EPFL – Lausanne | Conservation of 20th century engineering | 2016
Cristiana Chiorino, partner of Comunicarch Associates, has contributed to « La sauvegarde des grandes œuvres d’ingénierie du XXème siècle », by Franz Graf and Yvan Delemontey, the first issue of the Cahiers du TSAM, Techniques et Sauvegarde de l’Architecture Moderne dedicated to the conservation of the 20th century’s great works of engineering, aims to explore the future of some of the most remarkable and emblematic concrete structures of the previous century. Through the personalities of the heroic builders, this publication aims to consider what the engineers – the most daring of whom (Freyssinet, Isler, Maillart, Nervi, Vierendeel, etc.) are represented here – bequeathed to the century. While the conservation of 20th century architecture has in recent years been seen as a discipline in its own right, the conservation of 20th century engineering is still in its infancy. Considered too offen purely from the point of view of security or maintenance, these works are now often seen as true masterpieces, cutting edge achievements of the “engineer’s art”, as stunning for their plastic beauty as for their technical performance. This publication provides an opportunity to stimulate, with reference to concrete examples and projects, an awareness of the heritage challenges to be addressed in the field of engineering. ppur.org
An important review of the book can be read on Le Monde blog.