The Act of Creation and the Spirit of a Place: A Holistic-Phenomenological Approach to Architecture
Publisher: Edition Axel Menges
Published: 2006
Place of publication: Germany
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover; E-Book
Number of pages: 248
Copyright date: 2006
Description: “Portugali's quiet revolution may be the one that passes the ultimate test of time…”
(URBAN DESIGN International, Palgrave Macmillan Journal)
Notes: "Architectural concepts which are timeless in essence are not a reaction to contemporary architecture or a threat to the spirit of the time. By definition, Timeless  architecture reflects the spirit of the time".
What is unique in Portugali's works is that even the most new and modern seems as if it has been here forever.
Nili Portugali, a leading architect, presents in a unique way her particular interpretation of the holistic- phenomenological worldview in theory and in practice, a worldview which stands in recent years at the forefront of the scientific discourse, and is tightly related to Buddhist teachings and philosophy.
"The purpose of architecture is first and foremost to create a human environment for human beings. The real challenge of current architectural practice is to make the best use of the potential inherent in our modern technological age. Yet, modern society has lost the value of man and thus created a feeling of alienation between man and the environment. Disowning this central value by various architectural streams has eventually led to the creation of "fascist" architecture.
The fine buildings and places - those with timeless relevance - are the ones that touch our hearts and have the power to arouse feelings.
Contemporary architecture sought to dissociate itself from the world of emotions and connect the design process to the world of ideas, thus creating a rational relation between building and man, devoid of any emotion.
Portugali argues that in order to change the feeling of the environment and create places and buildings we really feel ‘at home’ and want to live in, what is needed is not a change of style or fashion, but a transformation of the mechanistic worldview underlying current thought and approaches.
Based on Christopher Alexander's basic assumption that behind human architecture there are universal and eternal codes common to us all as human beings, and that there is absolute truth underlying beauty and comfort, Portugali demonstrates how this approach, as well as her unique planning process stemming from it (based on the way thingss actually exist already on site), generates that common spiritual experience people undergo in buildings endowed with soul, no matter where or from what culture they come from. That she demonstrates in a variety of projects, in relation to the physical, cultural and social reality of the place they were planned and built on, an Israeli reality which reflects a unique interface between the orient and the west, a cultural interface she personally represents.