KATY PERRY AND THE AESTHETICS OF SURREAL FANTASY

Yes, it's kitschy. Yes, it looks rather fake. But it's also imaginative and kinda cool.

Fictional Friday is a series of posts on my blog, where I present fantastical and fictional architecture from books, television, films, computer games, art etc. every Friday.

THE ERECHTEION

Today, I started reading about the Erechteion of Athens (ca. 405 BC), after being reminded of the existence of this strange and wonderful building just a few days ago.

Although mostly known for its caryatids, this structure in my opinion deserves just as much attention for it complex and non-symmetrical approach to the architectural language it works within, what we now call classicism.

After some quick googling, I found out that an amazing new digital reconstruction project is going on, which already has a very interesting website, where I stole these pictures (Thanks, guys!), and will be featured in a future documentary. The website has several trailers, pilots and 3D animations, which for some strange reason have not been published on neither Youtube nor Vimeo, but are very interesting and worth looking at nonetheless.

I'm looking forward to learning more about this interesting and, according to the people in it, potentially revolutionary project.

THE UNIVERSE AS SEEN FROM UTØYA ISLAND

If you look long enough, you'll see how the trees spell out the word 'love'.

PINE HORIZON

You might have heard of the pines of Rome, but what about the pines of Skjeberg?

As some old readers may have noticed, I'm very much concerned with how the architecture we create, meets the sky. In nature, the horizon is never boring, but in architecture, it often is. So maybe, the next time you're out there shaping a part of your fellow citizens' horizon, in the shape of a roofline, a garden or a tree-lined street, and you think it looks too simple, maybe you should consider using a pine? They grow into all kinds of shapes and sizes, smell nice, and produce cones than are fun to play with.

As for the picture, it looked better the way it was taken, a bit tilted, and depicts me and my friend Freja-Lina in between all the pines.

THE FANTASTIC FLYING BOOKS OF MR. LESSMORE

Watch this amazing short film about a man and the books he meets. The quality on Vimeo is ok, but I recommend downloading it cheaply at http://morrislessmore.com/. Have yourself a very Fictional Friday!

(Fictional Friday is a series of posts on my blog, where I present fantastical and fictional architecture from books, television, films, computer games, art etc. every Friday.)


("Less is more" - Ludwig Mies van der Rohe)


("Less is a bore" - Robert Venturi) 

THE ARCHITECTURE OF FRIENDS

My friends Terry and Maurice are currently visiting from Kenya, and on Tuesday our friend Heidi joined us for a day of hanging out in my hometown Drammen, having fun, eating food, taking pictures and looking at cool architecture.

This rather fabulous picture was taken in the garden of Gulskogen Manor, a wooden summer residence built for the Arbo family at the end of the 18th century. Designed to resemble European stone architecture and painted in a sand-beige colour, the house is set in a magnificent garden, with rows of trees, big lawns, duck ponds, small canals with bridges, granite stairs, herb gardens, a maze and dozens of birds, including peacocks.

Last image by Heidi Leona Norum.

SEQUEL

This thing is on the top of my wish list!

SOLID EARTH

Solid Earth from PassitOn on Vimeo.

A little film about a woman who loves to build houses out of earth. Almost too cute, but very appealing, at least to me.