Opening: 31.5.2024 at 7 pm
Speakers: Iwan Baan, lars Müller, Nicola Borgmann
The cities of Rome and Las Vegas stand in obvious contrast to each other in terms of their architectural identities: while Rome, the former capital of the Roman Empire, is seen as ancient, elegant and multi-layered, Las Vegas, the "Sin City", is perceived as shrill, vulgar and artificial. Despite these diametrical differences, both cities function as hubs of power and games, both in the past and in the present.
Denise Scott Brown, Robert Venturi and Steven Izenour revolutionised architectural theory with their work "Learning from Las Vegas" by postulating that the lessons from the American desert city are just as relevant as those from the Eternal City: "Las Vegas is to the Strip what Rome is to the piazza." Fifty years after the publication of this seminal work, the exhibition "From Las Vegas to Rome" explores the dialogue between these contrasting urban contexts. Iwan Baan's photographs reveal unexpected parallels and connections between the two cities. His images of Las Vegas and Rome force us to question whether we can view architecture without moral judgement - a perspective proposed by Venturi, Scott Brown and Izenour in relation to Las Vegas - especially in the context of the environmental and social realities of the 21st century. Baan's photographs contrast and challenge conventional notions of authenticity and artificiality, ultimately questioning the validity of such polar categorisations. In this way, Iwan Baan's photographs reflect Scott Brown's, Izenour's and Venturi's call to first observe, understand and only then judge.
Iwan Baan is recognised worldwide as the most important contemporary photographer in the field of architecture and urban planning. His work thematises architecture in the social context of human activities and stories. Having worked with renowned architectural firms Baan has documented significant architectural projects around the world. His work has been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art, the Vitra Design Museum and the Architecture Biennale in Venice, where he received the Golden Lion with Urban Think Tank in 2012.
The new book from Lars Müller Publishers will be presented at the exhibition opening:
Iwan Baan, ROME - LAS VEGAS, Bread and Circuses
With contributions by Lindsay Harris, Izzy Kornblatt, Ryan Scavnicky
Title
IWAn BAAN - From Las Vegas to RomeType
ExhibitionWebsite
Organizers
From
May 31, 2024 07:00 PMUntil
July 06, 2024 03:07 PMVenue
Architekturgalerie MünchenAddress