"10 Questions to..." is a series of short interviews with architects and female architects, to whom we address the same pool of questions. In today's installment of the mini-interview, Andrzej Truszczyński talked about the most important buildings, the city of the future and neo(eco)functionalism.
Andrzej Truszczyński - a graduate of the Silesian University of Technology, defended his doctoral thesis at the Cracow University of Technology. During his studies, he started working for the German company Schick Architekci, in 2010 he became a manager in the company, then co-owner, and then CEO. Since 2019, he has been president of the TKHolding Truszczyński Kobierzewski group of architectural firms. He is the co-author of such projects as the Water Factory in Szczecin, Water Park Tychy and Chelm Water Park, among others. This year he was included in the list of forty promising young European designers before the age of forty - 40 UNDER 40®.
1. architecture in three words...?
a. Beauty.
b. Needs.
c. Space.
2. the three most important buildings for you...?
a. VIA 57 West, New York, pro: Bjarke Ingels - not long ago it would have seemed impossible to change the New York skyline with one building, and yet. This project reinforces my belief that nothing is impossible.
b. Bosco Verticale, Milan, proj.: Stefano Boeri Architetti - as a symbol of the change in thinking about urban space, the next installment of climate crisis architecture.
c. Water Park Tychy - this is ten years of my life. It is a facility that was demanding in every aspect and at every stage of implementation. With it we wanted to prove that it is possible to create interesting architecture in an aquapark facility This is the most ecological facility I have co-designed so far, and at the same time an opportunity to repair/protect the environment.
3. the most important book on architecture...?
More of an atlas than a book - The Phaidon Atlas of Contemporary Architecture. It was the first time I saw a compilation of hundreds of magnificent buildings that inspired me to make trips across Europe to see them. I am convinced that good architecture must be experienced in person. Photos are often cropped to show the best part, they lack context, detail. I study each such object, getting into the different roles of the users - a child, a youth, an old man or woman, a blind person or a person in a wheelchair. At the same time, it planted in me the conviction to design the kind of architecture I would like to show in the next edition.
4. most inspiring city and why...?
Singapore - when I imagine what the 22nd century will look like, I think of this garden city. Maybe it's a matter of contrasts with previous cities I've seen. This metropolis seems balanced, full of harmony. All-encompassing greenery and subtle beauty, and at the same time grandeur and splendor. A cultural mix.
5. architect with whom you would like to design something and why...?
With Bjarke Ingels - there was a lot of buzz about his work when I was in college. It was the time of the starchitects, and yet, it was his works that made and still make the biggest impression. Why with him? Because it would be fun, I think we would find a common language of architecture.
6. hand-drawing or computer drawing?
At the stage of ideas - hand-drawn, then computer drawing - it is more precise, gives more possibilities.
7. mockup or 3D model?
Digital 3D model - gives a greater spectrum of information and, most importantly, thanks to virtual reality, allows a previously unavailable perception of the emerging architecture.
8. modernism or postmodernism?
Neo-functionalism - form follows function but function follows ecology.
9. working after hours or sport?
Work until victory, every other moment - family.
10. architecture or business?
For me, these are two concepts symbiotically fused.
