E_book Charles Jencks

Jencks' Landform at the Scottish National Gallery of

Modern Art

Jencks' Life Mounds at Jupiter Artland, near

Edinburgh

Charles JencksFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Charles Alexander Jencks (born 21 June 1939) is an

American architectural theorist, landscape architect and

designer. His books on the history and criticism of

Modernism and Postmodernism were widely read in

architectural circles and beyond. Born in Baltimore to a

Scottish mother from Fife,[1] he first studied English

Literature at Harvard University, later gaining an MA in

architecture from the Graduate School of Design in 1965.

He also has a PhD in Architectural History from the Bartlett

School of Architecture at University College, London. In the

mid-sixties Jencks moved to Scotland where he has lived

ever since.[1]

Contents

1 Early Years

2 Landscape Architecture

3 Architectural Writing

4 Critical Modernism - Where is Post

Modernism going?

5 Other Works

6 Television

7 Select bibliography

8 References

9 External links

Early Years

Jencks studied under the Modern architectural historians

Siegfried Giedion and Reyner Banham. He first received his

BA in English Literature at Harvard University in 1961, later

gaining an MA in architecture from the Graduate School of

Design in 1965. He took his studies even further and

received his PhD in Architectural History from University

College, London in 1970. In the mid-sixties Jencks moved to

Scotland where he lived with his late wife Maggie Keswick

Jencks. He now designs landscape sculpture and writes on

cosmogenic art.

Landscape Architecture

The Garden of Cosmic Speculation, begun in 1988, was dedicated to Jencks' late wife Maggie Keswick. The

Charles Jencks - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Charles_Jencks&printable=yes

1 dari 5 10/13/2011 5:17 PM

garden has such a name because Jencks, Keswick, scientists, and their friends designed the garden based on

natural and scientific processes. Jencks goal was to celebrate nature, but he also incorporated elements from the

modern sciences into the design. The garden contains a species of plants that are pleasurable to the eye, as well

as edible. With a ‘century of extraordinary discovery in biology’ like evolution and deoxyribonucleic acid also

known as DNA, and cosmology, this has given birth to a new type of garden design [Cosmic]’. Preserving paths

and the beauty of the garden is still evident in the garden except, Jencks enhances the garden using new tools

and artificial materials. Just as Japanese Zen gardens, Persian paradise gardens, the English and French

Renaissance gardens were analogies of the cosmic universe, the design of the garden represents the cosmic and

cultural evolution of the contemporary world. The garden represents a microcosm of the universe. As one walks

through the garden they are experiencing the cosmic universe in miniature. According to Jencks gardens are like

autobiographies because they reveal the happiest moments, the tragedies, and the truths about a person. As the

garden developed since 1988, so too did such sciences as cosmology and this allow a dynamic interaction

between the unfolding universe, a progressing science and a question design. Jencks believes that contemporary

science is potentially the greatest moving force for creativity of our time because it tells us the truth about the

way the universe is. Cosmic passion, the desire both to know and to relate to the universe, is one of the strongest

drives in sentient creatures on a par with those which exercise novelists: sex, money, and power. Every creature

in the universe tries to increase its knowledge, to figure out what is going on, what will happen next, how things

are evolving and the point of this passion how we can relate to this process, fit in with its patterns, celebrate and

on occasion, criticize it. The laws of nature may be omnipotent, but they can also be challenged. A garden is a

perfect place to try out these speculations and celebrations because it is a bit of man-made nature, a fabricated

and ideal cosmic landscape, and a critique of the way the universe is.

Jencks has become a leading figure in British landscape architecture. His landscape work is inspired by fractals,

genetics, chaos theory, waves and solitons. In Edinburgh, Scotland, he designed the Landform at the Scottish

National Gallery of Modern Art in collaboration with Terry Farrell and Duncan Whatmore of Terry Farrell and

Partners. These themes are expanded in his own private garden, the Garden of Cosmic Speculation, at Portrack

House near Dumfries. He is also a furniture designer and sculptor, completing the DNA Sculpture in London's

Kew Gardens in 2003.

His late wife, Maggie Keswick Jencks, was the founder of Maggie's cancer caring centres, for which Jencks has

designed gardens, and the author of a book on Chinese Gardens.

