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Architecture in the Alps: can Tradition and Modernity be Reconciled?

Jürg RAGETTLI - Architect, Switzerland

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Ladies and Gentlemen,

The relationship of new architecture to history and the connection of modernity to tradition are essential themes.
Architecture is never found in a vacuum, in a space without history and without surroundings.
In other words, architectural constructions are always found in connection to a site, to a locality, to a topographical and cultural landscape, and to the history of architecture.
It is an area of tension in which architecture defines its position between history and invention.
The scope of architectural positions ranges from historicist tendencies up to the negation of historical models; and obviously, there are many intermediate degrees between them.
The most famous present-day architect in Graubünden, Peter Zumthor, described his interest in tradition in the following way:

If a project draws only from tradition and what already exists, it repeats what its site has determined in advance. In this case, it lacks confrontation with the world and the influence of the contemporary.
If an architecture only relates sophisticated and visionary themes, without stirring its concrete setting, it lacks the sensual anchoring of the building to its place and the specific gravity of the local.

This explanation describes the intensive efforts in creating an architecture that is firmly rooted in its site and that is filled with the specific qualities of the location.
Reconciling modernity and tradition–combining a new identity and the history of architecture, the local and the worldwide–this is the quintessence of Peter Zumthor's buildings.

The examples I am going to present are located in my home region of Graubünden.
One could say that this region, the canton of Graubünden, is regarded as one of the most essential and vital architecture scenes in Europe.

Some themes of the buildings that I am going to show you are:

• the interpretation of specific qualities, of the history, the tradition, and culture of the sites;
• the problem of the relationship of modernity to tradition; and
• the creation of a singular architecture for a site.

One could ask whether there really still are traditions in architecture, and if forms and the constructions conveyed still make sense.
For example, many traditions from rural culture and country life have been lost. They have become empty, valueless; they have become mere folklore.

These contexts are the objectives of my talk.

Another trend that has a great influence over contemporary architecture is what I would like to describe as auteur architecture. In other words, architects, as the authors of plans, have become very important to the public; they have become brands, for example like Armani or Dior or Coca-Cola. Think about the Luzern Congress Center by Jean Nouvel, Frank Gehry's Bilbao museum, or the buildings by architects Herzog and de Meuron like the Tate Modern Gallery in London.
All of them highly fascinating constructions.
However, this development among these very well known architects, who have become international stars, can also be a real problem, since the names and the spectacle are in the foreground.

But this auteur architecture is a reality, and it is also a potential for tourism.

The Kirchner Museum Davos

The first example, the Kirchner Museum Davos, was built by architects Annette Gigon and Mike Guyer. In its cubic perspective, the composition continues the flat roof architecture in Davos, which has come to exemplify the city's image since the interwar period.
The traditional and classical form of the exhibition hall is interpreted through a new layout. The four halls are not linked in a row, but through a system of pavilions. They are brought together through an area of corridors. From the outside, the four volumes of the halls seem like closed cubes that protect their precious contents, and are in turn protected by a glass envelope. The glass is presented in different states of transparency.
The exciting architecture of the Kirchner Museum has become a cultural and tourism success, and has truly changed the sensibility and attitudes for tourist architecture in Graubünden.

Davos Sports Centre

The old edifice for the Davos ice rink was built in 1933 (nineteen thirty-three) by architect Rudolf Gabarel.
It testified to the sporting culture arising in the former resort for lung disease patients.
Constructed during the economic crisis of the '30s, it was built entirely out of wood and covered with wooden shingles.
Like the terraces of sanatoria, the gallery faced southwest and invited visitors to sunbathe. The flat-roof construction was typical for this era.
The edifice fell victim to arson.
The new building by architects Gigon and Guyer responded to the changed situation, but the new architecture refers to the old building even though the new function is more varied and complex.
The references to the old building are, for example, the striking gallery and the facing of façades in wood.
The concrete building has a double wood facing: the inner cladding is in orange, blue, and yellow, and contrasts with the rough exterior timber. This play of colour and materials is a response to the world of sports and entertainment.

Thermal Baths, Vals

From the perspective of the relationship of architecture and tourism in Graubünden, there is no other building that has altered and shaped the situation like the Thermal Baths of Vals by architect Peter Zumthor.
The great economic success proved that a high-quality singular architecture is an attraction for many visitors who are seeking much more than only a wellness offer.
The thermal baths are not a show of technical fountains, showers, and jets; they are a sensual, wonderful and almost magical world.
Built into and on the side of the mountain, this edifice was built into the stone and built with stone.
What results from the architecture is an experience of simple and peaceful bathing, relaxation in the water, the body's contact with the water in different temperatures and spatial orientations, and contact with the stone.
The Thermal Baths in Vals are like the quintessence of all baths, of subterranean spaces, of caves, and of the elements of water and stone.

