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than at Venafro, to the relevance of using lightweight
structures – that can be dismantled, if necessary –
made from metal frames and polyester coverings. One
of the most interesting things about the Wanlin service
stations – as would also be true of the Erasme metro
station and the platform roofs at Leuven railway station
– is the elegance and precision of the purely functional
elements that are the core of the construction. This
precision can be seen elsewhere in Philippe Samyn’s
concrete or wooden structures. The key element is
the synthesis and harmonious integration of all of the
physical characteristics. All too often, architecture
projects consist of a simple structure, the calculations
for which are entrusted to a stability design office, over
which the architect has little control. For what are called
special techniques (heating, ventilation, electricity, office
automation and so on), other design offices enter the
picture, leading to even less architectural control and
all of the economic and aesthetic consequences this
entails. It is clear that for architects who do not master
the physical aspects of construction, the growing impor-
tance assigned to environmental problems will make
their position even more precarious, assigning them to
the role of decorator or package designer. We already
live in an era of ‘two speed’ architecture. It is crucial
not to let ourselves be carried away by half-measures,
which often do more harm than good – the example
of poorly-placed thermal insulation provides a textbook
case of such makeshift thinking.
When the Royal Academy of Science, Humanities
and Fine Arts of Belgium published the volume
Morphological Volume and Displacement Indicators it
must have given many architects pause for thought.
1
This theory is summed up later on in the text by Pierre
Spehl. By refusing to build heedlessly, one discov-
ers that the rationality of construction is a source of
creativity. The roofs of the Leuven station platforms
(mentioned above), proposals for building wind turbines
and many other projects and constructions by Philippe
Samyn are responses to this ongoing need for logic.
Fully structured thought – which itself structures the
mind – finds here its fullest expression. A remarkable
example is the exceptional lightness of certain projects,
such as that of the bridge over the River Leie
(01-366)
and the new Total service station at Ruisbroek
(01-515
;
not included in the anthology
)
, which was heralded by
the service station at Hellebecq
(01-386)
. Of course,
this is only the beginning of a re-examination of the very
basis of construction. The invasion of mediocre-quality
construction and widespread waste constitute – in
industrialised as well as so-called emerging countries
– a tragedy of global proportions. As Philippe Samyn
emphasises on the back cover of the above-mentioned
publication, in this case in reference to the problem of
wind turbines, it is no longer enough to perfect a ration-
al technique for calculating construction elements; one
must consider the production of those materials, the
impact of that production on the environment, and so
on. We have clearly gone beyond a simple solution to
a local problem; this is a worldwide political issue. One
should not believe, as Le Corbusier did, that architecture
and urban planning alone could solve all of our social,
economic and cultural problems. One can reasonably be
taken aback by the sudden return of art for art’s sake
and form for form’s sake in such crucial domains, yet
such a return appears currently to be the only response
from architects in general.
It is only recently that European countries began to
adhere to the principles of sustainable construction.
However, regional differences became apparent right
from the outset. These differences – which are as much
due to economic and technical criteria as to social or
even cultural ones – are nonetheless not decisive in
their general principles, except when it comes to adapt-
ing to local customs in terms of construction materials
and, it goes without saying, specifics of climate. On
the other hand, it is clear that the vast quantity of
technical inventions of the past two centuries have
only rarely stirred reflection in the area of durability.
Several decades ago, the Belgian association Inter-
Environnement coined the slogan, ‘Don’t discard it,
re-use it’. Today, we are still far short of the target, and
01-222
m
&
g
research centre,
Venafro, Italy, 1989–1990
01-515
Total service station,
Ruisbroek, 2007