dreaming large.
the interview of moshe safdie on eleanor wachtel’s ‘on the arts’ series the other day really left me fixated on the design of moshe safdie. there is so much that i like about this man. first, his old school sensibility that sees architecture as an important event that should ultimately serve the people who will breathe life into it … as well as society in general, and humankind overall … all these wonderful dreams writ large. all these wonderful dreams based on design, detail and good math. i love it !
i am so sick of the iconic fetish that toronto and calgary are currently hung up in … thinking more about how they are seen internationally rather than how their cities work, and how they can be improved and made more liveable … well, i believe safdie really works to do both; to create beauty through ingenious design, but without ever losing sight of the reason he has been asked to design …
anyway, here is his current mega-project in singapore, for the las vegas sands corporation … something that seems on one hand like he is selling out, … but with a bit more knowledge about his motives, is really a desire to capitalize on a design situation that allows for ‘dreaming big’.
i think this is so important … and we are seeing it less and less today, given the dominance of efficiency and profit margins … it is nice to see someone still building for long-lasting, responsive, functional and liveable incarnations of ’crazy dreaming’.
check it out here …
if you have time, listen to the whole interview … it is truly fascinating (given safdie’s talent, and wachtel’s incredible ability to interview).
c.
