242. Vue nocturne du Pavillon d'Espagne, Bruselas 1958

Dear Aldo,

Last night I went to see the Spanish Pavilion still under
construction. When I came back to my hotel I had the
certainty that this building was about to be one of the
most important pieces of Spanish architecture of the
twentieth century.

Take good care.
R

241. Rotterdam. Centrale Bibliotheek

Dear Hans,

In the Rotterdam Central Library you can find besides
more than a million books, a library theatre that often
stages cabaret performances and literary activities, a
café-restaurant a, the Central Discotheque for CDs and
DVDs and the largest collection of books ‘about’ and
’by’ Erasmus in the world.

Cheers.
R

240. Punta Ballena. R.O. del Uruguay. Hotel Punta Ballena en Solana del Mar

Querido Juan,

A ti, arquitecto de la luz, tocado
del soplo de la mar grecolatina;
mano que eleva, frente que origina
la gracia en el azul ilimitado

Por ti otra vez el cielo creado,
por ti el oscuro bosque se ilumina.
Canta tu arquitectura cristalina
sobre el espacio mas deshabitado.

Te espera el sol, el aire anda impaciente
Del campo a la ciudad, y el hombre siente
morirse de dolor en la mirada.

El arquitecto puede hacer la rosa
Y con el sol la vida mas dichosa,
en luz, en luz, en luz edificada

(Rafael Alberti a Antoni Bonet, 1946)

Abrazos
R

239. Suomen Urheiluopisto

Querido Enrique,

Después de mi encantador paseo en bote por el lago,
he venido a ver el edificio que me dejó tan pensativo
e inmóvil entonces (como le pasaba a Kafka). He tenido
que desplazarme todo alrededor del complejo para
abarcarlo bien, como si estuviese rodando una película.
Aun así la sensación de serenidad y armonía que 

desprende el edificio ha tranquilizado mi ánimo que 

empezaba a inquietarse. Después me he serenado del 

todo cuando me he cruzado con un señor muy bajito 

que me ha saludado muy amablemente con una sonrisa 

de felicidad al pasar. Helsinki me transporta a veces 

hasta Verona...

Saludos.
R

238. Vierumaki, Suomen Urheiluospisto

Querido Enrique,

Aquí en tu admirada Finlandia, admiro yo desde
una bote que he alquilado en este paradisiaco lago de
Vierumaki un edificio funcionalista del año 36.
Se trata de la fachada trasera del Centro de Deportes
Finlandés, obra del arquitecto Erik Bryggman.
Esta vista me hace recordar a Frank Kafka. La quietud
y solemnidad del entorno me hacen reflexionar.
No hay apenas movimiento, solo el torpe e inconstante
remar de mis brazos que a veces consiguen distraerme.

Un abrazo.
R

237. Bibliotheque Nationale de France

Dear Melissa,

The four corner towers of the new Biblioteque Nationale
de France (BnF) resemble four open books. These four
"books" plus the underground floors contain altogether
400 km of shelves for 20 million books. According to
the architect Dominique Perrault one of the inspirational
concept when designing the library was a typical medieval cluster. This idea is in part achieved by the fantastic winter garden that stand surrounded by the four towers in the middle of this gigantic but also minimalistic complex.

All the best.
R

236. IBM Pavilion 1964-65 New York World's Fair

Dear Eliel,

The atmosphere of the IBM
Pavilion at the New York
World's Fair 1964-65 was
that of a covered garden.
45 tall corten steel trees
hold a large green translucent
plastic cover for a series of
colorful exhibits underneath.
The main attraction though was
the "Information Machine",
an ovoid theater with multiple
screen projection, raised 90
feet above the ground. Here
the Eames-produced
documentary "Think" was
projected onto twenty
screens of different shapes
and sizes.

Best wishes.
R

235. Palau Sant Jordi-Montjuic

Querida Luz,

Hoy he vuelto a visitar Barcelona, como cuando fuimos
todos con Manolo. Gaudi, Mies, Sert fueron iluminadores.
Hoy tengo que incluir en la lista Nouvel, H&dM y por
supuesto Miralles. Espero que esteis los tres muy bien.

Besos.
R

234. Aalsmeer, Centr. Aalsm. Veiling

Dear Jennifer,

Aalmeer is the center of the Dutch flower trade.
This particular market hall is known as "Bloemenlust"
(floral delight) and was built by J.F. Staal in 1928.
The gable shape is a neat echo of the glasshouses where
flowers are typically grown. Hope I can teach you
some architecture as you asked me to do.

