Retreat from Urban: Ornament, Modernism and Sacred

‘Retreat from Urban: Ornament, Modernism and Sacred’ is a thesis project focusing on the question of architectural ornament, its expression, meaning and what the relationship is to local community. In its essence, it is a search for a contemporary expression of architectural ornament while critiquing the modernist movement’s attempt to abolish architectural ornament, specifically Adolf Loos’ essay ‘Ornament and Crime’, as well as a challenging present time non-typological approach to ornament.

To answer the question in focus, the project proposes research by design study ‘School of Ornament’ and designs the grounds to undertake it. The scheme is located in Italy in rural context of Val di Lago by Via Francigena pilgrimage route and tackles the site on a wider community level as well as the research end-users. The design is comprised of a retreat centre with ornament workshops, visitors and permanent on-site staff accommodation, restoration of an existing 16th-century renaissance chapel, and of site interventions to guide people through the site but also to act as a display of ornament created during the workshops over the period of time. The purpose of the study would be to collect the data through visual anthropology and archiving, creating a resource for analysis. The programme poses a potential precedent to take place in other places also, providing more diverse outcomes.

Analysing case studies was the main method which led to the identification of five objectives: ornament, scale, volume, vista and materiality, and three architectural elements driving the overall design: arch, niche and column which are also traditionally ornamented. Given the site setting, two case studies of monasteries were used for the organisation of the space on a large and small scale. Moreover, as local community is at heart, the materiality creates a bold part of the design with regional stone as the primary material. In terms of the ornament itself, exploration took place mainly focusing on the inspiration within local landscape including utilising digital tools.

This thesis argues in favour of architectural ornament, highlighting the value of craftsmen’s contribution to process, aesthetical expression, and the importance of reflecting the local context. However, it does not suggest to ‘go back in time’ rather it aims to encourage finding new articulation by adopting the combination of both traditional and contemporary technological possibilities. Furthermore, the overall aim is to raise the question about architectural ornament among architects and how it is approached in architectural education.

Hana Koubková

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