The work I choose from John Hejduk’s designs is ‘Victims’, which is finished in 1984. As we can see, in this work, all the perspectives of buildings and objects are drawn in pen and displayed scattered on the plan with numbers sequentially marked next to them. This project was designed for a memorial park in Berlin, which its site was a former Gestapo headquarters that had contained a torture chamber during World War II. There were 67 structures were contained on the site and supposed to be built over two thirty-year periods. Within such a significant context and purpose, John Hejduk embodied the passing of times by adding clock, pendulum, and hourglass to the structures, which all symbolize time. In addition, all the structures, both people and objects are named, and their functions are signified individually. For example, physician, children, researcher, and judge are pointed out; objects include picnic table and puppet house. All these elements form an imagination of existence and prosperity of the town, also help people to associate with the cruelty of the war and the disappearance of all the happiness on this site. Therefore, this project is described as “a construction of time”, it represents the passage of time from the existence, disappearance, and to the rebuilding(fictional).
This research gives me the inspiration of reflecting the characteristic of the city and who inhabit in the city by representing the elements with special layout and drawing techniques. John Hejduk expresses the idea of “victims” by presenting innocent people in the shapes of tank or warplane, which, in my understanding, are related to the war. Therefore, I develop a series of drawings to present the “victims” in today’s city in different symbols which can also be regarded as buildings (See image below). My idea of “victims” in today’s city are those people who are struggling to survive and suffering the pressure from the fast pace of life.
Muschamp (1995) states that 'It is not only the public use of buildings that makes architecture a social art. It is also the architect's engagement with clients, communities, contractors and others whose participation is required to alter the material world'. In my understanding, this means the architectural designs are not only providing certain functions to people, also deliver the thoughts of the architects about what they want people to do or be aware of. Below is the plan for some of the buildings from “Victims”. John Hejduk draws the buildings from different angles.
I draw few buildings in Sydney city with similar technique:
Reference:
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Google.com.au. (2018). sirius building elevation - Google Search. [online] Available at: https://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en-AU&biw=1368&bih=802&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=Ud7zW4a1EY_-9QPD_5OYDg&q=sirius+building+elevation&oq=sirius+building+elevation&gs_l=img.3...200102.205103..205398...3.0..0.380.3484.0j8j7j1......1....1..gws-wiz-img.......0j35i39j0i24.2e_4QGBoLAw#imgrc=_ [Accessed 20 Nov. 2018].
ArchDaily. (2018). Spotlight: John Hejduk. [online] Available at: https://www.archdaily.com/770148/spotlight-john-hejduk [Accessed 20 Nov. 2018].
Fabrizi, M. (2018). A Growing, Incremental Place – Incremental Time: “Victims”, a.... [online] SOCKS. Available at: http://socks-studio.com/2015/11/01/a-growing-incremental-place-incremental-time-victims-a-project-by-john-hejduk-1984/ [Accessed 20 Nov. 2018].
(CCA), C. (2018). 1:1: Mark Lee on John Hejduk. [online] Cca.qc.ca. Available at: https://www.cca.qc.ca/en/events/38146/11-mark-lee-on-john-hejduk [Accessed 20 Nov. 2018].
Hejduk, J. and Shkapich, K. (1989). Mask of Medusa. New York, NY: Rizzoli.
