Annabelle Selldorf
Annabelle Selldorf
Annabelle Selldorf is a German-born architect and founding principal of Selldorf Architects, a New York City-based architecture practice. She is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. Her projects include the Sunset Park Material Recovery Facility, Neue Galerie New York, renovation of the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute and two high-rise residential buildings along New York's High Line. She is currently designing an expansion of the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego and several buildings for the LUMA...
NationalityGerman
ProfessionArchitect
CountryGermany
There isn't any one material that's mine. It all depends on the context. For example, I did a house that had the most exquisite marble applications. That sounds ostentatious, but it wasn't, given the context. The color white I subscribe to extensively. I love thinking about color, but I often go with white.
I always tend to think, even in residential projects, about what a space is being asked to do - where is it located, what are the circumstances, where can I attack the problem, so to speak. How can you create a narrative for people moving through it? How can you convey its character?
Everything is complicated about using concrete - the discipline and dedication necessary to make consistent batches, understanding exactly how the formwork will be laid, what the timing is for the pours, how you keep it clean and neat to achieve a fine quality.
Tension is an interesting quality - and architecture must have it. There should be elements of the inexplicable, the mysterious, and the poetic in something that is perfectly rational.
There's no architect who doesn't want to build a library - and I am no different. With so much scrutiny now attached to reading - because of technology and how we approach it as a social activity - that is a very exciting area in architecture.
The secret of good architecture is having more than meets the eye.
I was brought up to reuse things.
Architecture is about aging well, about precision and authenticity. There is much more to the success of a building than what you can see. Im not suggesting that gestural architecture is always superficial, but solid reasoning has its place.
I make spaces that are calm rather than confrontational. I seek a certain kind of logic that allows you to move in space and perceive it as beautiful and rational. Clarity is a worthwhile quality.
So much of what makes a room great is how you enter and circulate through it, how it addresses the body.
To me, the nicest luxury would be to have a room where I could keep all my books in one place - and have space for more.
I'm inspired by looking at art, by looking at precedent. Looking is what you have to do if you want to make things, so you develop a critical eye.
All clients think that they are architects.
When everything is perfectly orderly and understandable, there has to be one thing that puts everything into question.