1695. Aalto Theater, Essen

Querida Siby,

"Sin el encanto, lo demás es inútil"
(Jorge Luis Borges, Una, La Divina Comedia; Siete Noches)

Besos,
R

1694. Fondation Louis Vuitton

Dear Frédéric,

"I see my building as if it were moving through the forest,
tracing an alley, a fluid liquid element, an entity whose unity
and direction from whatever side, always seems different, not
easy to determine whose nature and ephemeral quality blend
with the clouds, variation of the sky and rain being factors
constantly changing the perception of the building"
(Frank Gehry, talking about Fondation Louis Vuitton)

With gratitude,
R

1693. Atrio del Museo Guggenheim Bilbao

Mamá, Louis,

"...el mundo entero es un Bilbao más grande"
(Miguel de Unamuno, Rimas de dentro)

Besos muchos muchos,
R

1692. J.K.K. Kirjasto

Querido Roberto,
.
"...,pero biblioteca es pan o pirámide o cualquier otra cosa..."
(Jorge Luis Borges, La Biblioteca de Babel)

Con admiración,
R

1691. Tallinn, Hotel Olümpia

Dear Indira,

One of Tallinn's most noticeable building, this 26-story
hotel building was built for the 1980 Summer Olympics
sailing competitions occasion. It was renovated in 1997
and most recently in 2017 and renamed Radisson Blu
Hotel Olümpia.

Sincerely,
R

1690. Fagus Werk

Dear Karl,

"The role of the walls becomes restricted to that of mere screens
stretched between the upright columns of the framework to keep
out rain, cold and noise." (Walter Gropius)

Sincerely,
R

1689. Centro Botín, Santander

Dear Luis,

“I feel truly honored to have taken on this project for the city
of Santander because it is yet another example in my repertoire
of open, tolerant, and accessible cultural spaces, joining the
Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Auditorium in Rome, Foundation
Beyeler in Basel, the Morgan Library in New York, and the Art
Institute of Chicago; all urban spaces loved by the people”
(Renzo Piano)

Regards,
R

1688. Sabaudia. Casa del Balilla

Dear Florestano,

"Frezzotti's one story Balilla building is perhaps the most
interesting building in Sabaudia, in spite of the later downgrading
of his reputation. It is kept in a sober size, but nevertheless
monumental in style. Its clean geometrical shapes are articulated
in an ochre yellow brick, with travertine details and generous
amount of glass"
(Hanne Storm Ofteland,  Sabaudia 1934, Materializing the Fascist 
Corporate Town, 2002)

Sincerely,
R

1687. House 14-15, Weissenhofsiedlung, Stuttgart, 1927

Dear Hans,

"House is a machine for living in"
(Le Corbusier, Toward an Architecture, 1923)

Sincerely,
R

1686. Oesterreichisches Haus, Cöln 1914

Dear Lucius,

"Beauty is the result of centuries of care and ordering."
(Josef Hoffmann)

Regards,
R

1685. Bata Store, Reichenberg, Tuchplatz

Querido Walter,

Este elegante edificio de los famosos almacenes de calzado
Bata te resultará familiar de tus tiempos en Liberec.
El arquitecto, Vladimir Karfík, construyó muchos edificios
para esta compañía incluyendo el renombrado Edificio 21 de
16 pisos en la ciudad de Zlín, sede principal de la firma.

Un abrazo,
R

1684. Edificio Siboney, Puerto Chico, Santander

Querido Rafael,

Hermoso edificio expresionista el Siboney con sus fuertes
referencias naúticas como las esquinas redondeadas, las largas
tiras horizontales de ventanas, las ventanas en ojo de buey, los
colores blanco y celeste, como si fuese un gran transatlántico
amarrado en Puerto Chico...

Saludos afectuosos,
R

1683. Hotel Panorama, Štrbské Pleso, Slovakia

Dear Peter,

The impressive Hotel Panorama was built in 1970 to accommodate
visitors to the World Ski Championship. Since 2008 the building
has been remodeled as a mixed-use complex including besides the
hotel, private apartment units, and common areas and facilities.

Regards,
R

1682. Abidjan, Cathedrale Saint Paul.

Dear Patrizia,

The shape of the windows recall the form of a powerful elephant.
The structure is supported from above. The power from Above.

