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Interview with Albert Tschechne: Architect specialized in Inflatable Spaces
INTERVIEWS
Emotions are there, they exist, and they surface more or less often depending on the personality of the person feeling them. That’s why we sometimes divide the world into the more rational beings and the more emotional ones; and often it’s reason itself that manages to hide emotions, or even, after analyzing them, dampen their effect. We tend to associate rational beings with the scientific world — mathematicians, physicists, computer scientists, architects — while we place the emotional ones closer to the world of literature and art. But when you press the right buttons, emotions surface, no matter who you have in front of you. That’s when the magic happens, and I promise you, reader, that hearing a rational person speak with passion is one of the most beautiful things there is.
Today, together with Quim, I’m interviewing one of those people who are crazy about their work, someone who oozes architecture from every pore. Albert Tschechne is a 30-year-old architect who was originally headed for mathematics, with an unusually rich background for someone his age, and who is now regularly found working on projects at the prestigious, eclectic Berlin studio Raumlabor. He’s one of those humble people who keep surprising you as they tell you about their journey. I predict that between him and Quim, I’m going to have to keep order given so much passion for the art of designing and building.

A. I started maths but switched to architecture in my first year.

P. Wow! What caused such a quick change — was there a lightbulb moment?

A. Not exactly, there wasn’t one particular moment that marked a big change. I signed up for a few courses out of curiosity and saw that architecture let me satisfy three things I was looking for and still look for: the calculation side involving technique and logic, the creative side that gives free rein to imagination and the conceptualization of spaces, and finally, the more practical, social side, since those spaces are used to improve people’s lives.

Q. And Berlin is a unique city for architecture.

A. Absolutely! Berlin is one of those cities that has committed to architecture in a context where the need to interpret space for practical purposes matters just as much as creativity and style.

P. I notice you focus a lot on meeting social needs when you talk about the concept of architecture.

A. Yes, for me architecture has to be, at its core, a translator of social needs in terms of how space is used, obviously combined with style. Useful and beautiful don’t have to be at odds.

 

“My idea of architecture ties in closely with this way of understanding space: it’s striking, alive, you can breathe it, and it has a whole world to explore”

Q. How does someone your age end up with collaborations in their portfolio with such major names in architecture as Rye Nishizawa?

A. It’s almost impossible to do an internship with this kind of studio and these architects. I got lucky! My mother is of Japanese origin and my father is a journalist who writes articles about architecture. Because I had knowledge of their native culture, they gave me the great opportunity to collaborate with them.

P. For how long?

A. I spent 2 years at SANAA, the studio of architects Sejna and Nishizawa. I really enjoyed learning how they conceptualize their buildings and how they make the most of the space while always seeking harmony.

Q. When did you decide to leave?

A. Let’s say COVID decided for me! When the pandemic started I went back to Europe. Sejna was teaching there at the Politecnico di Milano, and that’s what made me choose to finish my studies there.

Q. The Politecnico di Milano is one of the great European schools, did you enjoy it?

A. Yes, a lot!

P. So, you’re studying in Berlin, you go to Japan, you come back to study in Milan… how did you manage to get your courses and exams recognized?

A. I talked to the professors, explained the situation, and made them understand that what I was learning mattered, that it was an extracurricular opportunity, and they let me sit the exams directly.

P. And your final thesis project?

A. I wanted to do an inflatable pavilion, I presented it at a theoretical level, and it let me immerse myself in inflatable architecture. In Berlin we have several projects of this kind and I found the idea really appealing.

Q. What do you value most about inflatable architecture?

A. My idea of architecture ties in closely with this way of understanding space: it’s striking, alive, you can breathe it, and it has a whole world to explore. Its pursuit of perfection through minimalism, and the need for exact calculation to bring it to life, are things I really identify with.

“I don’t see inflatable buildings, but I do see rooms, museum spaces, offices… There’s a whole world of possibilities for inflatable architecture coexisting with classical architecture! “

Q. Do you see inflatable architecture as comparable, conceptually, to any classical school of architecture?

A. My education in architecture and my influences combine SANAA and Raumlabor. I understand SANAA’s architecture as an innocent, gentle modernism, centered on flow, light, transparency and materiality. To me, inflatable architecture is the extreme end of those very modernist principles, and I know Sejima also appreciates some inflatables a lot. But also within experimental architecture like Raumlabor, inflatable architecture is an ideal way to create spaces with flexibility, spontaneity, mobility, adaptability, lightness and responsiveness. In all of these traits, I see a reasonable continuation of modern architecture.

P. Do you think Inflatable Architecture will replace more classical architecture in the future?

A. No, I think they’ll coexist and be used for different things. I don’t see inflatable buildings, but I do see rooms, museum spaces, offices… There’s a whole world of possibilities for inflatable architecture coexisting with classical architecture!

P, Q. Thank you so much, Albert!

A. Thank you!