Contemporary Architecture in the Historic Environment

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Design Approaches and Philosophies
International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS). 1975. Contemporary
Architecture in Ancient Groups of Buildings. Budapest Symposium, June
28–30, 1972 = L'integrationde l'architecture contemporaine dans les ensembles
historiques. Colloque de Budapest, 28–30 juin 1972. Special issue,
Monumentum (11–12). http://www.international.icomos.org/monumentum/
vol11-12/index.html
This special issue of Monumentum contains papers presented at the Symposium
on the Introduction of Contemporary Architecture into Ancient Groups of
Buildings, which took place at the 3rd General Assembly of ICOMOS in
Budapest (June 28–30, 1972). In the introduction, Piero Gazzola positions
ICOMOS as neutral in the progress-preservation dichotomy. He places the organization
of the symposium in the context of a shift in the methodology of cultural
heritage conservation, which consisted of changing focus from material
preservation of heritage assets to the reinsertion of heritage in the daily life of
contemporary society. The first article, by Miklos Horler, offers a general
account of the symposium and the historical context of the discussion. Horler
recognizes that this subject has polarized conservation practitioners throughout
history. He observes that most symposium participants agree that modern urban
life should be reinserted in historic centers. Additionally, the majority agree
that the appropriate type of architecture for an infill project in a historic urban
context depends on the specifics of the site, although most gave a preference for
either a neutral or modern architectural expression. Horler identifies the Cáceres
ICOMOS symposium (1967) as the point where ICOMOS first became involved
in the discussion and summarizes the organization’s position at the time: “The
speakers also declared that in their opinion architecture must not be used unrestrictedly;
‘new architecture’ did not mean complete freedom from any constraint
whatever, and architecture which showed indifference to its surroundings
and was in violent contrast with them was not truly modern, since respect for
the existing setting was one of the fundamental duties of the architects of our
day” (pp.14–15). (A.P.A.G.)
[See also under Chapter 1: Conservation Policy: International Council on
Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS). 1972. Resolutions of the Symposium on the
Introduction of Contemporary Architecture into Ancient Groups of Buildings at
the 3rd ICOMOS General Assembly (1972).]
Jencks, Charles. 2005. The Iconic Building. New York: Rizzoli.
In this book, the author, an American architecture theorist, analyzes the phenomenon
of buildings that are designed to become icons. This design approach
became popular after the construction of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao
(1993–97), designed by Frank Gehry. According to Jencks, “[the iconic building]
is meant to upset the context, overturn convention, challenge the hierarchy,
get away with crime” (p. 16). The adoption of this approach is usually driven by
the need to spark economic redevelopment and marketing.
Jencks’s neutral position on the subject makes this book a good tool in attempting
to understand current approaches to infill architecture in historical contexts
and what the motivations behind it might be. (A.P.A.G.)
Also relevant for Chapter 4: Case Studies.
Contemporary Architecture in the Historic Environment: An Annotated Bibliography - Getty Conservation Institute - 2015