EASA Ireland 2008_Final Report
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description
Volume 2/3_Final Report of The European Architecture Students Assembly 2008 in Ireland.
Transcript of EASA Ireland 2008_Final Report
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Contents volume 1
1.1 What is EASA? 006 1.2 Previous Summer Assemblies 0071.3 Hosting EASA in Ireland 0081.4 Initial Ideas 0091.5 Proposal to Connemara West 010 1.6 INCM 006 Moscow 012 1.6.1 Discussions 012 1.6.2 Lectures 012 1.6.3 Accommodation 013 1.6.4 Exhibition 013 1.6.5 Presentation 014
1.7 Company Set-up 015
2.1 Dublin 019 2.1.2 UCD 022 2.2.2 Coláiste Eoin 025
2.2 Letterfrack 028 2.2.1 Letterfrack History 028 2.2.2 The Furniture College 031 2.2.3 Campus Facilities 034
3.1 Adaptation 036
4.1 Lecture Marathon versus Nightly Lectures 0404.2 Dublin and Letterfrack 040 4.3 Venues 0414.4 Lecture Structures 0424.5 The Dublin Lecture Series 4.5.1 Dublin’s Metamorphosis 044 4.5.2 Walking Tours 051 4.5.3 Official Opening 052 4.5.4 Contemporary Ireland- Contemporary Architecture 056 4.5.4 The Showcase Lecture - Architecture53Seven 058 4.5.5 The Marquee Lecture - Grafton Architects 059
1.0 EASA Background
2.0 Locations
3.0 Theme
4.0 Lectures & Events
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*EASA008 Overviewvolume 1
4.6 A Section Through Ireland 062 4.6.1 The Idea 4.6.2 Structure/Schedule/Timetable
4.7 The Letterfrack Lectures 065 4.7.1 O’Donnell + Tuomey Architects 066 4.7.2 Andrew Grffin/JDS Architects 068 4.7.3Dominic Stevens Architects 069 4.7.4 Brian Anson 070 4.7.5 Richard Murphy Architects 073 4.7.6 Dorothy Cross 074 4.7.7 Michael Gibbons 075 4.7.8 Professor Maria Pinto-Coelho 075 4.7.9 Laura Mays 076 4.7.10 Rosaleen Coneys 076 4.7.11 Architects Sans Frontiéres 076
5.1 Workshops Application and Selection 077
5.2 Tutor Correspondence 077
5.3 Workshop management Before and After the Assembly 078
5.4 Key Workshop Dates 078
5.5 Workshops 5.5.1 Adapt-a-bale 080 5.5.2 Adapt A Lab 081 5.5.3 Designing The Inevitable 082 5.5.4 Lightscapes 084 5.5.5 Too Cool For Stool 086 5.5.6 Adopt The Green 087 5.5.7 Light & Space 088 5.5.8 Small Interventions 090 5.5.9 Material Adaptable Jouer 092 5.5.10 Make Your Adaptor 093 5.5.11 Repp 094 5.5.12 Nomadic Instamatic 096 5.5.13 Lunchbox 098 5.5.14 Kraftka 104 5.5.15 Zauna 107 5.5.16 Flux Culture 108 5.5.17 Extended Me 110 5.5.18 TELEology 112 5.5.19 HUM:ARC 114 5.5.20 Umbrella 116 5.5.21 Architectural Answers to the Digital Revolution 117 5.5.22 The Green Room 119
5.0 Workshops
What’s the story withEASA?
EASAThe EASA003 campsite at Friland, Denmark
Text: Hugo Lamont
EASA isapracticalnetwork forcommunication,meetingandexchange;architecturestudentscandiscusstheirideas,worktogetherandexchangetheirex-periences concerning architecture, education or life in general. The official language oftheassemblyisEnglish,andmembersliveandworkon-sitefortwoweeks.
TheSummerAssemblyaimstoachieveabalancebetweentheacademic,practical,culturalandsocialspheresofarchitecture.Lecturesfromestablishedandemergingarchitects,aswellasartists,academicsandpoliticiansplayanimportantrole,buttheworkshopsrelyfarmoreonasharedlearningexperience,withpartici-pantslearningskillsandapproachesfromeachother.Oneofthemainattractionsoftheassemblyisthelicencetoexperiment:workshopsareproposedbyparticipantsthroughtheyear,andoncechosenbytheorganisersareopentoallwhowishtoworkandlearn.
Inbringingtogethersomeofthemostindependent,highlyskilled,adven-turousand thought-provokingyoungarchitects inEurope,EASA isa trulyone-offevent in whichever country hosts it; in 2008, the Assembly came – for the first time in itstwenty-eightyearhistory–toIreland.
EASA(EuropeanArchitectureStudentsAssembly)isanannualassemblyof400youngarchitectswhichtakesplaceoveratwoweekperiodeveryAugust.TheaimoftheeventistoencouragecooperationbetweenstudentsandyoungprofessionalsfromoverfortyEuropeancountriesthroughthemediaofarchitecturalworkshops,lectures,conferences,debatesandexhibitions.
Previous Summer Assemblies
The Summer Assembly is the annual focus of EASA; other events like the INCM [Inter-mediate National Contacts Meetings] and SESAMs [Small European Student Architect Meetings] act as supplementary events during the year on a smaller scale.
1981 LIVERPOOL,England Starting up the EASA Experience1982 DELFT,Netherlands Architecture of an Uncertain Future1983 LISBOA,Portugal Social Spaces1984 AARHUS,Denmark Turning Point in Architecture1985 ATHENS,Greece Interpretation and Action in the City1986 TORINO, Italy Architecturi Latenti1987 HELSINKI,Finland Architecture and Nature1988 BERLIN,Germany The Dimension Between1989 MARSEILLE,France Heritage et Creativé1990 KARLSKRONA,Sweden Exploration 1991 KOLOMNA,USSR Regeneration1992 ÜRGÜP,Turkiye Vision 2000 Environment1993 SANDWICK,Scotland The Isle1994 LIÈGE,Belgium Consommer l’Inconsumable1995 ZAMOSC,Poland Beyond the Borders1996 CLERMONTL’HERAULT, Dream Builders! France1997 THETRAIN,Scandinavia Advancing Architecture http://freigeist.info/easa_1997
1998 VALETTA,Malta Living on the Edge1999 KAVALA,Greece Osmosis http://www.ntua.gr/easagr/kavala.html
2000 ANTWERP/ROTTERDAM, Dis-Similarities http://members.lycos.nl/easa/
Belgium/Netherlands2001 GÖKÇEADA,Turkiye No Theme http://go.to/easa2001
2002 VIS,Croatia Senses2003 FRILAND,Denmark Sustainable Living http://www.easa003.tk/
2004 LILLE,France Metropolitain-Micropolitain2005 BERGUEN,Switzerland Tran, Trans, Transit http://www.easa005.ch/
2006 BUDAPEST,Hungary CommonPlace http://www.easa006.hu/
2007 ELEFSINA,Greece City Index http://www.easa007.gr
2008 DUBLIN-LETTERFRACK, Adaptation http://www.easa008.ie Ireland
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Hosting EASA in IrelandWhy we wanted to bring EASA to Ireland and what turned the corner from talk amongst ourselves to a convicted decision.
Text: Hugo Lamont
Discussion about hosting EASA in Ireland in 2008 beganin earnest towards the end of EASA006 in Budapest,August2006onboardthegoodshipKassaontheDanube.Threemem-bersoftheteam-SeanFeeney,ConorO’BrienandRonanMc-Cann-wereattendingtheir thirdSummerAssembly,NealPat-tersonhissecondandmyself,EmmetandFranciswerecomingto the end of the our first EASA.
Beyond anything else, there was an obvious blend:someofthosemostexperiencedinEASAtermsweretheyoung-est;therewasagoodmixofDITandUCDstudents;andtherewasessentially agroup that got on verywellwitheachother,quicklybecameclosefriendsandwereabsolutelyenthralledbytheideathatwecouldbringthese400peoplewithwhomwehadbeenliving[onaboat]toIreland.
Wefeltthatwehadagoodteam,ateamlargeenoughandwithenoughtimeanddedicationtoorganisetheevent;wefeltthattheeconomicclimateofthetime,atthepeakofthecon-structionboom–whichwehadlittlereasonatthetimetothinkwasaprecarioussituation–madeIrelandanideallocationatanopportunetimeandwefeltthatweowedsomethingtoEASA.
We had had an eye-opening experience in terms ofmeetingpeoplefromsuchvariedbackgrounds,andwefeltthatwe had a once-off opportunity – through the personalities as-sembled,theamountofbuildinggoingoninthecountryandtheamountofmoneyswillingaroundtheconstructionindustrywhichwefeltwecouldtapinto–toshowIrelandtothem.
Shown above is a nightime view of the Kassa, the former WWII cargo ship on which we lived and worked for two weeks on the Danube in the centre of Budapest during August 2006.
Initial Ideas One of the most encouraging aspects of our initial discussions in Buda-pest was that we shared a lot of opinions regarding not only issues relevant to hosting the Summer Assembly, but also about the relevance of architecture to Irish society. There were a lot of things that we felt were important to be looked at, analysed and responded to and – perhaps surprisingly – we agreed on the majority of them.
Goals, Aspirations and Ideals
If you can’t be idealistic regarding an event like EASA, you’re pretty much dead inside. Having said that, however optimistic we were about the prospects of fund-raising, we rarely ventured into the realm of fantasy. Our goals were always achievable ones – most of the things we talked about in these early meetings came to fruition during the event.
Text: Hugo Lamont
Looking at the minutes, our first meeting of what would go ontobeEASAIrelandhasheldon20thAugust2006inJackNe-alon’sonCapelStreet.Appropriately,theattendeeswerethosewhowouldgoontobecomedirectorsofEASAIrelandLtd. Aspreviouslymentioned,wehadspentsometimeinBudapestdiscussingtheideaofhostingtheSummerAssemblyinIreland:obviously,themajorquestionsrevolvedaroundpoten-tial locations.ItmayseemacuriouslyStalin-esquerewritingofhistory, but Letterfrack was always our first option. Wewantedtheassemblytotaketheparticipantsoutoftheircomfortzone,muchasthestayontheKassahaddone.Peoplewouldbeforcedoutoftheirurbanhideyholestotherimofthe Atlantic Ocean, a shanghai-ing we felt would be beneficial for theparticipantsandanexperiencethatonlyIrelandcouldoffer.WebelieveditwouldgiveaheightenedappreciationofIreland’splaceontheveryedgeofEurope,itsislandcultureandthena-tureofsomanyelementsofIrishlifethatcanattimesseemalittleoutlandishtocontinentalEuropeans. Lastly,butimportantlytous,wewereveryfamiliarwithLetterfrackasaproject:wehadseentheexhibitions,thedraw-ings,booksandmodels.Athought-provokingprojectinitsjuxta-positionofextremesensitivityforbuiltandnaturalcontextwithabravura structural approach, it is one of the defining projects of thelastquartercenturyofIrisharchitecture.Giventhatithousesacollegededicatedtowoodcraftandisequippedwithawealthoftools, machinery and suitable spaces, it seemed a perfect fit for EASA.
It’s difficult to recall when exactly Neal Patterson’s familyassociationwithLetterfrackcameupindiscussion:itwasearlyinthetimelineofourinitialbrainstorming,butafterLetter-frackhadbeenmentionedasadesiredlocation.Wheneveritoc-cured, it was one of the most significant elements of not only the successoftheinitialpresentationtoConnemaraWest,butalsotheeventualsuccessoftheEASA008SummerAssembly.Aswillbementionedtimeandtimeagain,thereisthetendencytoforgetaboutordownplaytheimportofsomeeventsearlyintheorgani-sation’sexistence:itwouldbewhollyinaccuratetodownplaytheadvantagethattheseexistingrelationshipsgaveusingettingafairhearingfromConnemaraWestandtherestoftheLetterfrack‘establishment’.
Havingestablishedahighlydesirable–butstillunapproached,let alone unconfirmed – location to host EASA008, our next ob-jective[primarilyinordertoconvinceourputativehosts,thentheINCM]wastoputtogetheraserious,wellthought-outproposalthatwoulddetailourintentionsfortheassembly.
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Connemara West Connemara West Plc is a community owned and managed rural Development Company in North West Connemara. It was established in 1971 and has over 500 shareholders from the local com-munities as well as shareholding from Galway County Council and the Western Regional Tourism Organi-sation. It is managed by an elected, voluntary Board of Directors and employs 14 full time and 16 part-time staff. It has offices in Tullycross and in the Connemara West Centre, Letterfrack.
Text: Hugo LamontPhoto:Sean Feeney [IRL]
Proposal to Connemara West Immediately apparent to us was the fact that the presentations to Connemara West and to the INCM would, despite their con-cerning the same event, have to have different priorities and be structured to persuade the respective audiences.
Looking over the minutes of our early meetings is instructive inrecallinghowwestructuredourapproachtoConnemaraWest.Wedecidedonadoptinga system thatwouldoutline theben-efits of hosting the assembly under three headings: i] money;ii]awarenessandiii]architecture.Moneya)rentingtheLetterfrackfacilitywillbringmoneytoConnemaraWestatatimewhentheplace isotherwisesittingthereemptyduetoacademicholidays;b)despitethefactthatbedandboardwillbegenerallycateredforwithintheEASAcomplex,studentswilldoubtlessspendmoneylocally,namelypints,cigarettes,snacks,mealsetc.c)manyoftheparticipantsareprofessionalsalready;thosethataren’t will be in the near future. Professionals generally havemoney,arewell-behavedandmayreturnprivately
Awareness a)spreadnationalandinternationalawarenessofLetterfrack,thefurniturecollege,ConnemaraWestandNationalParksb)attractmediacoveragefromRTE(inDublin)andTG4(Con-nemara),aswellasprintandinternetmediathroughoutEuropeviaarchitectureAssociationsandwebsites
Architecturea)AreastudyofLetterfrackproposingsolutionstoproblemsitsinhabitantshave,problemsthatarchitectscanseeinit,andprob-lems thatmightoccur in the futurewithexpansion.EssentiallymakingLetterfrackall it canbe,amodelofamodernwesternvillageb)Masterplanningadevelopmentplanforthenestquartercen-turyforLetterfrackc)bringingnewideastothefurniturecollegethroughworkshopsandtemporarybuiltprojectsd) holding an international student competition to design andbuildapermanentpavilion
Obviously there was a huge overlap in the material that we were presenting to the two bodies; how-ever, Connemara West would be less interested in the theme of the assembly than what we actually planned to do and how it would benefit Letterfrack and, conversely, the INCM would be far more interested in how our proposals for running EASA008 would match up to previous Summer Assem-blies, how coherent our theme and location were and how we proposed to leave our own particular mark on what is, after all, an annual event.
Proposed ThemesInviting everyone to submit a short outline of their brief – limited to two A4 pages – meant that people who were interested could shape the theme. It was
important that the presentations were broad, quick to grasp and succinct if they were to be successful as the theme of an Assembly that brings together
diverse cultures and levels of language.
A New Ruralism“ ... the notion that architecture and urbanism form a closed circuit. Where does that leave architecture
in a rural context? Rural communities are often perceived to be more resistant to change than their
urban counterparts ... they provide a more rigourous testing ground.”
Out with the New, In with the Old“ craft that is both ecologically sound and very much
a part of locals’ day-to-day life ... In learning from these craftsman, we not only preserve something
of a dying heritage, but we can also see how the most basic of elements are put to use for human ends
with the minimum of waste and the maximum of ef-ficiency through thoughtfulness and restraint – in
short, design.”
Migrations“ Ireland is a culture of migrants: it is intertwined
with our culture, identity and personality ... EASA is a migratory culture by nature. We converge ... and
soak up the culture we have descended upon.”
Acclimation“Taking the village of Letterfrack as our organism,
we will study how it has acclimated to the economic, social and cultural chages that have swept from the
eastern urban centres to western edges over the last fifteen years ...”
It’s difficult to express our gratitude to Connemara West for the confidence they showed in us, the advice they gave to us, the understanding they allowed us and the help they provided to us at every avenue.
We worked quickly on putting together both a slideshow anddocument thatoutlinedour intentions tohostEASA008 inLet-terfrack, giving informationabout thehistoryofEASA,what isentailedinasummerassembly,thenumberanddiversityofpar-ticipants,theimportanceoftheworkshopelementoftheevent,howwesawitcontributingtoLetterfrackandhowwehopedCon-nemaraWestcouldassistus.
The first meeting with representatives of Connemara West took placeonSaturday23September2006withJanetO’TooleandPeterVeldon,andwewereblownawaybytheirenthusiasmfortheproject.Wehadexpectedthattherewouldbealargedegreeofscepticismabouttheeventitself,andalsoourabilitytopullitoffsuccessfully,butwewerevery,veryhappilysurprisedbytheireasyacceptanceofwhatweproposedtodointheirvillage,theirimaginative ideasofhowitcouldbe improved,howtheycouldgetinvolvedandhowrealisticseveralelementsofourpresenta-tionwere.
Thismeetingwasprobablythemostimportantmeetingoverthetwenty-twomonthsofplanningthatwentintohostingEASA008;itwaswithoutdoubtoneofthemostpleasant,oneofthemostsurprisingandoneofthemostproductive.Withoutthebacking,supportandgoodwillofConnemaraWest,andespeciallyJanetO’TooleandPeterVeldon, it’sdoubtfulwhetherwecouldhavehostedthesummerassemblyinIrelandatall.
Putting together an appropriate theme and brief is thevitalactionofasuccessfulEASAbid.Asmentionedpreviously,weallsharedsimilarideasabouttheissuesthethemewouldconcernitselfwith:thehugechangethatIrelandhadgonethroughinthelastdecade, rapidsuburbanisationandcitysprawl, ruralarchi-tectureandtheimportanceofcraftinbuilding.
The meeting with Connemara West had clarified a number of ourplans.Probablythemostimportantofthesewasthattheas-semblyshouldstartinDublin.Forparticipants,gettingtoLetter-frack would be difficult, due to its remote situation and extremely limitedpublictransportlinks.Fororganisers,havingparticipantsarrive piecemeal would be hugely inefficient and negatively im-pact theassembly. Itwasall toobelievable that peoplewouldbe showing up over the first three or four days in their national groups,draggingregistrationoutfordays,missingtheworkshopfair,missingtheorientationofthesite–essentiallythenightmarescenariothatwouldhaveusplayingcatch-upforthewholeas-sembly.
Withthisimportantdecisionmade,theideasofwhatourthemecould be became a little broader. We realised that somethingthat was inclusive of all the concerns listed above was a defi-nitepossibility.Invitinganopensubmissionofthemedocumentswas a democratic and efficient way to air our views and prepare a final theme document for the INCM that was relevant, open to interpretation and understandable by participants whose first languagewasn’tEnglish.
Someofthesubmittedproposalsarelistedtotheleft;eventuallyweagreedonthethemeofAdaptation.Wefeltthatthiscoveredalotofgroundandwasrelevanttothenowbi-locationalassem-bly.Withour themeand location lockeddown,we travelled totheMoscowINCMinNovember2006topresentourbidtohostEASA008.
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Moscow INCM006
EASA Ireland Representatives
M O S C O W , 3 - 1 2 N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 6
Hugo LamontSean Feeney
Neal Patterson Conor O’Brien
Text: Hugo LamontPhoto: Sean Feeney [IRL]
The method of establishing where the assembly is to be held is by proposal, presentation, debate and consensus at an annual meeting of experienced EASA members, the INCM (Intermediate National Contacts Meeting). Essentially the INCM is comprised of core, long term members of EASA from each participating country - known as National Contacts, or NCs - who undertake to organise their country’s members, publicise the organisation within their country and contribute meaning-fully to the growth, intellectually and physically, of EASA.
In November 2006, delegates from EASAIrelandtravelledtotheEASAINCMinMos-cowtopresentabidtohostEASAinIrelandfor the first time in its history.
Discussions The INCM isprimarilycomposedofdiscussiongroups; thereasoningbehindthemeeting is toaddress issues thatariseduringtheassembliesandtomakesurethattheorganisationisbothrespectingitsprima-ryguidelines[aslaidoutintheEASAGuide]and making definite progress in its goals. As the network is constantly in a state of flux regardingparticipants,thereistheveryrealdanger thatpeoplewillkeeponmakinghesamemistakes,havingthesameargumentsandgenerallyrepeatingthemselves.
ApartfromtheopenNCmeetings,it is also vital for past and future organis-ers todiscuss issuesregardingthehostingof the SummerAssembly, from fundraisingmonthsinadvancetoon-the-groundissuesduringtheeventitself.Whileelectroniccom-municationisavitaltool,face-to-facemeet-ingscandealwithafarwiderrangeoftopicsinlesstime,avoidthechancesofmisunder-standing and can problem-solve in a morespontaneousmanner.
