INTERCULTURAL CITY

Annual meeting of the Academy in Granada

Declaration of Granada - October 2005

COEXISTENCE OF CULTURES

 The migratory phenomenon with its positive aspects and its problems has represented a reflection on the cities and the co-existence of different cultures. The existence of interculturality with its specific demands is simultaneous to a “renaissance” of Human Rights.

Cultural diversity, that is to say the existence of multiple and differentiated cultures, and its co-existence demand new defined spaces and different attitudes. The fragmentation of our cities is a risk. The solution lies in what Dominique Schnapper calls a community of solidary citizens, whose founding element is the co-existence of its common belonging.

The procedure doesn’t work by theef. It must be initiated and regulated. Therefore the responsible institutions are not only the municipalities, the and educational ones but also the urban planners and last not least the architects.

Granada more than other cities is a reference point for intercultural dialogue, present in its urban, its diverse architecture, and especially in the cultural layers that have become sedimented in its territory. We could talk about many Granadas, superimposed on each other, which in itself represents complexity and heterogeneity, and is now a value in our contemporary world.

 

 

 

We believe the design of our cities and public spaces can be defined by a spacial and temporal matrix. That includes all the new cultural manifestations that operate the continous transformation of the built environment. This might be through processes of mutual understanding or integration.

Above all the cultural reading of cities shell emerge from social, economic and demographic phenomenas. They permanently inhabit and generate territorial template of spontaneous cultural exchanges.

The task to envision and establish the operative field strategies for the future development of cities requires an insightfull and transcultural process.

Every space in the city, either public or private, shell constitute a physical plataform that enables the participation of every men wether an architect or an user.

It should be found an organic data base, a set of values praticies and visions. That can constantly influence the configuration of the city on a global and local scale.

Annual meeting of the Academy in Granada

On October 7 and 8, 2005 the annual meeting of the Academy for Building Culture took place in the auditorium of the Palacio de Carlos V, Alhambra, Granada:

The programme was as follows:

The meeting began on October 7 at 10:30h with a greeting of the Rector of the University of Granada, Prof. Dr. David Agullar Pena, further with a greeting and an introduction by the hostess of our meeting

Dr. Maria del Mar Villfranca, Director Patronate of the Alhambra, with the title "Alhambra  intercultural architecture" and a further introduction by the head of the College of Architects Granada, D. Angel Luis Gijon, with the title " Granada, an Intercultural City".

After this the opening of the meeting took place by the president of the Academy, Prof.Dr. Zbigniew Peter Pininski, with an introductory presentation. In his opening speech the president thanked the organiser of the meeting, Prof. Javier Roca, director of the faculty of Architecture of the University of Granada, cordially. Further thanks were expressed to Prof. Joao Santa-Rita from Lisbon and Dr. Leo Raffelsberger from Vienna (a co-founder of the Academy) for their creative collaboration.

 

The president then handed over the membership certificates for the Academy to the following new academics:

- Prof. Dr. Gabriel Motzkin of the Humanist Faculty of the University of Jerusalem,

- Prof. Dr. Wladimir Durmanov of the Architectural Faculty of the University of Lviv, Ukraine

- Rector Prof. Dr. Michal Boltryk of the Civil Engineering Faculty of the Technical University in Bialystok, Poland

- Dr. Maria del Mar Villfranca, Director Patronate of the Alhambra

- Rector Prof. Dr. David Agullar Pena of the University of Granada.

(also in absence)

The vivid discussions of which we will report ended at 19:00h and were only interrupted by an interesting lunch in the Parador of the Alhambra. In the evening Prof. Roca hosted a dinner for the President and his wife,and the Academics in the wonderful facilities of the guest house of the University.

In the morning of October 8 the discussions were continued and ended with the formulation of the DECLARATION OF GRANADA-OCTOBER 2005. The publication will follow.

In the afternoon special tour of the Alhambra, the Fundacion Rodriguez Acosta and the Auditorio Manuel de Falla were organised for the academics. The programme finished with a reception by the city of Granada.

 

Herwith we publish some fragments of the introduction-speech of the President of the Academy

Prof. Dr. Zbigniew Peter Pininski

Dear Professor Roca, dear Searchers of Truth,

 

Why do I welcome you as Searchers of Truth?

In the antique Athens there was the temple district of Akademos, which gave the name to Searchers of Truth of all times, the so-called Academics. And here in front of me are the members of the Academy for Building Culture, as well as future Academics.

 

It is a sunny but fresh November day in Lisbon. In the breaks of the annual meeting of the Academy which took place in Lisbon, I sat together with Joao Santa-Rita, Javier Roca,  Frank Winter and the Beuys-student IGADiM from Germany. We discuss about the place and the topic of the meeting in 2005. Javier, the new Academic, declares spontaneously that he would be willing to host the meeting in Granada.

