I recently saw a post on archdaily which linked to a list of architectural documentaries on you tube. If you can put up with the dated style of the videos and some awkward pretentious voice-overs then I recommend that you should watch some, you really should. I think I’ve watched about six now and will certainly be watching more.
I particularly liked the documentary about Godin’s Familistère (excerpt of plan above). It’s a visionary early social housing project built by philanthropist Jean-Baptiste Andre Godin (sorry missing some accents in there). Jean-B basically designed an amazingly successful stove and then set about designing a utopian housing project for the droves of people who built his stoves. It had/has a plan of three perimeter blocks with large covered atria, linked at their corners – a single perimeter block being shown in the plan above. Apartments are accessed via walkways which were designed at least 100 years before the Smithsons coined the term ‘streets in the sky. In order to complete his vision Jean-Baptiste re-trained as an architect and detailed everything down to the dimensions of the desks and chairs in the on-site school with varying dimensions for children of different ages- thorough. The fact it looks like a prison and seems a little hostile to today’s sensibilities makes it even more interesting. I love to see how effective the reality of a socialist theory can be…. or not be. The apartments are large and can be reconfigured in multiple ways with storage areas and bathrooms located centrally and rooms radiating around this core. A layout I particularly favour but building regulations in the UK sadly doesn’t.
I can’t watch to many of these types of documentations in a row because I like to think about them and give them time to breathe but my second recommendation is the complete opposite.
It’s a set of beautifully quiet, observational videos showing architects and designers in their own homes. The series is called ‘In Residence’ and you can see it here. You can watch the whole lot in one go as the films are so soothing, quiet and humble and thankfully, in the most part, devoid of all that architectural jargon which I despise.
I haven’t watched all of the ‘In Residence’ films yet as there have been some more recent editions but I was captivated by the simple layout of Knud Holscher’s house. It struck me as a space I could imagine myself occupying. Modest and focused with all uses conceived as one single space, there are few doors just changes in level. I have since designed a house inspired by this layout which I look forward to developing further in the future should the opportunity arise. The films are a great study of designers too, what motivates them, what their convictions are and the aesthetic and practical choices they make.
The website, NOWNESS (pretentious title, I know but please don’t be put off), has other series that are crafted with equal beauty, ‘My Apartimento’ was great fun although it made the OCD side of me flinch just a little. Oh and you can see Florence from Florence and the machine in her bedroom.