ARCH321
represented has changed
dramatlcally between the
two, and more so than other
architects. When looking at
her collection throughout
the years, her style is very
much recognised - but is
this for the style and image,
so that it becomes a brand
rather than architecture?
Red, orange, grey and
black fill the front cover
of the November 1991
Architectural Review. As the
brightly coloured ceiling is
reflected across the polished
floor, the composition can
hardly be distinguished as
a room. It is not until you
get a closer look that the
confusion clears, as if this is
a painting by Hadid, where
all the walls seem to form a
dynamic composition. Such
a bold image is inviting, yet
the lonely title, ‘Into Japan’,
sits in the right hand corner
referring to nothing other
than a location.
The title of the article,
‘Post-suprematist visions’
immediately suggests the
type of architecture we are
about to see, and suddenly
the front cover is made
clear. Hadid’s vision was yet
to be a success; at the time,
the paper architect had just
begun her ascent, in which
her “vision translates into
physical and spatial reality”
(Davey, 1991, p.58). lt was
the first project where many
of her ideas could finally
come together as a tangible
form. And being a painter,
her ideas could then
be explored and further
developed to become her
vision of airchitecture. It
was said by Manfredo
Tafuri that “if you don’t
Figure 1: The article featuring Moon Soon restaurant
build no one will take you
seriously” (Hunter, 2013, p.
35). And for Hadid, her first
built project had to make
an impression; it had to be
perfect for the architectural
world to critique.
The first article in the
Architectural Review talks
about the Moon Soon
restaurant in Sapporro.
When reading the text
without the imagery, we
begin to understand that
this is an analysis of the
‘future of architecture’;
within the introduction it
refers to her work having to
conform to the rules, which
she has managed to ignore
and produce something
different. Readers cannot
determine this yet because,
making her debut, she
has only to be criticised
and labelled a maverick.
The Architectural Review
expresses fears that the
building might not be able
to stand. When describing
the building, it talks about
“a compressed dynamic
interior unfolding within
the existing static exterior
shell” (Davey, 1991, p. 60).
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As the article progresses we
are given a description that
tantalises our imagination,
discussing how the form
is similar to shards of ice
protruding out of the floor,
and with completely glass
staircases. Today this may
seem a normal aesthetic
in architecture, but it was a
radical piece of architecture
in its time; for someone
reading this in 1991, the
description would have
been so engaging and
unusual. I think that it is only
when we see these images
scattered across the page
(see Figure 1) we notice
that like the text, the images
are fragmented. They do
not simplify the plans but
let our imagination run wild,
much like the concept of a
fragmented vision between
fire and ice, and heaven and
hell. But also like Hadid’s
career, the text becomes
a reality; our imagination
realises the space within.
Conceptually, two floors
relating to heaven and
hell was something that
Japanese culture very much
believed in; the magazine
seems to take on the