277. Maldonado. R.O. del U. Portezuelo. Vista aerea con el Parador Solana del Mar

Querido Ricardo,

Hoy inicio el viaje de retorno sin noticias tuyas. No
obstante, mi estancia en La Solana del Mar de Punta
Ballena, donde las bóvedas a la catalana extienden las
dunas del paisaje, sera inolvidable para mi.

Un abrazo de tu amigo.
R

276. Wolfsburg. Kulturzentrum

Querida Siby,

Nunca te llegue a agradecer suficientemente que me
llevaras a Wolfsburg para que asi pudiera visitar el
Kulturzentrum, las iglesias de Aalto y el Teatro de
Scharoun. Ahora cuando recuerdo aquel maravilloso
viaje pienso tambien en lo que Fernando Zobel, un
artista filipino español, decia sobre el orden: la clave
para encontrar la razon de la belleza.

Con cariño.
R

275. Stockholm. Kungstradgarden med Sverigehuset

Dear Sven,

I could say many beautiful things about your bonito
Sverigehuset, but this young lady seated in front of it,
deserves a little poem.

Orquidea en el Gentio

Bonito el color del pelo de esta señorita, bonito el olor
a abeja de su zumbido, bonita la calle,
bonito los pies de lujo bajo los dos
zapatos aureos, bonito el maquillaje
de las pestañas a las uñas, lo fluvial
de sus arterias esplendidas, bonita la physis
y la metaphysis de la ondulacion, bonito el metro
setenta de la armazon, bonito el pacto
entre huesos y piel, bonito el volumen
de la madre que la urdio flexible y la
durmio esos nueve meses, bonito el ocio
animal que anda en ella

(Gonzalo Rojas)

Sincerely
R

274. Brasil. Museo de Arte Moderna MAM

Dear Oscar,

Reidy was one of the most important architects of
the School of Rio. In 1954 he projected the Museum
of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, an architectural and
structural design full of power and dynamism.

Best regards.
R

273. Sabugal. Portugal

Querida Luz,

En la Agencia bancaria de Sabugal, obra de Carrilho da
Graça aparece una vez mas su pensamiento sobre el
construir: "Cuando se construye se hace una operacion
de fundacion o de creacion de referencias, no solo en el
sentido material y fisico, sino de la misma manera que
cuando se trata de hacer un poema o de colgar una
fotografia"

Besos a todos.
R

272. Stockholms Stads Yrkesskolor

Dear Paul,

Erik's gymnasium is a school at Polhemsgatan in the
district of Kungsholmen in Stockholm. The building
was designed in 1939 by architect Paul Hedqvist and
became a fine example of 1930s functionalist
architecture. The most noticeable element is the brilliant
cylindrical glass staircase.

Sincerely
R

271. Milano Via Filippo Turati

Dear Anna,

To the left the first Montecatini Office Building built in
1938 by Gio Ponti. To the right the second Montecatini
Office Building from 1951, also by Ponti. The concave
shape of the first building counterbalances the convex
layout in the second. Architecture begins and ends,
pure as a crystal...

Best
R

270. Barcelona. La Pedrera, fachada, detalle

Querida Cristina,

Gaudi decia que la Originalidad es volver al origen. En
la casa Mila esa vuelta al origen expresa la sensacion
de lo atavico con el uso sistematico de geometrias que
recuerdan las formas de criptas o cuevas, que a su vez
rememoran la idea atavica de refugio natural.

Mi besos mas.
R

269. CAC-Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH

Dear Jacques,

"It's not a compact building and there is
a degree of transparency on the ground
and above. So it's not only how we use it,
but also how we pass through it. Every
time you confront the space you have a
different experience"
(Zaha Hadid on her new CAC building)

Best
R

268. Hall in Tirol, Tur Hotel Kurmittelhaus

Mi querido Juan Luis,

Es una hermosa noche de verano.
Tienen las altas casas
abiertos los balcones
del viejo pueblo a la anchurosa plaza.
En el amplio rectangulo desierto,
bancos de piedra, evonimos y acacias
simetricos dibujan
sus negras sombras en la arena blanca.
En el cenit, la luna, y en la torre,
la esfera del reloj iluminada.
Yo en este viejo pueblo paseando
solo, como un fantasma