Lectures LecturesplayavitalpartintheEASAexperience,nolessduringtheINCM.Eventhebest-readarchitectwillbelackinginlocalknowledge,andeventhentherearemanyexcellentbuildingswhichnevermakeit intointernationalpublications.Furthermore,localarchitectscanbetterexplaincertainapproaches,beitthroughhistoricalexample,culturalmindsetorclimate-relatedexpedience.it should be added that the architects who give lectures are not merely glorified tour guides: lectures oftentakeananalyticalortheoreticalapproach,anditisgenerallythoselectureswhichwillpromptgreaterinteractionbetweenlecturerandaudience.
Two of the best lectures of the INCM typified these aforementioned approaches. The first concentrated on the buildings and influences of the Constructivists, and was followed by a walking tourthroughcentralMoscow.Whileessentiallyanhistoricalratherthantheoreticallecture,seeingthebuildings–manyofthemnowheavilyaltered–sosoonafterbeingreintroducedtotheirmorefamiliardrawingsprovokedmuchdiscussion.
ThesecondoftheselecturesfocusedoncurrentRussianarchitecture,andthedichotomyin which it finds itself. The Russian architecture scene is driven by Moscow, and in the post-Soviet era – now almost two decades old – the city has no idea how to define itself: Soviet City, Metropolis, Eu-ropeanCapitalorProvince?Thelectureeffectivelydealtwiththistheoreticalmalaisesimultaneouslythrough discussion and a fiercely critical examination of the glut of buildings under construction.
Accommodation ProvidingaccommodationforparticipantsinMoscow–andingeneralforINCMs–wasn’tquitethetaskthatitgener-allyisforSummerAssemblies,ifonlybecausethenumbersareroughly a fifth of what they would be for the latter. nevertheless, thereareotherissueswhichcomplicatedmatters,nottheleastofwhichwassecuringvisas.
We were accommodated on the fourth floor of a partially used paper factory, Proekt Fabrika.The building alsohoused the exhibition hall on the ground floor, an experimental theatre/venue,abarandseveralstudios.Theatmospherewasrefreshinglylaissez-faire,andparticipantswerefreetocomeandgo as they pleased. While discussion groups by necessity re-quire fewer facilities thanworkshops, therewere issueswithalackofinternetaccessibiltiy.Despitethis,documentationofthevariousmeeting,discussionsandlectureswasnotaproblem.
Thesleepingarrangementsofapproximately90par-ticipantswerecateredforinwhathasbecomethestandard
EASAmanner,namelyplatformsthreestoristallconstructedofreadilyavailablescaffoldingandboarding.Giventhesebasics,participantsareexpectedtoprovidetheirowngroundmats,air-beds, sleeping bags and blankets. Surprisingly, there was noproblemwiththecoldtemperatures,eventhoughitwaswellbe-lowzerooutside.For thiswecan thankapairofex-industrialheaters:onceyougotusedtothejetengine-esqueracket,itbe-came difficult to sleep without them.
Exhibition While the exhibition held at the end of the SummerAssembly shows the result of the workshops and is thusly amulti-mediaaffair,theexhibitionheldattheMoscowINCMwasintended to provide a centrepiece of the sponsors’ benefit. The emphasiswasthereforeonshowcasingtherangeofnationalitiesthrough a graphic presentation for each participant on his/heruniversity.
Giventhattherewereonlyaround90participants,therangeofover60architectureschoolgivessomeideaofthe
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Culture Shock
One of the most interesting things about EASA is the chance to go to
some strange places and experi-ence them as something other
than a total tourist. Hosts have a big role to play in how people see
their country.
Photo: Axel Frej [SWE]
foremostinourminds.
Wewereaware thatSloveniaandArme-niawerepreparingbids,andwhilethelattersome-whatpeteredout, theformerwasanextremelyac-complished effort. Presentations are given throughslideshows, videos, written documents and verbalpresentations in the first session; then the present-ingpartiesaresequesteredtoallowfrankdiscussionbetweentheremainingNCs.
EASAworksthroughdebateandconsen-sus,andinthiscase,eachparticipantwasobligedtogivehis/herpreferenceandtheirreasoning.Whennoconsensuswasreached,thetwopresentingpartieswere invited back to take questions, some gearedtowardsaparticularcountry’sbid,othersmoregen-eral.Afterthissecondsession,thetwopartieswereagainsequestered,and,afteranotherroundofdis-cussion and debate, were invited in to receive theverdict.
Wewereluckyenoughtowinthedecision:ourselvesandSloveniahadsimilarthemesinmind,and there was very little between the two presen-tations.Bothbidshadrurallocationsastheirbase,andstressedtheuniveralimportanceofretainingel-ementsof traditionalcraftsmanshipwhile takingonboard modern methods and ideas of sustainabilityandurbanism. Weperhapshad twooutstanding factorsinourfavour–thefacilitiesavailableatLetterfrack
diversity EASA encompasses. Architecture is aprofession that knows few boundaries, and manyarchitects have an inherent willingness to exploreandworkinforeigncountries.addedtothisisahighdegree of technical savvy which ensures that newadvanceintechnologyarequicklyexploited.Finally,architectsareacommunalgroupandwilloftenpassonideasregardingtechniques,programsandequip-ment.
Companiesarequicktograspthatgivingapresentation toaround100architects inasinglelocationmakesmoresensethanadvertisingintheir30-40 odd countries, and is economically more effi-cientthantakingoutanadvertisementinaninterna-tionalquarterly.Theexhibitionwasalsocoveredbybothprintmediaandthetelevisionnews,thusguar-anteeing sponsors not only international exposurebutalsolocalpress.
It’sobviousthattheexhibitionwasmainlyfor the sponsors’ benefit; while this was certainly the case, the exposition of the different collegescan also be used by undergraduates to choose aforeignschoolinwhichtostudyundertheErasmusprogram,orforprofessionalstodetermineifapost-graduatecoursetotheirlikingisavailableanywhereinEurope.
TheexhibitionwasalsowellattendedbystudentsandstafffromMoscow’sarchitecturalfacul-ties,withthemainaddressgivenbythedeanoftheMoscowTechnicalSchool.manyof thesestudentshadneverbeenoutofRussiabefore,andexposuretosomanydifferentexamplesofworkfromdifferentEuropean schools fulfils one of the principal goals ofEASA,whichistofosteragreaterunderstandingamongstEuropeanstudentarchitects.
Presentation Though the INCM takes place for morereasonsthantochosewhowillhosttheSummerAs-sembly,thatisundoubtedlyitsmostimportantfunc-tion.AsweproposedtohostEASAin2008,itwas
Furniture College and the factthatdespiteourhighvisibilityandactivityatEASAoverthepreviousthreeyears,wehadneverbeforehosted an EASA event. Despitetheirobviousdisappointment,theSlovenians were extremely gra-cious in wishing us the best ofluckwithourorganisation,and -ingeneral-peopleseemedveryimpressedwithourproposal.
Looking back, there’s a period of dead time between when you are chosen to host the assembly and when you start actively working towards this end. This Final Re-port aims to show ways in which this time can be profitably spent as organisers.
Text: Hugo Lamont
First StepsWhat followed winning the bid was a return to normality, and a reali-sation that, beyond the winning of it, driven by a desire to bring the event to Ireland and a competitive streak once we had been exposed to the other entrants, we now had a duty to stage the event.Duty is aW
burden that weighs heavy on young shoulders – there exists a tendency amongst people of our generation to be flighty and to shy away from taking on tasks that will end up impacting on not only your spare time, but your work. It’s not all to do with character flaws or laziness; people are committed to their jobs.
>>>
Wehadawholebunchofissues–issuesbeingtheante-roomtoproblems.Primarily,weweren’tsurewhatweshouldbedoing;noneofushadeverdoneanythinglikethisbefore.Secondly,wehadnomoney,noranyrealmeansofraisingmoney. Thirdly, despite our unified front, we had wildlyvaryingideasofwhattheeventshouldbecomprisedofandhowitshouldbestaged–es-sentially,welackeddriveandcohesion.
However, that’s revisionism, the benefit of glorious 20|20hindsight.Wehadatalentedteam,greatcamaraderieandnoshortageofadvice.We’vesaidtoeachothermanytimesintheaftermathoftheeventthatrunningitasecondtimewouldbefar,fareasier–youknowwhatitrequires,youknowthatfewthingsfallintoplaceandthatyouhavetoplaneventheminutiae,you’vemadegoodconnections,youknowhowcertainaspectsoftheeventwillwork...it’ssimplyexperience.It’soneofthereasonsthatwe’reputtingthisreporttogether,sothatallthelessonsthatwelearnt–andallthemistakesthatwemade–don’tgotowaste.
ThemostimportantmovethatwemadeinthedirectaftermathoftheMoscowINCMwasstartingtheprocessofsettingupacompanywhichwouldallowustoeffectivelyfund-raiseandadministertheevent.WereceivedagreatdealofhelpfromL&PFinancialTrustees,whoweregenerouswiththeirtimeandadvicethroughoutthetimespanofthecompany,butwealsogainedvaluable
knowledgeourselvesonthisfront,simplythroughreading,askingquestionsandmakingcontactwithvarious official institutions, like the Companies Of-fice and the Revenue Commissioners.
Somethingthatwehadn’tconsideredwasthatwewouldn’thaveanyincomesourceforliterallythefirst year of our planning activities. Nobody, public orprivate,waswillingtocommitmoneytoaneventthatwas20+monthsdistant.It’saseriousproblem, and one that is difficult to get around: you needthemoneytoleaseorbuyequipment,torentspace,toinstallinfrastructurelikephonelinesandinternetaccesssoyoucangetaroundtotheac-tualbusinessofcontactingpeopleandfundraising,beforeanyorganisationtakesplace.Atthisstage,Ithinkit’snotworthgoingtothebankforaloan:it’smoreacaseofoperatingwithinyourselves,co-operatingwithyouruniversitiesandseeingwhattheycandotosupportyou.
Avitalaspectofourpreparationatthisstageinvolvedmeetingswithvariousuniversitiesandartsinstitutions,endeavouringtogetthemtobackEASAwithwrittenlettersofsupport.It’svitaltousewhatevercontactsyouhavetogetmeetingsandtopresentyourselvesinthebestpossiblelight;havingtheseinstitutesonboardmeansthatyouaretakenseriouslyasyouprogressfurtherandfurtherinyourfund-raising.It’sallacaseofgettingtheirlogosonyourheadedpaper!
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2.0 LocationsText: Hugo Lamont
Photo: Renvyle Beach, above,Ronan McCann [IRL]
The decision to host EASA in two locations is not without precedent. At EASA005, people stayed a night in Zu-rich before moving to the site of the assembly in Bergun, and EASA997, The Train, epically brought people all around Scan-dinavia on a specially chartered train for two weeks. We had resolved for a number of reasons that we would start theassemblyinDublinbeforemovingtoLetterfrack.DiscussingtheideaofhavingtheparticipantsarriveinDublinandleaveforLetterfrackthenextday[aláEASA005],wethoughtitabetterideatogivethemaproperintroductiontothecity.DublinisthecentreofIrisharchitecturaleducation,andindeedIrisharchitecture.Beyondthat,it’sthesocialandculturalcapitalhubofthecountry,andanyunderstandingof the country as a whole is flawed without experiencing the city.
Letterfrack will always be remembered as the location of EASA008.Dublinwas thepreamble,Letterfrack thebook.Thehorrendousweathermade“Wetterfrack”anunforgettable–andunrepeatable!–triptotheedgeofEurope.SomethingthatwewilldiscusslaterintheThemeSectionishowwewantedtotaketheparticipantsoutoftheircomfortzonesincitiesandexposethemtothesometimesharshrealitiesoflivingontheAtlanticOcean.Fromthefeedbackwereceivedduringandaftertheevent,Ithinkwesucceeded...
Locations
2.1 DublinLoop Line Bridge, the eastern visual boundary
of the Liffey. The western border is Capel Street Bridge, with the relatively new kiosks.
Text: Hugo Lamont
Photo: Loop Line Bridge, above,Roland Nemeth [HU]
Dublin is the largest city in Ireland and the most diverse in terms of population and cultural make-up. The city was the epicentre of the boom; it both engendered growth around the country and saw huge development itself during the last fifteen years. Construction was grinding to a halt in late 2007;nobody could have forecast that it was a harbinger of the financial upheaval thatwas to comewithin thenext twelvemonths,butpeopleinthetradewereawarethatthetimesofplentyweredry-ingupveryquickly. Asmentioned in thepreviouschapter,wewerecon-cerned on two counts with people arriving directly into Letter-frack. Firstly, it would be an organisational and administrativenightmare,andsecondlyitwouldgiveanunbalancedviewofthecountry.
Letterfrack exists; so does Dublin. In trying to showtwoverydifferentsidesofIrishlife–theurbanandtherural,theEastandtheWest–wewereattemptingtoshowalltheparticipantsbigpictureIreland.Giventhetime-frame,it’sahugeask;Ithinkitwouldhavebeenlazyandamateurishnottotry,evenifmanyofthesub-tletiesarelost.
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Dublinishometomanyofus.It’sthecapitalofthecountryandyetverymuchatoddswiththerestofthecountry.Dislikedasbe-ing either too refined or too coarse, it suffers from being the main urbancentreonanislandthatispredominantlystillrural.
TheorganisationoftheDublinlegwasattimesveryenjoyable,attimesexceedinglyfrustrating.Wewerelookingatvenuestoac-commodateEASAinDublinforanumberofmonths–boardingschoolsoutof term,studentaccommodation inTrinityCollege,the UCD student village in Belfield – without success. It was po-tentiallyaveryexpensivepartoftheevent;wewereatonestageconsideringwhetheritwasanabsolutenecessity,becausethe
threedays justseemedtoeatup thebudget.However,duetotheendeavoursofacoupleofmembersofour team,wewereabletogetincontactwithColáisteEoin,theGaelscoilontheStil-lorgandualcarriageway.Ourteammembersweredistinguishedalumni,and,having introducedthe ideaofEASAto theschooladministrators,weweredelightedtolearnthattheywereunre-servedlybacking theeventandoffered theuseof theirschoolasouraccommodationbaseinDublin.Thiswasanexceedinglygenerousoffer,withoutwhichtheeventwouldhaverunintoseri-ousexpenses.
BeingbasedinColáisteEoin,itwasobviousthatUCDwasvery
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muchinplayintermsofhostingevents.Thatgiven,wewerestillconcernedthatpeopleshouldn’tbeisolatedoutinStillorgan:what was the point in brining people to Dublin if we were es-sentiallygoingtoghetto-isetheminoneofthesouthside’smanysalubrioussuburbs?
Wedevisedaplanthat,broadlyspeaking,hadparticipantsregis-teringinColáisteEoinonSaturday,exploringthecityonSundayandattending talksand lectures inUCDonMonday.With thisschedule,wefelt thatwewereusingeverythingthathadbeenofferedtousintermsoffacilities,aswellasprovidingdifferentbackdropsandvenuestostimulatetheparticipants’attention.
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Saturday 9 Aug - Monday 11 Aug
UCD
Today,UCDboastsastudentpopulationofmorethan22,000,with over 2,000 international students from some fifty countries aroundtheworld.Morethan25%ofthecurrentstudentpopula-tionisengagedingraduateresearchandscholarship.Eachofthe five colleges at the university - Arts & Celtic Studies, Busi-ness & Law, Engineering, Mathematical & Physical Sciences[which includes the School of Architecture, Landscaping and Civil Engineering, based in Richview], Human Sciences andLifeSciences-hasitsowndedicatedgraduateschoolwiththeexplicittaskofenhancingdoctoralandpost-doctoraltrainingtomatchthenationalstrategyofestablishingIrelandasapremiersourceof4thleveleducationandresearch.
UCD has an interesting - if flawed - architectural pedi-gree.In1959,aGovernmentCommissionrecommendedthatUniversityCollegeDublinshouldtransfertoanewcampusatBelfield from St Stephen’s Green in Dublin city centre. The nucleus of the present 300 acre campus was Belfield House, purchased in 1934 for use as playing fields; several other prop-ertieswereacquiredinthe1950sand1960s.Aninternationalcompetitionforthelay-outofthecampusandthedesignoftheArtsandAdministrationbuildingswaswonin1964byAndrzej WejchertofWarsaw.Thismasterplanhasattractedadegreeofcriticismfromits inception: many feel that the inherent sprawling nature ofthecampusdoeslittletofosterdynamicrelationshipsbetweenfaculties,collegesandstudents.Beyondthisprimaryconcern,serious issues also arose regarding several changes to theoriginalplanmadeinreactiontothestudentriotsin1968.Sev-eral questionable decisions made by college authorities anddesignedtodeterstudentactionresultedinanoticeabledete-riorationinthecalibreofassemblyspaces.Thisseemingfear-or contempt - for thedesireduser-basehashadanegativeeffect on campus life since the first buildings were completed towardstheturnofthedecade.
Sincethe1960’s,thecampushasbeenextensivelydevelopedasUCDhasrespondedtotheincreaseddemandforuniversityplacesandtheneedforspecialistacademicandstudentfacili-ties.Inthelastdecade,UCDhasseeninnovativeadditionstoitsbuiltformfromsomeofthemosteminentpracticesinIreland:theCentreforResearchintoInfectiousDiseasesbyO’Donnell + Tuomey Architects, theUrban Instituteof IrelandbyGrafton ArchitectsandtheVirusReferenceLibrarybyMcCullough Mul-vin Architects.
Established in 1854, University College Dublin (UCD) has played a key role in the history of the modern Irish State. UCD has produced graduates of remarkable distinction including famous sur-geons, architects, entrepreneurs and five of Ireland’s Taoisigh (Prime Ministers). Perhaps the best known of all its graduates is the writer James Joyce, who completed his Bachelor of Arts at the university in 1902. The Pritzker Prize-winning (1982) architect Kevin Roche is also a distinguished alumnus.
That theyare sodisparate in termsofmateriality isaninterestingcondition:isitarebuttaltoAndrejWejchert’scon-crete-infused masterplan? Do these buildings reflect the sub-urbanconditionoftheUCDcampus?It’sinstructivetonotenotonly their aforementioned materiality, but their location as finsih-ingpiecestodifferentspacesinthecampus,ratherthantakingpartinthemonumentalityofthemasterplan. UCD is very much an unfinished campus. It’s not so much the huge swathes of sports fields which make walk-ing distances between the campus centre and periphery solengthyandundistinguished,rathertheapproachoftheoriginalscheme,whichplacedahugeonusonroomforexpansion,theprevalence of the car on campus and the ultimately negativeimpactofsurfacecar-parking.
Architecture in UCD
UCD has recently published a cam-pus development plan to chart the physical evolution of the Belfield campus for the next decade. This plan includes a vision for world class architecture, a more than ten-fold increase in the boundary woodland and the network of pedestrian walkways, and a transfor-mation of the academic infrastructure to reflect the ambitions of a leading European university. Given the sheer size of the campus, such development is necessary to improve its environmental credentials, untie the various colleges and densify the built envi-ronment of the university as a piece.
The Düsseldorf-based practice, In-genhoven Architects, recently won first prize in an international competition for the new 13 hectare Gateway Campus campus for UCD, being cho-sen over entries from Zaha Hadid, Snohetta and Behnisch Architekten. Ingenhoven’s scheme incor-porates integrated photovoltaics, solar energy equip-ment, wind turbines and extensive planting, arrang-ing new buildings around a ‘beltwalk-table’ of green space.
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Early in the nineties, it was deemed that the school’s existingsinglestoreybuildings,built inthe1970s,werefar toosmall toaccommodatetherapidgrowthandexpansionofbothColáisteEoinandÍosagáin.Itwasdecidedthattheschoolwouldrequirebothanewclassroomblockandasportshall/auditorium.Ittookmanyyearsof collectingvoluntarydonations fromparentsandother members of the public for the project to even reach theplanning stage. Despite these difficulties, the building finally commenced in2001ofaGraftonArchitects-designedstructurethat met with all the schools requirements. The project wascompletedin2003andhassincewonaprestigiousawardattheRoyalInstituteofArchitectsofIrelandAwards2004.
Traditional music has always been a key part of the roundedculturalapproachtoeducationthat ismaintained intheschool.ColáisteEoinhaslongbeenabreedinggroundfortalentedmusi-cians,withmanyfamousperformersemergingfromthecollege’sgates,mostnotablyKíla,ColmMacConIomaireandDaveOdlumofThe Frames,LiamÓMaonlaíandFiachnaÓBraonáinofThe Hothouse FlowersandDavySpillaneofMoving Hearts.
Beyondmusic,ColáisteEoiniswellrenownedforitspresenceinGaelicsports,especiallyhurling.TheschoolhasseveraltriumphsintheDublinCollegesSeniorACupunderitsbelt;asaDublin-basedteam,wherefootballisthemorepopularcode,theymadeittotheAll-IrelandFinalin1998.
