Form and Function follow Climate

DEPARTEMENT ARCHITEKTUR ETH ZÜRICH BAUTEN/BAUEN – ARCHITEKTURLABOR SCHWEIZ: INTERVIEW 3

Philippe Rahm: ​“Form and Function follow

Climate”

PHILIPPE RAHM INTERVIEWED BY

LAURENT STALDER ​Buildings/building – Swiss Architecture Laboratory (Bauten/bauen – Architekturlabor Schweiz) is a two-year lecture and inter- view series to be held by the Department of Architecture at ETH Zurich. Swiss architects will be invited to explore new trajectories in architecture and urban design in a sequence of lectures. In parallel, interviews will be con- ducted, with excerpts appearing regularly in ​archithese​. The interviews will be published in their entirety in a compilation in book form at the conclusion of the series.

A central premise of your work is that the para- digm shift that took place in Human Sciences in the 1990s has had repercussions also for architecture.

When I graduated in the 1990s, I was initially inter-

ested in the chemical and physical qualities of mater-

ials. I wanted to adopt a position on architecture as

defined by Hegel, namely that architecture, owing to

its materiality, occupies the bottom rung of the artis-

tic ladder, so to speak, subject as it is to weight, the

climate and erosion. However, the implication here

was not simply to think about individual materials in

isolation but rather to understand the connections

that exist between them. My work with my former

firm, Décosterd & Rahm, associés, was thus rooted

from the start in the notion of interconnectedness,

of an eco-system. It rested on the hypothesis that

materials are not isolated from one another but

inter connected by a series of chemical, physical and

biological transformations. For example, the potas-

sium and phosphate found in certain stones nourish

the soil when they decompose as a result of expos-

ure to air or water. Photosynthesis subsequently

allows carbon dioxide and water to metamorphose

as oxygen and glucose. It was on the basis of this

thesis, that we built in 1995 the annexe of a private

88 ​archithese ​2.2010 residence from concrete, the stony aggregates of

which contained the two aforementioned elements.

In eroding over time, the house would replenish

the soil with the minerals that plants need in order to

grow. At the end of the 1990s, following the arrival

of new technologies such as mobile phones and

the internet, there emerged the notion of an elec-

tromagnetic field and hence, the idea that matter is

not only visible but invisible, electromagnetic. From

then on, electromagnetic geography superposed

itself on physical geography. In 1998, also, the first

federal provisions on electromagnetic pollution were

published, to regulate thresholds of non-ionising ra-

diation. Paradoxically, that which came to be called

“information highways” generated smog, just as real

highways do. The field of architecture and urbanism

had thus slid towards the invisible dimension. Sure,

one didn’t know so far (and still doesn’t) whether

or not such dangers are real yet the very notion of

an electromagnetic field opened up a new way of

thinking about space. Space was from this point on

no longer imagined simply as a void, as an absence

defined by walls, floor and ceiling but as a less dense

mass, disconnected, transparent and yet neverthe-

less filled with material; a void invisible to the eye,

certainly, but in which the body was immersed.

The architect’s agenda would thus henceforth encompass not only the domain of the object but in a more general sense, that of the envir- onment?

Yes, absolutely. Actually, I have never been interest-

ed much in new technologies per se or as a means

to generate new forms. I’ve always remained quite

critical of this ongoing virtual, agravic, “paperless”

dematerialisation of architecture. Thus in 1999,

when I was invited to take part in an exhibition

on new technologies in architecture, I proposed a

critical project, the ​hormonal-web​, in which I dem-

onstrated the physical and biological aspects of the

virtual. It was a question of demonstrating that, in spite of digital dematerialisation, a physiological link spite of digital dematerialisation, a physiological link

continued to exist between the computer and the continued to exist between the computer and the

user’s body, by virtue of the screen’s radiation on user’s body, by virtue of the screen’s radiation on

the human eye. the human eye.

This project subsequently developed under the This project subsequently developed under the

name ​i-weather.org​, a sort of climatic cycle for the name ​i-weather.org​, a sort of climatic cycle for the

inter net that develops in time with a 25-hour circa- inter net that develops in time with a 25-hour circa-

dian rhythm linked to the hormone melatonin. dian rhythm linked to the hormone melatonin.

Does scientific progress transform architects’ field of

knowledge? Does scientific progress transform architects’ field of knowledge? Does scientific progress transform architects’ field of knowledge?