(Noche de verano-Antonio Machado)

Una brazo fuerte.
R

267. Exposition Internationale Paris 1937

Querida Cristina,

Esta postal de la Exposición Internacional de Paris de
1937 enseña en primer término el insolente y gigantesco
pabellon nazi del famoso arquitecto del regimen Albert
Speer. A su lado izquierdo según se ve la imagen el en
comparación diminuto Pabellón de la Segunda República
Española, diseñado por Sert y que albergó El Guernica
de Picasso pintado para la ocasión. Miró, Julio González
o Calder fueron otros grandes artistas que colaboraron
con obras para este pabellón, que aunque modesto fue
junto al finlandés diseñado por Aalto uno de los mejores
edificios construidos para tal evento.

Besos.
R

266. Kunsthal. Rotterdam, Netherlands

Dear Peter,

"We would keep the same square as a general
envelope. The square would be crossed by two routes:
one the existing road running east-west; the other, a
public ramp running north-south, the entrance to both
the park and the Kunsthal.
These crossing would divide the square into four parts.
The question then became:
How to imagine a spiral in four separate squares?"
(From S,M,L,XL by Rem Koolhaas)

Regards.
R

265. Stockholmutstallningen 1930

Querida Cristi,

Me asombraron estos colores tan vivos en esta postal
de la Exposición de Estocolmo de 1930, diseñada
principalmente por Asplund. Siempre lo imaginé todo
blanco, quizá engañado por las fotos en blanco y negro
y por la idea de un funcionalismo sueco pero puro. Al
descubrir este efecto me han venido a la mente los frisos
de los templos griegos, que durante siglos se creyeron sin
pintar cuando en realidad lo estuvieron en colores
chillones.

Mil Besos.
R

264. Den Haag-Groote Markt

Dear Dudley,

This building was raised in the Hague in 1928. The
facades consist almost entirely of glass. The parapets
between the horizontal frame line are made out of a
luminous material in which advertisements can be
displayed. The staircase on the corner has walls made
of glass blocks. The building possess a sculptural
composition reminiscent of the Dutch artistic movement
known as De Stijl or neoplasticism.

Sincerely.
R

263. Aero-gare de Saint Exupery

Dear Corey,

When designing his buildings Santiago Calatrava combines
light, air and structural elegance with strength, and each one
in the perfect dose.

Hope you all are doing well.
R

262. University of East Anglia

Dear Peter

Denys Lasdun's fascination with geology, with
the "lie of the land" (which he himself maintained
learnt from Frank Lloyd Wright), becomes
somehow overwelming in the glazed residential
quarters shaped like ziggurats at the University of
East Anglia. In any rate they stand as a fascinating
counterpoint of the High-Tech Sainsbury Centre for
Visual Arts by Norman Foster located also on this
campus.

Sincerely.
R

261. Museo Nacional de Arte Romano, Merida, España

Querida Patricia,

El Museo Nacional de Arte Romano
de Merida, obra de Rafael Moneo esta
organizado en su cuerpo principal a
traves de una serie de muros de fabrica
de ladrillo paralelos entre si. La apertura
de grandes arcos contiguos iguales en estos
muros ademas de conformar el espacio de la
nave principal, sugieren las dimensiones que
en su dia tuviera la Merida romana al estar
dimensionados en base a las proporciones del
Arco de Trajano. El sistema de muros paralelos
se manifiesta en la fachada sur como un sistema
de contrafuertes que hacen referencia formal al
Acueducto de los Milagros.