Amongst several notable past-pupils, including musicians,writers, sportsmen, politicians and poets, Coláiste Eoin is thealumnusofEASAorganisersSeánÓFinneadh(SeanFeeney)andBláthmhacÓMuirí.EASAIrelandwould like toextendoursincerethanksanddeepgratitudetotheprincipalandboardofmanagementofColáisteEoin.Go raibh maith agaibh.
isanall-IrishCatholicvoluntarysecondarygaelscoil[Irish-speakingschool]underthe trusteeshipof theChristianBrothers located inBooterstown,Co.Dublin. It prides itself in the Irishculture,havingextremelysuccessfulHurlingandGaelicfootballteams,traditionalmusicbands,andIrishlanguagedebating teams.Coláiste Íosagáin isanall-IrishCatholicvoluntarysecondaryschool forgirlsunder the trusteeship of the Sisters of Mercy, which shares a campus with Coláiste Eoin. Despite anapparentemphasisonextracurricularactivities,theschoolsexcelinStateExaminations,withover96%ofstudentsgoingontothird-leveleducationin2005
Theschoolislocated6kmfromDublincitycentre.ThecampusincorporatesColáisteEoinandColáisteÍosagáin’soriginal1970s-builtbuildings,ascienceblock,anartsblock,thenewlybuilt3-storeyclassroomblock and sports hall, and a large sports field with a football and hurling pitch.
Coláiste Eoin
Coláiste Eoin
Additions to Coláiste Eoin and Íosagáinby Grafton Architects
“The four storey academic block rises to the rear of the site. The bank of trees forms a connection between this building and the Sports building, which nudges its way into the foreground.
The Sports building sits solidly on the ground, flanked by the entrance pavilion. The original school buildings , by contrast, start to read as a ground-hugging element or a pergola, as the land rises to the south.
Cuts: In the four storey academic building a vertical ‘cut’ is made to allow light into the central, organising corridor and to frame views of the mountains to the south. This ‘cut’ allows the special classrooms on either side to form two ‘hovering’ cubes of brick, symbolic of the two schools.
The rear grounded wall of accommodation, separated by circulation , looks north to Dublin Bay and with the horizontal cut of windows , forms a plinth for the two brick blocks above.”
www.graftonarchitects.ie
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The Co-op [left foreground] proved an ideal venue for several workshops – concrete floor, high-ceilinged, well lit and a clear span of over 9m. As you can see from the photograph, it was heavily used deep into the night by two of
the most work-intensive workshops, Zauna and the Green Room.
Text: Hugo Lamont, Neal Patterson & Ronan McCannPhotos: Daniel Domolky [HU], above, and Sandor Lilenberg [HU], right
Location: Letterfrack
Letterfrack
LetterfrackisasmallvillagelocatedontheAtlanticedgeofConnemara.Itisal-most310kmwestofDublin.ThevillageasfoundedwhenJamesandMaryEllis,aQuakercouplefromLeicester,movedtotheareain1849andpurchased1800acresoflandinthearea.Thelandtheypurchasedconsistedmainlyofmoun-tainandbog.TheEllis’sthenproceededtodevelopLetterfrackasaQuakercom-munity,employing80mentoundertakea programme of extensive drainageand farming. This was arduous, back-breaking work; the country, especiallythe west, had been devastated by thefamineof1847,andmanyfamine-reliefprojects were undertaken in the spiritofgivingaidwithout theappearanceofcharity.
Giventhesizeoftheworkforce,anam-bitious building programme was alsoneeded. These buildings included themain house, a dispensary, a doctor’shouse,ameetinghouse,acourthouse,ashopandarowofhouses.Thisdevel-opmentgavenewshapetotheland-
Letterfrack is vital to our examination of the rural condition, as it provides a successful example of self-sufficient rural regeneration. The efforts of Connemara West, a co-operative move-ment dating back a quarter of a century, to keep life and employment in a village suffering the disas-trous effects of Ireland’s under-performing economy and losing the majority of its youth to emigra-tion provide an inspiring and thought-provoking background to the theme.
scapewhichisstillvisibletoday,inthebuildingsandwoodlandsurroundingthem.TheEllis’sreturnedtoEnglandin1857duetoillhealthandtheestatewassold.
The land then changed hands a number of times before it was finally purchased on behalf of the Archbishop of Tuam in 1886.TheChristianBrothersthenappliedforpermissiontoestablishanIndustrialSchool–halforphanage,halfborstal–forRomanCatholicboysatthelocation.Thepermissionwasgrantedandconstructionbeganimmediatelyonthemainbuilding that was to form 3 sides of a square. The building was made up of 3 dormitories, a band room, five classrooms, kitchen,refectoryandawashroom;theexistingbuildingsthenformedtheotherbuildingswithinthesettlementincludingthemonasteryandworkshops.
IndustrialSchoolshadadirereputationforhardshipandcruelty.Letterfrackbecamenotoriousduetoitsisolationandwhsiperedstoriesofbeatings,humiliationandabuse.Againstthisgrimbackground,boysweretaughttradessuchasblacksmithing,coopering,leather-working,bakingandcarpentry,aswellasthefundamentalsofreading,writingandmathsandover-ridingly,Catholicism.Beyondtheseactivities,sportandmusicwerenotsomuchencouragedasundertaken:theIndustrialSchoolbandbecamequiteanaccomplishedoneandconcertsweregivenintheschoolandintownsandvillagesinCo.Galwayand further afield to display the musical talents of the boys, as well as fund raise for projects such as the buildingofthenewchurchin1925.Despitethespartanconditionsandstrictdiscipline,theboysdidtheirbesttomaketheirownfun,butfundamentallythehistoryoftheinstitutionisgrim.
Theschoolcontinuedtooperatefornearly50yearsuntilreformsintheeducationalsysteminIrelandmeantthattheroleoftheChristianBrothersinrunningeducationalinstitutionswasonthedeclineandtheschoolwasclosedin1973.
In1978mainthebuildingswereacquiredbyConnemaraWest,agrouprepresentingthe localcom-munity,andthesurroundinglandandthefarmbuildingsweretakenoverbyConnemaraNationalPark.ConnemaraWesthadcometogetherin1971with500shareholderscontributingtotheconstructionofholidaycottagestoboostlocaltourismandgeneraterevenueforfurtherindigenousregeneration.ItwaswiththiscapitalthattheyboughttheIndustrialSchoolanditbecamethecentreofConnemara.
2.1 Letterfrack History
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Letterfrack has something of a depressing past; its ini-tial establishment as a famine relief project by Quakers has all but been eclipsed by the grim reputation it gar-nered when run as an industrial school by the Christian Brothers for the better part of a century.
Industrial Schools were part orphanage, part borstal. Grim places even if they had been run by caring people, the schools quickly gained a reputation for brutality, cruelty and an almost total lack of compassion. Letter-frack was perhaps the most infamous of these institu-tions, and it’s no exaggeration to say that it won’t throw off its reputation for several more generations.
That said, the work Connemara West have done since 1977 has gone a long way to rehabilitating Letterfrack: amongst a younger generation, the place is most fa-mous for its furniture college, amongst architects for the recent work there by O’Donnell Tuomey. Denying its past has never been on the agenda for Letterfrack inhabitants, nor for those who study or work there. It is an important lesson to take forward as the village takes EASA on board.
Photo: Jurrien van Djuikeren [NL]
Location: Letterfrack
West,withsocialandeconomicinitiativescentredthere.Thenextstepwasayouthtrainingcoursetoprovideskillsandeducationtopeopledroppingoutofschool:thiswasthegenesisforthenewfurniturecollege
By1994thecentrehadgrowntoincludeinternationallyrecognisedcoursesinfurnituredesignandconser-vation, a library, a social hall, radio station, farmers co-op and community resource offices. It was at this timethatmorespacewasneededandabriefwassetto“provideaframeworkplanforthefuturedevelop-mentofthesite,acommunitycampusforthe21stcentury”.O’Donnell&Tuomeywerechosenasarchi-tectsafteraseriesofinterviews.Theirschemeincorporatedexistingbuildingswithnewpurpose-designedstructuresandprovidedforfuturephasesofdevelopmentofbothinstitutionandvillage.
ThisprojectformedthebasisforIreland’spavilionattheVeniceBiennale2004.TheinstallationintheArse-naleisintendedtotellthestoryofthepast,presentandprojectedfutureofthesite.Theexhibitionfocusesinonthearchitectureofthenewfurniturecollegeandpullsouttoprovideanoverviewofthehistory,cultureandlandscapeofConnemara.
Letterfrackhassomethingofadepressingpast;itsinitialestablishmentasafaminereliefprojectbyQuak-ershasallbutbeeneclipsedbythegrimreputationitgarneredwhenrunasanindustrialschoolbytheChristianBrothersforthebetterpartofacentury.
IndustrialSchoolswerepartorphanage,partborstal.Grimplaceseven if theyhadbeen runbycaringpeople,theschoolsquicklygainedareputationforbrutality,crueltyandanalmosttotallackofcompassion.Letterfrackwasperhapsthemostinfamousoftheseinstitutions,andit’snoexaggerationtosaythatitwon’tthrowoffitsreputationforseveralmoregenerations.
Thatsaid,theworkConnemaraWesthavedonesince1977hasgonealongwaytorehabilitatingLetter-frack:amongstayoungergeneration,theplaceismostfamousforitsfurniturecollege,amongstarchitectsfortherecentworktherebyO’DonnellTuomey.DenyingitspasthasneverbeenontheagendaforLet-terfrackinhabitants,norforthosewhostudyorworkthere.ItisanimportantlessontotakeforwardasthevillagetakesEASAonboard.
TheGalway-MayoInstituteofTechnology’s[GMIT]coursesinLet-terfrackareruninpartnershipwithConnemaraWest(acommunityand rural development organisation based in North-West Conne-mara).Since1987,thepartnershiphasmanagedandrunfurniturecourses.
TheFurnitureCollegeemployseighteenfull-timeandtwentypart-timeandvisitingstaffandhasanenrollmentofaround200full-timestudents studying furniture design, technology, manufacture, res-torationandconservation.Facilities include largeworkrooms,ma-chinehalls,drawingstudios,computersuite,seminarrooms,libraryandlaboratories.
TheaimofGMITatLetterfrack is toenable itsgraduates tocon-tribute to, and influence, the fields of design and manufacture of furnitureinwaysthatareinnovative,creativeandresponsivetotheneedsanddevelopmentofaqualityIrishfurnitureindustry.
While furniture design education has been ongoing in Letterfracksince1987,itisonlysincetheconstructionofthenewmachinehallsthattheinstitutionhasemergedfromitsgloomypast.TheO’Donnell+Tuomeydesignedadditions,extensions,renovationsandaltera-tionshavebeenoneofthemostcriticallylaudedIrisharchitecturalschemesof the last twentyyears.Apart fromwinningRIAI (RoyalIrishArchitectureInstitute)andRIBA(RoyalInstituteofBritishArchi-tects)awardsin2001,itwasawardedtheAAI(ArchitectureAssocia-tionofIreland)DownesMedal,aswellasbeingshort-listedfortheMiesvanderRoheAwardforEuropeanArchitecturein2003.
2.2 Letterfrack Furntiture College
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Previous Spread: Letterfrack Machine Halls by Ceren Kiliç [TK]Photo: Edwin Gardner [NL], right
Location: Letterfrack “Itwasimportantthatthecampusshouldhaveacontemporary,forward-looking identity; both the new as well as the old share aseriesofsocialandcommunalspaces inanarrangement that re-inforcesthesenseofconnectionwiththevillagewiththeobjectivebeingtotransformanobsolete19thcenturyinstitutionintoanopeneducationalresourceforthe21stcentury.
Thesymmetryhasbeenshiftedandtheaxisofapproachischangedintoacurvedlineinthelandscape.Anewentryforecourtopensuptheclosedformofthecourtyardplanlikeafolded-outchairofdiffer-entforms.Thestructuralsystemsofthedifferentbuildingshavebeendesigned in response to their contrasting functional requirementsandtheirplaceinthesequenceoftheconstructionprogramme.
GiventhelocationonConnemara’swesternseaboard,windshelteriscreatedbyplanting,earthbankingandthebuildings.Theexter-nalmaterialsof thebuildingsrelate to thecoloursand texturesofthelandscape:Irishgreenoak,ternedstainlesssteel,concreteandsand-pigmented render are designed to weather naturally and toregisterthepassageoftime.”
JohnTuomey,O’Donnell+TuomeyArchitects
TheFurnitureCollegewasthelocusofevents-workshops,lecturesandsocial-duringourtimeinLetterfrack.We’veincludedelsewhereanoverviewofthefacilitiesavailableandtheirlocationonthecam-pus.Combinedwiththemachinehallsandworkshops,theFurnitureCollegealsoofferedanexcellent–thoughunderused–libraryandan ITLabcontaining30computers,scanners,printersandanA0plotter.
Beyond the facilities provided by the Furniture College, there areseveralsupplementaryfacilitiesoperatedbydifferentbodiesonthecampus.TheVEC[VocationalEducationCouncil]operateaYouth-reach training program which includes extensive metalwork facili-ties;theFarmer’sCo-opprovidedanidealworkshopfortwoofthelarger construction workshops,The Green Room and Zauna; thenewConnemaraWestCrechewasheavilyusedbysmallertheoreti-calandarts-basedworkshopslikeHUM:ARC,Adapt-a-labandEx-tendedMe,affordingthemidealspaceswithahighqualityoflight,awidearrayofpower-points,externalaccessfortheraresunnydayaswellasinbuiltsinksandworktops.
EllisHall,hometoseveralvitalfacilities,includingkitchens,show-ersandalaundry[withdryingfacilities],alsoprovideduswithourfinal exhibition space, as well as our daily refectory. We had always countedonusingit,butwehadnoideahowmuchwewouldcometorelyonit,primarilyduetotheatrociousweatherthatwesufferedduring the first week.
2.3 Campus Facilities
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As mentioned in the first section of this document, the theme, along with the loca-tion, is one of the two vital parts of any bid to host EASA. Beyond the bid, it forms an outline brief for all workshops as well as providing an ethos, a background for the
assembly itself.
What couldn’t possibly be guessed at was the relevance that this theme would come to hold as time progressed and as we got closer to the event. Ireland got in on the ground floor of the recession, feeling the pinch as early as October/Novermber 2007 when our construction and property market, which, even in light of recent events and rev-elations worldwide, had existed in a precari-ous bubble, began to struggle under its own
weight and distorted prices.
The theme of Adaptation, which was written with the idea of examining the previous de-cade of growth, became far more relevant in dealing with a frighteningly abrubt decelera-tion that has since brought world economies
into the first global depression.
Text: Ronan McCann & Hugo LamontPhotos: Sergey Nebotov [RU]
& Geerte van der Steen [NL], overleaf
4.0 Theme he theme of Adaptation is an intrinsic part of the Assembly. It aims to deal with both subjective and abstract ideas at a variety of scales, from coun-trywide to individual projects.T
Irelandhasclearlyundergonemassivechanges.Asarchi-tects,urbanistsandplanners,itisvitaltoactivelyanalysetheadaptationsandchangesthathavecometopassinthespaceofageneration.ParticularlyrelevantistheexplosionofgrowthinandaroundDublin,acitywhichhasdoubledinpopulationovertwentyyears. Giventhisincreaseinpopulationandsize,anddespite the influx of genuinely vast sums of money, the city is identified with a distinct lack of urban planning and conscientiousdevelopmenttothepointwhereithasbeenidentified by the EU as an example of how not to develop cities.
From decades of fiscal and economic penury, Ireland has emerged overthelast fifteen years as a tiger economy on the Atlantic rim with the lowestunemploymentrateinEuropeandthehighestrateofimmigra-tion.Clearlysucheconomicchangesarenotexclusivebutaccompanymajorchangesinthesocial,cultural,politicalandenvironmentalmind-setofthenation. Irelandisacountryofapproximately4.5millioninhabitants;acon-servativeestimateof70,000immigrantsarriveinIrelandeveryyear.Therearenowanestimated167languagesineverydayuse,whereaspreviouslytheycouldliterallyhavebeencountedononehand.Societyisincreasinglysecular,inwhatwasonceoneofthemostCatholicstatesinWesternEu-rope. 40%ofallhousinghasbeenbuiltinthelast15years,atarate5timesthatofItaly,6timesthatofBritainand7timesthatofGermany.In1995theaveragepriceof a new home was €77,994; by 2004, it was €249,191. Productivity growth in that decade(1995-2004)wastwicethatofournearestEUcompetitor(Finland).
TheSectionThroughIrelandexposesparticipantstotheexist-ingmodelsofdevelopment,rapidsuburbanisationandsubsequentsprawl.The journey from Dublin to Letterfrack gives an observable visual tran-sition, an urban, economic, cultural and social section of the country. Itexamines the trendofone-off ruralhousingasanunsustainablemodel,deprivingthecountryofaneffectivesystemofpublictransportation. >>>
4.0.1 Theme (Redux)It’s revealing, and even a little ridiculous, to look back on this theme document and consider what we – and everybody else – considered to be the important architectural and urban problems of the day. These problems still exist, but what is probably most interesting is that nowhere – nowhere – is it even mentioned that the possibility of an economic slump existed in the near future. It’s not mentioned in the FKL SubUrban SyperRural document, and it’s certainly not mentioned in our document. For all our self-proclaimed expertise and foresight (which we’re not slow to trumpet when talking about the future of urbanism or building), we didn’t see this one coming.
As once-thriving towns become engulfed by thesprawl of Dublin, communities become mere dormitorytowns.IntownssuchasNaasandNavan,whichhavebeenconsumedintothegrowthareaofDublin,newcivicarchitec-tureholdsthepotentialtore-invigoratethecommunity,andinstillasenseofidentity. PotentialworkshopscouldproposenewsolutionsforlivingintheIrishcountryside,moresuitablemodelsforitsdevelopment,newideasondevelopingpublictransportationandevencautionarytalesofwhatcouldcometopassshoulddevelopmentcontinueinthisform.
TakingthevillageofLetterfrackasourlocation,wewillstudyhowsuc-cessfullyithasadaptedtotheeconomic,socialandculturalchangesthathavesweptfromtheEasternurbancentrestoWesternedgesoverthelast25years.Thesenseandprideofcommunityandofplaceinruralsocietiesisunachievableinurbancentres,inpartduetoastrongsenseofidentityanditstransferthroughgenerations–beitincraft,language,evenstories.Theattractionsoflandscape,tradition,cultureandcommunityareaconstantdrawtotheseregions. WhathasLetterfracklost?WhathasLetterfrackgained?Arelocalcraftsdyingorhavetheymetthechallengeofthemodernworld?Howhavethelivesofthelocalschanged?Furthermore,howhasthecompositionofthelocalpopula-tionchanged?Finally,whatdoesthefutureholdforLetterfrackandsimilarruralcommunities?
Letterfrack has an admirable history of self sufficiency and community-based entrepreneur-ship, adaptation and re-use, specifically concerning the buildings that now compose GMIT Letterfrack. Having started as a Quaker Workhouse, the building came to be used as a Christian Brother’s Industrial School for a long period before its current incarnation as a secular furniture college. Participants can learn from this example, whilst proposing ideas and projects that continue this adaptive process, ensur-ing that the village remains compact, coherent, lively and sustainable.
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We felt that the lecture series was one of the most comprehensive and successful of recent EASAs. A lot of effort went into it, but in truth the outcome depends massively on the availability and attitude of the invited lecturers. To say that we were fortunate with our approaches and how they were received is an understatement: we received fan-tastic support from almost all those whom we invited, many of whom went out of their way to accommodate our schedule.
Lectures & Events
Lectures are the most important academic aspect of EASA. They lend weight to the theme, inform people about current and past architecture of the host country, and in-spire innovation both during the assembly
and later on, be it in career or college.
Yvonne Farrell of Grafton Architects lec-tures in the Astra Hall at UCD [right]
Text: Hugo LamontPhoto: Roland Nemeth [HU]
4.0 Lectures & Events unspectacular–evenboring–start,especiallyifthelecturesareallsched-uledinthesamevenue.Ithinkthatthisisquiteanimportantissue:EASAisn’tsupposedtobeanextendedsemesterofcollege,andifpeopleareexpectingsomething lively and then find them-selvessittinginadarkroomallday,theycanbecomerestlesswhichleadstoanuneasyatmosphereandanunsat-isfactorylecture.
Asmentionedpreviously,oneoftheearliestdecisionswemadewastostarttheeventinDublin,forreasonsthathavealreadybeenlaidout.Thatdecisionmade,theeventbecamealotmorerationalandmoreandmoreoftheprogramfellintoplace,seeminglyofitsownaccord.Givingourselvesanextradayatthestartoftheevent[EASASummerAssembliesnormallystartonSunday,whilstoursstartedonSaturday]enabledustospendanothermeaningfuldayinDublinoutsideoftheuber-time-consumingregistrationday,whichwentalongwaytoshapingourlectureseries.
