Plastic is the concrete of the 21st century says Petr Hájek, architect, pedagogue and recipient of the prize Architect of the Year. Though it might not seem so at first glance, this material has a lot in common with concrete. What, you ask? Find out in the seventh issue of the quarterly INTRO.
Print format 230 × 295 mm, 140 pages
Printed on uncoated, offset paper
Printed in Czech
EDITORIAL
The question of the use of plastics in architecture isn’t a dichotomy with a simple yes/no answers. In any case, the question of why plastics are used interests me much more. We’ve tried to answer that question through meetings and interviews with architects who might be described as coated in plastic. One is a visionary and says we're living through the prehistory of the coming history of plastic construction. Another has already experimentally verified the use of electroactive polymers in practice and realised this is not the way forward. A third highlights the practical side of bringing 3-D printing processes into the school system, while a fourth claims that materials are stolen from him, the key word being the quality of the idea, which then carries the necessary energy (in the metaphysical sense).
These deliberations alternate with a selection of works that are, in my opinion, among the best to be seen. Let’s take it all in as contributions to the discussion and avoid the mistake made by our comrades from the GDR — we’ve all seen Hřebejk’s film Pelíšky, right?
Martin Verner, Editor in Chief