Le Corbusier - A Rant

The Architect as Totalitarian by Theodore Dalrymple, City Journal Autumn 2009

Read it and weep for the influence his pustulant, rotting corpse still exudes today...

Amen.

Eyes Wide Shut

Today I was walking down a street that I have traversed almost twice daily for the past two weeks – and countless times before that – when i randomly raised my eyes and realised I was passing a house I had never ever seen before. It's a quite a short street by street-standards so it surprised me quite a lot.

I'm not implying that the house suddenly apparated out of nowhere, Harry-Potter style, but that I had simply never looked at it as I was walking by. Like some sort of blind spot.

This happens to me with houses (only houses) on familiar, well-trodden streets on a regular basis. I probably should kick the habit and start taking more notice if i'm to be an architect.

It's strange how you can 'see' things without really looking at them – and disconcerting. It makes me wonder what else I am missing...

Apocalypse vs. Aliens

I just woke up after a bizzare dream/dreams... is there any other kind? Well not for me. Anyway i'm not sure if I want to record this kind of thing here because i anticipate it will be long and probably not of interest to any potential reader but for now I have no journal so I will anyway.

It started off in 'my' house, I think it was near my grandma's house, but definitely not a house i recognise from reality... it was clear that Sydney was on the brink of something; the atmosphere was tense, waiting for some kind of catalyst to bring about TEOTWAWKI (The End of the World As We Know It - google it, you'll get some pretty interesting/humorous hits!), at least that's what it felt like. It was nighttime, quite dark on the street, the street lights were unlit and people were acting strangely; when i went outside, random men approached me and were speaking nonsense that scared me back inside.

Whatever 'it' was happened (I get the feeling it was some kind of biological weapon or perhaps invasion of some kind? Strange how in dreams you just 'know' some things without them ever being actually stated or shown), and suddenly my grandma appeared. My mum was there too and it was clear that we had to get out of Sydney - but I was waiting for my boyfriend to return from work in the city. I was trying to call him while my mum and grandma started packing the car with food and provisions, and out on the street there were soldiers handing out food to a large group of people who were just sitting on the grass - it was like they just didn't know what to do. Like everyone had just lost all sense of purpose and drive.

I finally got onto my boyfriend... he was crying. I had instinctively felt that something bad was happening in the city and he was trapped there. As soon as people who never cry - like my boyfriend, mum etc. - start crying, you know it's bad. Even in dreams, it puts me on edge, like I can't cope...anyway he was saying that he was stuck or in a really bad place and then i started crying because i knew that i wouldn't see him again... and then the horror of that caused me to physically jump and wake up.

Anyway i was pretty upset about the whole dream, some dreams just leave you with a feeling of dread/sadness/melancholy or whatever...and this was one of them. I sent my boyfriend a text, hoping for some comfort, but since it was 5am I knew he wouldn't get it for a while. I went back to sleep and sort of 'fell' back into the dream in that way that you do...

You can continue reading after the bounce if you're at all interested.

The Angel's Game

I just finished reading this novel by Carlos Ruiz Zafón - a Christmas present from a friend. It was quite tragic really, and the ending brought me to tears. I shall have to give it a proper review later - hopefully before it's lingering impact has worn off...

A quick comment on the cover design (I still can't figure out what the mysterious image has to do with the story, unless it is, simply, to hint at the mysteries inside...any ideas?) which I love... mostly for the beautiful palette of red, gold, grey and cream - such a good combination. I feel inspired to wear or paint something in these colours now...we'll see how far that impulse goes!

I also Love, Love, Love with a capital L those amazing Art Nouveau street lights - I need to find out if they are an actual feature in Barcelona. I will post pictures if I find some. It is a great example of how something as ubiquitous in the modern world as the street light does not have to be ordinary or mundane - this is a key concept that I want to explore further in my own future designs, and will keep an eye out for further examples of...

Can't wait to read the prequel/sequel/predecessor to The Angel's Game - The Shadow of the Wind, and for the two following books that Zafón has planned.