The Need to (Re)Purpose

written by Alan Braun

(...) Historic and modern architecture are not one and the same, however, they should respect each other, and one should compare itself against the other. It is always necessary to re-examine the boundary between what is there to be safeguarded, and what can actually be built anew.

Vittorio Magnago Lampugnani

Architecture, as a result of a conscious and planned activity, is always created for a specific purpose, one which reflects present possibilities, and meets the current needs of users. Once it is built, the building inevitably ages, and is subjected to many alterations. The fact that its lifespan is longer than that of a generation of its users imposes new functional and technical requirements.