Besos.
R

260. Vyborg. The Central Library building 1927-35

Dear Mark

"When I designed the Viipuri City Library (and
I had plenty of time, a whole five years), I spent
long periods getting my range, as it were, with naive
drawings. I drew all kinds of fantastic mountain
landscapes, with slopes lit by many suns in different
positions, which gradually gave rise to the main idea
of the building. The architectural framework of the
library comprises several reading and lending areas
stepped at different levels, with the administrative
and supervisory centre at the peak. My childlike
drawings were only indirectly linked with architectural
thinking, but they eventually led to an interweaving of
the section and ground plan, and to a kind of unity of
horizontal and vertical construction."
(Alvar Aalto, "The Trout and the Stream", 1947)

Regards
R

259. Enskede Parti av Skogskyrkogarden

Dear Graziella,

This Stockholm cemetery was created between 1917
and 1920 by architects Asplund and Lewerentz. The
design blends vegetation and architectural elements
creating a landscape that is finely adapted to its function.
Greta Garbo and Gunnar Asplund are two among many
notable people buried here.

Cordially
R

258. San Francisco Store designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for V.C. Morris

Cristina,

¿Has conseguido comprar por fin el pasaje del que me
hablaste? Este es una de los sitios a los que he pensado
llevarte. Se que te gustará.

Mil besos.
R

257. Avenida Paulista. Sao Paulo, Brazil

Dear Auntie Dorothy

In Sao Paulo I stayed in a beautiful hotel located
at the famous Avenida Paulista. Very close to it
the fantastic Sao Paulo Museum of Art was built
in 1968. Half underground and half suspended
from a structure, the visible building stand 25 feet
above the floor by means of four pillars connected
by two huge concrete beams. This way the original
and historic plot, the Belvedere Trianon, remains
open to the city keeping at the same time the
magnificent view of the Serra da Cantareira, the
largest native urban forest in the world.

Love.
R

256. Kouvola, Suomi, Finland. The Town Hall

Querida Cristina,

En Finlandia visito este ayuntamiento obra de Leiviska.
Disfrutandolo he recordado la reflexion de Reima Pietila
sobre la magnifica calidad de la arquitectura finlandesa.
Pietila decia que esa calidad respondia al efecto de la tipica
tarjeta navideña: un metro de nieve en el suelo, un metro
de nieve en la cubierta, y en la estrecha banda intermedia
las ventanas como unica referencia de la presencia de un
edificio. Por esa razon esas ventanas tienen que estar tan
bien diseñadas.

Mil besos como siempre.
R

255. Amsterdam De Beurs

Querido Manolo,

Hoy, por fin he estado en el edificio de la Bolsa. Por
supuesto me he acordado de tu consejo y he recorrido
la galeria alta que atraviesa las grandes salas. Gracias
una vez mas por todo.

Un abrazo.
R

254. Suomi. Finlandia talon konserttisali

Querida Sybille,

Hoy he podido revivir el dia que nos llevastes a la
Opera de Essen y nos quedamos apabullados ante
tanta arquitectura sublime. La Sala de conciertos del
complejo Finlandia en Helsinki es tan elocuente como
Essen. Tanto aun que aprender...!

Besos
R

253. Netherlands Dance Theatre. The Hague

Dear Zoe,

In my opinion Madelon should have worked in this
space to add more of her "circular thinking". I know
her largest painting is on the stage tower, but that is
outside. When I was in there last night and saw the
wonderful dancers performing I couldn't stop myself
imagining the scene of the "Flagrant Delit". Then the
famous buildings were also dancing in the walls...

Regards.
R

252. Caracas. Aula Magna de la Universidad Central

Dear Alvar,

I enjoyed very much Ciudad Universitaria with its
ingenious interpretation of concepts and spaces of
colonial traditions, its splendid modern architecture
and its memorable open and ventilated solutions so
appropriate for the tropical environment. After seen
the real clouds walking through the covered plaza I
went in the Aula Magna and found the other "Clouds"
of Alexander Calder. An overall magical experience!

Sincerely
R

251. Brasil Turístico. Aspecto interno da Catedral

Mary Kate,

En Brasilia he entrado en la Catedral Metropolitana
Nossa Senhora Aparecida, famosa obra de Niemeyer.
Los angeles de Bruno Giorgi que parecen sobrevolar
el espacio son una forma de subrayar el concepto de
cielo tan hermosamente representado en los colores
y el diseño de los inmensos vitrales.
Todo parece indicar aqui un movimiento vertical
ascendente que se contrapone brutalmente con la
horizontalidad imperante en esta increible ciudad.

