Tuesday 25 March 2008

modifying an icon

i believe everyone has seen this already somewhere out there...

but i just cant resist posting this up here to share and maybe u could share ur opinions too...

recently, sereno architects have submitted a proposal to extend the third floor of a very iconic structure in the world.........u guessed it.....the eiffel tower, they increase the floor space to accomodate the in coming tourist that flock like crazy to the city of love that so happen will stop by no matter what at the eiffel tower to see its splendid...

i find it very interesting and awkward at the same time, but more awkward than interesting...=)... i mean the eiffel has been and always will be the icon of par'rie or even the whole of fer'rance...haha, and changing the icon will be changing what is important to the original meaning of the structure itsf to its people and place, at least that was what we have been taugh, but would it be socially, historically, and architecturally wrong to change a structure's look for it to be able to catch up with times of the people ....i mean after all, that is what the most basic core of what architecture is about isnt it....to make the environment more hospitable for all people who live in it....?? whats ur point of view??






taken from www.worldarchitecturenews.com

p.s. im not weird.......just misunderstood!!!! sob...

27 comments:

Anthrex Design Bureau said...

the ppl of paris (including me) will kill that architect the Eiffel should be at its original state because .........its the Eiffel. wit the new thing .... paris will look like it just got invaded by aliens...like an ufo on top...

ST.chen said...

i think its really fugly..it destroys the elegance of the tower >:O

ian ng said...

this will be a grand debate. personally i think it's quite "pretty" and romantic...kinda like a flower alien-style

BADesign said...
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ian ng said...

If this thing can be pretty and not weird...then so can jon. They grow on you....hi jon! :)

ian ng said...

you dun praypray..this lady is power..man

BADesign said...

fuiyoh to siew theng for her first post..

fuiyoh to ian for identifying a new style.. LOL

i think the day time views of this new flower looks ugly la.. very out of place.. a flower on a steel tower..

but the night view next to the section looks nice actually from far.. like a beacon of light..

e t c h E D said...

haha.. what a coincidence jon! i came across this too last week.
erm yeap.. i found that it looks kinda odd with that alien flower up there. look at the top left image(worm-eye view), it feels like an UFO was out of control and accidentally landed on the sharp end.
it also resembles a nice flowery ribbon being pasted at the neck of a trophy.. well, i personally prefer a beautifully-honed trophy without the ribbon..
anyway, this extended platform will only be bolted on temporarily without any modification to the existing structure.. so no worries..
weiyang's first post. (ben ben dun need to fuiyoh.. =])

BADesign said...

OMG !! yeah yeah ! like da ufo space ship accidentally TERPACAK on the tower ! hahahahaha...and oklar, the i dont fuiyoh u...hhahahaha

ian ng said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
ian ng said...

well if it's only temporary..what's all the fuss about? Should have made it prettier then. Why all you macho man no room for the better sex isit?

Jon da Penang said...

oh...fewwww..guess i din read the part bout it being temporary...haha...but heck..what a discussion right ian...

ian ng said...

what a discussion..right. But you see how sereno's structure is also web like, like the webbed steel of the original. It's just tapped on the latest tech of "melded" joints, like ligaments, instead of expressing mechanical joints, i.e. bolting. The other way would have been to use structural glass with spider clamps and all...Hey, reminds me of the grand canyon skywalk...remember that one? Architecture that defies gravity...somewhat.

Don't forget to attend John Ding's lecture this afternoon.

Issac said...

My personal view:
Actually, i dont feel it's ugly, neither pretty too. I just feel it's quite a good idea for designing a flower headgear for Ms. Eiffel
It might show the revolution of Eiffel to the next generation. The "headgear" can be the best selling point for the designer to convince their client too.
*Perhaps, Rush Hour 4 can has a fight show/ romantic show/ ++ over there. *Wink²

Jon da Penang said...

hahaha...but i have always tot eiffel is a guy...u know with the strong steel frame and all...haha...the flower thing on top makes the eiffel tower looks like its wearing a flowery laced hat, that is almost always in fashion in paris..."he" looks like "he"s turning drag...or changing sex or something..haha... not that its a bad thing..im just adding to the different perspective here... well, this idea to expand the floor space is very ideal for the times now, to handle the crowd, i think, and in terms of it being a good design gesture to the tower, if its temporary of cuz, then for "him" to be draging once...haha...it be kinda cool...