Feelingthateachlocationshouldplaytoitsstrengths,weearmarkedmany
Wehadbegunputtingtogetherawish-listoflecturersandspeakersroughlyaroundOctober/November2007.Certainlywe’dallbeenmullingoveritinourheadsforthepreviouscoupleofmonths,anditwasrevealingtoseehoweveryoneenvisionedthelecturesgoing.Beyondtheinitialdebatesaboutwhoweshouldinvitetospeak,therewasaseriesofdiscussionsovertheformthelectureseriesshouldtake.TheSwissmodelofalecturemarathonatthe start of the event has huge benefits intermsof: i)onlyhavingtoorganisefacilitiesforessentiallytwodaysoflectures;
ii)schedulinglecturesearlyintheassemblysothattheycanstillhavea viable influence on the work shopsindaystocome,and
iii)freeinguptimelateronintheeventtoconcentrateonworkshops.Obviously,there’salottorecommendthisapproach,especiallywhenitcomestodecidingarationalprogramandmak-inglifeeasyfortheorganisers.
Ontheotherhand,youruntheriskoftheaudiencebecomingquitestaleandtheeventgettingofftoquiteasedate,
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Lecture Marathon or Nightly Lectures
Dublin versus Letterfrack
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ofthelecturesfortheDublinend.ForallthebuildingthathasgoneoninIreland over the last fifteen years, and forallthenewschoolsofarchitecturethathaverecentlybeeninauguratedaroundthecountry,Dublinisstillhugelydominant–probablydamaginglyso–intheIrisharchitecturalscene.Foryearsandyearstheonlytwoschoolsofarchi-tectureinIrelandwerebothinDublin,andthecriticalsceneisstillmassivelyDublin-oriented.
ManyofthearchitectsthatwewantedtolecturearebasedinDublin,soitmadehugesenseforthemajorityoflecturestotakeplaceinthecapital.Youstandamuchbetterchanceofpeoplereplyingpositivelytoyourinvitationifthey only have to take a fifteen minute taxiridetothevenueratherthandrivefive hours across the country. Further-more,there’saglutofvenuestohost
largelecturesinaroundthecapital;inLetterfrackthere’sadistinctlimitation.
Thatsaid,agoodnumberofthearchi-tectsthatweapproachedwerefarmoreexcitedwiththeideaofcomingtoLet-terfracktolectureandexperiencethespiritoftheevent.Thiswasbeyondourexpectations, but definitely something that we were extremely satisfied with andencouraged.CertainlectureswerealwaysplannedforLetterfrack,liketheO’Donnell+Tuomeylecture,whichwasreallyalwaysgoingtobetheshowcaseoftheLetterfrackLectures,buthavingarchitectslikeDominicStevensandAn-drew Griffin coming down to Letterfrack tomuckinandlendahandwasaveryrewardingexperience.
Lecturehallshavetheirgoodandbad points: firstly – and as mentioned above–they’regenerallyincolleges,andthuslyremindpeoplethatthey’reincollegeinthemiddleofsummer.Notalwaysgreatformorale.Ontheothersideofthecoinisthefactthattheyarebuiltwiththeideathatthey’llhostlectures,andarethuslyextremelywellequippedspatiallyandtechnicallytodealwiththem.
Weinvestigatedanumberofdifferentvenuesaroundthecitycentretohostlectures,includingtheCultivateCentre[aconvertedchurchonCowsLaneinWestTempleBar]andtheRoundRoomofTheMansionHouse[theLordMayorofDublin’sresidenceonDawsonStreet].Bothofthesevenueshadlotsgoing for them, but also significant drawbacks:theCultivateCentrewasalittletoosmalltoaccommodateevery-oneinEASA,andtheMansionHousewasexpensiveandtookalotofdealingwiththroughtwodifferentagencies.
CHQcameintoplayfollowingameet-ingwithDublinDocklands.TheCHQbuildingitselfisarecentlyrenovatedformertobaccowarehouseonCustomHouseQuay[hencethename].IthadoriginallybeensetasideunderaHaughey-ledFiannaFáilgovernmentasabuildingdedicatedtothearts,andaseriouscampaignforittobecometheIrishMuseumofModernArt–nowofcourselocatedattheformerRoyalHospitalKilmainham–hadreceivedstrongsupportinthelateeightiesandearlynineties.Unfortunately,insteadofbecomingaculturalcentrepiecefortheredevelopmentofthedocks,itbecamepossibly the highest profile victim of theavaricebredbytheCelticTiger,agrosslyoverpricedandunder-usedshoppingmall.
However,theoriginalbuildingitselfisagenuinelysplendidworkofarchitec-tureandengineering,andtheDublinDocklandsauthoritiesencourageuseofthegenerousfoyerspacesforculturalevents.ItwasunderthisaegisthatwewereofferedCHQasavenueforoneofourlectures,andthebuildingitselfcametohaveasymbioticrelationship,howeverbrief,withtheDublin’s Meta-morphosis Lecture.
TheForuminUCDhadlongbeensetasideforEASApurposes,thankstotheeffortsoftheoutgoingpresidentoftheUCDStudentsUnion,DonalColfer,aguywhowasenthusiastic,hugelysupportiveoftheeventandwithwhomitwasalwaysanabsolutepleasuretodeal.WehadinitiallylookedatUCDasafallbackoption:itseemedquiteabanalplaceforanEASAlectureto
Venues and Facilities
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Lecture Tent
The Lecture Tent suffered somewhat from the weather. We were unable to hold as many lectures as we had previously planned for it. The sound of rain drumming on the canvas
was off-putting for both lecturers and audience ...
Photo: Sandor Lilienberg [HU]
didn’twantthistobelikeschoolwithpeopleconstantlytrudginginandoutofthesameplace.Thirdly,charismaticandablespeakerswerehighontheagenda:everyonehasbeeninterriblyboringlectures,andwewantedpeoplewhocouldholdanaudience.Finally,itwasimportanttousthatbothpartici-pantsandlecturersenjoythemselvesandthattherewasabackandforthbetweenbothplayers.
Fromreadingthereportsofeachlecturebelow,youcanascertainthatlecturesfellintobroadlyfourdiffer-entcategories:i]panel-basedtalks;ii]portfolio lectures; iii] workshop-specific lectures,andiv]walkingtours.Therewassomecross-pollinationbetweenthese categories, and it’s worth briefly discussingtheprosandconsofeachgoingbeforegoingintodetailonspe-cific lectures.
thoseofusfromBoltonStreet,anditwaseasytoimaginehowsickUCDstudentswereoftheplace.Thatsaid,astheeventgrewcloser,werealisedthatwehadbeenquitenaiveregardingtheeffortoftryingtoorganisemovingfourhundredpeoplearoundthecityandblindtothepracticalcharmsofhostingthelecturemarathoninUCDitself.
Therewereaseriesofissuesthatwefeltweneededtoaddresswhenstruc-turingourlectureseries.Wefeltthatthelecturesshouldn’tnecessarilybeeithertheme-basedorportfolio-based[i.e.theoreticallecturesonAdaptationorlectureswhichshowcasedtheworkofIrisharchitects],butshouldtryandhavesomebalancebetweenthetwo.Secondly,wewerekeentousedifferentvenues,asmentionedabove:we
Lecture Structures
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Panel-basedtalksaregreatbecausetheyprovidevarietyandcontrast.Howev-er,it’svitaltohaveanableandrespectedmoderatorwhoisnotafraidtostepontoes,cutshortlong-windedanswersandask pointed questions. Another difficulty withpanelsisvisualstimuli:architectsarevisualpeople,andit’sextremelydif-ficult to organise effective slideshows or presentationsthatpanelistscanusetoillustratetheirpoints.Somethingthatmightworkistoaskeachmemberofthepaneltogiveatwominuteintroductiontotheirstanceontheissueandhavingaseriesof“municipal”slidesthatthepanelistshavesubmittedandanyoneofthemcanaccess...ontheotherhand,evenreadingthatideaiscomplicated!Youcanthusseetheproblemsofputtingvisualswithmulti-personpresentations.
Portfoliolecturesareasafebet-allyouneedisadigitalprojectorandalaptop.
Thepersongivingitistotallyfamiliarwiththework,and,aslongasyou’requite firm with how much time you have [45-75minutesbeingideal],everythingshouldprogresssmoothly.However,therecanbeissueswithhowaccom-plishedapublicspeakerthelectureris,andifheorsheknowswhentomoveon.Realistically,thesethingsareprettymuchoutofyourcontrolthough.
Workshop specific lectures are really beneficial, because you know thattheaudiencewillbebothattentiveandrelativelyknowledgableandyoudon’tneedtoworryaboutorganisingalecturehall;generallytheaudiencewillbeunder40peopleandtheycanjustperchanywhere.It’salsofarlessintimidatingforsomebodytospeaktothisnumberofpeopleratherthanafulllecturehall,and,astheyaregenerallyspeakingtotheaforementioned
knowledgableaudience,theycanbealittlemoreoffthecuff.
Walkingtoursaregreatbecausethey’reastimulus-fest:beyondseeingbuild-ings,youcantouchthem,enterthem,takeyourownphotographs,seehowtheyrelatetowhat’saroundthem...they’reagreatwaytoexplorethecity.Theknockonthemisthattheyhavetobelimitedintermsofnumbers,ideallytoamaximumofaround20people.
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EASA Ireland would like to sincerely thank Dublin Docklands, the sponsor of Dublin’s Metamorphosis, for the use of CHQ and their support of EASA008.
TheideaoftheDublin’sMetamorphosislecturewastoexaminethechangesthatDublinhasun-dergoneoverthelastquartercenturyfromdiverseperspectives.
Wetriedtoassemblepanelistswithaninterestincitylife,notjustarchitectsalone.Acityismorethanthesumofitsparts,afactthatarchitectscansometimesforget.Asestablished-evenfamous!-academics,artists,politiciansandwriterswithbackgroundsinarchitecture,thepanelwasabletogiveagreatinsightintothecity,itsculture,itspastandthelivesofthepeoplewholiveinit.
Dublin’s Metamorphosis
Our objectives with the Dublin’s Metamorphosis lecture were:i] to provide the attending foreign stu-dents with an overview of the city – it’s culture/history/geography/urban form;ii] to describe the social/economic/cul-tural/built changes that have occured in the city in the last 20 years, andiii] to discuss problematic patterns of development and future developments.
Frank McDonald was an extremely able moderator and added hugely to the suc-cess of the event. He’s well-known to all the panelists and was able to cut across and interrupt them without offending them, which is very, very difficult! He was also very capable at moving things along and making sure that questions didn’t fall flat, asking pointed, knowledgable follow-ups that prompted some great discussions. Moderating is very much an art form rather than a sci-ence, but a very necessary role in panel discussions.
Text: Hugo LamontPhoto: Daniel Domolky [HU]
4.5.1 Dublin’s Metamorphosis
The Panel“Okey-dokey, we’ll leave it there so, John.”
The Dublin’s Metamorphosis panel prepare their sleves at CHQ, [from l-r]:
Frank McDonald, Robert Ballagh [obscured], Ciarán Cuffe TD, Dr. Gary A. Boyd and Siobhán Ní Éanaigh
Photo: Daniel Domolky [HU]
that would address both location and theme. We had had a large number of debates about the structure of the lecture series, and it was felt that there was good value in talking about the changes that Dublin has under-A
gone as a city. As I wrote in an e-mail to panelist Frank McDonald, the talk should be “about exploring [Dublin’s] history, the huge changes it has gone through and the effect it has on the rest of the country.”
Wewanted theparticipants toseeDublin ina relativelyholisticlight,showingtheinterdependenceofarchitecture,pol-icy,historical factors,commerce,artandsocial issues inhowthecityhasgrown.There’sanawfullotmoretoanycitythanitsarchitecture, and we were adamant that the talk should reflect that.
Over a series of conversations, we each put forward peoplewhowe feltwouldbestrongadditions to thepanel.Wewerekeenonpeoplewhowere livelyandentertaining,well-knownandknowledgableaboutarchitecturewhilsthavingdistinctlydif-ferentemphasesandbackgrounds,sotospeak.Mostofthesechoiceswerebasedonpersonalexperience.
Forexample,wehadmetCiaránCuffeearlierintheyearandhad been struck by how quickly he jumped on ideas in con-versation,andRobertBallaghhadgivenaveryappealingandhumourouslecturetothearchitectureschoolinBoltonStreetin2005.Myoneregretisthatwecouldn’tgetRoddyDoyle,whowas extremely courteous and prompt in his response. Unfor-tunatelyhewasonholidaythatweek,becausehewouldhavebeenagreatadditiontoanydiscussionaboutDublin.
s evidenced from the title, Dublin’s Metamorphosis was intended as a lecture
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Thepanelwascomposedof:FrankMcDonald[journalist],IrishTimesEnvironmentalEditorandAuthorofTheDestructionofDublin[GillandMacMil-lan,1985],TheConstructionofDublin[GandonPress,2000]andChaosattheCrossroads[GandonBooks,2005]RobertBallagh[artist],oneofIreland’smostwell-knownandprolific artists, who initially studied architecture at Bolton Street beforetradingupforabassguitar,thenapaint-brushCiarán Cuffe TD[politician],GreenPartymemberofTheDáilwithadegreeinarchitectureandamastersinurbanplanningfromUCDDr.GaryA.Boyd[academic],SeniorLectureratCorkCentreofArchitecturalEducation,havingtaughtintheUCDSchoolofArchitectureatRichviewsince1998SiobhánNíÉanaigh[architect],principalofMcGarryNíÉan-aighArchitectsandarchitectbehindtwoofboomtimeDublin’smost important civic spaces, Smithfield and the Liffey Board-walk
convincedoneofthemajorcitycentredeveloperstopartakeinthedebate.Morethananyarchitectorpolicy-maker,theyhavebeenthemoversandshakersbehindthechangesinDublin,forbetterorworse.However,wehadlittleluckwithdevelopersoverthewholeperiodoforganisation,and it’sunlikely thatanyoneof them would have put themselves in the firing line so that they mighthavetodefendtheirpositions.Wewereaimingforaspir-iteddiscussion,butwedidn’tneedalightningconductorforboltsofabusefromalloverEurope!
Inall,thelecturewasagreatsuccessandcertainlyoneofthehigh-pointsoftheDublinleg.Movingabout400peopleintothecitycentreonaSundaymorningwasquitethechallenge,butitwasmanagedsolelythrougharegularDublinBusservice.Thevenue itself worked out well – while the overheads were verycostly, everything was absolutely first class, from AV to security totheseating[andthevelvetrope-swish!]Itwasourmosthighlypublicised,accessibleandpublicevent, so itwas important toportrayourselvesaswell-organised,thoroughandreputable.
Havinggenerouslybeenofferedtheuseof CHQ [the newly-renovated tobaccostorehouseformerlyknownasStackA]onCustomHouseQuaybyDublinDock-lands,weearmarkeditasasuperbven-ueforthetalk.NowherehasDublincitycentre changed more than the docks,butit’sfairtosaythatthischange,whilelargelypositive,hasn’tcomewithout itsdownside. The venue itself quickly be-came a serious source of contention;RobertBallaghhadbeenextremelyac-tiveinthecampaignforittobecomethenew national modern art gallery duringthe1980s,whenithadbeenear-markedfor an arts-based use by a Haughey-ledFiannaFáilgovernment. Itscurrentincarnation “as a soulless, over-pricedshopping mall for the nouveau riche”wasindicativeofwhathadhappenedtothecityoverthepreviousdecade.
Lookingbackatthepanel,itwouldhavebeeninterestingtoseeifwecouldhave
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4.5.2 Walking Tours
The walking tours were extremely successful: this is solely due to the enthusi-asm and imagination of those architects, journalists, academics and interested
parties who got involved. Many of them went way above and beyond the call of duty, buying their participants meals, renting out bikes – very generous
gestures which the organisers very much appreciate.
As mentioned before, the walking tours were intended as a relief from more typical, more traditional lectures ; it was also very much part of the plan for
a whole day in the city centre, rather than focusing everything in Dublin around UCD. Basing everyone out in Stillorgan worked brilliantly for logis-tics , but gave a slightly sequestered vision of the city to our participants. We
felt that these walking tours gave everybody as wide as possible an experience of the city centre, and were a rewarding experience.
Text: Hugo LamontPhoto: Jurrien van Djuikeren [NL]
Bojana Boranieva [FYROM], previous spread
GeoffBrouder[O’Donnell + Tuomey]CianDeegan&AliceCasey[O’Donnell + Tuomey/Tom de Paor/TAKA] Lanes and MewsDonalHickey[Arcus] Swimming Tour/Forty FootGaryMongey[Box Architecture] Dublin by DART and LuasWillDimond[Donaghy Dimond] Liberties - Office, Home and HistoryDuncanCrowley[Eco Intelligent Growth, Barcelona] Botanic Spine/Botanic SpireMichaelPike&GraceKeeley[GKMP] Living and Working in the City CentreAndrewClancy[Clancy Moore Architects] Bike Tour - Phoenix Park to the South WallJohnGraby[RIAI] The Graby TrainGerryCahill/DerekTynan[GCA, Derek Tynan Architects] Clarion QuaySarah-JaneMcGee[UCD graduate] PhoenixParkDr.HughCampbell&Dr.GaryBoyd[UCD & UCC professors] Parnell Square & Hugh LaneMairtinD’Alton&AileenIgoe[Gerry Cahill Architects] Western City Edge | Heuston - KilmainhamKevinWalsh[Boyd Cody Architects] Social Housing in Dublin - Skirting the MonumentalJohnMcLoughlin[DDDA] Dublin DocklandsWendyBarrett[UCD Staff] Wendy’s Long WalkFrankMcDonald[Irish Times]PeterTansey[Lotus]GavinWheatley[HKR]
Dublinisaverywalkablecity,butsinceparticipantsdidn’thavemuchtime in it,we thought that it’dbeagood idea if therewassomeonetheretoshowthemaround.Beyondthat,thereareanumberofhiddengemsscatteredacrossthecity;they’renotknowntomanyDubliners,letalonevisitors,butthey’rewell-knowntomanyarchitects.
The tours were architectural, cultural, historical, culinary, artistic, in-dustrial, transport-based,park-related,maritime... theyran thegam-ut,andwereacredittotheimaginationanddecencyofallthosewhocontributedtheir freetimetohelpout theassembly.Everyonesawawide-ranginganddiversesliceofDublin:newandold,parksandpubs,cathedralsanduniversities,streetsandshops...
Essentially,theguideswereworkingascuratorsofthecity:wereckonthatitwasthebestwayfortheparticipantstogetthemostoutoftheirshortstay.
Walking Tours
4.5.2.1 Walking Tours Guides
Walking Tours of the city were led by a number of prominent Dublin-based architects as part of our lecture series. This approach stemmed from the limited time that participants had in the city, as well as a desire to escape from the traditional format of lectures given in a blackened room with a white screen.
Official Opening
On of the highlights of the Official Opening of EASA008 was the speech of Sean O’Laoire, President of the RIAI (above). The Institute, and especially Sean O’Laoire, John Graby and Kathryn Meghan, have
been hugely supportive of EASA since 2007.
Text: Hugo LamontPhotos: Daniel Domolky [HU], this page,
& Mahdi Biagoli [IT], right
Thanks
EASA Ireland would like to sincerely thank the OPW, sponsor of the Official Opening of EASA008, for the
opening of Dublin Castle and support of EASA008.
Official Opening at Dublin Castle The Official Opening at Dublin Castle was one of the highlights of the event; there was a huge amount of satisfaction that the Dublin end of the event was well underway, mixed with a distinct sense of optimism for the Letterfrack leg. What’s more, it provided an opportunity for all our family, friends and employers to see what we had been working on.
That it took place in the State Apartments of Dublin Castle made it a high profile event, and one that presented EASA008 in itsbest light tooursponsors, thepressand thosewhohadcontributedtotheevent.
Forthiswehavetothanktheextremelygeneroussponsorshipofthe Office of Public Works as well as the hardwork and co-opera-tionofthestaffatDublinCastle,whowerehugelyobligingintheirpreparationof theapartments, theiradvise in thebuild-upandtheirworkonthenightitself.Theirprofessionalismwasstriking,especiallyinthecourteouswaytheydealtwithusthroughoutourworking relationship.Despite the fact that theyaremoreusedto dealing with politicians, visiting dignitaries and high-profile events,theynevertreateduswithanythinglessthanrespect.
Aside from the Opening Ceremony itself, Dublin Castle alsohosted twoexhibitionswhichwehadorganised.The inauguralEuropan Ireland competition, a prestigious biannual Europe-wide housing competition open to architects under forty andadministratedbytheRIAIwaslenttousbytheInstitute,andtheEASA Ireland Green Room competition [which attracted over fifty entries in itsownright]addedanotherattractionto thenight, ifalsoanotherelementtobeorganised.