Sincerely,
R

1681. Svenska Dagbladets, Stockholmsutställningen 1930

Dear Gustaf,

The charming Svenska Dagbladet's press office was a small
pavilion that worked as a corner as well as a starting point of
the neighboring long side flank of the Paradise Restaurant,
Asplund's most brilliant building of all he designed for the
Stockholm exhibition of 1930.

Best wishes,
R

1680. Rudolf Mosse Pavilion, Pressa Exhibition, Cologne, 1928

Querido abuelo,

Dijo Frank Gehry que si Erich Mendelsohn hubiera tenido
los ordenadores y la tecnología de hoy en día, él hubiera
tenido que figurarse otra cosa para hacer porque Mendelsohn
la hubiera hecho antes que él.
Llevaba años buscando ésta postal. Por fin la encontré.

Besos,
R

1679. Rapla KEK building, Rapla.

Dear Uno,

This is one of the most recognizable and admired buildings
created by Toomas Rein, the Alvar Aalto from Estonia.

Regards,
R

1678. Maison à Gradins, 13 Rue des Amiraux, Paris

Dear David,

"Uncaring, I passed for a happy man! Poor creature,
whom misfortune might have rendered a great genius..."
(Henri Sauvage)

A vintage postcard depicting the set-back working-class
houses project in the Rue des Amiraux under construction.

Best,
R

1677. Hotel Xenia, Iraklion, Crete, Greece

Dear Dimitris,

"And here I am, where I have been looking for ways to have
standardization for the construction, and also for the functional
configuration, thus each architectural work not to be a
unintended incident, but to be a work of thought, something
that aims for being complete and perfect"
(Aris Konstantinidis)

Regards,
R

PS. This building was totally demolished and therefore is not
standing any longer.

1676. The Teaching Practice School and Gymnasium. University of Jyväskylä

Dear Tapio,

“Central Finland frequently reminds one of Tuscany, the homeland
of towns built on hills, which should provide an indication of how
classically beautiful our province could be if built up properly.”
(Alvar Aalto 1925)

Regards,
R

1675. Hirshorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Smithsonian Institution

Dear Henry,

"a fortress of a building that works as a museum"
(The New York Times)

Best,
R

1674. Wiipuri asema

Dear Enzo,

The Vyborg Railway Station was inaugurated in 1913 and almost
destroyed during the Continuation War in August 1941. Only ten
percent of the building remains standing since then. This station
was very similar to Helsinki railway station that was built six years
later.

Sincerely,
R

1673. Villa Nuuttila, Island of Kuusisto, Kaarina, Finland

Dear Marco,

Located in a  site with scenic view Villa Nuuttila rises on a slope
like an Italian mountain lodge. This charming villa awoke attention
already during construction. This is one of many small buildings
Bryggman designed that shows the tremendous talent and ability
this architect had to create both humane and nature-friendly
architecture.

Sincerely,
R

1672. Hilversum. School Schuttersweg

James,

A delicate, modern (but not too much) school by W.M. Dudok.
Notice its "Wrightian" arched entrance with red and blue glazed
bricks.

Best regards,
R

1671. Rothschild Boulevard, Tel-Aviv

Querido David,

A la izquierda de la foto se puede reconocer uno de los edificios
que el arquitecto, urbanista y periodista israelí Salomon Gepstein
diseñó y construyó en Tel-Aviv en la década de los años 1930 en
estilo Bauhaus.
Afortunadamente el edificio todavía se conserva en perfecto estado
ya que ha sido recientemente renovado.

Paz,
R

1670. Edificio de Correos, Santa Rosa, Argentina

Querido Roberto,

Como el resto de la serie de edificios para Correos y
Telecomunicaciones construidos en Argentina entre los años
1947 y 1955, éste en Santa Rosa está claramente inspirado en el
edificio Gustavo Capanema inaugurado en Rio de Janeiro en 1945
y proyectado por Costa, Leão, Niemeyer, Reidy, Vasconcellos y
Machado, con el asesoramiento de Le Corbusier.

Afectuosamente,
R

1669. Caja Colombiana de Ahorro, Bogotá, Colombia

Querida Mónica,

La fotografía de esta postal antigua muestra un escorzo casi
completo del edificio de 15 plantas que la pionera firma
Cuéllar Serrano Gómez levantó en Bogotá en 1948. Se da la
circunstancia de que en la segunda mitad de la década de los
40 Gabriel Serrano viajó por Brasil y tuvo ocasión de conocer
y dejarse influir por la arquitectura de Oscar Niemeyer.

