Pieter Uyttenhove Orden de los libros

On a little-known 1970s experiment in pneumatic architecture by the Belgian architect and Atelier Alpha cofounder A.J. Lode Janssens (born 1947) is one of Belgium’s most idiosyncratic architects and a radical educator. He was cofounder of the experimental studio Atelier Alpha and the Sint-Lucas Werkgemeenschap, a workshop linking architectural education, practice and research, and operated in close collaboration with ILAUD, the International Laboratory of Architecture and Urban Design. A.J. Lode 1,47 mbar presents The Balloon, an all-but-unknown temporary pneumatic home experiment, built in 1973 in Humbeek, where he lived with his family until 1986. Lode Janssens considered it an uncompromising ephemeral attempt at de-architecturalization and living in harmony with a cave-dwelling, a work-in-progress, an empirical residence. This publication accompanies the exhibition A.J. Lode Balloon Home at CIVA in Brussels.

The exploration of creation and invention in urban design has been underexamined in architectural and urban historiography. Typically, architectural history views these concepts as the results of architects' and urban designers' conceptual efforts, focusing on the intention behind producing new artifacts. This perspective mirrors traditional art history, emphasizing the individual creator's generative process and the evolution of their work across generations. Here, the architect's intention and conceptual work are seen as closely aligned, suggesting that the final product is a direct reflection of the author's ideas—essentially a transparent text composed of aesthetic choices, ideological visions, and design decisions. This historiographical approach often prioritizes easily retraceable facts, such as styles, formal rules, education, building techniques, and affiliations with movements, while overlooking the complexities of creative work. The representational aspect—how ideas are conveyed through drawings, photographs, and maps—adds further layers of complexity to understanding the creative processes of architects and urban designers. By considering these dimensions, a more nuanced understanding of urban design creation emerges.