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What I’ve learnt from this lecture is not to over-reach; to be absolutely clear with people who are lecturing about what you
expect from them and not to be too defer-ential! You’ve invited them to give a lecture,
which, while it is a call on their time, is also an honour , especially if it’s in front
of a big audience; in this case, an audience assembled from all over Europe.
That said , there are several things about this lecture which were both very enjoyable and a real credit to both the theme of the lecture and those who took the stage. It was the first
time that Ryan Kennihan and Peter Carroll had lectured, which I found a little surpris-
ing, but I must say that it’s a great feeling to give somebody you respect a chance to lecture and give them the opportunity to show their work to a wider, and generally
appreciative, audience.
Text: Hugo Lamont
Lectures brought to-gether some of the most talented and well-recognised architects in Ire-land to discuss their work, the defining points of their education and careers, the state of architecture in Ireland - both as a profession and asC
an artistic, cultural and social undertaking - and where Ireland stands in regards to the rest of Europe.
Between them,BoydCody,FKL,A2andRyanKennihanhavewonnumerousnationalandinternationalawards;theyarealsodeep-ly involved inarchitecturaleducation inIreland,atUCDandDIT inDublinandULinLimerick.
Thiswasanambitiouslecture,andonewhichwedidn’tpulloffquiteas successfuly aswewouldhave liked. Lookingbackon it objec-tively,oneof themain issueswasthatweweretryingtocovertoomanybaseswithonelecture.Fromtheintroduction:
If thiswaswhatwewere trying tocover, thenweshouldhaverunadiscussionpanelsimilartotheDublin’sMetamorphosispanel;weshouldhaveincludedpeopleoutsideoftheworldofarchitecture,in-cludingaplannerandadeveloper.WhatweweremoreinterestedinwastalkingaboutwasthecontemporaryarchitecturesceneinDublin–essentiallythearchitecturethatwelike,thearchitecturethatis
ontemporary Ireland - Contemporary Architecture
“Irish architecture and its place in a construction boom rapidly drawing to a close is an interesting study in how architecture is regarded by various ele-ments of society. What has been built? Was archi-tecture relevant to the building industry that essen-tially grew a decade long economic boom, or was it side-lined? How can architects push the case for ar-chitecture and urbanism to people who have a huge amount of other issues to worry about?”
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beingbuiltbyhard-workingandambitiousyoungpracticesandthearchitecturethatiswinningawards.
Wecertainlyhadtheprotagonistsinmindwhenwewentaboutset-tingupthelecture.Inmanyways,wewerealmosttryingtobuildalecturearoundthepanel.They’realleducators,sowethoughtit’dbeinformativetogettheirviewsontheeducationofyoungarchitects,and especially how their manner of teaching reflected their work. Again,thiswouldhavemadeaninterestinglectureinitsownright,ifwehadcommittedtoit.
Finally, we also wanted to use the occasion to allow the firms to show some of their work. We thought it would be beneficial to the participantstogetanideaofwhatiswinningawardsinIrelandatthemoment,whatiscriticallyprizedinsidetheprofession.AlltheinvitedpanelistswereAAIAwardregulars,andhavereallyrisentopromi-nence through that organisation over the last five to six years as the successorgenerationtoGroup91.
Wehadplentyofideas.Whatwedidn’thavewasaneditor,ortheexperiencetoknowthattryingtosqueezesomanydisparatetopicsinto100-120minuteswasgoingtodilutetheoveralleffectofthelec-ture.Intruth,asIhavementionedabovewhendiscussinglecturesgenerally,whenyouhaveapanel,youneedamoderator.Ithelpstokeepthepaceup,andtokeepthediscussiononpoint.
Withthatsaid,thereweremanypositivesfromthelecture.Firstly,theportfolioelementofitwentex-tremelywell;awidearrayofworkwasshown,theideasandbeliefsbehindthemexpandeduponandplacedincontextintherespectivefirm’s oeuvres.
Furthermore,itwasagoodpanel:thepeoplewehadselectedspokewellandpassionatelyabouttheirarchitectureanditsrole.Somethingthatwasa littlesurprisingwas theiracknowledgment that thepro-fessionexistsinIrelandinsomethingofaniche.NoneofthemhaddelusionsofgrandeurortheoverstridingambitionthatisobviousinsomemorewellknownEuropeanarchitects.
Itcameacrossfromthespeakersthatthereisadistinctemphasisonbuildingthingswell.Thisapproachofcarefuldetailingandweightygeometric forms owes something to the formally reserved Swiss;however,thereistheknowledgethattheconstructiontradeingen-eralisnowherenearasprofessionalasthatoftheSwiss.ThereareseriousissueswithbuildingwhatyouhavedesignedinIreland,anditwasstressedbyeveryspeakerthatthereisnosubstitutefortimeonsite.
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Architecture53Seven is a practice was established in 2000 by its principal, Jason O’Shaughnessy. The focus of the practice has been on the delivery of inventive architecture, and they have already won several pres-tigious architecture awards and has been shortlisted and exhibited in a number of International Competi-tions.
The practice has focused on the investigation of ar-chitecture through process. Each project is addressed from first principles, where the outcome of the design is not simply assumed, but accumulated by an under-standing of the site typology, program, histories and other forces that are then reconciled to create a new distinct architecture.
Text: Hugo Lamont
4.5.5 The Showcase Lecture - Architecture53seven
The showcase lecture was a short, one-hour portfolio lecture which, from the outset, we had designated as an opportunity to give some exposure to an architect who we [the organisers] liked, who was young and who hadn’t necessarily had the publicity that they could have had. A secondary aim was to bring to light work that has gone on outside Dublin, showing that there is an emerging future for a new rural architecture.
Jason O’Shaughnessy of architecture53seven was a near-unanimousde-cision. What he’s doing in the midlands is a brave and unprecedented move in Irisharchitecture;he’sbuildingprojectsthatwouldbecuttingedgeinDublin,nevermindinquietcountrytownsandvillages.Furthermore,hisself-relianceandinitiativeinsettingupon his own directly after finishing his degree is unusual and admirable. Most people cut their teeth with a larger firm and then go out on their own, as learning how to build can beanexpensiveprocess.Thisisparticularlytruewhenyou’retryingtobuilddesignsthatrequireahighdegreeofcraftsmanshipfromyourcontractor.
WethoughtthatJason’sapproachandbackgroundwouldpro-vide a stimulating reflection of the previous lecture, Contemporary Ireland -ContemporaryArchitecture.Thepanelistsinthelatter–DermotBoydofBoydCody,PeterCarrollofA2,GaryLysaghtofFKLandRyanKennihanofRWKAandallDublin-basedandshareasimilarethos,aweightinessthat owes a lot to Kahn, Zumthor, Chipperfield, Utzon and Moneo.
Architecture53seven operate out of Portlaoise; Jason’s ap-proachowessomethingtoearlyZahaHadid,GregLynnandTomMayne.It’sanapproachthatissingularinIreland–thoughTarlaandAntoinMacGabhann have recognisably Libeskind leanings, which is only to beexpectedgiventheemploymenthistory–andwefelt that itwasworthrecognisingandexpsosingtoparticipants,lesttheythinkthateveryar-chitectinIrelandreadfromthesamepage.
Thelectureitselfwasinvolvingandwellpaced.Theaudiencewas introduced to some of architecture3seven’s early builtworkinthemidlands,theiraward-winningrecentprojectsandsome unbuilt projects in Ireland and further afield. It’s always intriguing toseenew,unpublishedwork fromapractice thatyou’refamiliarwith,andthiswasnoexception.Thereareiden-tifiable associations and aspects of past work in these new projects,butthere’sarangeandscopewithwhichthepracticeareasyetunfamiliar.Interestingtoseehowtheyplayout...
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4.5.6 The Marquee Lecture - Grafton ArchitectsYvonne Farrell of Grafton Architects lecturing to EASA in the Astra Hall, UCD.That’s Sverre Fehn’s Nordic Pavilion in Venice in the background slide, one of the major influences on the Universita Luigi Bocconi.
Established in 1978, Grafton Architects are recognized nationally and interna-tionally for the production of buildings and urban interventions of a consistently high standard, having won over 20 awards and several competitions. The work of the practice has been exhibited in Paris, Zurich, Madrid, Barcelona, London and at the 2002 and 2008 Venice Architecture Biennale and has featured in many international publications.
Grafton Architects have a rigorous and sensitive approach to building in the city, believing strongly that careful research is crucial in order that latent urban po-tential is nurtured in a manner that sustains and builds upon the essential char-acter of places in the city.
Text: Hugo LamontPhoto: Daniel Domolky [HU]
broughttoacloseourDublinserieswithalecturefromYvonneFarrellofGraftonArchitects.ThislectureinitiallyaimedtoshowcasetherisingeminenceofIrisharchitectsinEurope:theconstruction boom obviously gave rise to work in Ireland, but it also gave a confidence and springboard forIrisharchitectstoexpressthemselvesonawiderstage.
WiththeirUniversitaLuigiBocconiinMilannearingcompletion,wefeltthatGraftonArchitectswereuniquelyplacedtoofferaninsightintotheirexperiencesasIrisharchitectsinEurope.Luckilyforus,Yvonnedidn’trigourouslysticktothebrief,andwewereinsteadshownnotonly theBocconiproject,butalso thenewDepart-mentofFinancebuildingonMerrionRow,theBillets.
Seeingthesetwoprojectsbacktoback–onecom-pletedwithinthelastsixmonths,theotherdueforcompletionwithinthenextsixmonths–gaveveryinterestingcounterpointsbetweenthebuildingclimates,scopeandcapabilitiesthatexistinIrelandandItaly.Duetothegenerousnatureofthetalk,herwillingnesstogointothemethodsandprocessesofGrafton’swork, her unselfconsciousness and desire to inform, it was aphenomenallyinterestingandentertaininglecture,probablythebestI’vebeentoinmynineyearsofarchitecturaleducation.
What was most impressive, beyond Yvonne’s de-meanour,wasthestandardofthework.Wewerebeingshowntheoriginal,unadulteratedconceptsketchesand roughdraw-ings of projects which are of an extremely high standard; inthecaseoftheUniversitaBocconi,oneofthemostimpressiveschemesthathasgoneintoconstructioninthelastdecadeonaworldwidebasis.
Oneofthemostsatisfyingaspectsofthelecturewasthestandardofquestionsputforwardfromtheaudience,fromIrishandEuropeansalike.Itwasespeciallypleasingtoseepeo-pleaskquestionswhichweren’tparticularly leadingormerelyachancetoairtheiropinionsintheguiseofaquestion:peoplewere asking questions out of genuine curiosity and becausethey thought that they’dgetagenuineandthoughtfulanswer.Invariably,theydid.
Yvonne answered questions for approximately fortyminutes;wefeltwehadtolimititorwe’dbethereallnight.EvenafterthisextendedQ&A,shewasswampedbypeopleaskingquestions on a one-to-one basis, and she graciously stayedaroundtoanswerthemasbestshecould,eventhoughitwascomingupto11pmatthisstage.
ItwasanexcellentwaytoendtheDublinlecturese-ries;peopleweregenuinelyexcitedabouttheprojectsthathadbeenshownandwereveryaffectedbytheopen,enthusiasticandpassionatewayinwhichYvonnehadpresentedthem.
The Marquee Lecture
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A Section Through Ireland
andculturalterms,thatnottoexposetheparticipantstoitwouldgiveanunbalancedimpressionofIreland.
With these practical and theoretical ideas firmly in place - that we wouldmovepeoplefromDublintoLetterfrackandthatitwasim-portant that participants experience Dublin in a more than fleet-ingfashion-theideathatthejourneybetweenthetwolocationsshould assume more significance than mere transit became moreandmoreimportanttous.
The SubUrban to SuperRural entry to the 10th Venice Bien-nalewasvitallyimportanttoconcretingandcodifyingalotofthestray thoughts that had we had been batting around betweenourselves.Essentially,whatwe’re trying todowith theSectionThroughIrelandisshowtheexistingconditionthatSubUrbantoSuperRural highlights. Ireland isn’t justDublinandLetterfrack;the interior isn’t composed of mere flyover-states. It’s a compli-catedand,attimes,delicatemixoftheurban,theruralandthesuburban,andwehopethatseeingthesesituations,
The idea for the SectionThrough Ireland grew fromtwo branches of thought,practical and theoretical.Knowing that everyonewouldbearriving inDublin,theideathattheymaketheirownwayacrossthecountrytoLetterfrack,whilst poten-tially an adventurous expe-rience,wouldbeexpensiveandtimeconsuming.
Secondly,Dublinhassuchahugeeffectontherestofthecountryineconomic,social
withallthegradationsthatliebetween,givesatruerpictureoftheurban/ruralmapinIreland.
Buses leftColáisteEoin from9amonTuesday12Augustandwereorganisedsothatpeopletravelledintheirworkshopsratherthaninnationalgroups.WelostadayonthegroundintermsoftimetablingtheworkshopsbecauseofthetripfromDublinacrosstoLetterfrack.Wefeltthatwecouldusethisdayoftravelfortheparticipants to get to know one another and hopefully exploresomeinitialideasundertheirtutors’leadership/.
Thejourney,asmentionedabove,hadseveralstops.DublintoLetterfrack is a long trip, and took thegreater part of theday,hencetherelativelyearlystart. Buseswerearranged inpairs,witheachpairvisitingadifferentrecentbuildingontheoutskirtsofDublin:wefeltthatthiswasanidealwaytoshowcasetherolethatarchitecturehastoplayoutsidethecityinexploring,main-tainingorovertlystatingatown’scivicidentity.
ThefourbuildingswevisitedwereSolsticeArtsCentre,NavanbyGraftonArchitects;RatoathCommunityCollege inJamestown,RatoathbyMcGarryNíEanaighArchitects;ÁrasChillDara,theKildare County Council Offices in Naas, Co. Kildare, designed by Heneghan Peng Architects and Brookfield Community Youth CentreandCreche inTallaght, byHassettDucatezArchitects.Wereceivedexcellentco-operationfromboththestaffandad-ministratorsofthebuildingsandalsothearchitectsbehindtheirdesign.The walking tours that were arranged were well worththetimeandeffort.ParticipantsgottovisitandexploresomeofIreland’s finest recent buildings and, beyond that, were instructed innuancesrangingfromconcepttodetailing.
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4.6.1 The Idea
4.6.2 Structure/Schedule/Timetable
A Section Through Ireland
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Letterfrack LecturesThe Letterfrack Lectures were well attended by the public. A good
few people made the trip across from Galway, which is no short distance, especially given the roads and the weather conditions. It
was gratifying to see people go out of their way to come to lectures which we’d organised, makes you feel that you’re doing a good job
and that you’ve piqued some general interest.
Text: Hugo LamontPhoto: The Events Tent, above, Jurrien van Djuikeren [NL]
s mentioned previously, we had previously decided against the idea of restricting all the lectures to the Dublin end of the event. We felt that some lectures would be more suited to Letterfrack – O’Donnell + Tuomey because of their authorship of the proj-ect and Dominic Stevens because of his work on ruralism.A
These lectures would have a far greater impact in Letterfrack than if they took place in Dublin before the participants had experienced western landscape and conditions. Secondly, and this is quite difficult to phrase, but we felt that a big part of the theme lay in stressing the importance of architecture in rural communities and context. If we had only had lectures in Dublin, we felt we would have been undermining this idea somewhat.
Dorothy Cross, Michael Gibbons, Rosaleen ConeysandLauraMaysareall local toLetterfrack.Dorothy inparticular isaworld-renownedartist,andwewereveryfortunatetohaveherin-volved,asshewasextremelygenerouswithhertime,herhouse,herboat...everything!Shewasgreat.MichaelGibbonsisnationallyoneof the most important figures in archaeology, and well-used to speak-ingpublicly.BothhishomeandhisexpertiseareConnemara,andhewas an ideal choice to give the first lecture in Letterfrack. Rosaleen ConeysandLauraMaysmaynotbeaswellknown,butthey’rebothexperts in their respective fields of weaving and furniture design. Let-terfrackisactuallyatreasuretroveoftalents:bringingweaversanddesignerstherewouldhavebeenlikebringingcoaltoNewcastle.
Lastly,wehadanumberofpeople forwhomschedulingwasanissue.TheHUM:ARCworkshoparrangedforashortlectureandvisit fromtworepresentativesfromArchitectsSansFrontiéres.Obviously,itwasimportantthattheirworkshopwasupandrunningso that these visiting speakers could get involved. It was a greatpieceof initiativefromthethreeFinnishtutors,andsomethingthatwasverysuccessful,notleastbecauseoftheeffortsofthevisitinglecturerstounderstandwhywewereholdingthisassemblyinthe
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O’Donnell + Tuomey @Letterfrack Furniture Colllege
O’Donnell + TuomeyJohn Tuomey lecturing to EASA in the events tent at Letterfrack Furniture College. We thought it was very important that EASA
should learn about the campus from the architects who designed it, and the lecture was an untramelled success. John and Sheila seemed to really enjoy themselves and had a good look around all the workshops
prior to the talk. In my mind, the Grafton and O’Donnell Tuomey talks were the highpoints of the lectures series, and some of the best
attended at any EASA I’ve participated in.
Sheila O’Donnell and John Tuomey graduated from University College Dublin in 1976 and moved to London to work and further
their studies in architecture. Both worked for a number of years at the London office of James Stirling.
They have taught at the School of Architecture at UCD since their re-turn to Dublin in the early 1980s and have been appointed as visiting
lecturers in Harvard, Princeton, Cambridge and the AA in London.
In 1988 they set up in partnership in Dublin as O’Donnell+Tuomey. Winners of more than forty national and international awards for
their work across the past twenty years, they have been three times finalists for the Mies Van der Rohe Award for European Architecture
in 1997, 1999, and 2003; twice shortlisted for the Stirling Prize in 1999 and 2005; and won the RIAI Gold Medal in 2005.
They were selected to represent Ireland in a solo exhibition at the Venice Biennale in 2004. Princeton Architectural Press published a
monograph O’Donnell +Tuomey Selected Works in 2007.
Text: Hugo Lamont Photo: Roland Nemeth [HU]
Thursday 14 August 2008
most remote part of Ireland in monsoonconditions! Professor Maria Pinto-Coelho, anoldhandfromtheearlyEASAsandaexpertinarchitecturallighting,addedhertuppenceworthinaseriesoflecturesanddemonstrationtothemembersoftheLightscapesandLight&Spaceworkshops. Richard Murphy and Andrew Griffin had initiallybeenpencilled in forearlier in theweek,buthadtorescheduleduetoothercom-mitments.Luckily,thesepersonalitiesalsohada strong desire to see the event in full swing,andweremore thanhappy tomake theirwayto Letterfrack. Richard Murphy was obviouslyinterestedbecauseofhispastinvolvementwithEASA, and Andrew Griffin made a sterling effort incuttingshorthisholidaystoexperiencesomeEASAspirit.
Sheila O’Donnell and John Tuomey returned to Letterfrack to lecture on Thursday, 14 August 2008. It was through their buildings that most of us had been introduced to the furniture college – and from there to the village – and we thought it was fitting that they gave the valediction of the assembly once we had gotten over the calamitous fifty straight hours of rain that greeted our arrival in the West.
It had been mentioned to me before by contempo-raries of mine who worked in their office that they had a bittersweet relationship with the furniture college. It was a work of which they were clearly very fond, but also deeply, irrevocably disappointed. One only has to look at their origi-nal drawings for the scheme - due to budget cutbacks, vitally important elements remain unbuilt. Of what is built, much
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ofithasbeenaltered:itsproportions,its materiality, its finishes ....
Thatisnottosaythatthearchi-tectsaredownbeatabouttheproject.Theyrecognisewhat it gave them in termsofitscontributiontotheirprocess,thetoughandrewardingexperiencesofbuilding inaveryrurallocation,thescaleoftheproj-ectandthecriticalacclaimthatgreetedit,notleastaspartoftheMetamorphexhibi-tion,where itwas Ireland’ssoleentry totheVeniceBiennalein2004.
The most fascinating ingredi-entoftheirlecturewashowtheysawthisMetamorphentry[whichmanyofyouwillbefamiliarwith]asaseparateprojectin
itsown right from the furniturecollege. Ihadalwaysseenmetamorphasanexten-sionoftheoriginalproject,somethingthatwasassembledfromthedetritusofideasleft over, a lesser work. It became clearduringthelecturethatwhiletheysawtheprojectsassymbiotic,theydidn’tseemtodrawaheirarchybetweenthetwo.Meta-morphwasn’tjustanafterthought,wasn’tjustanexhibitionofthefurniturecollege.Metamorphclearlyhadamuch-lovedlifeofitsown.ThatitwastiedupwithVenicejust asmuchas itwas tiedupwithLet-terfrack was established with a claritythat,giventheirreasoning,seemsbeliev-ableandcogent,butcouldotherwisebeviewedas laughable to thepointofper-versity.
