Parasite City

PARASITE CITY

CAPRICCIO, FOLLY, CITY

JIQING XIE TUTOR: KIM VO RICHEN JIN 1

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TABLE OF CONTENT

PROLOGUE Beijing

PROLOGUE 05 - 10

CCTV Headquater by OMA

11 - 15

Reflection

16 - 17

PARACITE CITY

18 - 43

EPILOGUE Appendix 1: Capriccio + Folly Appendix 2: Diary

BIBLIOGRAPHY

44 - 61 62 - 119

120 - 121

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PROLOGUE

4

5

BEIJING = POWER

TIANANMEN SQUARE

POLITICS

6

CBD

ECONOMY

7

Zones in Beijing

8

CCTV Bird View

Tiananmen Square in Bird View

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Tiananmen Square is always the political power centre not only to Beijing but to the whole nation. This notion of power is established through the hosting of a series of events throughout the history, such as parades, national ceremonies, protests etc.

With the Forbidden City at its north, the Square becomes an anchor point and the power is radiated over time. Building height limits, ring-like infrastructures, multiple zonings…The Square dominates the city.

CCTV Headquarters is located to the east of the Square where the CBD area was zoned during 90s last century. It was previously an industrial area and as the city grew from the imperial city it was cleared out to respond to China’s new economic schemes. In order words, this is a capitalist enclave within a socialist state, explicitly demonstrating the country’s determination to embrace the rest of the world and to increase its economic power in the global market.

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CCTV HEADQUARTER

By OMA

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Site Plan 12

Floor Plan 13

Section 14

STRUCTURAL MIRACLE! NEW ICON!

STARCHITECT!

GLOBAL MEDIA!

STRUCTURAL MIRACLE! NEW BEIJING LANDMARK!

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REFLECTION

What is embedded in the pursuit of skyscrapers is the notion of iconography under the context of globalisation – a signifier to signify the competence of whatever it is housing, whether it is a multinational enterprise or the mouthpiece of the government. Its greedy nature pushes itself to constantly ask more for self-interests. More private space, more views, more floor areas, and of course, more attention. Ultimately, it is about more capitals and power.

There is no difference in Beijing CBD, and Koolhaas has proved that. His striking design has earned not only himself and the CCTV, but even the central government much attention from all over the world, especially during a progressive period when China was seeking greater influence. The design itself may even be heavily over-interpreted in some literature, but does the meaning really matter? After all, the rhetoric is secondary, being a focus is primary.

So don’t be too serious! Look at its western side, the absolute power is over there. Over centuries the political power is gradually reinforced and signified through the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square – a power capable of overwriting every rule, the perpetual champion.

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Is scaffolding afraid of these two powers?

Luckily it isn’t. Parasitic to all these monumental buildings, scaffolding always follow its own way, climbing all the way up to others’ facades to speak itself out. Since other buildings are too characteristic, its lack of character turns out to be its advantage. Thus it is going to win this game.

Is scaffolding longing for power? Well, I don’t think so. What it is doing is merely behaving itself – trust me, it is very modest. It doesn’t even seek to destroy any other building. It only seeks through every opportunity to grow itself parasitically. However on the other hand, its sheer volume does diminish both the economic and political power objectively.

Here comes a brand-new city – no bigness, no eye-catching shapes, no sacred experience, no city zoning limited by the existing radial spatial patterns. What remains is a façade-less internal city where power is encroached and freedom is left – you are therefore free from all sorts of implication of powers. You take control of your own power.

Please walk through the city and scrutinize it at your own pace.

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EPILOGUE

44

45

EMPTINESS IN THE AGE OF BIGNESS REM KOOLHAAS

Ancient School built according to the Egyptian and Greek manners by Piranesi 46

47

BUILT RUINS ARATA ISOZAKI

Architectural Capriccio with classical ruins by Canaletto 48

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HYPOCRITICAL PILGRIMAGE -- THE TEMPLE OF EGO

“You know, all this beautiful talk, all this serious ostentatiousness, all this ego...These harsh damning judgments of yours hide a certain fragility, a feeling of inadequacy and above all a series of untruths.”

-- La Grande Bellezza 50

51

Plan

Section 52

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GOSSIP - ING

54

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Plan 56

Section 57

ORDERED CHAOS

“...in that harmony you find in completed artworks... in that enchanted order...”

