Empty buildings
2013
Emptiness in architecture is much more important than solidity, because it is in emptiness that space is defined. It is emptiness that makes buildings liveable and admirable.
Despite the constant pressure to exploit spaces and not to waste valuable square metres, the architect always tries to construct emptiness. In this way proportions and scale are enhanced, transforming a dimension from banal into something outstanding and heroic.
Often it is sufficient to work on double planes, as “in the giant order”, where floor slabs are treated independently from the front grid to disrupt a rational order. Empty buildings have no planes or floor slabs, no stairs or any visible system of circulation. Everything is an architectural envelope.
Michele De Lucchi, January 2014