Speculatively [but, I hope not withoutfoundation], their closeness to the proj-ectcouldbeasaresultoftheircompletecontrol of the outcome, regardless ofcost, time or circumstance. The qualityof finish, the collaborative aspects with highly capable professionals from otherdisciplines and the obsessive dwellingover minutiae, combined with the reck-less disregard for overspending that isanabsolutenon-starter in termsof largeGovernmentfundedprojects,areallpres-ent. They were able to finish Metamorph to their exact specifications, something whichwasputbeyond their reach in thefurniturecollege.
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Andrew Griffin/JDS ArchitectsJDS/Julien de Smedt Architects is a multi-disciplinary office that focuses on architecture and design, from large scale urban planning to architecture to design.
The office is fuelled by talented designers and experienced architects who jointly develop projects from early sketch to on-site supervision.Independent of scale, this outlines an approach that is affirmatively social in its outcome, en-thusiastic in its ambition and professional in its method.
JDS Architects make use of an approach where intense research and analysis of practical and theoretical issues are being converted to the driving forces of the design pro-cess. By continuosly developing and implementing precise and rigourous methods of analysis, we are able to combine innovative thinking with efficieint production.
Andrew Griffin finished a stellar student career in the Dublin School of Architecture in 2007, graduating with First Class Honours and winning both the Ormonde Sil-ver Medal for Excellence and the OPUS Student Award. Having worked extensively in Rotterdam and Copenha-gen with OMA and PLOT respectively, he has recently been made a partner of JDS Archtiects at the tender age of 25. He is currently leading projects in China, Mongolia, Taiwan, Brussels and Dublin, and has lectured recently in Mexico City, Ljublana and Taipei. In January of 2008, he was announced as the winner of the Dublin site of the in-augural Irish edition of Europan.
Andrew Griffin gave up his holidays and braved some absolutely appalling weather to make it down to Letterfrack to Lecture on Saturday evening. Roads were flooded. The main rail-line out of Dublin had been put out of action by a mudslide. It’s difficult to stress just how difficult this made get-ting to Letterfrack, but he was never even in danger of letting us down.
Much as we had hoped it would, the lecture proved to be asharpcontrasttosomeofthosewhichhadprecededit.JDSoper-ateverymuchonaworldstage,andtheirapproachtoarchitectureishighlyschematicand formbased,withahugeemphasisonadiagrammaticapproach.It’saverydifferentattitudetothatofmanyofourpreviouslecturers,andwefeltthatitwasimportanttoem-phasisesomedifferentthinking;anobjectarchitectureratherthanthecriticalregionalismthatdominatestheIrishscene.
Justasthesubjectmatterwasverydifferent,theactuallecturingstylewascertainlya remove fromthose thathadgonebefore.Goingthroughover600slidesinjustover90minutes,therewasnolackofvisualstimulation.Itisanapproachthatsuitstheprojects-theinitialcon-ceptsareclearlydiagrammed,andthereisaveryclearvisual procedure showing how the different schemesaremovedforward.
Given that it was a weekend – and despite the weather – there were a largenumberofIrisharchitetswhohadmadetheefforttoattendthelecture;alotofquestionswereforthcomingattheendofthelecture,andtheywereansweredthoroughlyandwithplentyofhumour.AndygotintotheswingoftheeventveryquicklyandwasmorethanhappytodiscussindividualprojectsaswellastheJDSapproachwellintothenight.
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Dominic Stevens showed up a week early for his lecture in Letterfrack!
Dominic StevensDominic Stevens is an architect living in Cloone, County Leitrim, a town with a popu-lation of just over 300 people. He only only does one or two projects a year from his one-man studio, based in an old refrigerated truck. He does his own carpentry and juggles his architecture with farming - he breeds goats, chickens and geese as well as making cheese - and writing about architecture and ruralism.
He writes of his work: ‘I run a one-person practice from rural Ireland. I divide my time between architecture, caring for my children and growing food. Just as I believe that build-ings are inextricably linked to the lives that happen in them, my practice as architect is bound closely to my consciousness as father and farmer. My office is not a citadel protected by expertise, rather, it has fertile edges that ac-tively absorb the life that surrounds it. I carry out one building project at a time informed by ongoing theoretical work. In order to record ideas as well as building I make Books. The first, domestic, was published in 1999”.
As a contributor to SubUrban to SuperRural, Ireland’s entry to the Venice Biennale in 2006, Dominic Steven’s work was particularly influ-ential in deciding the theme for EASA008. His second book, Rural, was published in 2007.
Text: Hugo Lamont
He’s a very laid-back and thoughtful character, which is reflected in both his lifestyle and his work. His relocation to Leitrim iswell-known toarchitects in Ireland. It’sastrangephenomenon,havingsomanypeopleinterestedintherea-sonswhyyoumovedhouse,but it is relevant tobothruralandurbanlivingsituationstoday.Intheurbanlifestyle,youbegintowonderifyourqualityoflifeisasgoodasthemediaistellingyouit is:‘everything’isonyourdoorstep,butyourcommuteisakiller,youworkoverly-longhours,yourmort-gageiseatingupeverythingyouearnandthekidscan’tplayoutdoorforlackofspace,facilitiesorsafety.
On the opposite side of the argument, living in the coun-tryside gives you the benefits of fresh air, landscape and a moreself-determined time-frameregardingwork.However,you rely heavily on the car for transport, are isolated fromhumancompanyandthereisahugelackoffacilities:shops,cinemas, libraries,clinics,schools,galleries, restaurants ...everythingthatpeoplecometotakeforgrantedinanurbansituation.
Steven’swork looksathow ruralcommunitiescan recovertheelementsofdailylifethatmadethemsuccessfulandlong-lived in the first place, as well as taking on ideas of urbanism thatcantranslatetolivinginthecountryside.HetakesideasfromEuropeandtheUnitedStatesandquotesinitiativesthataddressbasicneedssuchashealthandeducationinrural
areas.Beyond thesebasics,he looksatways to improvequalityof rural life in immeasurableways:travellingcinemasandlibraries,forexample.
Noteverythingisaboutnewnessthough.There’salotofanalysisofhowthingsare-successfulmeetings like farmer’smarts,and things thatshouldbesupportedby thegovernmentbutaredying out, like rural post-offices and garda stations. The strongest theme from his written work is thatthereshouldbeanemphasisoncommunityinruralareastocombatthelonelinessthatcanoverpowerthoselivingisolatedfromeachother.
DominicwasagreatpresencedowninLetterfrack,chattyandintrigueswiththewholeorganisa-tionandwhathadgoneinto[andgoesonduring]theassembly.Itwasanextremelywel-attendedlecture thatmanyparticipants talking: ruralimandruralarchitecture isn’tsomething that isad-dressed too often. As a recent population study has shown, the earth is, for the first time in its history,nowprimarilyurban.Architectshavebeenthinkinglikethatforthebetterpartofacentury.Whatabouttheother49%?Maybeweshouldconsiderthemaswell?
LecturesThe story between Brian Anson and EASA 2008 is a long and varied one, after initially coming into contact with him via his application to the colleges of Ireland to get involved in some form of workshop. Brian Anson would normally do some form of workshop with Richard Rogers ever year, however this had fallen through for 2008, so
he appealed to the colleges of Ireland for some alternative, who in turn gave us his details.
Over a period of some months we learnt of his life story, his work and the birth of EASA. We had always wanted Brian to come – whether it was due to the impressiveness of his artwork, his stories, the thought of doing a good thing (this would afford him the chance to meet his son in Ireland) or because we felt his presence would be of
benefit to the assembly – event though we never really knew what exactly he would do in Letterfrack.
As it transpired, Brian Anson became something of a story teller visiting different workshops and arranging his own schedules of talks, open to anyone interested in attending. He was particularly involved in the workshop
HUM:ARC. All in all the feedback we received was always positive, even from the man himself.
Text: Bláthmhac Ó Muirí & Hugo LamontPhoto: Bojana Boranieva [FYROM]
Brian Anson
BornintoaworkingclassbackgroundinLiverpool,Englandin1935,heworkedasanurbanistandplannerinhisnativecityandthecityofDublinin1960s.In1969and1970heworked tirelessly for thepreservationofCoventGarden,asmall inner city borough of London.The buildings and the community dwellingtherewereunderthreatoftotalannihilationbyagroupofdevelopersandlocalplanningauthorities,instillingapolicywhichhadrippedtheheartoutofEngland’spostIndustrialcitiesthroughoutthedecade.
After rounding-up the local communityandholdinggroupconsultations, a proposition and compromise was reached whichwas deemed acceptable by the local authorities. Covent Gardenwassavedandhassincebeenseenasasuccessfulregenerationproject,whereoldbuildingsandexistingcommunitiescanbeadapt-edandevolvewithouttheirtotaldemise.Itsmodelhasservedasaprecedentforotherprojects,mostnotablytheTempleBarregenera-tionprojectinDublin.Abookwaspublishedin1981entitled“I’ll Fight You For It”,outliningtheCoventGardenstruggle.
Asa resultof theCoventGardensuccess,Brianwasacceptedby theArchi-tecturalSchoolofArchitecturewhereheactedasUnitMasterfrom1972.ItwasherethatBrianwasinvolvedwithdiscussionsanddebateswitharchitectssuchasPeterCook,ex-pressingandreiteratingtheimportanceofcommunityinvolvement. Growingslowlydisillusionedwiththepathhiscolleaguesweretaking,hestrovetocreateanalternativefuturetotheprofessionthroughthefoundingoftheArchitectsRev-olutionaryCouncil(ARC).BrianAnsonrealisedthattheproblemsplaguingtheprofession,i.e.thepanderingtodevelopersandlackofgroundrootscommunitycommunicationwerea result of a deeply flawed education system. His reaction to this was the foundation of the Schools of Architecture Council (SAC)in1979.
The organisers of EASA Ireland were delighted to host Brian Anson at the Assembly between the 9th and 24th of August. Brian Anson has been an advocator of community inclu-sion in the process of design and architecture for over fifty years and he played several roles in EASA008: storyteller, adviser, devil’s advocate and rabble-rouser.
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Mobile Unit Scheme at Divis Street Flats, 1983 [right]
with special thanks to Bláthmhac Ó Muirí
Theroleof theSACwasabodywhosepurposewastoshowanalternativetotheformaleducationthenonofferintheschoolsofarchitecture.BrianAnsonwaselectedpresident of the organisation by the students as a protestagainsttheestablishedschools.Insummer1979,over800students attended a gathering in a tower block in Sheffield. Students from all over England exchanged ideas and cre-atedtheirowneducationalsystemsandarchitecturalpropos-als,independentofamainorganisation.ThegatheringwasrepeatedinHullthenextyearbutunfortunately,theSACwasdissolvedin1981.
Themomentumdidnotdissipatehowever,anditsframeworkwasrecycledintheformoftheWinterSchools,oneofwhichwasheldinAnson’snativeLiverpool.TheWin-ter School was such a success that the students, amongthemRichardMurphy,decidedtoinvitestudentsfromaroundEuropeandEnglandtoinvestigateandproposesolutionstotheurbandecaythenravagingthecity.Thisorganisedgath-ering,voidofanypoliticalagenda,wouldbelaterregardedas the first European Architecture Student Assembly. It was the legacy of an idea which had germinated in the winterschoolsofthelate1970s.
His journeysbroughthim form thepost-industrial collier towns of ThatcheriteEnglandtothewarscarredstreetsofBelfast.ItwasherethatthestoryoftheDivisStreetflats came to the fore. Anson unveiled a woe-fully inadequate housing scheme, wherea British Army base was built practicallyatop the residentsdwellings.Thecasewasbrought to London and received full mediaattentionat the time.Acampaignwas insti-gatedwhichledtoeventualdemolitionofthecomplex.
BrianAnsonhasbeenlivinginFrancesince1991wherehehasbeenpainting,readingandwritinghisviewsonarchitectureanditspossiblefuture.HehasrunaseriesofannualmodulesintheUniversityofBirminghamwherestudentsfromaroundtheworldexchangeviewsandlearnfromBrian’svastexperienceofworkingwithinalocalandcommunityframework.
BrianAnsoncontinuedhiscommunitywork.HewasinvitedbythecommunityofGaothDobhair,Donegaltoproposesugges-tions for the retentionofacultureanda languageundersiegebyineptplanningauthorities.
A dossier was published, outlining co-herentplansforfuturedevelopment.Itwasaplanwhichhadgrown from the rootsof thecommu-nityanddespitehavingalackoftheIrish-Gaeliclanguage,Ansonportrayedadeepandprofoundunderstandingforthepeopleand
theirhistory,withafuturefullofhope.Heen-visionedacommunitythatwouldbecomeselfdependentovertime,utilisingandmobilisingitsinnateskillsandpractices.
It was rejected however, as beingfar too radical. Unfazed,Anson took part intheMobileUnitSchemebetween1983and1986.Hetravelledaspartofateaminacon-verted camper van through Britain and Ire-land,unitingcommunitygroupsandcausinga media flurry where ever he went.
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Richard Murphy founded his practice in 1991. Its early reputation was built on highly crafted and innovative domestic work in the Edinburgh area. The practice has since won an unprecedented 15 RIBA Awards, with Murphy himself going on to be awarded an OBE.
Defining their goals as to make architecture equally of its place and of its time, Richard Murphy architects are currently engaged in work in several European coun-tries and as far afield as Sri Lanka and Japan. Looking equally at careful contextual responses to designing within and adjacent to existing buildings and also constructing new buildings within the contexts of es-tablished landscape and urban patterns, the firm has a reputation for thoughtful, well-crafted works.
Having built extensively in the west of Ireland, Richard Murphy has a unique take on architecture in this land-scape; while Scotland and Ireland have many similari-ties, there are distinct differences between the cultures - striking to those from either culture, subtle to out-siders. Furthermore, coming both from cosmopolitan Edinburgh and an academic background [with distinct reference to his first class research on Carlo Scarpa], his take on the rural west of Ireland is in that semi-tone between insider and outsider, savant and sage.
Text: Hugo LamontPhoto: Roland Nemeth [HU]
Richard Murphy
the winner of more RIBA awards than any other living architect, well-known for his work in the west of ireland and the organiser of the origi-nal EASA gather ing Liverpool, way back in 1981. He was first mooted
Ras a possible lecturer at EASA008 by Fergus Naughton.
Manythoughtthatitwasalittleunrealisticatthetime,andperhapsunnecessarytoinvitean-other architect, specifically one from outside Ire-land,tolecture;wealreadyhadquiteapackedscheduleevenatthatearlystage.
That said,despitehisobviouslypackedcalen-dar,Mr.Murphymadetheeffort toreplytooure-mails, albeit through his personal assistant.Simplecourtesies like thisbecamecurrency inthe EASA Ireland office as to how we viewed our prospective guests and lecturers, and despiteseveral scheduling difficulties that led to mul-tiple flights being purchased and changed and purchasedagain,weweredetermined thatwewouldgetMr.MurphytoEASA008.Luckilywehadagreatdealofhelponhissidefromhisveryefficient P.A. Kathy Jowett whom we became veryfamiliarwithoverthemonthsofrearrangingschedules.
We were fortunate that Mr. Murphy has suchfondmemoriesofEASA.Asheoftensaidhim-selfduringtheevent,hewasamazedthatitwasstillgoingon,buthewasproudtoseethatthislittle“baby”ofhisthathehadstartedmorethanaquarterofacenturyagowasstillthrivingand
ichard Murphy is one of the most highly regarded architects in Britain,
becomingyearlymoreambitious.Some-thingthatstruckmeafterwardsaboutthiscomment was that everyone who hasorganised an annual event, in this casespecifically speaking about EASA, must feel like this. EASA essentially breaksdown and reforms itself every summer.Every year the organisers are startingfromscratch–newlocation,newtheme,newpeople,nomoney... theonly“con-stant”isafewheldoverparticipantsfromotherevents.
Thatsaid,we recogniseandare franklyamazed that itcouldbe runatall in thedaysbeforetheinternet,Skypeandbud-getairlines. It’sclear thata lotof thingshave changed since then, and not justthe technology: the buccaneering spirit,independent mindsets and commitmenttoexplorationand change thatwere re-quiredtorunthistypeofeventinturnoftheeightiesBritain–freshfromathree-day week, under Thatcher rule, on thebrinkofwar in theFalklandsandat theheightoftheColdWar–hasclearlybeensoftenedbyyearsofeconomicplenty....
LecturesDorothy initially came to talk about
her work and its relation to bodies and space. This talk was particularly geared
toward the workshop Extended Me, whom she later invite back, amongst
others, to her studio and even take them fishing on her own boat!
Text: Hugo Lamont & Billy MooneyPhoto: Jurrien van Djuikeren [NL]
Dorothy Cross Dorothy Cross is one of Ireland’s pre-eminent artists and is known worldwide for her challenging (at times uncomfortably so) and diverse work ranging in media from sculpture to photography, video and installation.
BorninCorkin1956,shenowbothlivesandworkinTully,nearLetterfrack;hernewstudiowasrecentlydesignedandbuiltbyMcCulloughMulvinArchitects.Shecametowidespreadattentionandacclaimwhenshebeganaseriesofworksfeatur-ingcowskinsandcows’udders. Inherart sheamalgamatesfoundandconstructedobjects.Theseassemblages invariablyhave the effect of reinvigorating the lives of everyday things,sometimeshumorous,sometimesdisturbing,alwaysintellectu-allystimulatingandphysicallyarresting. Hermostrecentworkemploystherevelatoryandvoyeuris-tic traitsofvideoandphotography,combining thesewithsculpturalwork,toplaywithwhatisatrisk,onhold,eroticandcurious. Dorothy has had numerous solo exhibitions including a large-scaleretrospectiveatTheIrishMuseumofModernArt in2005.Herworkisincludedinmanypublicandprivatecollectionsworldwide,includingtheArtPaceFoundation,TexasandtheTateModern.
Herenthusiasmandherwillingnesstoget involvedwerearealfillip to the organisers; she is a tremendously charismatic woman andhadastrongimpactonthoseparticipantswhomether.Fol-lowingherlectureearlyinourstayinLetterfrack,shemadeher-selfavailabletoacoupleofworkshops,evenbringingthemtoherstudioandoutswimming.Thisisreallyaboveandbeyondthecallofduty,especiallygiventhefactthatsheisnotespeciallytied-upwitharchitectureorarchitects.Whatalady!
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Michael GibbonsMichael Gibbons’ professional life as an archaeologist began with a year with the Museum of London, part of his university training. “I was able to work on some important excavations in London, includ-ing St Bart’s Hospital and Cannon Street Station. The Museum of London is the best in the world and gave me the best possible grounding in the techniques and methodology of archaeology. It was a joy to work with them at such a high level among world leaders.”Comingback to Ireland,he then landedhis ‘dreamjob’.Heheaded up the Connemara field team undertaking the Galway ArchaeologicalSurvey.“I’dbeendevelopingasortof instinctforfinding archaeological features,” he said. “All through university I had been making finds here in Connemara through my contact withlocalfarmers.” Michaelwas laterchosentobeDirectorof theNationalSurveyProgramme,anappointmentwhichcameaboutbecauseofhisexperienceathomeandabroad-andbecausehewassuccessful. From offices in Dublin, his new, ten strong team pioneered newsurveyingtechniques,includingverticalaerialphotography.“Itwasafabulousteam–verycreativeandwithlotsofgovernmentfunding.”
Professor Maria Pinto-CoelhoProf Coelho first contacted us from out of the ether, informing us of who she was, her involvement in the organisation of EASA 1983 (held in Lis-bon) as well as her intention to get involved with EASA 2008.
Since her days of summer assemblies, she had moved on in her studies to become an expert in the field of architectural lighting, and it was this knowledge ofherswhichshewantedtobringtoLetterfrack.Hervisitconsisted of an opening seminar on lighting, followedby visits to particular workshops (most notable Light-scapes).Alloftheseactivitieswerefurthertothesupplyoflightingequipmentshehadsourcedfortheevent.
5.0 WorkshopsChoosing which workshops would go ahead was one of the most difficult and time consuming of the organiser’s jobs, simply because the standard was so high. We had initially set ourselves a limit of 20 workshops: we felt
that workshops needed at least 15-20 participants to be successful. However, the standard and diversity of proposals - almost 60 - forced our hand to allowing 23. There were simply too many good workshops to leave
out, which is a credit to the tutors who proposed them.
Text: Billy Mooney Photo: Ceren Kilic [TK]
Laura MaysLauraMaysisafurnituredesignerwhooncestudiedat,andnowteachesat,GMITLetterfrackFurnitureCollege.Sheinitially came in the first week to talk about her work, but upon the request of some tutors she returned in the second week tohelpsomeworkshops(ieSmallInterventions,TooCoolforStool)withthedesign,constructionanddetailingofsomeofthemoredevelopedpieces.
