“ I never set up my scenes. I’ m always seeking to understand a building as a whole, from its contextual scale to how people interact in and around it.”
Museo Internacional del Barroco, Puebla, Mexico by Toyo Ito & Associates Opposite page, from top: Tate Modern, London, UK by Herzog & De Meuron; Forest of Light, Milan, Italy by Sou Fujimoto
I’ m always seeking to understand a building as a whole, from its contextual scale to how people interact in and around it. I try to document the activity as authentically as possible, while always remaining objective towards the architecture.
You have either taken it upon yourself or have been commissioned to photograph buildings across the world, designed by some of the most well-known architectural firms, such as BIG, SANAA and Foster + Partners, and also old masters such as Louis Kahn, Luis Barragan, and Le Corbusier. What have you learned from traveling to see these buildings that you would not have learned if you were only practicing as an architect?
Now, I feel connected to architecture more than ever before. As I take my time to do a lot of research about a building, once I’ m on location I feel very connected with it. For two to three days I slowly discover and understand each corner and gesture. I understand what
works and also what doesn’ t. I can feel its materiality and the behavior around it. I am able to gain all these amazing insights, which I will use, sooner or later, once I am involved in a design process again.
Do you feel that taking and studying architectural photographs is underused in the design process, especially because we judge most architecture nowadays through the mediated image?
I believe that the actual architecture is sometimes far from photos, for better or for worse. As architects we frame— first, through visualization and, later, through photos— the architecture object in a way that it will give the story we want it to tell, which is sometimes not complete.
Photography should be independent and not subordinated to architects, and if used properly, can definitely become an important tool in the design process.
“ I never set up my scenes. I’ m always seeking to understand a building as a whole, from its contextual scale to how people interact in and around it.”
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