We are very happy about this and that for two reasons: Firstly because Granada, due to its history, is especially suitable as a topic for our meeting, and also is beautiful Granada and Andalucia definitely worth a visit.

 

What kind of topic for a meeting is there? I see it as very evident: The intercultural city. The Architecture of the city in the dialogue with cultures, nationalities and religions. The question of identity. The question in how far Architecture can contribute to the mutual understanding of cultural.

 

In the history of Andalucia and in the history of Granada there were extremely different periods.

Some periods, and that is very important for us today, in which Christians, Jews as well as Muslims lived together in peace. More than that: They influenced each other and fertilized each other. Also in Architecture. Prof. Roca will speak about this in detail.

Dear Searchers of Truth. It is a topic of spezial importance for today’s times and for the world. And it screams for being dealt with: the possibilities of the intercultural city and the prospects for success of an Architecture of understanding of cultures.

 

The horror vision which the writer Hutington in his book "Clash of Civilistion" envisioned is currently becoming a real problem for the world.  The clash of civilisation between the muslim and the other world is already there.

 

Space and Architecture are connected with perception phenonema, are used as model for further discussion, but also as a metaphysical construction and has been relative, at least since Einstein.

 

An Architectutal work comprises two levels: the material level and the spiritual level.

 

The material level concerns the function of the building, its construction, the materials and so on. The spiritual level comprises signs and their meaning.

The meaning is the transfer of spiritual images or also the animation for the development of spiritual images in perception.

And on the spiritual level there is possibility to evade the Clash of civilisation.

Through the semantics of the Architectural work, which defines a message, and the syntactic code, which defines the language of shapes, we can try to influence and give direction.

Heraklit, one of the great philosophers, doubted the possibility of universal harmony. And also the great Lao Tzu found that contrasts build the best harmony. The old Greeks however gave the goddess Harmonia the god Ares as father, the god of the wild war.

That should give us something to think about. Also, the German philosopher Heidegger defined the concept of Logos and its effect on und contrasts.

 

Another aspect: „A breach with the euro-centrical tradition is very important“, this is the tenor in the southern regions of the world – especially after September 11.

Our Archtitectural language is the language of the white man with some regional spices, for example from Japan, and from which other regions? The variety is rather limited.

Will it come to a real pluralism of cultures in Architecture? This would be a very positive result of the current problems. Fascinating perspectives: A turning away from uniformisation in times of globalisation.

However, Euro-centrism does NOT show itself, according to the Australian Mc Kenzie Wark, in NOIT WANTING TO UNDERSTAND. And Klaus Töpfer „The Western civilisation increasingly appears as an „ecological aggression – and is increasingly understood as such“.

Which kinds of consequences are to be expected, should our approach not be changed? These are:

-    human – psychological

-    symbolic

-    economic

-    technical.

 Consequences, which will appear in different characteristics.

What can we contribute to the intercultural city, to the Architecture of understanding of cultures? Our discussions shall show.(...)

COEXISTENCE OF Declaration of Granada - October 2005

 

 The migratory phenomenon with its positive aspects and its problems has represented a reflection on the cities and the co-existence of different cultures. The existence of interculturality with its specific demands is simultaneous to a “renaissance” of Human Rights.

Cultural diversity, that is to say the existence of multiple and differentiated cultures, and its co-existence demand new defined spaces and different attitudes. The fragmentation of our cities is a risk. The solution lies in what Dominique Schnapper calls a community of solidary citizens, whose founding element is the co-existence of its common belonging.

The procedure doesn’t work by theef. It must be initiated and regulated. Therefore the responsible institutions are not only the municipalities, the and educational ones but also the urban planners and last not least the architects.

Granada more than other cities is a reference point for intercultural dialogue, present in its urban, its diverse architecture, and especially in the cultural layers that have become sedimented in its territory. We could talk about many Granadas, superimposed on each other, which in itself represents complexity and heterogeneity, and is now a value in our contemporary world.

 

 

 

We believe the design of our cities and public spaces can be defined by a spacial and temporal matrix. That includes all the new cultural manifestations that operate the continous transformation of the built environment. This might be through processes of mutual understanding or integration.

Above all the cultural reading of cities shell emerge from social, economic and demographic phenomenas. They permanently inhabit and generate territorial template of spontaneous cultural exchanges.

The task to envision and establish the operative field strategies for the future development of cities requires an insightfull and transcultural process.

Every space in the city, either public or private, shell constitute a physical plataform that enables the participation of every men wether an architect or an user.

It should be found an organic data base, a set of values praticies and visions. That can constantly influence the configuration of the city on a global and local scale.

 

Prof. Dr. W. Zablocki, Warshaw