All the best.
R

233. Turku-Abo

Dear Neiti,

Yesterday was my first day at my new job. Now I work
for the Turun Sanomat newspaper here in Turku as an
assistant in the commercial department. I have a brand
new desk in the ground floor of this new building. The
most modern in the city. The whole building is so
extraordinary that many people have asked me about it.
The only thing I know is that the architect's name is 

Aalto and that the style is inspired by recent European
architecture. I think I 'm going to enjoy this job. Pleople are very kind with me and they seem to be quite professional. I will keep you posted.

Best wishes
R

232. Lever House, New York

Dear Aldo,

This building is located directly across
Park Avenue from the Seagram Building
by Mies van der Rohe. It was one of the
first Curtain Wall modern office buildings
in the U.S. and architecturally and
programmatically a big revolution.
Needlessly to say that the Lever House
has been much copied elsewhere from
Buenos Aires to Copenhagen.

Best regards.
R

231. Buenos Aires. Teatro Colon y Edificio Fiat

Dear Claude,

The Torre Mirafiore (called Edificio Fiat when completed
back in 1964) made me to remember the wonderful Royal
Hotel where I stayed when I was in Copenhagen.

All the best.
R

230.Copenhagen, Denmark, Hotel Royal

Dear Claude,

The Alberto K gourmet restaurant, on
the 20th floor of the Hotel Royal has besides
a marvelous menu a breathtaking view.
All Jacobsen details are preciousness too.
See you soon in Buenos Aires.

Take care
R

229. Vista Aerea de la Ciudad Universitaria. Caracas, Venezuela

Dear Alexander,

The unquestionable reference of this magnificent 

covered plaza designed by Villanueva, is Le Corbusier's 

lobby in the Palace of the Soviets project of 1931. This 

plaza works as a lobby for the theater and the rectory 

and it is decorated with art works by Bloc, Calder, 

Pevsner etc. It has been an inspiration for many 

architects, including Alvaro Siza when designing the 

Portugal Pavilion for the Expo 98.

Regards.
R

228. California Academy of Sciences

Dear Jan

“I try to get at the fundamental emotion of a site. The
roof design is like lifting up a piece of the park and putting
a building under it.” (Renzo Piano)
Now Jan you have another good reason to come back to
San Francisco.

Cheers.
R

227. Barcelona. Parque Guell, Columnas del Teatro Griego.

Querido Alfonso,

Esta estructura de columnas levantada
por Gaudi me inspira pensar en conceptos
como solidez y belleza, ambos reunidos
aqui simultaneamente. Es tambien como las
amistades viejas, tal como la nuestra.

Un abrazo
R

226. Berlin (West) Internationale Bauaustellung

Querido Juan,

Según Enric Miralles, la obra de Peter Eisenman es útil 
para pensar. Según él desde un pensamiento acerca de
ella podremos desplazarnos a los lugares donde es
posible preguntarse por el sentido de la arquitectura.
Siento no haber podido verte esta vez en Sevilla. La
próxima vez será y quizás entonces podamos
preguntarnos juntos por el sentido de la arquitectura.

Un abrazo muy fuerte.
R

225. Torino. Il Salone Internazionale delle Tecnica al Palazzo delle Esposizioni al Valentino

Cristina,

Durante algunos años de su vida Pier Luigi Nervi se
dedico al estudio de cubiertas de grandes dimensiones
construidas con elementos prefabricados de hormigon
armado. En este campo su indiscutible obra maestra
es la cúpula del Palacio de Exposiciones de Turín
(1948-49). Esta cubierta esta contituida por una celosia
ondulada de un espesor de 5 cm y una altura media de
1.5 m que es capaz de salvar una luz de 76 m. El inmenso
espacio es tan dramatico como el de las grandes catedrales
goticas.

Besos.
R

224. Markuskyrkan, Skarpnacks forsamling, Bjorkhagen, Stockholm

Dear Sven,

Lewerentz talked about ancient Persian masonry walls when asked for the design process of his famous Church of St. Mark. Indeed the archaic and closed walls of the building stand against the light birch grove on the site and continue inside the building with wonderful masonry vaults ceilings. St. Mark's was completed in 1960 when Lewerentz was 75 and it was the building that consolidated his position as the living master amongst Swedish architects.

