This morning I saw this building post and swooned. I have an obsession with brickwork and the kind of ornamentation a building can have with the material. It always reminds be the story told about the famous architect Louis Kahn.
If you think of Brick, you say to Brick, ‘What do you want, Brick?’ And Brick says to you, ‘I like an Arch.’ And if you say to Brick, ‘Look, arches are expensive, and I can use a concrete lintel over you. What do you think of that, Brick?’ Brick says, ‘I like an Arch.’ And it’s important, you see, that you honor the material that you use. [..] You can only do it if you honor the brick and glorify the brick instead of shortchanging it.
One reason I like this story so much is the emphasis on honoring the material. Being true to its capabilities and form. Bricks are to a building what pixels are to a screen in that each gives a pivot point to construct an image. It also shows the skill of the craftsperson. It’s remarkable to think that almost every surface of our built environment is touched by human hands.