This is a photo of Horton Plaza in San Diego, a shopping mall built by Jon Jerde. I've never been to a Jerde mall before, though I'd read about him and had greatly anticipated doing so. It did not disappoint. It really is the consummate American architecture: colorful and caloric -- but ultimately unnutritious and ungratifying -- commercial junkspace. Here's the food court and the main promenade.

I was talking to Matt Jones and trying to recall that nice quote by Saarinen's dad in which he says, "Always design a thing by considering it in its next larger context—a chair in a room, a room in a house, a house in an environment, an environment in a city plan...." Matt observed that what Jerde had done was inverted that idea. He put a whole city into its next smaller context: a city inside a building.

His site, where you can read about his philosophy. Frank Gehry used to work with Jerde, I believe, and when you think about it, it's obvious: Gehry builds high concept art malls.

LINK | 12:19 AM | TB

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