The Politics of Architecture

"To treat building as a moral issue in these globalised times is no easy matter. Is it really so objectionable to build luxury hotels in Dubai, or a business HQ in St. Petersburg or an Olympic stadium in Beijing? Fifteen of the twenty world's largest architectural firms have projects in China. Almost all the stars are involved and many Germans are providing the plans for model cities. As in the United Arab Emirates, the insane tempo of the economy of world's fastest growing population is having nasty side effects, the migrant workers have no rights and are paid slave wages if at all. But China wants new cities. Abu Dhabi wants a Louvre by Jean Nouvel and a Guggenheim by Frank Gehry. The recent Munich Expo Real was awash with XXL plans for Dubai. There too the leading firms and Pritzker prizewinners are up to their necks.

It will always be possible to find an architect to do what you want. The question of realism versus opportunism goes to the core of the profession. A comprehensive guide to this can be found in Observer journalist Deyan Sudjic's book "The Edifice Complex. How the Rich and Powerful Shape the World" (Penguin 2005), which demonstrates how consistently taste has won over justice. In the history of construction, the masters of style were also set designers, charged with brand-marking power. From Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon to Nero, from the Popes and French kings to Hitler and Stalin, not only tyrants but all leaders exercised power over the master builders."