POLO

This book is a representation. It shows images, drawings, and it transcribes the context. It is the outcome of a quest rather than a punctuation mark. The quest for architecture, a construct of the mind – trying to absorb what is at once material and immaterial. Thoughts, words, discussions, agreements, ideas, commitment, compromises, silence, setbacks, euphoria, energy, contemplation, laughter, friendship, courage, mediation – the immaterial counterparts of what is built are inevitably not represented, but they are borne by the work itself.

This work is our work – the work of many. It shows what it is, not what it wants to be, nor how it came into being. Unravelling the reciprocity of architecture and urban landscape appears as a major concern. Filip Dujardin’s photographs mirror this in a prelude to this book. The sessions, for their part, help us neither to dictate nor to assert, but to contemplate and question many issues at heart, in the company of our honourable guests, who we therefore thank warmly.