Best regards.
R

223. Whitney Museum of American Art

Dear Arnt,

"Modern Architecture is not a style,
It's an attitude" (Marcel Breuer)

Regards
R

222. San Francisco Store designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for V.C. Morris 140 Maiden Lane

Dear Bob,

When questioned by V.C. Morris
about the omission of storefront
windows on the facade, Frank Lloyd
Wright replied:
"We are not going to dump your
beautiful merchandise on the street,
but create an arch-tunnel of glass, into
which the passers-by may look and be
enticed. As they penetrate further into
the entrance, seeing the shop inside
with its spiral ramp and tables set with
fine china and crystal, they will suddenly
push open the door, and you've got
them!"

Nice mouse trap!

Regards.
R

221. Rotterdam, Calandplein, Monument en Passage

Dear Louetta,

During the bombing of the city center of Rotterdam in
1940, the original Cafe de Unie (1925) built by J.J.P.
Oud was destroyed. It stood at the Coolsingel and it
shows here in this old postcard partially behind the
monument. In 1986 the façade was reproduced in a
different location. The design is a perfect example of
the Dutch artistic movement De Stijl with its use of
primary colours and simple abstract composition.

Regards.
R

220. Dudley Zoo

Dear Uncle Dudley,

British Dudley Zoo (1935-37) is a regrettable neglected
monument of national significance. Berthold Lubetkin,
the main architect, once said: “A society that openly
professes that the present is expendable and the future
unintelligible begets artists who have to scream to be
noticed and remembered for a quarter of an hour.”

Best regards.
R

219. New York World's Fair. The Brazilian Pavilion

Dear Lucia,

The Brazilian pavilion was one of the outstanding features
of the 1939 World's Fair. It was so, that the mayor of NY,
Fiorello La Guardia conferred the accolade of honorary
citizen of New York City on architect Niemeyer, a
declared communist.

Best.
R

218. Cantabria, Santander. Palacio de Festivales

Luz,

Aún recuerdo cuando Don Francisco nos dijo que algo
importante en este edificio era penetrar en él ascendiendo
desde la escena como un Epidauro y anclarlo en la bahía
para dejarlo clavado ahí para siempre.

Besos.
R

217. Lahti

Hola Conchi,

Hemos venido a Lathi (a 100 km de Helsinki) a
pasar el ultimo dia del año. Aunque es una ciudad,
muy antigua, fundada en torno a 1445, es bastante
modesta. Hoy iremos a visitar la Iglesia de la Cruz
obra de Alvar Aalto. Ademas de los habituales
celebraciones religiosas, ocasionalmente sirve de sala
de conciertos y centro de conferencias.

Besos desde Finlandia.
R

216. Roma. Stadio Olimpico e Attrezzature Sportive

Querido Paco,

Esta vista del Foro Italico proyectado por Luigi
Moretti, muestra en primer termino la "Casa delle
Armi" con acabado exterior en marmol de Carrara.
El mismo Moretti comparo este edifico con el Partenon
de Atenas por su perfeccion de proporciones (basado en
la seccion aurea o divina proporcion) y en la precision
de su construccion.

Abrazos.
R

215. Ciudad de Mexico. Las Torres Mathias Goeritz

Querida Paula

Viajando hacia Tlalnepantla por la 57
me he encontrando transportado a un
particular San Gimignano de torres de
colores. Luis Barragan me devuelve al
Mediterraneo.

Besos.
R

214. The Kansai International Airport

Dear Koji,

The Kansai International Airport has a single four-story
terminal which is the longest airport terminal in the world
with a total length of 1.7 km from end to end. The
terminal's roof has the shape of a wing as seen in
cross-section to help air circulation through the building.

Best.
R

213. Milano. Corso Sempione, La Casa Novecento

Cherie Catherine,

Leo de la conocida Casa Rustici de Terragni y
Lingeri que el proyecto fue rechazado hasta en nueve
ocasiones por considerarse que las galerias-pasarelas
cerraban el patio.
Luego me viene a la cabeza la cita del pintor
Delacroix: "De la experiencia se aprenden dos cosas:
la primera es que hay que corregir mucho; la segunda
es que no hay que corregir demasiado."