Alocalweaverbytrade,herinvolvementwasparticularlygearedtowardstheworkshopDesigningtheInevitable,how-everaswithallcontributors,herskillswereopentoallparticipantsandworkshops.Heractivitiesincludedaseminaronweavingincludingsomeofherownwork,invitingparticipantstoherworkshopandintroducingthetutorsofDesigningtheInevitabletoJoeHogan,whosuppliedthemwithagenerousamountofwicker.
ThetutorsofHUM:ARC[InariVirkaala,AshildAagrenandNooraAaltonen]invitedtwoarchitectsfromArchitects Sans Frontiérestospeakonhumanitariananddisaster-reliefarchitecture.Architects Sans FrontiéresisaNon-GovernmentalOrganisationwhichsharesasimilarethostothemorewell-knownMedecins Sans Frontiérs.Theyareinvolvedwithas-sistingotherhumanitarianeffortsinrefugeecampsandwar-torncommunitiesbyprovidingknowledgeandexpertiseinconstructingtemporarysheltersandinfrastructurefacilties.Theygaveaverywell-receivedopenlectureatLetterfrackandthenactedasvisitingtutorstotheHUM:ARCworkshop.
Rosaleen Coneys
Architects Sans Frontiéres
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These are the real meat of an assembly. They are the placewhere lessonsare taughtand learned, theback-drop tosocialencounters, the thingwhichwillgetparticipantsupearlyhavethemworking late, thereasonwhy lunch isservedwithbreak-fast,thegeneratorofallmaterialslists,thethingsthatmadethewholedamnmessandthethingseveryonewantstosee.
A typical workshop is run from 1-4 tutors who work alongsidewithanumberofparticipantsrangingfrom2-25asdecidedbytheorganisationcommittee.Theprogramme for theeventdic-tatesthenumberofworkingdaysfortheworkshops,ournumberofworkingdayswas9,andthatincreasesto10ifyoufactorforworkshops thatchose toworkon thedaysetaside forexcur-sions.And,muchlikeanycongregationof400youngintellectsfromEurope,workshopscomeinavarietyofsizes,shapes,co-lours, flavours and means.
AlotofthemostenjoyablefacetsofanEASAorexperiential,thatistosaytransitory.Workshopsstandasthephysicalmanifestoflessons learnt, ideashatchedand the timespentof the tutorsandparticipants.FurthermoretheyarethevisualhookforthoseoutsideofEASA–lecturers,supporters,helpers,institutionsandmostimportantlysponsors.Asorganisersitrequiresquitealotofcontemplationandforesighttosuccessfullyfacilitatethework-shopsbefore,duringandaftertheevent.Forexample,twoofour
workshop has specific sponsors and this is something we would stronglyadvocateandmightevengivecauseforbringingbackthedeadlineforworkshopselections.
Themanagementoftheworkshopscanbebrokenintothreedif-ferentstages:
Secondonly to locationandtheme,workshopselection ispar-amount in terms of giving form to the nature and result of anEASA. Deciding from the outset that we wanted to push thequality of workshops, we put in place several changes in thestructureofEASAsoas to reapa larger harvest ofworkshopapplicants.These changes included creating three tutorpacks,countingtutorsasseparatefromanationsquotaofparticipantsandreducingthefeefortutorsto50%oftheirrespectivenationsfees.Needlesstosaythisalsoattractedanumberofshoddyap-plicationsfrompeoplewhojustwantedafreeticket,yet luckilyenoughtheseapplicationsareeasyenoughtospot.
Potentialtutorshadtocompleteourapplicationformandsubmitaposterandanyothergraphicstheysowishedinordertosubmittheirworkshopforapproval.Outofthe60workshopapplicationswereceived(thisnumberwouldhavenodoubtbeenevenlargerwhere it not the competition we hosted as well) we ended upselecting21workshopstoaccompanyourthreepredeterminedworkshops–GreenRoom,LunchBoxandFluxCulture.Unfor-tunatelyduetoproblemsonbehalfof thetutors, theworkshopaDABtation was pulled before the event, giving us a final number of23workshops.
Of our final selection about 60% were straight away winners, with the remainderbeing judicially decidedamongst theorganisingteam.Withtherebeinglegitimatereasonsforpushingbuilt/me-dia/abstract/theoryworkshops,wedecidedthefairestapproachwouldbetostrikeabroadenoughdatumthatcould,intheveryleast,caterforthevaryingtastesof300participants.
Forus, therewasa littleunder fourmonths forback-and-forthcorrespondence between ourselves and the tutors. To be fair,someworkshopsarefairlyautonomousandeasytopredictwhatthey might require. Other workshops did require a lot of pre-EASA management and this was either due to the unrealisticscale/ambition of some workshops, or as a result of a lack ofinformation and a lack of identifiable competence on behalf of therespectivetutors.
Duringthisperiodtutorswillneedtobeinformedaboutstandardmaterial specifications and sizes, availability of materials, work-ing locations,potential spaces for interventions,and theavail-abilityofskilledtechnicians/craftsmenetc.Someweeksbeforethe event we released all of this information in our documentTutorpack2.0.Wealsofoundthatwehadtoquellsomeofthesillierideasfromthesomeofthetutors,aswellasthetendencyfor some tutors to forget about EASA amidst their exams andholidays,somethingtobeverymuchfoughtagainst.
Intheendthough,what’simportantisthatboththeorganisationteamandthetutorshaveanunderstandingoftheworkshops’ac-tivitiesbeforetheeventbegins.Tothisend,onemainorganiserwasassignedthepositionof‘workshopguy’toliasewithalloftheworkshops,outsideofthethreepre-determinedones.
Tutor Correspondence
Workshop Application and Selection
Workshops
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The workshops are not only vital to the success of the Summer Assembly where they are carried out, but also to the organisation and future Assemblies: sponsors react extremely favourably to well-carried out, well-documented and well-presented workshops, and each year the uphill struggle for sponsorship is renewed in the next host country. Beyond EASA, it’s always great to have something a little different that you’ve enjoyed working on and are passionate about in your portfolio.
Photo: Roland Nemeth [HU]
Workshops
During the assembly several responsibilities fell to the work-shopsteam–materialsupplyandprovision,tool/equipmentsup-ply and provisionAND supervision, planning workshop eventswithtutors,securinglocalspermissionforinstallationsandmore.Astherewasalreadyin-placetheroleof‘workshopguy’,itwasaeasytransitionforthatpersontobecomemanagerofthework-shopsteam,withtwoorthreerevolvinghelpers.Asittranspired,tutorswereverypleasedwith this systemofhavingoneclearand identifiable person to liase – a noted improvement on previ-ousyears.
Mostworkshopsranrelativelysmoothly,thanksinahugewaytotheLetterfrackHardwarewhosuppliedmanyoftheitemswehadforgotten tosupplyourselves.Furthermaterial runsweresub-jecttoatripGalway,thenearestmajorcity,whichunavoidablymeanttutorshadtowaitatleastoneortwodays.Onethingtoalwaysbewatchfulforismaterialtheft,basicallytutorsstealingmaterialsclearlymarkedforotherworkshops.Thisisasregret-tableasitislikely,andverydisappointingconsideringthattutorsknowbetterandwillcomplainforprettymuchthewholeday ifsomebodydoesittothem.Tutormeetingswereagoodplatformtotackletheabovementionedissues,andintheendwehadtwotutorsmeetingandtwojointtutor/NCmeetings.
Onethingwhichwaspoorlyhandledwasthefactthattools,sta-tionary and materials were placed in three separate locations–andwewouldstronglysuggesttofutureorganiserstoconsidercreatingonebigdepottostoreeverything.
2007.11.09 Releaseoftutorpacks2008.03.23 Workshopsubmissionsdeadline2008.04.04 Workshopsselected2008.07.16 Releaseoftutorpack2.02008.08.01 Workshopspromotionalposterdeadline2008.08.11 WorkshopFair2008.08.23 Finalexhibitionandpresentation
Workshop Management Before and After the Assembly
Key Workshop Dates
Tutor’s DescriptionConstruction and research workshop exploring
the use of straw-bale construction techniques.
Photo: Varoslav Yakovlev [UA]
Adapt-a-bale
Tutor: Dermot Ryan [IRL]
Focusingonstrawbaleconstructiontechniques,thisworkshopturnedouttobeasurprisepermanent pavilion. The final result of the workshop was a bird watching shelter located in Conne-maraNationalPark.Thedisastrousweatherconditionscoupledwiththenecessityfordryweatherconditionswhenworkingwithbalesmeantweinitiallyhadsomemisgivingsaboutthepotentialsuc-cessofthisworkshop.
However, these adverse conditions were no match for the tutor, the participants, the determina-tion and the very visible camaraderie of Adapt-a-bale. We cannot stress enough how munificent the ConnemaraNationalParkwasintermsofprovidingalocationaswellasdailytransportingofpeopleandmaterialsandtakingonthepost-EASAworkofapplyinglime-rendertoweatherproofthebales.FromourpointofviewitwasreallypositivetogivebacktoLetterfrackinasmanymeaningfulwaysaswecould.
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Tutors’ DescriptionWhat, where and why is festival space?
Adapt-a-lab workshop was divided into three stages:- analytical and theoretical part, - creation and designing, - practical and hand-made
Using the rural landscape as inspiration, mountain slope as natural auditory, landscape view as a background,we examined individual and mass needs during the festival according to Maslov’s Pyramid of Human Needs. For every need there is an architectural solution: the end of the week task was to design the festival structure.
Adapt-a-lab
Tutors: Justyna Juchimuik [PL], Michal Golanski [PL], Anna Sochocka [PL]
Festival architecture, and the effects of mass temporary influxes ofpeopleintoruralareaswerethetopicsofthediscourseofthiswork-shop.Theendresultoftheworkshopwasabuiltpavilionwhichper-formedasaseatingareaaswellasacoveredlitwalkway.Intermsofparticipant involvement and engagement this workshop stands as agreatexample–participantsengaged in the full remitofdiscussion,research, sketching, model making, mockups and a final 1:1 built end product.
Tutor’s DescriptionExploration of weaving techiques and craft – a
continuation of Sophia Sturge’s basket-making tradition in Letterfrack.
Photo: Sasa Grucic [SLO]
Tutors: Jerica Suverle [SLO] and Sasha Grucic [SLO]
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Designing the InevitableThisworkshopwasadiscourseinweavinginarchitecture,pickinguponthehistoryofthetechniqueinthearea.Thetechniquewas explored through small experimental pieces, items of furniture and finally a house shaped installation in a meadow (installed inconcertwithworkfromtheLightscapesworkshop).Thematerialsusedvariedfromrubbercordsandbandstofabric,wiresandcables,rope,wickerandevenbinlinerbags.ThisworkshopwasaidedbytheinvolvementofRosaleenConeys,materialsfromJoeHoganandconstructionworkfromDavidBeirne–formerstudentofGMITLetterfrackfurniturecollege.
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Tutor’s DescriptionAn investigation of natural and artificial light through installations in the Connemara landscape.
Photo: Ceren Kiliç [TK]
Lightscapes
Tutors: Rune Boserup [DK] & Steffen Impgaard pedersen [DK]
Lightwas,ratherunsurprisingly,themainfocusandmaterialofthisworkshop.Startingwithsmallexperimentsmadefromcerealboxes,the workshop ended up with a series of 1:1 built installations, orlighthouses,whichshowedthepropertiesofnaturallightduringtheday, and the effects of artificial lighting during the night. Some of theseinstallationswerelocatedatanearbylakewhichmeantfromonourbehalftransportingtheconstruactions,whilstalsoremovingtheexperienceofthelightingeffectsfromtherestoftheEASAparticipants.Ultimatelythough,thelocationwaswellselected,asseeninthephotographs.ThisworkshopwasaidedbytheinvolvementofProf.CoelhoandthematerialsponsorshipofCrescentLightingCo.
Too Cool For Stool
Tutors: Alexsandr Popovic [SER] & Mirjana Uzonovic [SER]
Hostingtheassemblyinafurniturecollegeinevitablymeantthatcertainwouldbefurnitureorientated–cueTooCoolForStool,AstoolmakingworkshopaimedatmixingtraditionalBalkanstoolmakingwithIrishtech-niques. All stools were made with no metal fixings or pieces and were madewitheitherOSB,MDForOak.Perhaps limited invariationandscale,thestoolsservedasacolourfulandoftentimesusefuladditiontotheEASAcamp,andsomewerebroughthomebytheBelarussians!
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Adopt The Green
A research workshop where participants explored the effects of diversescalesonaruralvillagesuchasLetterfrack.Fromatheoreti-cal stance this workshop resonated strongly with the theme for ourevent–{adaptation}.Potentialscenarioswerediscussedandexploredthroughsmall-scaleartisticendeavours.Thisworkshopwasaidedbythe material sponsorship of Office Depot.
Tutors: Iva Marcetic [CRO] & Pavle Stamenovic [SER]
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Tutors’ DescriptionExploration of light and space, with lectures, model-making, digital modeling and photography exercises.
Photo: Sandor Lilienberg [HU]
Tutors: Daniel Domolky [HU], Sandor Lilienberg [HU] & Anders Csiszer [HU]
Thenamesaysitall.Participantswererequiredtousemodelmakingasamediumtoexplorelightandspace.Thesemodelswerephotographed,scalewasaddedthroughphotoshopandparticipantsweretocreatetheirownA2postershowcasingtheworktheyundertookduringtheassembly.Therewasanemphasisonhighqualityphotosandhighqualitybuildingmaterials,manyofwhichweresponsoredbyModulor.
Light & Space
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Tutors’ DescriptionDesign and one-to-one realisation of small but useful interventions that will address the context and benefit the community.
Photo: Arvid Wolfel [GER]
‘SmallInterventions’wasbyfarthemostcommontypeofworkshopapplicationwereceived.Needlesstosaynotallcouldbepicked,andselectingthisworkshopwasano-brainerastheworkshopandthetutorhadproventheirmettlemanytimesbefore–notthatwewouldeveradvocatepreferentialselection–andneitherfailedtodeliverduringEASA2008.
Theethosofthisworkshopistodesignandbuildsmallpieceswhich, when put in place, would serve to benefit the lives of people inverysubtleandintelligentways.Thereisafocusongooddetailing,yetthemostimportantproductistherealisationontheparticipants’behalfthattheycanactuallymakesomethingoftheirown design. The final interventions include a swinging seat with accompanyinghangingbookcase,phoneboothaccessories,awaitingplatformforthirstypuntersandtheconversionofawallintoawalkway.
Small Interventions
Material Adaptable JouerThis workshop was an exploration of material properties through both digital and physicalexperiments.Thematerialofchoicewascardboard–whichwasinitiallytestedinsmallscalemodelsbytheparticipants.Digitalmodellingwascarriedoutinthesoft-warepackageRhino,aformatwhichallowedfortheeasymanipulationofparametersofthemodel.
The final installation was first modelled in Rhino, and then made real - a hanging scul-turinggoingfromthegroundtoaoverheardstairwell.Thisworkshopwasaidedbythematerial sponsorship of Smurfit Kappa.
Tutors: Fillipo Lodi [IT] & Kyriakos Chatzyparaskevas [GR]
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Tutors: Julie Bart [FR] & Heloise Cousin
Similar enough to Small Interventions, this workshop focused on creating additions/interventions/pieces which would be of benefit to the participants of EASAandhelpwithsiteamelioration.AdaptorsareXSstructuresdesignedandbuiltduringtheassemblyfurthertoanalysisoftheEASAcampandparticipantsneeds.Finalpiecesincludedplay-fulsculpturesandamockbeachtoremindpeopleoftheneverseensun.
Make Your Adaptor
reppThebestwaytodescribewouldbethroughthetutors’ownwords“A research/interven-tion workshop in three steps: identification of patterns found in local crafts, design or architecture, reinterpretation into patterns of modern recycled materials. Presented on a large scale room divider as 3D wallpaper or decorative cladding solutions.”
Tutors: Jurrien van Djuikeren [NL] & Inara Nevskaya [RU]
reppThisworkshophadthreelargepanels
(2mx2m)constructedbeforetheassembly,whichhadmetalpanels
appliedtoonesidebythelocalblack-smithJohnMortimer.Magnetswere
usedtocreateexperimentalpiecesofthemetallicside,whereasthetimberface played host to the final graphics
which reflected local wall building and bogcuttingtechniques.Thiswork-
shopwasaidedbytheworkofJohnMortimerandthematerialsponsorship
ofForbo.
repp
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Tutors’ DescriptionExploring the nomad as an architectural methodology, participants will design and build a component system for flexible, interactive, fun and beautiful structures.
Photo: Arvid Wolfel [GER]
Tutors: Paul Farrell [UK] & Georg-Christoph Holz [GER]
Nomadic InstamaticNomadic InstamaticUsingthenomadasanarchitecturalmethodology,severalcompo-nentswerecreatedandmovedtovariouslocationstodocumenthowtheywouldreacttotheirnewsurroundings,whilstalsoleavingnotracebehindintheiroldenvirons.Workrangedfromdiscussion,to model making, to the building of 1:1 components and finally to the‘dot….to….dot’event.Thiseventinvolvedalargeamountofparticipantscarryingthecomponentsupintothenationalpark,oc-casionallystoopingtosetupcampandenjoysome‘refreshments’.
Oneoftheworstill-effectsoftherainwasthatitforcedparticipantstoworkindoors,renderingthesitealmostinnocentofenergyoractivityduringworkinghours.Asorganisers,itwasgreattoseeworkshopslikethisbravetheelementsandstillproduceanexcel-lentworkshop.
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Lunch Box
Connemara West had expressed interest in some sort of permanent pavilion from an early stage. This tied in nicely with our hopes for a lasting testimony to EASA in Letterfrack and indeed Ireland. There had been talk of a covered out-door space as a focal point for summer events, but the brief had never become anymore defined than that. Given the location and skills available at an EASA, this pavilion would also be built in timber.
WiththisinmindwedecidedtoputittoagroupofyoungIrisharchitectstoleadtheworkshop.Youmightcallthisinsider-trader,butwehadalreadylaunchedthe‘GreenRoom’competitioninEuropeandfeltthatweneededclosecontactandcontroltosuccessfullyrealisethispavilion.Itwouldalsobevitalthatthetutorsbefamiliarwiththesensitiveenvi-ronsofLetterfrack.
InlateFebruaryDermotReynolds,RonanCostel-loeandJoeMacMahonwereaskedtotakeonthechallenge.Outsideofthevagueaforementionedparameters,itwasacarteblancheintermsofdesign.Allthreewereclosefriendswithmembersoftheorganisingteamthroughoutcollege,soweknewtheyhadthecapability!Havingagreedtotakeiton,theydeveloped up their ideas outside of office hours and by early Aprilhadworkedupaseriesofprototypemodels,drawingsandsketches.
Ronan’sfatherisamastercabinetmakerwhorunsaworkshopinKilkenny.Heenabledtheladstobuilta1:50timbermodelwhichwouldactasourthree-leggedseductressgoingintomeetingswithsponsors,consultantsandtheclients,ConnemaraWest.Wewouldalsogenerateallour3Dimagesusingit.
Havingestablishedadesign,weapproachedengi-neersCaseyO’RourkeandAssociates,asoneofIreland’smostprogressive engineering firms. Their enthusiasm and positiv-itytowardstheschemewastremendousandintheendJohnPigott, XXXXX, fully designed and specified our foundations, ironmongeryandsuperstructureonacompletelyvoluntarybasis.WearehugelygratefultoJohnandCORAforthis.
Themaincomponentsofthepavilionwerenowclearand after a bit of persecution, the organisers had a specification listwithwhichtoapproachsponsors.
DavidO’FlynnofEcocemwasextremelygenerousingivingusthreecubicmetersofXXXXXconcreteinpartnershipwithMcGrathsQuarriesinCong,Co.Galway.Thiswouldgotowardsgroundworks,whichneedtobecompletenolessthanfive days in advance of taking fixings.
Throughatimberhaulier,wetrackeddownasetofglulammemberswhichwerelyingfallowinawarehouseinLimerickfollowingtheclosureofafactory.Althoughabitoldand superficially scruffed, they were still very much structurally soundasC24classtimbers.Thisallowedustoacquirethesuperstructureforathirdoftheoriginallyquotedprice.
PatRynnEngineeringmadeupthreelargegal-vanisedsteelshoestoholdtheuprights.ThanksmustgotoColomboandhismenforgettingtheworkdoneontimeandataveryreasonableprice.
Bauderhadbeenintalkswiththeorganisersforanumberofmonthspreviously.Theywerekeentoshowcasetheir sedum roofing system as a means of justifying any finan-cialcontribution.Whenthelocationforthepavilioneventuallyfellintoplaceitwouldsuitwellthatpeoplecouldenjoythegreenrooffromtheupperstoreysofthecourtyard.