Yes. For example, reinforced concrete and steel Yes. For example, reinforced concrete and steel

have totally transformed our conception of space. have totally transformed our conception of space.

These new materials allowed a spatial arrangement These new materials allowed a spatial arrangement

determined by closed, juxtaposed rooms, linked by

a corridor, to be replaced by Le Corbusier’s or Mies a corridor, to be replaced by Le Corbusier’s or Mies

van der Rohe’s free plan, by fluid space. I believe van der Rohe’s free plan, by fluid space. I believe

that knowledge of the physical, electromagnetic and that knowledge of the physical, electromagnetic and

chemical dimensions of space will modify the nature chemical dimensions of space will modify the nature

of contemporary architecture in the same way. of contemporary architecture in the same way.

You define this paradigm shift in architecture as the transition from “physical” architecture to “physiological”

or “atmospheric” architecture. You define this paradigm shift in architecture as the

transition from “physical” architecture to “physiological” or “atmospheric” architecture.

You define this paradigm shift in architecture as the transition from “physical” architecture to “physiological”

or “atmospheric” architecture. You define this paradigm shift in architecture as the

transition from “physical” architecture to “physiological” or “atmospheric” architecture.

You define this paradigm shift in architecture as the transition from “physical” architecture to “physiological”

or “atmospheric” architecture. You define this paradigm shift in architecture as the

transition from “physical” architecture to “physiological” or “atmospheric” architecture.

What do you understand by this? What do you understand by this?

This terminology is part of the language of the This terminology is part of the language of the

manifesto. The discovery of the atmospheric di-

mension of architecture has allowed us to distance mension of architecture has allowed us to distance

ourselves from a Swiss debate that – in the 1990s, ourselves from a Swiss debate that – in the 1990s,

in the wake of Herzog & de Meurons’ first projects – in the wake of Herzog & de Meurons’ first projects –

focussed only on materials’ narrative or symbolic focussed only on materials’ narrative or symbolic

properties. Concentrating on the physiological and properties. Concentrating on the physiological and

consciously excluding from our research all that consciously excluding from our research all that

might have clouded this dimension, allowed us to might have clouded this dimension, allowed us to

apprehend space in a novel, unexpected way, since apprehend space in a novel, unexpected way, since

it was determined by unexplored givens. Thermal it was determined by unexplored givens. Thermal

imaging and x-rays do actually allow space to be imaging and x-rays do actually allow space to be

visualized differently. Light, for example, a classic visualized differently. Light, for example, a classic

element of the language of architecture, has been element of the language of architecture, has been

enriched since the 1980s by a biological dimension, enriched since the 1980s by a biological dimension,

for its intensity and the length of its waves have for its intensity and the length of its waves have

been shown to influence the hormone melatonin. In

consequence, architecture is no longer simply the

expression of the play of light and shade on bodies

and materials but attains a physiological dimension.

Such discoveries opened up a new field of research

with new implications, with unheard-of design ra-

tionales. I called this field “physiological architecture”.

But how can one reconcile this desire for rup- ture with notions that remain on the whole very traditional: such as that of “the atmosphere” so entrenched in Swiss architectural debates of the 1990s?

I see myself as heir to a certain Swiss tradition and

to its interest in questions of ambiance linked to the

materiality of objects. However, my work moved

very rapidly beyond the idea of memory, reference

or analogy in favour of a sensual and immediate per-

ception of the odour, the length of a wave, the level

of humidity. It’s therefore not so much the visual or

semantic dimensions of atmosphere that are central

to my work as the physiological or meteorological di-

mensions, in the primary, literal sense of these terms.

This mistrust of form transpires in another of your postulates. You don’t trace the paradigm shift of the 1990s back solely to the transition from “the physical” to “the physiological” but also to the transition from a concept of architec- ture as a problem of form to that of architecture as a performance issue. What do you under- stand by this?

In the classical tradition, in the work of Vitruvius or

Alberti, the emergence of form seems to be linked

with harmony and symmetry and their relation to the

human body. Then, in Modern architecture, form

becomes the expression of function. It is the body

that deforms space, the length of an arm that de-

termines the size of a kitchen. In the 1990s, with the

emergence of the minimalist “Swiss box”, the ques-

tion of form became linked with materials, with their sculptural qualities and surface. For my part, I was

no longer interested in the building envelope but in

what it contains, no longer in the envelope’s matter

but in that of space: in the void. My first projects

were consequently very “informal”. Then, little by

little, by investigating not only the chemical but also

the physical characteristics of the air – the fact that

warm air rises for example, and the displacement

of humidity – I was able to generate a catalogue of

forms determined by these conditions.

