Off the beaten path: how deconstructivism pushes architecture to its limits

Apart from Derrida’s post-structuralist philosophy, deconstructivism was also influenced by constructivism – an architectural movement that flourished in the Soviet Union after World War I. Russian constructivists wanted to break with geometric norms of their time, reflecting modern industrial spaces with abstract and austere drawings.

Apart from Derrida’s post-structuralist philosophy, deconstructivism was also influenced by constructivism – an architectural movement that flourished in the Soviet Union after World War I. Russian constructivists wanted to break with geometric norms of their time, reflecting modern industrial spaces with abstract and austere drawings. In a similar vein, deconstructivist architects sought to fragment a construction and explore asymmetrical relations – while still maintaining the core function of a space. Architects began to manipulate surface structures, creating non-rectilinear shapes which seem dislocated at first glance. Their designs visualise a sense of “controlled chaos”: distorted walls and corners, skew lines, and ostensibly random arrangements are put together like collages. Thus, even massive concrete blocks can assume the appearance of intricate artistic sculptures.

In 1988, an exhibition titled "Deconstructivist Architecture" was launched at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. This exhibition introduced the stylistic direction to a wider audience, presenting works by seven designers and architects. However, a building designed by Frank Gehry ten years earlier already displayed typical deconstructivist features.

In 1988, an exhibition titled "Deconstructivist Architecture" was launched at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. This exhibition introduced the stylistic direction to a wider audience, presenting works by seven designers and architects. However, a building designed by Frank Gehry ten years earlier already displayed typical deconstructivist features. His house in Santa Monica, California is now considered the first original paradigm. But Gehry did not stop there: throughout his career, he realised several projects that set the framework for what we associate with deconstructivism today. The following five examples present works of Gehry and other key players to illustrate the movement’s great versatility.

In the middle of Los Angeles, Frank Gehry has built a monument for both American cinema and deconstructivist architecture: the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Shiny and matt stainless-steel surfaces reflect the sunlight, reminiscent of musical notes jumping up and down the page.

Inaugurated in 2003, the concert hall tells an intriguing story with its collage-like structure and looped forms. Gehry also designed fascinating constructions in Europe, such as Neuer Zollhof and the Vitra Design Museum in Germany.

With her flowing, dynamic forms, the "Queen of Curves" Zaha Hadid took constructivism one step further: she managed to make even steel and concrete buildings appear to be in motion, defying all straight lines. Among her masterpieces, the Heydar Aliyev Centre in Baku was designed during an international competition in 2007.

Serving as the cultural centre of Azerbaijan, it deviates conspicuously from the surrounding buildings: Hadid’s deconstructivist architecture is replete with sculptural waves, curves, and folds. The light-reflecting shell changes its appearance depending on the sun’s course. In order to erect the challenging construction, Hadid combined a concrete body with a lattice-frame system supported by glass-fibre panels.

Daniel Libeskind, an American urban planner and architect, has left his deconstructivist mark at several places worldwide. One of his most famous works is the extension for the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), which opened in 2007 in downtown Toronto, Canada. The name of the new building, "Michael Lee-Chin Crystal", refers to the project’s sponsor and the building’s abstract appearance:

five intersecting, metal-clad structures are joined in a futuristic sculpture without any right angles or straight walls. Organically interlocking prisms transform the museum complex into a giant crystal. To this day, the ROM extension ranks among the most complicated building projects in North America.

With the National Stadium in Beijing, the architect duo Herzog & de Meuron developed a new kind of public space for the 2008 Summer Olympics. The gigantic arena deconstructs the architectural concept of a conventional sports facility: even from a distance, the facade’s irregular structure visibly breaks down the building into massive single pieces. Separate elements support each other and form a grid-like, open formation that blurs the lines between inside and outside. Oblique columns, beams, and stairs interweave into a thicket seemingly created by nature – hence the name "bird's nest".

In the Netherlands, a building hosting the Groninger Museum demonstrates how an art venue can turn into an art object itself. Italian designer Alessandro Mendini was commissioned to design the new museum when the old one had become too small. Construction works began in 1992 and lasted for two years, until the new museum was finally moved. Throughout the process, Mendini collaborated with three other architects: Philipe Starck, Michele de Lucchi, and Coop Himmelb(l)au all added their own contribution to the new building.

The result is another striking example of how deconstructivism turns architecture as we know it upside down. A structure made from brick, a circular construction clad with aluminium panels, and a pavilion made from steel, concrete, tar, and glass contrast both each other and the main complex. The latter stands out with its colourful facade and yellow tower at the centre. Both internally and externally, a mix of different styles reinforces the building’s collage-like character: from Bauhaus elements to Italian terrazzo motifs, you will find unexpected twists and turns everywhere you look.