieve significance by employing the minimum possible means, at others the building mediates between neighbours of completely contrasting sizes, or attempts to prevent the impression of excessive, „inhuman“ size. That man is the measure of all things, as the philosopher Pythagoras said in the fifth century B.C., has become irrevocably established in the theory of size and scale. But the questions about which scale is „human“ and which one satisfies the demands of urban planning and economy, and whether these two can be reconciled with each other, is one that occurs anew with every design task. To make designs measurable and comparable for the human eye, the method of drawing buildings used in architects offices observes certain conventions, above all conventions of scale such as 1/500, 1/100, 1/50 or 1/5. Because nowadays, in the era of CAAD, design generally takes place on the monitor – where images can be zoomed up or down infinitely as required – these conventions are less significant and appear only as an option in the menu: „print“. As thinking in terms of scale becomes less present in the work process, the more its importance grows. This is just one of the headings under which this issue can be read. Hans Frei reflects on the theory and practice of size, the photo essay by Walter Mair shows almost indescribable dimensions, while in his essay Christoph Wieser places the contemporary tendency towards large building volumes in a cyclical model of history. In each of the examples in this issue a different formal strategy for dealing with size is to be found. It can be hoped that with the newly discovered delight in large buildings, relationships of scale, so often a subject of reflection from the time of Vitruvius to the 1970s, will preserve their importance in architectural practice.
The editors


Thema

Christoph Wieser
Vom Stadtplan zum Essbesteck Kleinteiliges und Grossmassstäbliches

Nott Caviezel
Stadt am Bahnhof Erweiterung Bahnhof und Neugestaltung Bahnhofplatz Chur von Conradin Clavuot

Florian Heilmeyer
Kritische Rekonstruktion Galerie am Kupfergraben 10 in Berlin von David Chipperfield Architects

Florian Heilmeyer
Im Kontext massvoll Zollverein School of Management and Design von SANAA

Anneke Bokern
Parkrand: Herrenhaus revisited Wohnblock «Parkrand» in Amsterdam von MVRDV

Walter Mair
Sondermülldeponie Kölliken

Anne Wermeille Mendonça
Visuelle Leichtigkeit Bürokomplex Burgo in Porto von Eduardo Souto de Moura

Sabine von Fischer
Subtile Massstäblichkeit Regierungs- und Justizpalast in Brasilia von Oscar Niemeyer, 1958–1960

Enrico Santifaller
Vor Energie vibrierend Heizkraftwerk in Würzburg von Brückner & Brückner

Hans Frei
Praxis und Theorie der Grösse Der Fussabdruck von Fortschritt und Wachstum

Forum

Kolumne: Paul Divjak
EFH: Einfamilienhaus in Oberwolfhausen von Beat Loosli, Raumfindung Architekten
Wettbewerb: Projektwettbewerb für die neue Schweizer Botschaft in Moskau
Innenarchitektur: Vertigo – Extended Dining von Camenzind Bosshard Architekten mit Martin Frei
Zum werk-material: Die Jugendherberge Valbella von Bosch & Heim Architekten und die Jugendherberge in Scuol von ARGE Sursass Architectura
Bücher: «Continuously» von Walter Bohatsch
Ausbildung: «Zu Tisch», Architekturabteilung der Berner Fachhochschule
Nachlese: Event-Festival
bauen + rechten: Erdbebensicheres Bauen
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werk-material

Bosch & Heim Architekten, Chur: Jugendherberge Valbella, GR
ARGE Sursass Architectura: Jugendherberge Prà da Faira, Scuol, GR