Architectural Writing

Jencks is synonymous with his writings of Postmodernism in architecture. He discusses his theories of

postmodern architecture in his book the Language of Post-Modern Architecture. Jencks discusses the paradigm

shift in modern to post-modern architecture. Modern architecture concentrates on univalent forms such and

right angles and square buildings often resembling office buildings. However, post modern architecture focuses

on forms derived from the mind, body, and nature. His latest book the Iconic Building examines the trend setting

and celebrity culture. Jencks discusses why buildings are being designed this way. The reason that our culture

seeks the ‘iconic building’ is because it has the possibility of reversing the economic trend of a flagging

“conurbation”. An iconic building is created to make a splash, to generate money, and the normal criteria of

valuation does not apply. “Enigmatic signifiers” can be used in and effective way to support the deeper meaning

of the building. Jencks has lectured at over forty universities throughout the globe, including Peking, Shanghai,

Tokyo, Milan, Barcelona, and in the US at Harvard, Columbia, Princeton, and Yale. In his most recent work he

collaborated with the late Maggie Keswick on fractal designs of building and furniture as well as extensive

landscape designs base on complexity theory, waves and solitons.

Critical Modernism - Where is Post Modernism going?


2 dari 5 10/13/2011 5:17 PM

Critical Modernism - Where is Post Modernism going is the latest book by Charles Jencks. It is an overview of

post-modernism in which Jencks argues that Post modernism is another critical reaction to Modernism that

comes from within Modernism itself.[2][3][4]

On 26 March 2007, the Royal Academy hosted a debate between Jencks and John N. Gray centered around the

book.[5]

Other Works

Symbolic Furniture, exhibition Aram Designs London 1985.

Garagia Rotunda, Truro, MA 1976-77.

The Elemental House (with Buzz Yudell), Los Angeles.

The Thematic House (with Terry Farrell), London, 1979-84.

Landform in Edinburgh for The Scottish Gallery of Modern Art.

Matt Ridley, Center for Life, Newcastle, May 2000.

Designs for Black Hole Landscape, IUCAA, Pune, India, 2002.

Television

Has appeared on television programmes in the US and UK, written two feature films for the BBC (on Le

Corbusier and on Frank Lloyd Wright and Michael Graves).

Kings of Infinite Space, 1983;

Symbolic Architecture, 1985;

Space on Earth, 1986;

Battle of Paternoster Square, 1987;

Pride of Place, 1988;

A Second Chance, 1989;

Let the People Choose, 1990. BBC Late show:

New Moderns, 1990;

La Villette, 1991;

Tokyo, 1991 (1992 BP Arts Journalism TV Award);

Libeskind, Jewish Museum, Berlin, 1991;

Culture Debate, 1991;

Frank Gehry and Los Angeles, 1992;

Philip Johnson, The Godfather 1994.

BBC: Gardens of the Mind. Television programme and conference organised around work-in-

progress, New World View, Tokyo and Kyoto, May 1991.

TV Film: 50 minutes "The Garden of Cosmic Speculation" 1998.

Richard Meier The Frame; Daniel Libeskind; The Spiral, 1999.

Appearances in film: Rebuilding the Palace; Frank Lloyd Wright - Tin Gods, 2002.

Recreating Eden, Part 2, BBC for Gardens Through The Ages - 200

Select bibliography

The Architecture of Hope - Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres, Frances Lincoln, London, 2010.

Critical Modernism - Where is Post Modernism going?, Wiley Academy, London, 2007.

The Iconic Building - The Power of Enigma, Frances Lincoln, London, 2005.

The Garden of Cosmic Speculation, Frances Lincoln Limited, London, October 2003.


3 dari 5 10/13/2011 5:17 PM

The New Paradigm in Architecture, (seventh edition of The Language of Post-Modern Architecture),

Yale University Press, London, New Haven, 2002.

Le Corbusier and the Continual Revolution in Architecture, The Monacelli Press, 2000

Architecture 2000 and Beyond, (Critique & new predictions for 1971 book), Academy, Wiley, May

2000

The Architecture of the Jumping Universe, Academy, London & NY, 1995. Second Edition Wiley,

1997.

Heteropolis - Los Angeles, The Riots & Hetero-Architecture, Academy, London & NY, 1993.

The New Moderns, Academy London, Rizzoli, NY 1990.

The Prince, The Architects and New Wave Monarchy, Academy, London and Rizzoli, NY 1988.

Post-Modernism, The New Classicism in Art and Architecture, Rizzoli, NY and Academy, London

1987; German edition, 1987, reprinted 1988.

What is Post-Modernism?, St Martins Press, NY 1986, Academy, London 1986. Second Edition

1988. Third Edition 1989. Fourth Edition 1996.

Towards A Symbolic Architecture, Rizzoli, NY; Academy, London 1985.

Kings of Infinite Space, St. Martins Press, NY; Academy, London 1983.

Abstract Representation, St. Martins Press, NY 1983, Architectural Design monograph, London 1983.

Skyscrapers - Skycities, Rizzoli, NY 1980, Academy, London 1980.

