Architectural Writing
Jencks is synonymous with his writings of Postmodernism in architecture. He discusses his theories of postmodern architecture in his book the Language of Post-Modern Architecture. Jencks discusses the paradigm shift in modern to post-modern architecture. Modern architecture concentrates on univalent forms such as right angles and square buildings often resembling office buildings. However, post modern architecture focuses on forms derived from the mind, body, and nature.
His latest book the Iconic Building examines the trend setting and celebrity culture. Jencks discusses why buildings are being designed this way. The reason that our culture seeks the ‘iconic building’ is because it has the possibility of reversing the economic trend of a flagging “conurbation”. An iconic building is created to make a splash, to generate money, and the normal criteria of valuation does not apply. “Enigmatic signifiers” can be used in an effective way to support the deeper meaning of the building.
Jencks has lectured at over forty universities throughout the globe, including Peking, Shanghai, Tokyo, Milan, Barcelona, and in the US at Harvard, Columbia, Princeton, and Yale. In his most recent work he collaborated with the late Maggie Keswick on fractal designs of building and furniture as well as extensive landscape designs base on complexity theory, waves and solitons.
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“Literature is the art of writing something that will be read twice; journalism what will be grasped at once.”
—Cyril Connolly (1903–1974)