So what you mean by performance in architec- tural terms is control of the interior climate?

Yes. The primary role of the architect is to modify

or adapt a climate to human needs: to raise the

temperature when it is cold, the measure of light

when it is dark. The very essence of architecture

is therefore to create an environment that differs

from the exterior environment, be this in terms of 1 ​Philippe Rahm archi- tectes, Digestible Gulf Stream, 12​th International Architecture Exhibition, La Bienale di Venezia, 2008 (photo: Noboru Kawagishi)

temperature, humidity, air or sound. The notion of temperature, humidity, air or sound. The notion of

climate or atmosphere is thus fundamental to archi-

tecture. I think that ultimately the mass is secondary tecture. I think that ultimately the mass is secondary

to the void. Paradoxically, the history of architecture to the void. Paradoxically, the history of architecture

did not assign this status to it. did not assign this status to it.

Control of the climate is consequently architec- ture’s principal task? Control of the climate is consequently architec- ture’s principal task? Control of the climate is consequently architec- ture’s principal task?

Yes. There’s no other choice. But I wouldn’t use Yes. There’s no other choice. But I wouldn’t use

the term “control”, with its modern, normative con- the term “control”, with its modern, normative con-

notations. I would rather say, that design of the

atmosphere is now the domain of architecture. And atmosphere is now the domain of architecture. And

the new ecological norms accentuate that. Today, the new ecological norms accentuate that. Today,

interior space is insulated to the point where one interior space is insulated to the point where one

can practically heat a house with the flick of a lighter. can practically heat a house with the flick of a lighter.

But this gives rise to new problems such as oxygen But this gives rise to new problems such as oxygen

renewal, evacuation of the humidity that ensues renewal, evacuation of the humidity that ensues

from respiration, or adjustment of temperatures to from respiration, or adjustment of temperatures to

22°, 19° or 16°Celsius, depending on what a space 22°, 19° or 16°Celsius, depending on what a space

89 89

is to be used for. One can see that the exigencies

of sustainable development are causing an increas-

ingly dramatic and fundamental shift in architecture,

from the tectonic to the climatic, the visible to the

invisible dimensions.

The well-tempered environment, a concept de- fined in terms of its mechanical dimension by Reyner Banham in 1969, was the theme of your installation for the Venice Biennale in 2008.

Yes, that’s right. But I discovered the work of the

1950s and 1960s relatively late: the projects of

Yves Klein or Andrea Branzi, for example, or the

theoretical writings of Reyner Banham and Michel

Ragon. Actually, between the 1960s and my project

for the Biennale in 2008, ​Digestible gulf stream​,

Postmodernism served to eclipse this evolution.

By setting up a situation of thermal asymmetry –

convection transfer from a warm pole at 24°Celsius

to a cold pole at 16°Celsius – my project sought to

create a varied thermal landscape. Obviously, in-

habitants’ behaviour changes according to the tem-

90 ​archithese ​2.2010 perature of the space they find themselves in. On

the lower plateau, heated to 24°Celsius, it’s possible

to be naked. The climate is paradisical, summery,

voluptuous. The quest for this type of environment is

inscribed in a long tradition that oscillates between

Monte Verita, Shangri-la, the Golden Age, hippy

open-air events and Arcadia. By contrast, the cooler

temperature of 16°Celsius emitted by the higher

plateau creates a more hostile environment.

It would be interesting to write a “thermal” history

of design and its relationship to the interior climate. In

films of the 1960s, the domestic landscapes in which

skimpily-clad girls dance barefoot on pile carpets

suggest an interior climate of around 23 to 24°Cel-

sius. Following the oil crisis in the 1970s, the interior

temperature drops to 18°Celsius. These changing

conditions lead people to turn down their heating.