Meilleures salutations.
R

212. Firminy (Loire). La Maison de la Culture

Querido Juan Luis

Esta "Casa" del Corbu podria servir de ilustracion para
la cita de Cesar Vallejo: "Una casa vive unicamente
de hombres, como una tumba".

Una abrazo siempre.
R

211. Otaniemi. Dipoli. Suomi

Querida Rosi,

El Centro Dipoli en Otaniemi (Finlandia) es uno de los
edificios mas sugerentes y poeticos construidos en el
mundo. Puedo decirte que Pietila es su arquitecto y que
no desmerece en absoluto entre todos los fascinantes
"Aaltos" que le rodean.

Un abrazo.
R

210. Le Havre. Eglise St-Joseph, Arch A. Perret

Dear Jim,

Auguste Perret, teacher and mentor of
Le Corbusier built this church in Le
Havre in 1958. It is dedicated to the
local people killed during
the Nazi siege.

Sincerely,
R

209. Kuwait Parliament Building. Kuwait

Dear Ennio,

Jørn Utzon understood the spirit of the place in kuwait
and designed accordingly the new Kuwait Parliament
Building. Because of this, he rejected the idea of create
either a pastiche or a mere copy of western architecture
with some Islamic decoration.
The canvas-like huge structure of the Entrance recalls
nomad camps tents but in an appropriate monumental
scale. Alvaro Siza learned from this building when
designing the Portugal Pavilion for the Expo 1998 of
Lisbon.

Regards.
R

208. Helsinki, Stadion Helsingfors

Dear Rene,

Greetings from Suomi and thank you
very much for what you have done for
me.
Meme si tout s'effondrait, je serais pres
de toi (even if everything was falling apart,
I would be by your side)
(from Les Rita Mitsouko)

Yours very sincere.
R

207. Expo 67 Montreal. Le Pavillon des Etats-Unis

Dear Anna,

The well known Geodesic Dome by architect Buckminster
Fuller is an enclosed structure of steel and acrylic cells, 76
meters in diameter and 62 meters high built as the USA
pavilion for the Expo 67 of Montreal. This humanist and
visionary architect and early environmental activist
hoped for a "omni-successful education and sustenance of
all humanity"

Best.
R

206. Villa Girasole. Marcellise (Verona)

Querido Curro

La Villa Girasole esta situada en las afueras de Verona
y fue construida en 1935 por el ingeniero Invernizzi y
el arquitecto Fagiuoli que consiguieron hacer realidad
la innovadora idea de construir un edificio que fuese
capaz de girar siguiendo el curso del sol. El cuerpo
superior de la edificacion gira 360 grados en torno a un
eje central que alberga a su vez el nucleo de escaleras
y el ascensor. Dos motores diesel empujan la inmensa
mole gracias a un triple carril circular sobre los que se
mueven 15 vagonetas que sustentan la estructura.
La casa se mueve a razon de 4 milimetros por segundo
es decir que le toma casi 9 horas y media para dar una
vuelta completa.
Lo ideal en el futuro seria sustituir el diesel por energia
solar, no te parece?

Un abrazo.
R

205. Klosters, Eisenbahnbrucke

Dear Sean,

Robert Maillart's apparently fragile concrete arches
are sublime landmarks in the Swiss alpine landscape.
In the Landquart rail bridge at Klosters, for instance,
the deck follows a smooth horizontal curve in plan to
facilitate traffic. To achieve this effect the arch is as
wide as the deck at mid-span but much wider at the
abutments. Undoubtedly integration of the supporting
arch, the stiffening wall, and the traffic platform into
one cohesive unit were Maillart's main design principles.

Regards.
R

204. Capri. Villa Malaparte

Querido Juan,

Esta casa, con toda su simplicidad formal es
ademas de una casa, una escalera ascendente
a un rito mediterraneo antiguo,
una casa pompeyana en medio del mar,
un barco latino de vela blanca desplegada,
una antigua ruina expuesta sobre el mar,
una prision-retiro para el espiritu.

Una abrazo y gracias por la postal.
R

203. Pavillon de la Norvege, Bruxelles 1958

Dear Arne,

To me this is one of the buildings that better represents
the principle of "Thought of Construction": The Brussels
exhibition pavilion (1958) by Sverre Fehn.
Concrete walls and lime-tree roof are the main elements
(structural posts are made of Plexiglas to avoid shades)
all worked out in such a way that the light can filter
beautifully into the rooms.

Sincerely
R