Very nicely said James. I completely concur with the sentiment, though...Kahn's natural materials could weather gracefully without finish. With RCP you've got the CP on top of the raw steel. Maybe a CorTen frame....? ;)
Rob in Seattle, also an architect. :) On Nov 14, 2010, at 11:58 AM, james black wrote: > On Sun, Nov 14, 2010 at 07:50, rperks <perks....@gmail.com> wrote: >> James, thanks for the complement on the bike, the RCP is fun, but much >> like Esteban has said in the past, I spend too much time thinking >> about what color I would like it to be next. In a way it is like >> having an unpainted frame that you feel compelled to add color, but >> with no real threat of rust you have way too much time to sort it out. > > I was thinking about this idea this morning. I like the Roadeo clear > powdercoat look because it has a nice warm brown-grey tone and an > inherent richness and texture to it, and it shows off the details very > nicely - the contrasting color of the brazing is like lug pinstriping, > but integral rather than cosmetic; the forged dropouts and their > connection to the stays stand out. It has a kind of Lou Kahn-style > integrity. > > The iconic Modern architect Lou Kahn is perhaps best remembered by the > cliche that he asked the brick what it wanted to be, and the brick > told him, it wanted to be an arch. His architecture stressed the > ethical imperative of expressing the inherent truth of the materials > from which it was built - if an element looked like a column, it > definitely was supporting something structurally. Something fake or > meant to imitate something else would be a deep ethical failure. A > concrete guardrail would be separated from a concrete column, rather > than poured integrally and seamlessly, because it performed a > different function. Materials such as brick, stone, concrete, and wood > were favored rather than painted surfaces, because with these > materials, the material itself could be exposed unpainted and allowed > to express itself, and these materials weather well and were allowed > to do so. > > I see an analogy between the Lou Kahn mindset and the Rivendell > mindset that favors natural materials like canvas, leather, wood, > cork, and unpainted silver metal finishes. These materials are also > favored for their integrity and attribute of weathering naturally and > gracefully. > > The clear powdercoat allows the steel bicycle frame to join the family > of materials that aesthetically express their own materiality without > relying on pigmented paint. Lou Kahn would prefer an unfinished > titanium frame perhaps, but the clear powdercoat fits the Rivendell > ethic-or-aesthetic quite appropriately. > > James Black > Los Angeles, CA > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