They’re obliged to wear heavy woollen sweaters,

even indoors. In the same way, the domestic land-

scape of the 1970s becomes stiffer; it forces people

to stand up, to abandon the floor. Insofar my ​Digest-

ible gulf stream ​is only fifty per cent a 1960s revival; the other fifty per cent is a 1970s revival. Architecture the other fifty per cent is a 1970s revival. Architecture

thus allows for the production of diverse environ- thus allows for the production of diverse environ-

ments, rich in contrasts. It’s possible to totally recre- ments, rich in contrasts. It’s possible to totally recre-

ate a Spanish summer, a Tahitian springtime, a Swiss ate a Spanish summer, a Tahitian springtime, a Swiss

winter, simply by regulating the levels of humidity winter, simply by regulating the levels of humidity

and luminosity, and the position and intensity of heat

sources. Architecture does not simply create spaces sources. Architecture does not simply create spaces

that protect one from wind and rain; it also allows for that protect one from wind and rain; it also allows for

different temporal zones because, in moving from different temporal zones because, in moving from

one space into another, it is now possible to make one space into another, it is now possible to make

a spatial-temporal leap from the south to the north, a spatial-temporal leap from the south to the north,

from daytime to nighttime, similar to that which one from daytime to nighttime, similar to that which one

experiences in Switzerland in winter, when crossing experiences in Switzerland in winter, when crossing

the threshold to enter one’s home. the threshold to enter one’s home.

Which leads to your equation, “form and func- tion follow climate”? Which leads to your equation, “form and func- tion follow climate”? Which leads to your equation, “form and func- tion follow climate”? Which leads to your equation, “form and func- tion follow climate”?

The formula derives from two or three projects from The formula derives from two or three projects from

2005, in which I investigated the interrelation of humid- 2005, in which I investigated the interrelation of humid-

ity levels, temperature, air circulation and arch itectural ity levels, temperature, air circulation and arch itectural

space. It’s based on simple propositions: a human space. It’s based on simple propositions: a human

being emits thirthy grams of humidity per hour when being emits thirthy grams of humidity per hour when

3​ 2

sleeping, simply by breathing, 150 grams per hour

when active, and up to 1500 grams per hour when

taking a shower. Our activities thus contribute to

progressively raising the level of humidity in the air

around us. Consequently, spatial organisation must

be designed in the light of our different activities, in

accordance with various data on the interior climate.

Such data are important when air renewal is control-

led by the double-flux heat exchanger stipulated by

the new environmental norms.

Normally, the architect organises his plan to suit

the proposed functions of a space and introduces a

ventilation system only later. I asked myself if it might

be possible to reverse this proposition, in such a

way that form and function would follow the climate.

In consequence, spaces would no longer be organ-

ised in accordance with functional principles but in

terms of ventilation. The house would literally be

designed on a current of air, going from dry to humid.

That’s the plan for the ​Mollier house project​.

The stratified design of the ​Archimedes House ​at

Vassivière corresponds to the air current that runs

through the building. The project proposes that

one imagines the house in its entirety in the light of

the fact that warm air rises, and distributes various

usages of the house according to the temperatures

they require: thus at the very top of the house,

one finds the bathroom, the living room below that,

the kitchen below that, and the bedrooms on the

ground floor. The circulation of air thus generates a

new spatial organisation, a new typology that closely

complies with Swiss SIA norms. In fact, the latter

recommend themselves that temperatures be vari-

able and reflect inhabitants’ activities.

This climatic as opposed to functional approach

to the project updates the environmental principles

that one finds already in vernacular architecture: 2 ​Philippe Rahm archi- tectes, Domestic Astron- omy, Louisiana Museum, Denmark, 2009 ​(Photo: Brøndum & Co)

3 ​Philippe Rahm archi- tectes, Diurnisme, Centre Pompidou, Paris, 2007 ​(Photo: Adam Rzepka)

4 ​Décosterd & Rahm, associés, Hormonorium, 8​th ​International Architec- ture Exhibition, la Bienale di Venezia, 2002 ​(Photo: Niklaus Stauss)

4

warm spaces have always been south-facing, cold

spaces where milk and other foodstuff were stored

north-facing, dry spaces for hay in the roof space,

and humid ones in the cellar. The defining factor here

was therefore not the purpose of a space but its

temperature. Spaces might equally be multipurpose.

In the inhabited parts of some houses, the room with

a hearth served both as a kitchen and living room

and perhaps also as a place of repose for the elderly.

