Located in the garden of the late Baroque Palazzo Zenobio by architect Antonio Gaspari, Callum Morton's 'Valhalla' is a 3/4 scale replica of the suburban family home designed by his father, an architect whom he is cited as not reaching his full potential, as a bombed-out ruin. The pavilion was created in Australia from materials such as wood, polystyrene and epoxy, flat packed and then re-erected in Venice. The original home, although out of place amongst the surrounding homes with its Brutalist exterior, is full of fond memories of growing up with his family. Morton describes that although the exterior was oppressive, the interior was warm and light-filled. It seems the choice of sites is intentional, as the Palazzo, despite its monumental facade, houses lavish rooms, a mirrored ball room and gardens within the U-shaped building.
The image of the ruinous building seems to stem from numerous sources. Firstly, the artist recalls visiting the home recently only to discover that, after being sold and renovated, had eventually been demolished. Secondly, Morton suggests that it came to him after seeing images of destroyed buildings in war torn Afghanistan and it could be said that it explores the idea that the selective destruction of buildings is a twentieth century development as a means to divide, conquer and terrorize an enemy. Critic Herbert Muschamp states that 'exploding buildings are replacing landmarks' post September 11th. Morton seems to be playing on the building that existed, its memory and the contradiction to what exists now. 
Within the devastated facade, the viewer is transported into a stark anonymous office foyer with fluorescent lighting, three lifts and continuous 'muzak'. A continuing theme in Morton's work is the failure of Modernism and more widely, the dysfunction of buildings to how the architect may have intending them to have been used, often caused by the building's occupants in their daily lives. Here again, Morton picks up on the idea of the building's intention, existence and memory, and the contradiction to what may exist now. Just as his father designed a building that was loved (though not appearing to be lovable) but was eventually unvalued and demolished, the ideals of the Modern 'machine for living' has created buildings that are cold and impersonal, despite the promise of a positive impact on society.
In my study model, I have tried to convey the deceitfulness of the building and the contrast to what really lies within. Only a facade, the building is a contemporary 'folly', a fake ruin within the Palazzo's garden. By overlaying it onto his father's original floorplan, I wanted to establish how the building is intrinsically connected to his father's work and the memory of it. The pavilion has a central entry point and the viewer is taken into the centre of the pavilion where the interior is revealed to them, much in the same way as a Baroque building such as the Palazzo Zenobio.
At night, light emanates from the pavilion in a ominous way which could refer to the use of light in buildings like churches to indicate the presence of God or the notion of 'heaven' as an ideal place that one should strive for. This could be the ideal of modern architecture, at odds with the bombed out pavilion in the garden.
This pavilion was useful to study through the way in which it discusses the memory of buildings. I want to play on the use of forms and materials in my design to allude to the buildings which were there before and evoke the sense that the pavilion itself could be a remnant of a building that is now beyond use. In doing this I am attempting to reveal layers of the history of the site to the viewer and give an insight to what was there and how the site has changed. The building itself can be changed over time - it can be modified in the same way as the island has been modified, added to and adapted to its use over time.
No comments:
Post a Comment