-- La Dolce Vita 58

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Plan 60

Section 61

DAIRY

62

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64

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Project 1 & 2: Daniell Thomas, and Isozaki Arata. “Arata Isozaki in Conversation with Thomas Daniell.” AA Files, no. 68 (January 1, 2014): 22–42.

Fellini, Federico, Marcello Mastroianni, Anita Ekberg, and Anouk Aimée. “La Dolce Vita.” [Videorecording]. 2 disc collectors ed. Umbrella Entertainment, 2005.

Jameson, F. “Introduction to Isozaki Arata’s ‘City Demolition Industry, Inc.’ and ‘Rumor City.’” SOUTH ATLANTIC QUARTERLY, 2007.

“In the Mood for Love|.” Criterion Collection/Janus Films, 2016.

Koolhaas, Rem, and Hans Ulrich Obrist. “Project Japan : Metabolism Talks”.

Taschen, 2011.

Ozkan, Ozay. “Strategic Way Of Design In Rem Koolhaas,” December 1, 2008.

Sorrentino, Paolo, Nicola Giuliano, Francesca Cima, Luca Bigazzi, Lele Marchitelli, Toni Servillo, Carlo Verdone, and Sabrina Ferilli. “La Grande Bellezza.”

Artificial Eye, 2013.

SIMSEK, Onur. “Emptiness and Nothingness in OMA’s Libraries.” Megaron 14, no. 2 (June 2019): 173–84. doi:10.14744/MEGARON.2019.57873.

Project 3: Aureli Pier Vittorio. “More and More About Less and Less: Notes Toward a History of Nonfigurative Architecture.” Log, no. 16 (April 1, 2009): 7–18.

Aureli, Pier Vittorio. “The Possibility of an Absolute Architecture. Writing Architecture Series”. MIT Press, 2011.

Böck, Ingrid, and Rem Koolhaas. “Six Canonical Projects by Rem Koolhaas : Essays on the History of Ideas”. Architektur + Analyse: 5. Jovis, 2015.

“CCTV by OMA : Rem Koolhaas and Ole Scheeren.” Architecture and Urbanism, July 2005: Special Issue July 2005. A+U, 2005.

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Dogma. “City Walls.” Accessed May 30, 2021. http://www.dogma.name/project/ city-walls/.

Dominique Rouillard. “Editorial: Megaspace Structure Yona Friedman and Eckhard Schulze – Fielitz.” Histories of Postwar Architecture 1, no. 3 (December 1, 2018): 3–18. doi:10.6092/issn.2611-0075/8965.

Ellen Dunham-Jones, “The Irrational Exuberance of Rem Koolhaas,” Places Journal, April 2013. Accessed 29 May 2021.

Hattasch, Martin. “Form after Urbanism: The Potential of Grossform.” The Plan Journal, no.1 (2016). doi 10.15274/TPJ-2016-10006.

Koolhaas, Rem. “Content”. Taschen, 2004.

Koolhaas, Rem, Bruce Mau, Jennifer Sigler, and Hans Werlemann. “Small, Medium, Large, Extra-Large : Office for Metropolitan Architecture, Rem Koolhaas, and Bruce Mau”. 2nd ed. Monacelli Press, 1998.

MATTERN, SHANNON. “Broadcasting Space: China Central Television’s New Headquarters.” International Journal of Communication (19328036) 2 (January 2008): 869–908.

Pablo Martínez Capdevila. “The Interior City. Infinity and Concavity in the NoStop City(1970-1971).” Cuadernos de Proyectos Arquitectónicos, no. 4 (October 1, 2013): 130–32.

Schaik, Martin van, and Otakar Mácel. “Exit Utopia : Architectural Provocations, 1956-76.” Prestel, 2005.

Trummer Peter. “The City as an Object: Thoughts on The Form of the City.”

Log, no. 27 (January 1, 2013): 51–57.

Wu Hung. “Remaking Beijing : Tiananmen Square and the Creation of a Political Space.” The University of Chicago Press, 2005.

Zhao, Guangchao. “The Grand Forbidden City : The Imperial Axis”. Forbidden City Press, 2008.

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