This independence of form and function is even

more striking in other cases, for example in trad-

itional houses in Baghdad. Rooms there do not have

a fixed function. Rather, their function changes in the

course of the day and the course of the year. Usage

is determined by temperature: the roof may become

the bedroom in summertime, for example. It is no

accident that the names of rooms are linked not to

their function but to different climates.

What is this need you have, to inscribe yourself in an environmentalist discourse? It permeated your writings in recent years and you refer to it here – yet to me, it seems reductive.

It’s a question of contingency. The environmen-

tal concerns that arose shortly before 2005 finally

provided a context for my work on physiological

architecture. Physiological architecture acquires

pertinence in the present framework of sustainable

development and it facilitates a critique of a too

narrow reading of technical or functionalist environ-

mentalism. But sustainable development per se is

of interest to me only insofar as it allows me to find

new forms and new ways of designing architecture.

Every quest for comfort, be it in terms of organ- ising space or, as in your work, the “biological” or even “physiological” dimensions of space, is

linked to the issue of control. As you admit in an interview in the magazine ​ICON​, work on the “physiological” data of a dwelling enables you

linked to the issue of control. As you admit in an interview in the magazine ​ICON​, work on the “physiological” data of a dwelling enables you

linked to the issue of control. As you admit in an interview in the magazine ​ICON​, work on the “physiological” data of a dwelling enables you

linked to the issue of control. As you admit in an interview in the magazine ​ICON​, work on the “physiological” data of a dwelling enables you

linked to the issue of control. As you admit in an

interview in the magazine ​ICON​, work on the “physiological” data of a dwelling enables you

linked to the issue of control. As you admit in an interview in the magazine ​ICON​, work on the “physiological” data of a dwelling enables you

not only to control but also to manipulate fac- tors such as sleepiness, mood, wellbeing and so forth. In that

interview you even use the term “perversion” to describe this potential.

not only to control but also to manipulate fac- tors such as sleepiness, mood, wellbeing and so forth. In that

interview you even use the term “perversion” to describe this potential.

not only to control but also to manipulate fac- tors such as sleepiness, mood, wellbeing and so forth. In that

interview you even use the term “perversion” to describe this potential.

not only to control but also to manipulate fac- tors such as sleepiness, mood, wellbeing and so forth. In that

interview you even use the term “perversion” to describe this potential.

not only to control but also to manipulate fac- tors such as sleepiness, mood, wellbeing and so forth. In that

interview you even use the term “perversion” to describe this potential.

not only to control but also to manipulate fac- tors such as sleepiness, mood, wellbeing and so forth. In that

interview you even use the term “perversion” to describe this potential.

not only to control but also to manipulate fac- tors such as sleepiness, mood, wellbeing and so forth. In that

interview you even use the term “perversion” to describe this potential.

not only to control but also to manipulate fac- tors such as sleepiness, mood, wellbeing and so forth. In that

interview you even use the term “perversion” to describe this potential.

I work on the climate, on climatic parameters, and I work on the climate, on climatic parameters, and

I render them visible, so one might well imagine I’m I render them visible, so one might well imagine I’m

responsible for them. In reality, all I do is exploit new responsible for them. In reality, all I do is exploit new

scientific findings. I didn’t invent this link between scientific findings. I didn’t invent this link between

the hormonal cycle and light. But it happens to exist. the hormonal cycle and light. But it happens to exist.

However, we’re not obliged to biologically manipu- However, we’re not obliged to biologically manipu-

late people just because architecture has gained a

late people just because architecture has gained a

biological dimension. No more than we are obliged biological dimension. No more than we are obliged

to build solid walls simply because we invented to build solid walls simply because we invented

concrete. concrete.

In the ICON interview, I was led by the idea that In the ICON interview, I was led by the idea that

my work ensued from a sort of second perversion.

The first perversion was modernity’s domain since, The first perversion was modernity’s domain since,

as Heidegger so aptly described, it perverted natural as Heidegger so aptly described, it perverted natural

cycles, transformed day into night, winter into sum- cycles, transformed day into night, winter into sum-

mer. This Modernist project is now over. mer. This Modernist project is now over.

In ​Diurnisme​, my installation for the Centre Pom- In ​Diurnisme​, my installation for the Centre Pom-

pidou from 2007, I therefore proposed to pervert pidou from 2007, I therefore proposed to pervert

perversion of modernity. It was a double perversion. perversion of modernity. It was a double perversion.

