GIBELLINA

In 1968, the small town of Gibellina, Sicily was completely destroyed by an earthquake. And only a few years later rebuilt close to the original site. The erection of the new Gibellina was supported by a unique vision: against traditional forces of bureaucracy, corrupt politics and Sicilian mafia. Artists were invited to design buildings and sculptures and to incorporate place and landscape into their work. After a short period of florescence, Gibellina of today resembles a ghost town.
:Butterfly shaped new Gibellina

After the earthquake, a history of 900 years was destroyed, but not only the buildings were damaged also the people and their communities. Hence after the catastrophe there should be a new very unique Gibellina, art should reconcile the people. Urbanism from scratch should create the new home. Promoted by the charismatic mayor Ludovico Corrao, who wanted the best for his people, now four decades later the experiment failed. The butterfly shaped new Gibellina is dead. People could not find a new home in the modernistic structure. The community was destroyed. At the beginning of the 80's 8000 people lived there. Today there are only 4500. Young people went away, to Milan, Torino or America. The grand scale Piazze and streets are all empty. An inhabitant: "This town is a stranger in its own environment. A town with enormous amount of space - and enormous disconsolation."Corrao wanted to create a modern contemporary Gibellina, completed with all kinds of sculptures and artwork. This should create a touristic attraction and therefore bring money to a town in a poor area of Italy. Huge metal sculptures, now rusty, giant stars spanning over streets, vast open spaces. A small town with no soul. The experiment failed. But blaming art for that failure would be too easy. Gibellina is an example where modern architecture and urbanism failed.
Probably the only still 'functioning' piece of art is situated at the area where the old town once was located. In 1981 Italian artist Alberto Burri erected an enormous monument out of concrete. The former blocks were waist-high monoliths, in-between the old layout of the streets.
Austrian filmmaker Juergen Burger tries to get hold of Gibellina in his documentary "Gibellina - Il terremoto". Trailer

:: all images via GoogleEarth

Follow up: Gibellina II

PLEASE..

.. be patient and sorry for the lack of posts in the last couple of weeks.
But in may, SYNCHRONICITY will launch again at full force !! So watch out.

...WHAT A WONDERFUL MORNING

This Otto Neurath inspired narrative is part of the work 'Book from the Ground' by Brooklyn based artist Xu Bing. He is even developing a computer programm that translates from different languages into the pictoral language of isotypes. Read the artist:

Book from the Ground is a novel written in a "language of icons" that I have been collecting and organizing over the last few years. Regardless of cultural background, one should be able understand the text as long as one is thoroughly entangled in modern life. We have also created a "font library" computer program to accompany the book. The user can type English sentences (we are still limited in this way, but the next step will include Chinese and other major languages) and the computer will instantaneously translate them into this language of icons. It can function as a "dictionary," and in the future it will have practical applications.

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! MAP THIS ! #14 COMPLEXCITY

The Complexcity project explores major cities around the world focussing on how their urban sprawls have evolved over time. Using the patterns formed by roads in each city, Korean born designer Lee Jang Sub creates complex graphic configurations, combining the idea of natural and man made systems. In the process he finds a concealed aesthetic within the convoluted pattern of urban networks. He started with his hometown Seoul, and has already completed Paris, Rome, and Moscow.

Through this work, I would like to suggest they don't see the complexity of a city only as an object that should be neatly arranged. Instead I propose a new approach of finding order in the ComplexCity, Seoul.

Each one of branches in a big tree seems to be disorderly spreaded with no rules, but when you see the whole tree, you can find it is in perfect harmony. Nature has a balance which we cannot see with our vision. I created this tree with patterns of roads spontaneously developed in a city, Seoul. I could find the patterns in a map of Seoul which represents the complexity of the city.

::Seoul (image via Lee Jang Sub)
::Paris (image via Lee Jang Sub)
::Moscow (image via Lee Jang Sub)::Rome (image via Lee Jang Sub)

::image via Lee Jang Sub

WIND ENERGY REPLACES OIL FROM THE GULF

Office for Metropolitan Architecture recently has presented a masterplan for the North Sea, claiming that wind farms in the North Sea can produce as much energy as the oil from the Persian Gulf is now. The plan was inspired by Hugo Graat, who in 1609 highlited that the sea should be a binding medium between nations, enabling communicating and exchanging ideas.
via archinect, architectenweb

URBAN OMNIBUS

... is online finally.

Urban Omnibus is an online project of the Architectural League that explores the relationship between design and New York City's physical environment: revealing the choices shaping the city, encouraging conversation, inspiring innovation.

It already features a walk through nyc with Richard Sennet or has some articles in the 'act local' section about urban farming.

! MAP THIS ! #13 EVERY FLIGHT ON EARTH IN 72 SECONDS

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