THE TRICKY BEAUTY OF PERFORMANCE ARCHITECTURE
in its purity and lightly applied
By Julie Lee
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| Nice looking bridge |
We don’t pay attention to way our cities are built. We just say, “that’s a city and that’s the way it is.” But in reality, cities are created from a thousand different architecture philosophies in a thousand different ways over a thousand different years. Your city could be classical, postmodern, made of huts, brick buildings in earthquake country (not a good idea, though brick is beautiful), or organized like Paris around circles. There’s a fascinating new movement called performance architecture. Its name might be a little too cool and precious, but its ideas are rooted in some of the most important ways we interact with buildings, streets, and bridges. It’s an idea that demands that people should pay attention and be more aware of their environment and that the architecture should help them to do this.
There’s a great piece of performance architecture right in the middle of San Francisco in Hayes Valley, every rich, tech guy’s favorite neighborhood. So let’s take a look at Trillian + Dodi (2014) by the artists Yelena Filipchuk and Serge Beaulieu (also known as HYBYCOZO) and see how it works as an example of performance architecture. Trillian is a 1000 pound geometric sculpture made with three, four, and five-sided steel panels. Each panel shape has an intricate, laser-cut pattern. The overall effect is something between a ball and a block. The smaller Dodi, 700 pounds in volume, looks like an illuminated soccer ball, though it would have a hard time rolling anywhere. Each sphere contains sound-responsive LED bulbs, visible through the laser-cut patterns. The duo named the project and themselves HYBYCOZO, a contraction of Hyperspace Bypass Construction Zone.
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| Trillian and Dodi sit in the middle of Hayes Valley |
The idea behind performance architecture and HYBYCOZO’s work in Hayes Valley is that they are not just designing a piece, but also paying attention to and evaluating how that piece will interact with the environment around it. This might mean taking account of weather, structural loading, temperature, terrain, any of the qualities of the physical world. Y. E Kalay proposes a “multi-criteria, multi-disciplinary performance evaluation” that tries to find a balance between form and function. Therefore, the main concern of performance architecture is a shift from the formal design to how design functions in a changing environment.
Trillian + Dodi (2014) is a true combination of form and function. The form of the artwork resembles a pair of deformed di, perhaps a wry comment on society’s reliance on wealth and prosperity, perfect for the Hayes Valley neighborhood where lattes cost $10. It is also an ecological piece. The design considers weathering and how the elements of the sculpture change over time. Its steel frame is strong and durable. The light creates a glittery effect that places equal emphasis over the entire surface of the artwork. The patterns are reminiscent of Islamic design and have some of the qualities of a mosque. You get a sense of incredible movement, even though these heavy, heavy pieces are fixed to the ground for our safety. The pair of sculptures are balanced both symbolically and physically, as all the geometric shapes are similar in size.
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| Beautiful patterns |
The change in light gives these pieces a sense of rhythm and movement as they engage anyone who passes them by. Similarly, the patterned elements, replicated on each panel, give off a feeling of unity and repetition. Even more important, the LEDs are sound activated and in conversation with all those who look at it or should I say hear it. The two pieces Trillian + Dodi (2014) although deeply unified in their effect on viewers and the Hayes Valley environment, also represent opposites or binaries—male/female, old/new, light/dark, rural/urban.
I can’t think of a better of more iconic piece of performance architecture in San Francisco right now, but that doesn’t mean that bits and pieces of this new aesthetic haven’t affected older, more rigid architectural philosophies. So, let’s take a look at two iconic and rather pedestrian pieces of architecture and see how the ideas of “performance architecture” have changed them, and maybe for the better.
City Hall was built and renovated after both the 1906 and 1989 earthquakes. The building is constructed out of steel, granite, and marble interiors—like many city halls around the world. In a direct way, it looks like City Hall and nothing else, although it’s used for many different functions: parties, weddings, protests, etc. By adding light to City Hall, the building approaches one of the central tenants of performance architecture, a sense of occasion to the moment at hand. When City Hall is illuminated in red and white light, it creates a serious mood and that’s important for any government—the ability to signal what everyone should feel and perhaps is feeling. When it is illuminated with purple and blue light, it suggests serenity and calm, nice qualities for any urban center. That’s just an add-on, but the ideas are important and part of what performance architecture seeks to accomplish.
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| A slight application of performance architecture |
The Bay Bridge was built in 1936 and is 160 meters long. It actually consists of three bridges, one on the Western span and two on the Eastern. The bridge, therefore, not only has a function (getting people where they need be), but also a symbolic purpose (it connects the whole of the Bay Area). It is the main passageway for the entire region. When it is lit, and we’re talking nothing more than high-charged Christmas lights, its symbolic function takes on many of the qualities of performance architecture. It no longer is just a static object, kind of necessary for a bridge, but a dynamic piece of sculpture that reminds us that we are part of one geography and area.
There are so many important ideas behind performance architecture, but when we look at the bridge and City Hall we can come to one simple and important conclusion. Architects should be concerned with how their buildings interact and “perform” in the greater city. All the illuminated buildings in San Francisco—City Hall, Trillian + Dodi and even the Bay Bridge—add life to the city. The stunning lights stimulate peoples’ senses and connect everyone to the built world around them.
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