ScaffoldElevation,ourscaffoldersfortheaccommo-dationtentshadkindlyagreedtoerectthenecessaryplatformsfortheconstructionofthepavilion. Withquotestohandforthesubstantialnumberofbolts,screws,nails,joisthangersandplatesrequired,asup-plierforthetimbercladdingwastheonlyremainingitemtobesourced.Weheldapositionoffalselyassumedsecurityfornearlytheentirelead-inperiod.HavingapproachedasupplierinFebruaryandbeenreceivedwithenthusiasmwefeltwewouldalwaysbeabletocometosomeagreementforthe >>>
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Tutors’ DescriptionThe workshop demanded a lot of preparation and groundwork. Members of EASA Ireland were working during July to lay foundations, a time-consuming exercise but one utterly vital to the long-term success of the pavilion.
Photo: Paddy Roche [IRL]
acquisitionofthistimber.Regretfully,thesupplierdwindledfortwomonthsbeforepullingoutoftheprojectentirelytwoweeksbeforeEASA.
ThankfullyweavoidedanearimplosionbyquicklyresourcingthetimberfromJamesMcMahonbuildingsupplier.Theyagreedanddeliveredtous670mof6”x3”and1100mof2”x3”ofpressuretreated,protimdipped‘whitedeel’overthecourseofthebuild,inatotallyuncomplicatedfashion.
Thesponsorshipmissionpushedon,whileinLetter-frack,ConnemaraWestwerestillunsurewhethertheywantedthispavilionatall.Initiallythereweretwositesputforwardforconsiderationandtheschememeasuredupasa6metrecube.Our first few sorties into the boardroom were met with a degree ofindignation.Therewerereservationsoverscale,siteandfunction, the first two of which were absolutely justified. Func-tion-wiseitwasnecessarytoconveythesculpturalandspacialmeritsofthepavilioninordertooffsetit’sunobviouspracticalityanduse.
OnceagainJanetO’Toolewasourbastionofsupportduringthetoughearlymeetings;“i’msurewecouldgrowtolikeit”,wastheglimmerthatkeptusatitinJune.TheJulyboardmeetingwasourlastopportunitytogetthegreenlight.
Thecourtyardwassettledasthelocation.A1:500contextmodelwasbuildtoaccompanyanA1presentationboard,whichincludedsketches,drawings,3Dmontages,alandscapingproposalandanindicationofagatingsystemtoalleviatecon-cernsoveritbecomingagatheringspaceforantisocialyouths.OnThursdaythe24thofJulyapresentationwasmadetotheBoardofConnemaraWest.Havingdealtwiththeconcernsoverscaleandlocation,theBoardcamearoundandtoourmassivereliefthepaviliongotthegoahead!
Thelastremainingobstaclesatthispointwerethethreedilapidatedprefabssituatedinthecourtyard.Thephrase‘last-minute’woulddescribealmosteverystageofthisprojectandtheprefabremovalwasnodifferent,excavationswerebeingdugandscaffoldingerectedasthelastprefabshellwascranedoutbytheveryagreeableMichaelLong.
Withallthecomponentstohand,werequiredprofes-sionalexpertiseandsupervisiontolaythefoundationsanderecttheglulamsuperstructure.ADITgraduateandCorkmanwithconsiderablymoresiteexperiencethananarchitectshouldhaveat27camedowntooverseethegroundworks.AnditwasthankstoCormacMurphythatthisphasewentoffextremelywell.
MattieO’MalleyofO’MalleyTimberinWillford,Co.GalwayverykindlypreparedalltheglulamsoffsiteandtransportedthemtoLetterfrackintimeforerectiononWednes-daythe12thofAugust,atwhichpointtheworkshopteamhadassembled.Mattie,thetutorsandtheparticipantsgotthroughanawesomeamountofworktoerecttheentireframeonthatfirst day, in torrential weather conditions. In many ways this set thepaceforalloftheworkshopsasthemostcentralandvisiblepieceoncampus,providingaliftinwhatwasanextremelytoughcoupleofdaysintherain.
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Hard at workOne of the most encouraging and important
aspects of the workshop was the drive that tutors and participants showed in the early days in
Letterfrack. The weather was absolutely appalling, but everyone in the workshop was up and hard at work. It showed everybody else that the weather
was no excuse for skipping workshops: these guys were out in the rain, doing hard physical work all
day. Most people had it a good deal easier than them, so it was a reminder that it was important
just to get down and do it.
Tutors: Dermot Reynolds [IRL], Ronan Costelloe [IRL] & Joe MacMahon [IRL]
Theworkshoptutorsleadtheirspiritedandcommit-tedparticipantsextremelywell,withDermotastheeverpresentdirectorofproceedings.NoneofthethreetutorshadeverattendedanEASA,buttheyseemedtoadjustwelltotheenvi-ronment,representingwellbothonandoffsite.SvenHaber-man,DavidBeirneandourfriendsatLetterfrackConservationCenter,cameinandputdripsonabout400metresoftimber,whichwasimmenselyhelfulandimportant.FurtherinjectionsofmanpowerfromMattieandCormac‘NailGun’Murphywerecrucialingettingitovertheline.Alaterallyfromanexpandedteamsawthepavilioncompletedandthesiteclearedintimeforthe final dinner and presentation.
Foreveryoneinvolvedthiswasamassivelyambitiousandrewardingworkshop.AlthoughthereliefofgettingallthebitsandpiecesreadyfortheAssemblymayhavefeltlikethepavilionwasboundforimmanentcompletion-itwasfarfromthecase.Thiswasamassivelylabourintensivebuild,andfor24,largelyunskilledpeopletocompletethepavilionontime,wasextraordinary.
Specialthanks(participantsnames)Dermot,RonanandJoeCormacMurphyMattieO’MalleySvenandDavid
CharlesLynch(GalwayCountyandCityEnterpriseboard)DavidO’Flynn(Ecocem)Keith(McGrathsQuarries)XXXXXXXXXXX(JamesMcMahonLtd.)FrancieThornton(Bauder)Basil(GalwayFastnerCentre)Columbo(PatRynnEngineering
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Kraftka
Tutors’ DescriptionConstruction of a pavilion inspired by the writings of Franz Kafka. Spatial, acoustic,
visual and tactile sensation will disorientate the user.
Photo: Dijana Omeragic [FYROM]
Tutors: Dijana Omeragic [FYROM], Chris Maloney [UK] & Gizem Candemir [TK]
By far one of the more original and authentic workshop entries, Kraktka was a workshop se-lection which in no way disappointed. To goal of Kraftke was to build a pavilion which would embody an architecture of disorientation, provocation, “the use of absurdity in a way to change
people’s perception” and other feelings relevant to the work of Kafka. Theworkshopwassplitintothreegroups,whichmeantwehadtoprovideanumberofdifferentworkinglocationsforKraftka.Theconstructionteamtookcareof,well,construction.TheTV/DVDcrewmadeshortloopmoviesbasedonthethemesofclaustrophobiaandagoraphobiawhilstthetechnologyteamworkedonLEDs,photosen-sorsandcircuitboarding– luckilyoneof the tutorshadaworkingknowledgeofcircuitrywhichmeantthisaspectworkautonomouslyandnotdemandmuchfromourselves.Kraftkawasablandofcon-struction,theory,mood,ambianceandasideoftechnologynotseenoftenenoughwithEASAworkshops.
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Tutors: Frederik de Smedt [BEL]Nil Aynali [TK]Eros Laini [IT]Alper Deringboraz [TK]
This was by far one of the best built workshops at EASA 2008, or any other EASA, frankly! The huge ambition of the workshop was met with an equal measure of work ethic, determination and capability on behalf of the tutors and participants. Zauna was a built and fully functioning sauna, complete with chimney, stove, cedar cladding, insulation, water-proof membranes, ventilated cavities and structural frame. The Zauna is also of adequate size and shape to be transported on the back of a flatbed truck.
From an organisers point of view this was at times a trouble-some workshop, and a slight risk as a choice as we had alreadytakenonseverallargescalebuiltworks.Therewasaconstantback-and-forthrelayofinformationbetweenourselvesandthetutors,dis-cussingmaterialsandforevertryingtoreducethescaleandambitionof the workshop (the original was twice the size and made with asteelframe).
Even during the assembly there were gripes over added materialcosts, thesewerecompoundedby the fact thatZaunawasavery,very expensive workshop. However the quality of the final work made itallworth-while.Thisworkshopwasaidedbythematerialsponsor-shipofMcMahonbuildingsuppliersandIrishHardwoods.
Zauna
The participants of Flux Culture were: Mark Campbell (UK); Umit Mesci & Derya Aguday (Turkey); Kristin Magn-berg (Germany); Tinatin Gurgenidze (Georgia); Francesco Javier Rodriguez Perez & Victoria Labadie (Spain); Elisa Maceratini, Vito Leonardo Del Negro, Paolo Murmura, Virginia Lombrici and Andrea Bentivenga (Italy); Erhan Oze (Cyprus); Hilla Maria Rudanko and Lennart Lang (Finland); Loosy Davoo-dian (Armenia); Gleb Vitov and Nadia Kulakova (Russia); Ross Millaney, Laura Collins, Leanne Martin & David Walsh (Ireland); Edwin Gardner (Neth-erlands); Christina Boss Mortenson (Denmark); Elsa Deconchat (France); Elena Antonopoulou (Greece).
There is a movement of people in Europe - individuals and families re-locate from country to country, city to city, in pursuit of their version of hap-piness - be it climate, security, education, society or material wealth. There is a new culture of movement and migration made possible by open borders, market conditions and advances in transportation. There is a population con-stantly in flux – there is a flux culture.
Flux Culture is the title of an experimen-tal workshop for 26 participants that will be organisedby EASA Ireland, instructed and managed by Ronan McCann,but ledby theparticipants themselves.This think-tankaimstodealwithanissuethateffectspeopleallovergreaterEurope.TheeffectsofImmigrationandEmigrationon our nation states are well documented, our seminaraims to deal with the effects of this phenomenon on thebuiltenvironment:ourregions,cities,neighbourhoodsandbuildings,fromthepointofviewofyoungacademicsinthefields of architecture and urbanism.
In Dublin, the group will view first-hand the posi-tive contributions immigrant populations havemade to urban life and discuss the problemssuchcommunitiesencounter.InConnemaratheparticipants will research, discuss and debatethephenomenon.Theparticipantswilladdresstheissueatavarietyofscales.Onamacro-Eu-ropean level, thegroupwill lookatareasof inandout-migrationgeneratingnewmapsofun-derstanding in theprocess.At thescaleof thecity, participants will develop new frameworksandinvestigatethepossibilityofnewtypologiesastheyexaminethenewmigratorylifestylesofmanyEuropeans.
Tuto
r
ThinktankFlux Culture
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Ronan McCann
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Tutors’ DescriptionAn exploration of the very basic relation
between body and space, challenging con-ventional beliefs of how the surroundings
adapt to the body and vice versa.
Photo: Roland Nemeth [HU]
he theory of the workshop was to alter the standard module of architecture, the human body, so as to document the resultant change in architecture.
Thisprocessinvolvedthecreationofprosthetics,deviceswhichalteredonesper-ception of the world and placing the body insituations alien to it.Workinga lotwithDoro-thyCross,theworkshopproducedanumberofsurprisingandexcitingcontraptionsandoccur-ances. ExtendedMewasanextremelyhard-workingandwell-runworkshopwhichproducedextensive work while actively teaching par-ticipantsnewskillsandimprovingtheirexistingskillsthroughone-on-onetutelage. Deemed by all to be a very suc-cessfulworkshop,whichwaspleasingtoknowconsideringalotofwaslostontheorganisingteam.
T
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Tutors: Tine Bernstorff Aagaard [DK], Emilie Bergrem [NO]
Extended Me
TELEology Teleology describes the process of looking for the evidence of design in the world.
Thisworkshopdealtwithfilm making: participants wererequiredtotakepartin24hourmoviemakingtasksallthewhilerecordingadocumentaryofEASAandthecreativeprocessesoftheworkshop.ShotonaHDcamera,theexcellentfootagecapturedverymeasuredsidesoftheassembly.ThisworkshopwasaidedbythesponsorshipofAppleandFinalCutPro.
Tutors: John Murray [IRL] & Gary Gallagher [IRL]
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TELEology
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Tutors: Inari Virkaala [FIN], Noora Aaltonen [FIN] & Ashild Aagren [FIN]
Tutors’ DescriptionA workshop that seeks to address humanitarian issues through architecture, producing an exhibition, documentation or any plausible media that will raise awareness of critical issues.
HUM:ARC Final Presentation Panel, left
HUM:ARC‘Design like you give a damn’ was the mantra for this workshop which focused on humanitarian architecture.Thisworkshopfocusedandresearchanddiscussionanditstoolsfor exploring the topic. Several ‘glocal’ coffee breaks werehosted during the assembly, offering participants a platformto express their views. It must be noted that this workshophadaverysmallsubscriptionintermsofparticipants,only4,however these coffee were forever packed – such was thedrawofthetopic,andnodoubtsomethingmustbesaidforthepresenceofBrianAnsonatmanyofthesediscussions.
Tutors: Kotryna Sokolovaite [LT], Marten Dashorst [NL] & Alkistis Thomidou [GR]Umbrella
ScathBáistiwasadailybulletinsheet containing news, stories, interviewsand weather forcasts. EASATV was a bi-dailybroadcastcontainingfunnyshortsandindepth looksatworkshops.EASARadiowasoriginallyintendedtobeafull-timeradiobroadcast,howeverthisaspectofUmbrellawas closed early due a lack of sufficient in-frastructureandinterestintheworkshop.
The longest running workshop of EASA, Umbrella is an in-house media outlet for spreading the news and events of EASA to all participants. 2008 marked the most ambitious year for Umbrella, taking on the three facets of TV, radio and print.
This was most regrettable anddue in-part to our misinforming the tutorat an early stage.Thanks must be giventoConnemaraCommunityRadiowhoal-lowed us to play a 15 segment over theairwayseveryday.
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Tutors’ DescriptionResearch workshop addressing the digitalisation of our world and in particular the architectural profession - exploring both the potential and the pitfalls.
A Tutor: Luis Hilti [CH]Aresearch/discussion/theorybasedworkshopaimedatproposinganswersandsolutionstoprob-lemsthrownupbythedigitalrevolution.
Issues of a humane level related to architectureandthebuiltrelam,suchasisolation,community,networks etc, were offered through the adaptivere-useofoldermodelsorthecreativeinventionofnewones.Thisworkshopwasaidedbythemate-rialsponsorshipofModulor.
rchitectural Answers to the Digital Revolution
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The Green Room
TutorsAn exploration of the very basic relation
between body and space, challenging con-ventional beliefs of how the surroundings
adapt to the body and vice versa.
Photo: Roland Nemeth [HU]
When we first approached the competition, we did so with a traditional EASA approach to have a built pavilion, a lasting testament to the event. As the project developed, we came to the agreement that while we want to build a pavilion in Letter-frack, we didn’t want the design to be subject to a competition. The unique setting of Connemara is difficult to convey through a brief, and in any case we didn’t have the human resources to de-velop a detailed design in the short time period we had left.
This agreement did not detract for the opinion that we should run a competition.The competition was set up as a carrot to attract sponsorsintosupportingEASA,whetherdirectlyorindirectlythroughthecompetitionitself.
RunningconcurrentlytotheorganisationofEASAwastheplanningofthePassive and Low Energy Architecture (PLEA) International conference,scheduledtotakeplaceatUCDtheOctoberfollowingEASA.Itwasagreedwiththeco-ordinatorsoftheconferencethatthepavilionwouldbeputondisplayoutsidetheeventhallandasmallpresentationwastobemadeaspartoftheconference.
ThebriefwasestablishedforalearningspaceforprimarystudentsasitisverytopicalissueinIrelandduetothedreadfulspatialconditionsofmanyschoolsthroughoutthecountry.Wealsousedthecompetitiontopromotea‘green’angleonthethemeof‘adaptation’,somethingwhichwasnecessaryinanincreasinglyeco-awaresociety.
TheGreenRoominstantlybecameoneofthehotcakesonourshoppinglistofevents,workshopsthatsponsorscouldputtheirnameto.Wepersistedwith a sponsorship of €10,000 which we received graciously from Dublin Docklands,withtheconditionthatthepavilionwouldbeputondisplayinthedocklandsafterEASA.
TheBriefwassetoutbytheEASAorganisingteamandtheopeningdatesetas15thofJanuary.Wedidnotwant todelaywith the releaseof thebrief,asitwasoneofourkeyprioritiesaswestartedinto2008.Thebriefitselfwassetout inaverysimpleandlegiblewaysoastomaximisetheunderstandingofwhatwewantedtoachieve.
Tutors: Gustav Backstrom [SWE]Anders Malmberg [SWE]
& Conor O’Brien [IRL]
Onemonthbeforetheregistrationdeadlineonthe18ofMarch,westeppedupourpressdriveandtheGreenRoomfeaturedonmanynewssegments,includingMarkMagazine’swebsiteandpracticallyeveryarchitecturecom-petitionwebsiteontheweb.Wereceived133completedregistrationformsgivingsomeextradaysforlateregistrants.Overall,wereceived53compe-titionentries.Wereceivednumerousquestions,mostnotablyaconversionwithoneReachiousSmith[formerlyknowasReachingSmith]fromChina.
Mostofthequestionswerelegitimateandthequestionsandanswerswerepostedonthewebsite.
Adjudicationtookplaceaspromisedwithintwoweeksofthecompetitiondeadline.Thejuryeventualchose‘WYSIWYG’asthewinner.Fromthejuryreport:
Afterinformingthewinningproposal,theteamsetabouttodevelopaframeworkplanforthedetaileddesignofthepavilion.Thiswasalwaysgoing
“This is my first try, but I have a lot of sweep there, so don’t never say I’m not try my best. Some details have been omitted for their weired [sic] functions that occured in my mind during my design period. So, I just want it to be architecture concerned to the extent possible.”
“The winning proposal conveys an invaluable, tech-nology-free lesson to its users; this is the under-standing of a building’s layers and their bearing on a buildings internal environment. It pulls open the ‘traditional wall’ for everyone to see and touch. This idea alone may seem austere and unexciting, but the concept has been enlivened with the use of a series of fun and clever interactive devices.
Many of the components have more than one job within the room. This raises the argument for small numbers of polyfunctional elements against larger numbers of monofunctional ones, as a more suc-cessful means of realising good passive architecture. The purpose of heat retaining thermal mass can be a difficult concept to grasp as it’s a slow and subtle pro-cess. The judges felt that teachers could quite easily illustrate this process in this room.
“WYSIWYG” also breaks the footprint of the freight trailer by proposing an assembly of transportable parts, the construction of which is unquestionably feasible during a EASA.”
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to be difficult as we never managed to get personnel working solelyonthecompetitionasdesired.Anders,oneofthecom-petitionwinners,madeabravedecisiontotakeontheprojectas the practical part of his thesis and flew over to Ireland at the beginningofJulytodevelopthedesignuptoconstructionlevel.
Finetuningthedesign–Adecisionwasreachedamongtheteamtoreplacetheinnerpavilionwithayurt,atraditionalMongoliannomadictentstructure.ConsiderableeffortwentintoconsultingyurtbuildersinIrelandaboutthepossibilityofrun-ningasmalleryurtbuildingworkshopwithinthelarger‘GreenRoom’workshop.However,duetothebusytimeofyearandtherelativeshortnoticenoneofthoseapproachedwereinapositiontocarryouttheworkshop.
Theimportantthingwiththeplanningoftheworkshopsisthateachtaskissetdownbeforetheworkshopstartsup.WithsomemanylittlejobsanddisparatepiecesinvolvedintheGreenRoom,factorinsometimedelaysandmanagementteethingproblems.
Oneofthemajordelaysgettingtheworkshopoffthegroundin the first day was that not all of the timber had arrived on site duetonofaultofourown.Hugeeffortgoesintosourcinganddeliveringmaterialsonsitebeforeeveryonearrives.Insomecases,itisawastedeffortasthematerialmaynotevenbeusedduetoanunforeseenchangeindirectionofaparticularworkshop.However,thiswasnotthecasewiththeGreenRoomasitwasprimaryconstructionmaterialinvolved.Lookingbackatitnow,iftheorderwentintheweekbeforeitdid,alotofunnecessarystresswouldhavebeenavoided.
Asoftimeofprint,TheGreenRoomhasbeensuccessfullyusedbythePrimarySchoolChildrenatLetterfrackPrimarySchool.ItisnowresidentattheUCDSchoolofArchitecturewereitwillbeassembledforthePLEAconferenceinOctober.
Sourcing Materials
Workshop Planning
Workshop Execution