Traversina Footbridge and the Suransuns Footbridge

The new footbridges across the Viamala by engineer Jürg Conzett are other examples of how modern architecture can become an effective attraction.
One, a suspended wooden staircase, and the other, a suspension bridge in a fine line over the Rhine, are filigree constructions that intensify one’s perception of the ravine's dramatic rock landscape.
These ingenious constructions are responsible for the great success of this cultural and tourism project.

Albula Museum of Railroad History

The "Albula" railroad museum at the Bergün station is a project through which economic, cultural, and tourism interests, the history of architecture and technology, and heritage and landscape protection are brought together. And the architecture by architects Ruch, Fickert, and Knapkiewicz will be an essential part of this exhibition.

"Heidi" House

The examples up to now have shown how architecture can be the means to intensively experience the landscape, art, culture, and architecture.
As a counterexample, I will add this case.
It is an illustration from the "Heidi" House museum in Oberrofels.
Johanna Spyri's story "Heidi" is a glorification and myth of the good, intact, and curative world of the mountains and of the rural life of the Alpine environment.
Don’t get me wrong: I am highly aware of the tourism potential and the success of the Heidi label. And I don't want to go tilting at windmills against this tourism presentation.
But in this case I note that tourism interests, cultural identity, and architectural quality diverge greatly. This staging is far from authentic and original. It no longer concerns a live tradition, but pure folklore and insipid imitation.

Vrin

The opposite is the village of Vrin: Vrin is not a tourism resort; it is a small rural mountain village.
In the past, qualitative and sustainable development of rural life and farming organisations was carried out.
The goal is not to protect an idyllic image of the place and the environment, but rather to safeguard the identity and to develop economic and architectural structures.
The village and its inhabitants want to remain a rural village, and this is why the farms must remain in the village.
The necessary architectural changes and the new constructions, like houses and cowsheds, are carefully integrated into the existing structure.
Both the new high-quality architecture and the old structures are wooden and form a harmonious whole.
Architect Gion Caminada interprets the typical traditions of building in wood with contemporary building methods and without imitation. He combines respect for architectural tradition with the ingenuity of new constructions. He succeeds due to his proximity to the problems of the rural world and due to the view from a distance, of which he is capable.

The original chalet

The comparison of this house shows the difference between the new interpretation of an architectural tradition, and the repetition of an old model. This chalet is vaunted as "original construction".
It is not so easy to answer whether it is still a valid tradition that reflects the realities of modern life, or if it is pure imitation of old forms even though building conditions and lifestyle needs have changed.

Luzi House, Jenaz

This house by architect Zumthor in the same region shows what potential can be drawn from the re-interpretation of this traditional wood building method. When the wood has aged, become dark brown, grey, and black, this house will integrate perfectly into the environment. And furthermore, the architectural form is an impressive expression of a new art in construction.

Boarding School in Disentis/Mustér

The same architectural qualities—integration into a whole and re-interpretation of structures—are represented by the Disentis monastery’s boarding school house by architect Caminada.

Meuli House, Fläsch

The Meuli House in Fläsch by the architecture firm of Valentin Bearth and Andrea Deplazes typifies integration into the structure of the village.
The house is placed in the irregular and narrow angle of the plot. The crystalline and irregular shape is the result of this integration into the land. On one side, the monolithic form is powerful and wide, and on the other side, it appears narrow and slender. Without copying formalist details, analogies to traditional houses are created. The plastic form also coincides with the concrete construction.

Villa Garbald, Castasegna

The Villa Garbald in Castasegna by architect Gottfried Semper is a building typical of the 19th (nineteenth) century. After a meticulous restoration, the building is now used by ETH Zurich as a small conference centre.
The tower in the garden serves as an annex with several guest rooms.
The villa is the main edifice; the new building by architects Miller and Maranta remains in the background.
But the characteristic contemporary architecture is autonomous and in dialogue with the villa. In this way, Semper's monument and the new building create a new whole.

Reconstruction of the Hotel Quellenhof, Bad Ragaz

The Hotel Quellenhof building in Bad Ragaz was demolished and rebuilt. Rebuilding a historic architecture is absurd, and from an architecture perspective it is dangerous since imitation is not possible and the new architecture no longer has the material and sensual qualities of the original edifice.

Hotel Castell, Zuoz

On the contrary, the examples of the Hotel Saratz in Pontresina and Hotel Castell in Zuoz show that the connection and the dialogue between historic and modern architecture are attractive even for visitors.

I hope that I have succeeded in the two objectives I have set out:

Firstly:
Modern architecture can create a connection to the location and site, to its specific qualities and its typical elements.
In this respect, the theme, if and to whatever extent there are actually traditions that are still vital and valid, plays an important role.

Secondly:
Architectural culture has a great importance for tourism.
I am convinced that new, high-quality architecture can act as a catalyst for tourism.

Slideshow