Signs, Symbols and Architecture, edited with Richard Bunt and Geoffrey Broadbent, John Wiley, NY

and London 1980.

Late-Modern Architecture, Rizzoli, NY 1980, Academy, London 1980. Translated into German and

Spanish.

Bizarre Architecture, Rizzoli, NY 1979 and Academy, London 1979.

The Language of Post-Modern Architecture, Rizzoli, NY 1977, revised 1978, Third Ed. 1980, Fourth

Ed. 1984, Fifth Ed. 1988, Sixth Ed. 1991, Academy Editions London 1977, 1978, 1980, 1984, 1991.

Modern Movements in Architecture, Anchor Press, NY 1973.

Adhocism, with Nathan Silver, Doubleday, NY 1972.

References

^ a b Sweeney, Charlene (November 6, 2009). "Charles Jencks's Fife Earth Project gets go-ahead"

(http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article6904970.ece) . The Times (London).

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article6904970.ece. Retrieved March 4, 2010.

1.

^ Wiley, Publisher (http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470030100.html)2.

^ Amazon Books (http://www.amazon.com/Critical-Modernism-Where-Post-Modernism-Going/dp/0470030119)3.

^ TVO, Big Ideas Talk: Charles Jencks (http://www.tvo.org/TVOsites/WebObjects/TvoMicrosite.woa?video11494)4.

^ "RA Forum Debate with Charles Jencks: Critical Modernism" (http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/events/focusdays

/ra-forum-debate-with-charles-jencks-critical-modernism,193,EV.html) . http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/events

/focusdays/ra-forum-debate-with-charles-jencks-critical-modernism,193,EV.html. Retrieved March 4, 2010.

5.

"Cv." Index. Web. 01 Dec. 2010. <http://www.charlesjencks.com/cv.html>.

"Charles Jencks, Esq." Web. 29 Jul. 2011. <http://www.debretts.com/people/biographies/browse

/j/16095/Charles%20Alexander+JENCKS.aspx>.

"Designs." Index. Web. 01 Dec. 2010. <http://www.charlesjencks.com/designs.html>.

Jencks, Charles. Modern Movements in Architecture. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1973. Print.Jencks,

Charles. Post-modern Classicism: the New Synthesis. London: Architectural *Design, 1980. Print.

Jencks, Charles. The New Paradigm in Architecture: the Language of Post-modernism. NewHaven,

CT: Yale UP, 2002. Print.

Jencks, Charles. The Garden of Cosmic Speculation. London: Frances Lincoln, 2005. Print.

Jencks, Charles. The Iconic Building. New York, NY: Rizzoli, 2005. Print.

Jencks, Charles. The Post-modern Reader. London: Academy Editions, 1992. Print.


4 dari 5 10/13/2011 5:17 PM

External links

Charles Jencks website (http://www.charlesjencks.com)

Archinect interview (12/2005) (http://archinect.com/features/article.php?id=29809_0_23_0_M)

Books by Charles Jencks (http://www.charlesjencks.com/books-3.html)

What is Critical Postmodernism Theory? (http://business.nmsu.edu/~dboje/pages

/what_is_critical_postmodern.htm)

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Charles_Jencks&oldid=455300915"

Categories: 1939 births Living people Harvard University alumni American architecture writers

American architectural historians American landscape architects Architectural theoreticians

This page was last modified on 13 October 2011 at 01:06.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may

apply. See Terms of use for details.

Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.


5 dari 5 10/13/2011 5:17 PM

The neoclassical facade of the Scottish National Gallery Of Modern

Art

Scottish National Gallery of Modern ArtFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art

in Edinburgh, holds the national collection of

modern art. When opened in 1960, the

collection was held in Inverleith House, at the

Royal Botanic Gardens. In 1980 it moved to its

current home: a Neo Classical building in the

west of Edinburgh, near the Water of Leith,

built in 1825-1828 by William Burn for John

Watson's Hospital, a school now incorporated in

George Watson's College.

The Sculpture garden to the front of the

building contains work by Henry Moore,

Rachel Whiteread, Tony Cragg and Barbara

Hepworth. In 2002 the front lawn was

converted into the giant "Landform" sculpture

by Charles Jencks, in collaboration with Terry

Farrell and Duncan Whatmore of Terry Farrell

and Partners. The sculpture is said to be inspired by chaos theory or Seurat's La Grand Jatte. In 2004 the gallery

won the £100,000 Gulbenkian Prize for the Landform.