Indeed, while modernity created non-stop daytime by Indeed, while modernity created non-stop daytime by

using city lights to suppress the alternation of day and using city lights to suppress the alternation of day and

night, thereby transforming the shape of cities and night, thereby transforming the shape of cities and

the nature of urban lifestyles (as in night-owls, nightlife, the nature of urban lifestyles (as in night-owls, nightlife,

evenings at the theatre or at balls, etc.), in ​Diurnisme ​I evenings at the theatre or at balls, etc.), in ​Diurnisme ​I

tested continuous night or, to be more precise, a false tested continuous night or, to be more precise, a false

night in false daylight during a real night. night in false daylight during a real night.

It’s a fact that nocturnal pollution disturbs natural

biorhythms. In the daytime, light blocks the human biorhythms. In the daytime, light blocks the human

body’s secretion of melatonin, which influences the body’s secretion of melatonin, which influences the

sleep cycle. By contrast, the body secretes large sleep cycle. By contrast, the body secretes large

91 91

quantities of melatonin at night. In my project I tried

to reintroduce nighttime without re-extinguishing

the light. It was a matter not of retracing steps but of

going a step further. I therefore worked on the length

of those light waves that don’t affect melatonin: the

length of light waves over 600 nanometres, which

show extreme luminous intensity in the oranges/

yellows, like high noon, at 7000 lux. The body’s bio-

logical rhythm is thereby exposed to something like

the nocturnal situation yet in full daylight. Diurnisme

is the creation of a false night in the false daytime of

modernity. ​This approach to architecture – which con- cerns on the one hand the macroscopic scale, that of the environment, and on the other the microscopic scale, that of human metabolism – challenges a whole range of binary relations, for example, the distinction between interior and exterior space, private and public, natural and artificial, human being and machine. What are the consequences for architecture?

One of the most obvious consequences, for ex-

ample, is the transition from an understanding of

the wall as a tectonic element separating interior

and exterior realms to a concept of the wall as

strata. Spaces are defined nowadays by regulations

derived from thermal coefficients: a material with

good insulation properties will have a weak thermal

coefficient of 0.45 for example, another a coefficient

of 0.9, a window one of 1.1. These days, insulation

is assured by adding insulating layers. Instead of

adding one layer to another in a compact fashion,

as in glazing – simple, double, triple glazing – one

can also dilate the spaces between the glazing

layers and make them habitable. One would thus

inhabit a certain thermal coefficient; the space with

the lowest coefficient would be at the centre, that

92 ​archithese ​2.2010 with the highest coefficient on the periphery. In this

way, the borders between inside and outside would

dissolve into different spatial thresholds. One would

no longer know where the interior begins: after the

first layer of glazing, after the second or, perhaps,

only after the third? The interior would be modulated.

It would then be possible to organise pro-

grammes in terms of their thermal coefficients, as I

did in 2006, in my project for the Kantor Museum in

Poland and, in 2007, in a competition for a school at

La Neuveville in Switzerland, where the architecture

was created by adding thermal layers: one level of

insulation for the toilets (which in winter could cor-

respond to a temperature of 15°C), two layers for

the corridors (160), three layers for the hall (180) and,

finally, four layers for the classrooms at the heart

of the building (200). This allows one to reinvest

space with a sense of the passing seasons, to leave

behind the climatic norms and uniformity that cur-

rent recommendations on sustainable development

unwittingly promote.

The architect’s role would hence no longer be simply to question tectonic limits; he would also address the border between the inside and outside of the human body?

That is what I tried to do in my ​Hormonorium ​for

the Swiss pavilion in Venice, in 2002. The exhibition

space put nothing on view. There was nothing to

see. Interaction took place beneath the skin, at the

hormonal level: the light had an effect on melatonin,

the air on erythropoietin.

After that I began to study the relation between

climate and human physiology. For example, I asked

myself, whether the body is able to compensate for

a cold environment by absorbing sugar or proteins:

a process familiar to us in Saint Bernard dogs. 5

Similarly, in Japan one can buy a hot or cold drink Similarly, in Japan one can buy a hot or cold drink

from a vending machine on every street corner: take from a vending machine on every street corner: take

a can of hot coffee to warm oneself up in winter, and a can of hot coffee to warm oneself up in winter, and

the reverse in summer. I often said to myself that the reverse in summer. I often said to myself that

cool drinks in summer from these vending machines cool drinks in summer from these vending machines

are a physiological replacement for cool arcades or are a physiological replacement for cool arcades or

the shade of a tree, and have become as such a sort the shade of a tree, and have become as such a sort

of alimentary portal, or an alimentary arcade – it’s as of alimentary portal, or an alimentary arcade – it’s as

if an alimentary solution has replaced an architec- if an alimentary solution has replaced an architec-

tural solution. tural solution.

