Iñaki Ãbalos and Juan Herreros established the renowned architecÂtural firm Ãbalos & Herreros in Madrid in 1984. At the time, folÂlowing the end of the Franco regime, architects were valued more for their technical ability than for their contributions to theoretical research. In this context, Ãbalos and Herreros’s melding of design with a range of publications and curatorial projects presented a remarkable challenge to assumptions about the role of an architect.
In 2012, the Canadian Centre for Architecture obtained the Ãbalos & Herreros archive, which contains documents related to more than 160 projects. The material comprises sketches, slides, models, colÂlages, and drawings. The archive presents a compelling opportunity to reconstruct Ãbalos and Herreros’s planning and design process. Each of the book’s three contributors—two of whom worked with Ãbalos and Herreros—approaches the archive with specific questions, and their essays explore topics including the architects’ fascination with industrial architecture, their capacity to construct a hybrid materiality without recourse to building technology as language, and their innovaÂtive visions for landscape architecture.
While many have written about the work of Ãbalos and Herreros, previous books have been based mainly on their built projects and onÂgoing research. Ãbalos & Herreros Selected by Office Kersten Geers David Van Severen, Juan José Castellón and SO–IL is the first book to draw on the firm’s archive to offer a new take on this important architectural practice.
In 2012, the Canadian Centre for Architecture obtained the Ãbalos & Herreros archive, which contains documents related to more than 160 projects. The material comprises sketches, slides, models, colÂlages, and drawings. The archive presents a compelling opportunity to reconstruct Ãbalos and Herreros’s planning and design process. Each of the book’s three contributors—two of whom worked with Ãbalos and Herreros—approaches the archive with specific questions, and their essays explore topics including the architects’ fascination with industrial architecture, their capacity to construct a hybrid materiality without recourse to building technology as language, and their innovaÂtive visions for landscape architecture.
While many have written about the work of Ãbalos and Herreros, previous books have been based mainly on their built projects and onÂgoing research. Ãbalos & Herreros Selected by Office Kersten Geers David Van Severen, Juan José Castellón and SO–IL is the first book to draw on the firm’s archive to offer a new take on this important architectural practice.