In 2005 with the help of the Art Fund, the gallery added a significant selection of 20 monoprint drawings by

leading British artist Tracey Emin to their collection, called the Family Suite (1994) displaying the "archetypal

themes in Emin's art: sex, her family, her abortions, and Margate"[1]. These works will be displayed from August

2008 at the gallery as part of a major solo show by Emin which has been called the Summer Blockbuster

exhibition.[2]

The collection includes work by Picasso, Braque, Mondrian, Ben Nicholson, Matisse, Andy Warhol, Roy

Lichtenstein, The Scottish Colourists, Peter Howson, Levannah Harris, Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, Boyle

Family and Douglas Gordon. Due to space constraints, the work that is displayed is often rotated. The gallery

also holds temporary exhibitions. Surrealist and Dada art, as well as work by Eduardo Paolozzi are kept at the

adjacent Dean Gallery.

A selection of works from the gallery is available to view online.

See also

National Galleries of Scotland

References

^ The Art Fund - Family Suite (http://www.artfund.org/artwork/9639/family-suite)1.

^ National Galleries of Scotland - Supportus (http://www.nationalgalleries.org/supportus/page/3:205)2.

External links

Coordinates: 55°57′03.09″N 3°13′39.23″W

Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Scottish_National_Gallery_of...

1 dari 2 10/13/2011 5:19 PM

Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art and Sculpture Garden (http://www.nationalgalleries.org) -

official website

official website - Museum collections (http://www.nationalgalleries.org/collections/)

Charles Jencks' Landform (http://www.edinburgharchitecture.co.uk/landform_charles_jencks.htm)

Antoine Boudelle, The

Virgin Of Alsace,

1919-21

Henry Moore,

Reclining Figure, 1951

Henry Moore,

Reclining Figure, 1951

Alexander Calder's

L'empennage, 1953

Barbara Hepworth,

Conversation with

Magic Stones, 1973

Charles Jencks'

Landform, 2004

Landform, or

Earthworks, or Ueda,

won the Gulbenkian

Prize in May 2004

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Scottish_National_Gallery_of_Modern_Art&

oldid=454145171"

Categories: Museums established in 1960 Art museums and galleries in Edinburgh

Modern art museums National Galleries of Scotland Category A listed buildings

Listed buildings in Edinburgh Scottish building and structure stubs

United Kingdom art museum and gallery stubs

This page was last modified on 5 October 2011 at 22:37.




Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Scottish_National_Gallery_of...

2 dari 2 10/13/2011 5:19 PM

Garden of Cosmic Speculation

Garden of Cosmic SpeculationFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Garden of Cosmic Speculation is at Portrack House, near Dumfries

in South West Scotland. It is a private garden created by Charles Jencks.

Contents

1 History

1.1 Features

1.2 Access

1.3 Depiction in music

2 References

3 External links

History

Features

The garden is inspired by science and mathematics, with sculptures and landscaping on these themes, such as

Black Holes and Fractals. The garden is not abundant with plants, but sets mathematical formulae and scientific

phenomenae in a setting which elegantly combines natural features and artificial symmetry and curves. It is

probably unique among gardens, and contrasts nicely with the historical and philosophical themes of the less

spectacular but equally thoughtful Little Sparta.

Access

The garden is private but usually opens on one day each year through Scotland's Gardens Scheme and raises

money for Maggie's Centres, a cancer care charity named for Maggie Keswick Jencks, the late wife of Charles

Jencks.

Depiction in music

The garden is the subject of an orchestral composition by American composer, Michael Gandolfi, which he

composed for a joint commission from the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Tanglewood Music Center. The

piece was subsequently recorded by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra conducted by Robert Spano, and

nominated for "Best Contemporary Classical Composition" at the 2009 Grammy Awards.

References

External links

Media related to Garden of Cosmic Speculation (//commons.wikimedia.org

/wiki/Category:Garden_of_Cosmic_Speculation) at Wikimedia Commons

Coordinates: 55.12978°N 3.66583°W

Garden of Cosmic Speculation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Garden_of_Cosmic_Speculati...

1 dari 2 10/13/2011 5:21 PM

Charles Jencks website (http://www.charlesjencks.com/)

The Garden of Cosmic Speculation at Amazon Books (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Garden-Cosmic-

Speculation-Charles-Jencks/dp/0711222169)

Scotland's Gardens Scheme (http://www.gardensofscotland.org/)

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Garden_of_Cosmic_Speculation&oldid=448218003"

Categories: Gardens in Dumfries and Galloway

This page was last modified on 3 September 2011 at 12:40.




Garden of Cosmic Speculation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Garden_of_Cosmic_Speculati...

2 dari 2 10/13/2011 5:21 PM

E_book Charles Jencks

Documents

Transcript of E_book Charles Jencks