Abrazos,
R

1668. Dobříš. Masarykovo sanatorium

Dear Walter,

The sanatorium for the treatment of pulmonary diseases was built
between 1936 and 1938 according to the functionalist architectural
plans by Ferdinand Fencl.

R

1667. Heerlen. Kantoren Oranje Nassaumijn I

Dear Rob,

The building for the Oranje Nassau Company Headquarters
was designed by Rick Roosenburg in 1931 according to the
functionalist principles. In 1996 the building was restored and
painted all green instead of its original white.

Sincerely,
R

1666. Calambrone. Colonia Villa Rosa dal mare

Dear Devon,

This old buildings were inspired by the nostalgic Metaphysical
paintings of Giorgio de Chirico and Carlo Carrà. The Red
Tower of 1913 by Chirico and After the Sunset of 1927 by
Carrà are just good examples to illustrate that idea.

Regards,
R

1665. Cadiz, Avenida Ramón de Carranza con el Edificio de la compañía Transmediterránea al fondo.

Papá,

Ya en Cádiz. Vi ésta postal y me acordé de cuando me hablaste de
los autobuses de doble piso que tú viviste.
Te echo de menos.

Besos,
R

1664. Paimio, Parantola

Querida Critstina,

Aalto hablaba de su famoso sanatorio en Paimio como un
"instrumental médico" porque su arquitectura era para él una
parte más al servicio de la curación de los pacientes que por el
pasaban.
Este conjunto está en proceso de convertirse en parte de lista de
lugares Patrimonio de la Humanidad de la UNESCO.

Besos,
R

1663. Vista parcial Universidad de Concepción, Chile

Querido Eugenio,

"Lo que yo quise lograr no eran edificios con carácter, sino
un conjunto con carácter" (Emilio Duhart)

A la derecha de la imagen parte del edificio de la facultad
de Ciencias Químicas, actualmente en proceso de demolición
por los daños causados tras el terremoto de 2010.

Un abrazo,
R

1662. Finlandia Talo

Dear Sam,

"Even the smallest daily chore can be humanized with the
harmony of culture" (Alvar Aalto)

Sincerely,
R

1661. Torre del Oro y Torre Sevilla

Querida Jose,

"Veo a mis edificios como miembros de la ciudad y al diseñarlos
intento que sean ciudadanos contribuyentes y responsables"
(César Pelli)

Un abrazo,
R

1660. International Fair of Thessaloniki

Dear Helena,

The Hellenic Tourist Organization (HTO) Pavilion is shown
in this postcard beyond the lonely tree in the middle of the picture.
This was the first built architectural manifesto of great architect
Aris Konstantinidis.

Sincerely,
R

1659. Tampere Fire Station

Dear Aino,

This fantastic building was designed and built in1907 by an
authentic pioneer: Olivia Mathilda (Wivi) Lönn. She was the
first Finnish female architect to have started her own office in
1898 in her country.

Respectful,
R

1658. Herning. Den ny Svømmehal. Brændgårdvej

Dear Arne,

"I do not want to be addicted to the right angle. I deal with lots
of imbalances in my buildings" (Anton Christensen)

Regards,
R

1657. Complejo Cultural Teresa Carreño, Caracas, Venezuela

Dear Simón,

"Brutalism, a play between crudity and finesse"
(Le Corbusier)

Respectfully,
R

1656. Empresa Nacional de Luz y Fuerza, Managua

Querido Walter,

Este edificio es una de las joyas de la arquitectura moderna
nicaragüense por su limpieza de lineas, su rotundidad y
severidad y por su forma elegante y ágil de llegar al suelo.
A pesar de su aparente fragilidad resistió sin problemas el
fuerte terremoto de 1972.

Un abrazo,
R

1655. Messe Turm, Frankfurt

Dear Jan,

"Creativity has more to do with the elimination of
the inessential than with inventing something new"
(Helmut Jahn)

Best regards,
R

1654. Majolikahaus, Wien 6

Dear Walter,

"The details are not the details. They make the design"
(Charles Eames)

Sincerely,
R

1653. Cranbrook Art Museum. Interior

Dear John,

"Art was born as a desire, not as a demand"
(Eliel Saarinen)

Sincerely,
R