Gottfried Semper and the problem of historicism.By Mari Hvattum. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press (known colloquially as CUP) is a publisher given a Royal Charter by Henry VIII in 1534, and one of the two privileged presses (the other being Oxford University Press). . 2004, [pounds sterling]65 The German architect and theorist, Gottfried Semper Gottfried Semper (November 29 1803 - May 15 1879) was a German architect, art critic, and professor of architecture, who designed and built the Semper Oper in Dresden between 1838 and 1841. (1803-79), designed a few buildings, all in a sumptuous Renaissance Revival style, including the Opera House (1871-8) and Gemaldegalerie (1847-54) in Dresden, and, with Karl von Hasenauer (1833-94), the two museums in the Maria-Theresien-Platz (1872-81), the Burgtheater (1872-86), and the Neue Hofburg (1870-94) in Vienna. His writings are notoriously prolix pro·lix adj. 1. Tediously prolonged; wordy: editing a prolix manuscript. 2. Tending to speak or write at excessive length. See Synonyms at wordy. and opaque, so he has been claimed, inter alia [Latin, Among other things.] A phrase used in Pleading to designate that a particular statute set out therein is only a part of the statute that is relevant to the facts of the lawsuit and not the entire statute. , as materialist, functionalist func·tion·al·ism n. 1. The doctrine that the function of an object should determine its design and materials. 2. A doctrine stressing purpose, practicality, and utility. 3. , idealist, stylistic eclectic, Marxist revolutionary, petit bourgeois, proto-modernist, and upholder of historicism his·tor·i·cism n. 1. A theory that events are determined or influenced by conditions and inherent processes beyond the control of humans. 2. A theory that stresses the significant influence of history as a criterion of value. . This might be his fault, but many writings about him have deepened the confusion. Semper reviewed the work of weavers, potters, carpenters, masons, and metalworkers, and decided those craftsmen had created archetypes (with origins in ritual, adornment, and useful objects) long before architecture had developed, but that, when it did, it adopted those archetypes even when transformed into different materials (eg, patterns and ornaments used in producing textiles might reappear on walls constructed of other materials), and he observed that ornament, far from being an afterthought, was far more basic and symbolic than structure. He emphasized the need for historical continuity not only for the health of a society, but because it was essential as a fecund fe·cund adj. Capable of producing offspring; fertile. source for creativity. To him, architects who lost sight of this were irresponsible. Amen to that. Somewhere in this book, these points lurk, but the pretentious writing (eg, 'he replaced the ontological question of the world with an epistemological question of how to investigate it') gets in the way. Semper was a fascinating figure, even a great architect, and deserves to have his ideas explained, clearly and simply, with any illustrations carefully captioned and related to the text: in Hvattum's volume the illustrations appear incidental, so for those seeking to understand Semper it will not be of much help. |
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