Ornament and crime? From loos to Venturi & Scott Brown

[EN] In architecture, ornament has always been embroiled in controversy because, in many cases, it has been influenced by an ordinary reading of “Ornament and crime”, the well-known lecture by Adolf Loos in 1908. A deeper reading of his texts and the analysis of his work lead to an understanding of his position about the role of ornament and to the identification of those elements which were really being criticised by the Viennese master. It is not a direct criticism of ornament itself, it is more about the censorship of the improper use of ornament. His theories are illustrated by some examples such as the Café Museum or his building in Michaelerplatz, just like other contemporary masters like Otto Wagner or Frank Lloyd Wright. We must unlearn our prejudices about ornament to get a better understanding of Adolf Loos’ attitude. An attitude which has not lost any relevance in contemporary architecture[ES] El ornamento en arquitectura ha estado siempre envuelto de polémica, en muchos casos influenciada por una lectura banal de la famosa conferencia de 1908 de Adolf Loos titulada “Ornamento y delito”. Una lectura más profunda de sus textos y el análisis de su obra nos lleva a comprender su posición respecto al ornamento e identificar aquellos elementos que el maestro vienés estaba realmente criticando. No se trata tanto de una crítica directa al ornamento, como de la censura al uso inadecuado del ornamento. Los ejemplos del café Museum o su edificio en Michaelerplatz ilustran sus teorías, al igual que maestros coetáneos como Otto Wagner o Frank Lloyd Wright. Debemos despojarnos de nuestros prejuicios sobre el ornamento, para entender la postura de Adolf Loos. Una postura que no ha perdido vigencia en la arquitectura contemporánea.Arnau Orenga, PI.; Bruns Banegas, S.; Lozano Velasco, JM. (2017). ¿Ornamento y delito? De Loos a Venturi & Scott Brown. EN BLANCO. Revista de Arquitectura. 10(23):93-102. doi:10.4995/eb.2017.7969SWORD931021023Benevolo, Leonardo. Historia de la arquitectura moderna. Barcelona: Gustavo Gili, SA, 1974.Davies, Stephen. "Is Architecture Art?" In: Mitias, Michael. Philosophy and Architecture. Amsterdam; Atlanta, GA: Rodopi, 1994.Gombricht, Ernst. The sense of order: A Study in the Psychology of Decorative Art. Ithaca; New York: Cornell University Press, 1979.Gravagnuolo, Benedetto. Adolf Loos. Theory and Works. Preface by Aldo Rossi. Translated by C.H. Evans. Milan: Idea Books, 1982.Harries, Karsten. The Broken Frame. Washington: The Catholic University of America Press, 1989.Lloyd Wright, Frank. Writings and Buildings. Nueva York: Meridian Books, The World Publishing Company, 1960.Loos, Adolf. Escritos I. 1897/1909. Translated by Alberto Estévez, Josep Quetglas, Miquel Vila. Madrid: El Croquis Editorial, 1993.Loos, Adolf. Escritos II. 1910/1932. Translated by Alberto Estévez, Josep Quetglas, Miquel Vila. Madrid: El Croquis Editorial, 1993.Marx, Karl. Early writings. Introduced by Lucio Colletti. Translated by Rodney Livingstone and Gregor Benton. London: Penguin Books, 1975.Semper, Gottfried. Der Stil in den technischen und tektonischen Künsten oder praktische Ästhetik. Frankfurt am Main, 1860.Simmel, Georg. Untersuchungen über die formen der Vergesellschaftung. Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 1908.Veblen, Thorstein. The Theory of the Leisure Class. An Economic Study of Institutions. New York: Macmillan Company, 1899.Venturi, Robert. "Diversidad, adecuación y representación en el historicismo, o plus ça change…/ con un alegato a favor del motivo repetitivo en arquitectura...". In Venturi, Rauch & Scott Brown. Barcelona: Gustavo Gili, 1986.Wagner, Otto. Die Baukunst unserer Zeit: dem Baukunstjünger ein Führer auf diesem Kunstgebiete. Viena: A. Schroll, 1914.Walzer, Michael. Spheres of Justice. A defense of pluralism and equality. USA: Basic Books Inc, 1983.Zevi, Bruno. Sapere vedere l'architettura. Torino: Piccola Biblioteca Einaudi, 1948.Zevi, Bruno. Saber ver la arquitectura. Translated by Cino Calcaprina y Jesús Bermejo Goday. Barcelona: Poseidon, 1976