So it would be a matter of redefining architec- ture, no longer solely as a tectonic problem but also as a technical challenge – by introducing air-conditioning or light to a situation, for ex- ample – or even as a biological challenge – by acting upon the metabolism? So it would be a matter of redefining architec- ture, no longer solely as a tectonic problem but also as a technical challenge – by introducing air-conditioning or light to a situation, for ex- ample – or even as a biological challenge – by acting upon the metabolism? So it would be a matter of redefining architec- ture, no longer solely as a tectonic problem but also as a technical challenge – by introducing air-conditioning or light to a situation, for ex- ample – or even as a biological challenge – by acting upon the metabolism? So it would be a matter of redefining architec- ture, no longer solely as a tectonic problem but also as a technical challenge – by introducing air-conditioning or light to a situation, for ex- ample – or even as a biological challenge – by acting upon the metabolism? So it would be a matter of redefining architec- ture, no longer solely as a tectonic problem but also as a technical challenge – by introducing air-conditioning or light to a situation, for ex- ample – or even as a biological challenge – by acting upon the metabolism? So it would be a matter of redefining architec- ture, no longer solely as a tectonic problem but also as a technical challenge – by introducing air-conditioning or light to a situation, for ex- ample – or even as a biological challenge – by acting upon the metabolism? So it would be a matter of redefining architec- ture, no longer solely as a tectonic problem but also as a technical challenge – by introducing air-conditioning or light to a situation, for ex- ample – or even as a biological challenge – by acting upon the metabolism?

Exactly. The canned drink is potable micro-archi- Exactly. The canned drink is potable micro-archi-

tecture. tecture.

You’ve contented yourself to date with making installations. You haven’t yet built anything. You’ve contented yourself to date with making installations. You haven’t yet built anything.

I have some interesting projects in the pipeline: resi- I have some interesting projects in the pipeline: resi-

dential and commercial commissions. dential and commercial commissions.

Is that realistic? Your approach is above all else a critical one; it seems little suited to practice. Is that realistic? Your approach is above all else a critical one; it seems little suited to practice. Is that realistic? Your approach is above all else a critical one; it seems little suited to practice. Is that realistic? Your approach is above all else a critical one; it seems little suited to practice.

I don’t think that’s the case. What you call a crit- I don’t think that’s the case. What you call a crit-

ical approach is for me a matter of renewing the ical approach is for me a matter of renewing the

language of architecture. And it is with this new language of architecture. And it is with this new

language that I want to build. language that I want to build.

French-English translation by Jill Delton French-English translation by Jill Delton

5 ​Philippe Rahm architectes, Convective Building, Housing for IBA Hamburg, 2010 ​(image: Philippe Rahm architectes)

6+7 ​Philippe Rahm architectes, Vaporized Building, Office building for EPAD-EPASA La Défense, Paris, 2010 ​(images: Philippe Rahm architectes)

6​7

Philippe Rahm, born in 1967, studied architecture at the Swiss Federal Insitute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) and Zurich where he obtained his degree in 1993. He tought at L’École nationale supérieure de Beaux-Arts Paris, EPFL, Architectural Association London, Accademia di architettura Mendrisio and L’École nationale supérieure d’architecture Paris-Malaquais. Currently he is a guest professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. In 2002, he was chosen to represent Switzerland at the 8​th ​Interna- tional Architecture Exhibition, la Biennale di Venezia. Exhibi- tions at CCA Montreal, MoMA, Bienal de Valencia 2003, CCA Kitakyushu, Mori Art Museum Tokyo, FRAC centre Orléans, Centre Pompidou Paris, Manifesta 7 and Louisiana Humlebæk. He works in Paris and Lausanne.

Laurent Stalder has served as Assistant Professor to the Chair of the Theory of Architecture at ETH Zurich since Feb- ruary 2006. Focal points of his research and published work have been the history, criticism and theory of architecture from the 19​th ​to 21​st ​centuries in Europe and North America.

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