jinno_6 said...

sorry for the late comment.... as i said b4...art n design are no such thing as right n wrong. they jus differ by the perception of an individual. some group of ppl might think that the addition on that iconic building has spoil the original characteristic of it. that because they had been mind-set that the building shud look like that forever n ever.therefore they can't accept any changes for it. however another group of ppl like ian n also me (hehe....) think that it looks nice on it. for me i imagine that the cactus(the tower)has finally bloom....how nice......
anyway...is jus my perception. i leave this to all of u whether is nice o not...

IS NICE!!~ haha....

ST.chen said...

jinno: i'm not against modification or addition to iconic buildings/structures...just that i think it can be more tastefully done =p
and yes each individual has own perception on what is nice or not. so my opinion on this is..i really cannot accept this hahahah if i were the designer of eiffel tower i would so kill sereno architects.

benson: that wasnt my first post :)

jinno_6 said...

siew theng: u hv ur point there. i think u will kill me next time bcoz i will add something on klcc and kl tower if i become a famous architect... haha

still long way to go......haiz... so jus let klcc n kl tower b what they r now.

jak said...

y dont they build the other new 1 instead of adding or modifiying the tower which possessing great significant historical and meaning .. to the country to the nation ...

Jon da Penang said...

haha...well then, everyone seems to have a firm stand...wow...how great, and wer just year two..haha..so what wud u do if ur brief is to add on or built an observation tower next to the eiffel...?

Euric said...

omg! fugly-ness!!!

BADesign said...

a new tower won't have any meaning la.. so no point building a new one..

jak said...

meaning could gradually be formed by the changes of time, places, cutural, or human ... juz my opinion ...
anyway, wats the meaning for adding a " flower-like " structure on top of the tower ?

jak said...
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ian ng said...

haha..I think benson meant 'there wouldn't be much point building another cos the Eiffel is unique. 2 of the same would be meaningless, or less unique, even if you were to connect them with a sky bridge..haha'. But heck, a clever, arty, designer would find some clever arty way to design an appropriately fashioned sky bridge between 2 E-towers.

But I guess they wanted to keep the uniqueness and expand the accessibility..a case of supply and demand..and optimise the viewing experience. It's quite squeezed up there (if you've been up) and doesn't feel too safe. So I quess they wanted to make it more spacious and comfortable an experience for as many ppl per hour as possible. So if a real need of society arises clever architects have to think of clever ways to meet the need. The other way is to increase the ticket price to reduce traffic..now what do you think of that solution? Maybe have a video audiorium on the ground (shaped like a flower?) showing views from the top for very very cheap price, with 50% discount for students. And what d'you think about that?

The broader context or our discussion is the idea of architecture as a continuously changing membrane versus architecture as a finite perfect unchangeable solution to a design problem.

Shucks..this sounds like a lecture..sorry.

ian ng said...

Kelvin's last point is another interesting and related subject. "Meaning in Arhcitecture" I think my friend Ar.Ngiom wrote his MSc on that.

Meaning is read by different individuals differently. Does society have a group mentality in reading architecture? Where's the place for the individual in the collective? Is there such a thing as "Malaysian Architecture" or is Malaysian Architecture merely a collection of buildings by Malaysian architects?

jiunn said...

oh well, architects are trying to explore the potential of the eiffel tower. This design might inspire someone else to come out with a better design, perhaps?

Long time ago, when Eiffel tower was going to be built, it caused an uproar to paris. Then it died down, because people had become familiar with it already. Historicism will make people feel comfortable about it by familiarising it. So, it became an icon for 493584593405 years.

So, i guess if an additional thing was added to it, sooner or later the uproars will die down. Again, it has become another familiar thing on the world.

personally i prefer Eiffel tower to remain as it is, because I haven't got enough romanticism out of it as yet. it looks so mysterious to me!!
However, i feel that it is also time to look into possibilities to make Eiffel Tower a more leng zai one?

That's my 2 cents:)