El Croquis/ Christian Kerez (1992-1999)

The architecture of Christian Kerez, despite its quest for a reduction to the discipline’s essentials, is nevertheless often increasingly underpinned by a number of complex programmes. This position was exemplified in his inaugural lecture at the ETH in Zurich where he stated, ‘All the work that I am somehow involved with as an architect does not attempt to beautify, improve or change the world in anyway; it attempts only to acquire knowledge; it attempts only to gain new insights.’ El Croquis presents here a survey of twenty projects by Kerez, starting with his icon of Swiss Minimalism, the Chapel in Oberrealta and finishing with his recent competition entry for the Swiss Re Next building in Zurich. Also featured are designs for the Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw and the Thermal Baths in Baden, the completed ‘House with one Wall,’ and School Building in Leutschenbach, both in Zurich, and the Museum of Art Liechtenstein, Vaduz. All are accompanied by full-colour photographs and technical drawings, and are introduced by an interview with, and photographs by, the architect, alongside an essay by Hans Frei.