Thursday 10 January 2008

AL MANAKH: Gulf Survey















AL MANAKH








and for those who do not know who is REM or simply want to see his Charlie Rose interview:

6 comments:

The Simper said...

i have this one for him: http://www.amazon.ca/Mutations-Rem-Koolhaas/dp/8495273519

Deema said...

oh mutation!

i read some in the library "last year"

it seems interesting !

but 'D'elirious New York is said to have the core knowledge of his.

also perfect acts of architecture is a great book which includes his thesis as well


-PS-This book 'AL MANAKH' is about the Gulf region

The Simper said...

Table of Contents

Al Manakh is divided into three sections:

I.The Dubai Guide: This opening chapter edited by MOUTAMARAT considers current projects, productions, plans and ideas happening specifically in Dubai. Highlights include essays by George Katodrytis, Elie Domit and Nadim Karam.

II. Gulf Survey: This sizable section presents the in-depth research on The Gulf region carried out by AMO, the creative think tank of the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA). Writings by Rem Koolhaas, Reinier de Graaf and Todd Reisz offer vital insight into the significance of the phenomena of The Gulf in the contemporary global context. At the end of this section a comprehensive overview of all the current urban and resort developments in The Gulf is offered. This is the first list of its kind that acts as an invaluable resource providing detailed information on projects taking shape today.

III. The Global Agenda: The last section edited by ARCHIS reflects concepts and strategies for design to provide shelter, security, sustainability, fairness and dialogue. Authors and artists like Nader Ardalan, Stefano Boeri, CRIT, Ricardo Devesa, Emiliano Gandolfi, Jiang Jun, Jeroen Mensink, Bas Princen, Ilka & Andreas Ruby, Urban Think Tank and others reflect on 'what can be the mission for design today'. Thirteen 'Creative Design Agendas' are compiled as a design manual for the greater good.

Deema said...

THANKS MR.SIMPER!

i think it is really a must have, in the first three videos there is a conference about the book :)

i read most of the book it is a good vision on our region and accumulation of interesting data and interviews :)

Anonymous said...

After reading Delirious New York this book is a huge compromise to what a documentation of the physical environment and it's behavioral consequences should be like.
It was put together in the matter of few months. Most of the interview were made ith people ho are distant from the actual design process and very much involved in it's politics and it's economical aspect.

Deema said...

Dalal Arch

i am sorry to say that the knowledge they presented in this book is what the majority understand about architecture, this made a great doubt in REM's reflex on the issue regarding this great difference in context relating it to such defined city like new york/ in Manhattan you can see explorations of "if some changes" or possibilities of relationships, but rather in the gulf there is no settled environment, and there is a great deal of economical control..

it just doesn't make sense that they would explore the essence of architecture in such hyper situation.

me and you know that the knowledge of architecture in this book is very much reduced, but what they made, made clear the interests of people in this place, why people want to come, want to invest, and what is the architectural vision mostly appeared in the minds of "owners"

in this relatively weak survey he actually made what never made for the region.

it is more of a conceptual model to me.

what i noticed is a very look a head instead of looking back, which is kind of a different approach to all the regions way of analysis..

i think he is not trying to understand the essence of architecture here, he is more into wanting to know or testing its future withstanding capabilities.