Mario Botta Exclusive Interview for CyberEmpathy

CYBEREmpathy ISSUE 7/2013. Visual Stategies

Kseniya Bilychkevskaya, Marika Ika Wato, Mario Botta! Exclusive interview for CyberEmpathy

www.CyberEmpathy.com

Abstract: November 4, 2013 the Center for Urban History hosted a public lecture by

architect Mario Botta entitled, "My Architecture. The Orionist Monastery

Parish Center in Lviv". The CyberEmpathic Team was there to interview the

poet of architecture.

CyberEmpathy: Have you ever drawn the inspiration from the

architecture of medieval castles? I mean in particular the

projects of the late twentieth century, the examples of the

residential architecture such as: Single-family house in

Ligornetto, Ticino, Switzerland , 1975-1976 or Casa Bianchi Riva

San Vitale - Ticino CH 1971-1973. In my opinion, they are rooted

in their formal structure to the monolithic, simple architecture

of medieval castles straight from the east regions of England.

Mario Botta: I love much the Middle Ages, I believe that the form of

medieval society synthesis is extraordinary: synthesis of the local but also

Kseniya Bilychkevskaya, Marika Ika Wato

Mario Botta! Exclusive Interview for CyberEmpathy Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.




the global. The Middle Ages can be recognized worldwide. I like

the Romanesque style the most among different ways of expression: the

feeling of heaviness, weight, strength, power. In this respect, I suppose that

architecture bears the idea of gravity, weight. Any

architecture organizes the power to pass onto the ground. The ground is a p

art bof architectural structures. The architecture is not a structure that can

be moved somewhere, it belongs to a particular place. In other words, the

architecture is an activity that builds the place. So the location is an

essential part of the architectural structure. There is no architecture

without the context, without the territory it becomes just a pile of stones on

the ground. In my opinion, the key element of architecture in general is that

it is involved in the place where it was built, not as a sculpture which could

be placed anywhere.

In my projects (Single familyhouseinLigornetto, Ticino, Switzerland, 1975 1

976 or CasaBianchi RivaSanVitale - TicinoCH 1971 – 1973) I haven’t

directly addressed the image of castle or fortress, but my intention was to

implement the idea of the family life protection.

Left: Longthorpe Tower, England, 1425; Right: Casa Bianchi Riva San

Vitale




Left: Bunraty Castle, England, 1425; right: Mario Botta, Single-family house

in Ligornetto, Ticino, Switzerland, 1975-1976

CE: What role does the sketching play in your creative process?

Starting the drawing do you have the ready idea of form, or

rather it is shaped during the creation of the first drawings.

M.B.: I often note out that architecture expression belongs to the pencil,

not the head. Occasionally, I work on the projects, in this case I tell myself:

this time I will do a project without any distinct geometric shape. I work

and work, then the geometry comes to me. It is stronger than me. Strong

geometry provides the quality to space, which is originally created by the

light. If we turn off the light, the space will disappear. I'm trying to work

with the light from the zenith, so I use geometry to find the balance. This

balance provides the quality to space. If one can tell at the first glance what

this is - this is the most of the architectural talent.

CE: The architectural theorists often classify your works as a

postmodern. Do you consider yourself a postmodernist now?

M.B.: I am not a postmodernist, I'm post-antique man. After all, when I

work, it’s completely unnecessary to think of myself as a postmodernist,

post-antique rationalist. The critics need these things, not the person who

performs, so I prefer to take a pencil, to ask questions to the city and to try

to create the sense. To me, my architecture is also a sum of signs and

images, because architecture is a formal solution to the story. Geometry is

sacred, it has a golden sections, the magic number.




As I design much in old European cities, my style is the answer to the

problem of modern times, as a combination of the ancient and the future.

Keeping in mind that the world is ruled by globalization, the search for

personal identity in the architecture is very important; people must feel

their identity to a particular place, a particular landscape. Post-antique

means I see the world in its entirety, but look at it through a historical filter.

Some people think, when you're a great creator, you think about the future,

but this is not true, you think about a great past.

CE: The tree theme often appears in your projects. Does it play a

symbolic role? Or is it only the formal addition?

M.B.: The use of wood is rather formal. However, in the next 20 years I will

be thinking about whether it really was an accident (he laughs).

CE: As a student of the interior design, I would like to ask you,

what do you think about the relation between the interior and

exterior architecture? How should this relation be properly

shaped? Can the interior designer create in an organic way a

continuum of the environment in the interior without interfering

with the body of the building as such?

M.B.: The basic project developing stage for me is to determine the global

benchmarks. They are primarily measured by me in order to people safely

navigate in space. Such as the wind and the sun. They help the human not

to feel confused, as if in a maze. Because the maze is the opposite to the

concept of the building; architecture allows a person to move freely.

Therefore, the main connection between the inside and the outside is light

and how it fills the space. Light generates a dark interior space, gives it the

coordinates, focuses on a particular subject that the architect wants to

emphasize. The next step is the desire for order. Your inner space must

carry peace through an orderly internal balance.

CE: How would you describe the message of your architectural

projects now? I have the impression that they express some

general idea, the universal sense. Is this idea with you from the

beginning of the creative process, or is it a side effect of

exploration of the formal solutions?

M.B.: Architecture is a matter of the possible, not the dreams. I started

working early, without reaching solid theoretical basis, but only in the




process of building you begin to feel the idea. Those, who study the history

of art after have learned the art of building can better understand not only

the philosophical aspects, but also those associated with the work. I had the

same story: I began to build intuitively and eventually was able to truly

understand the essence deeper

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Mario Botta Exclusive Interview for CyberEmpathy