Tuyo siempre.
R

250. South Bank Exhibition

Manolo,

Otro bicho gigante! un Skylon posado en Londres!
Este desgraciadamente lo mato ya hace mucho, y
de un fuerte manotazo Sir Winston (Churchill, of
course) ...por feo y comunista.

Abrazos.
R

249. Barcelona. Torre de Collcerola

Querido Manolo,

De esta estructura podriamos hablar
de la sinergia entre tension y
compresion de sus partes
(tu me dirias eso es tensegridad,
tu sabes no?). Sin embargo a mi me
apetece mas dejarme llevar por la
fantasia de pensar esto como un
gigantesco mosquito. Sus finisimas
patas son los 9 cables de acero que
la anclan a la montaña y su aguijon,
ya clavado en la tierra, el mastil
central; su diminuto cuerpo las
plantas colgadas a la mitad que van
hinchandose lentamente de la
sangre robada.

Un abrazo.
R

248. The Casino Pleasure Beach. Blackpool

Dear Sarah,

Joseph Emberton designed this building in 1937 that
was opened in May 1939. Although a very different
building, the Casino inevitably draws comparison with
the De la Warr Pavilion designed by Erich Mendelsohn.
Its main staircase, however, owes something to
Gropius’s model factory for the 1914 Werkbund
Exhibition at Cologne.

Best regards.
R

247. Nexus Housing, Kashi District, Fukuoka, Japan

Dear Sven,

"In each house we tried to offer a rich
variety of spacial conditions and tectonic
contrasts: enclosed vs. exploding, intimate
vs. open, public vs. private, high vs. low,
rough vs. refined, dark vs. light, concrete
vs. abstract." (R. Koolhaas talking about
his Nexus housing project in Japan)

Regards.
R

246. Rijksmuseum Vincent van Gogh, Amsterdam

Dear Mary,

Gerrit Rietveld's last commission was the design
for the Rijksmuseum Vincent van Gogh (1963–73)
in Amsterdam. Regrettably he couldn't see it finished
because he died in 1964 so the building had to be
completed by his associates.

Regards.
R

245. Berlin Gross-Siedlung Britz

Dear Robert,

The "horseshoe" community, so named from the
horseshoe shape of the inner group of apartments
which are built around a natural pond, was one first
siedlung communities to be built in Berlin between
1925 and 1931. It is one of the best examples of
application the ideas of the Garden City Movement
by a functionalist architect.

Best regards.
R

244. Halsingborg. Konserthuset

Dear Louis,

The Halsingborg Concert Hall was built in 1932 and
was the first relevant proposition of the modern style
in Sweden. The architect, Sven Markelius, was sued
after the building was completed but won in court
because he complied with all legal stipulations and
security and hygienic requirements.

Best.
R

243. Longarone (BL) La nuova Chiesa

Dear Tanu,

I enjoyed very much the other day projects review
session. It was really refreshing for me to see so
many great and enthusiastic ideas. Thanks a lot
for letting me to be part of it.
When discussing Thomas' project you mentioned
Giovanni Michelucci's San Giovanni Battista
church on the Autoestrada del Sole. This is, by
the way, one of my favourite buildings, particularly
because of its intriguing and amazing interior space.

Though this church is one of Michelucci's best known
works, he built several buildings as well. Another
church he did in Longarone (Italy) replaced the old
church that was destroyed along the whole town
in the 60s. A landslide forced millions of gallons of
water over the top of the nearby Dam, killing
almost 2000 people. Longarone was hopefully
rebuilt following the tragedy.

Here I am sending you a couple of postcards of this
church that to me resembles somehow to a dam
(maybe because of the all concrete finish). I like to
think that the ultimate reason for the extensive use
of this material was that Michelucci wanted to
change (metaphorically) the structure that brought in
destruction to the locals into a new structure built to
spread out hope and confidence.

Anyway, thanks a lot again for your invitation. Please
call me back any time you might need some extra
help.

Take care.
R

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