A-LIFE. ARCHITECTURE OF LIFE
Essay by Arch. Eric Bogantes / April 2021
The DJ. Mixer in the hands of Technasia
As the DJ mixer comes alive in Technasia’s hands, the environment transforms into something harmonious. The artist’s presence sets a constant and timeless rhythm and echoes across space. Soon, magic appears—an evolution, organic and effortless. New emotions surge, pushing boundaries. It’s the magic of a DJ raised and nurtured in Paris, a proud father to a daughter with Asian features, full of energy, and a profound understanding of music that makes everything flow seamlessly. His four digital turntables spin in perfect harmony; each beat a carefully placed note in an unfolding symphony.
The Harmony of Complexity
Three young men focus on something distinct from the rest on one side of the stage. My gaze meets theirs, their eyes in the background, illuminated by the subtle glow of the stage lights. I observe them again, framed by delicate RGB lights that interconnect to form a complex geometric pattern.
Despite the chaos of a muddy night plagued by the uncertainty of the year’s first rains, the stage backdrop provides a sense of welcome. Surrounded by infinite darkness, the illuminated wall offers balance and fullness that, after the music, becomes the second most crucial element that keeps me rooted.
The Detail
Unexpectedly, I find myself conversing with one of the creators behind those captivating murals, whose every word radiates passion. His intensity reminds me of my early years as an architect—years filled with a thirst for knowledge, expression, and the fluidity of art. He spoke to me in a way that made me feel as though I, too, was beginning my journey all over again.
The Beginning: October 2006
I was not exceptionally skilled with traditional drawings at the start of my architectural studies. I tried taking extra drawing classes, and while I improved to an acceptable level, I never felt I could truly express myself with those manual techniques. At the time, I was deeply engrossed in the digital world. I spent countless hours downloading tutorials on design software, often leaving the computer running overnight. SketchUp version 3 became my world. The software was rudimentary and almost experimental, blending the simplicity of sketches with the complexity of 3D modeling. It was developed by a small company, Last Software, founded by Brad Schell and Joe Esch in 1999. Characteristic because at the beginning of the program, I received a cartoon made by the creators of the program. The bond I developed with SketchUp was immediate and transformative; within hours, it became clear that this software had changed my life. For the first time, I could express ideas in space, and the art of architecture became more tangible. Digital living had become a part of me.
The First Sketch
My first sketch focused on exploring the fluidity of lines in terms of perspective and continuity. As a result, the evolution of dynamic space became a lifelong study. From that first sketch, I recognized the strength of the line I was pursuing. This led to the creation of Alianz and the Alianz Loft, my first large-scale project that brought this vision to spatial reality. This style has continued to evolve, leaving its mark on many of our designs.
Space dynamics have persisted through years of studies during my university assignments. While some of my work was criticized by certain teachers at UCR who claimed it relied on “a handful of shortcuts to digital tools,” there were also classmates and educators who appreciated my unique way of expressing my learning journey. This dynamic was understood by various architects that I later hired in my office and allowed my designs to evolve into more straightforward and minimalist forms.
The essence of my initial exploration remains a lasting influence, sometimes subtly and other times more prominently. Ultimately, I synthesize this to its maximum simplicity with the design of Nébula, a yoga center dedicated to integrating architecture, yoga, music, and nature. It is surrounded by an ecosystem of tiny beings that provide tranquility and fulfillment—our beloved bunnies.
Return to April 2021
I managed to talk with the mural’s creators; I thought it was a timely collector’s item marketed to make money, but no. I opened the Instagram account of my new friend Bryan V. and his group of artists. At a single glance, I notice a complex understanding of sacred geometries.
Sacred geometries are closely related to the search for visual balance that exists in nature. The magic of its existence is that we face the exposure of a pattern that causes us harmony in complexity. It is a simplified way of seeing a message process beyond our being and understanding. This fact stems from his pure and complete contemplation that causes peace, but his analysis is too deep to be understood by anyone. We approach a language of nature.
When I observe an orchid, it gives me peace. Still, the simple fact of thinking about the geometry that God gave it is too complex to be reproduced, and from there, it starts that everything that humans create has simple and concrete forms; a Ferrari car contains the most complex curved lines of modern engineering, but even so, Ferrari’s computers would take months to reproduce the geometry of a “simple” orchid concretely.
Will it be possible to reproduce the language of nature through absolute simplification to decipher its alphabet and be understood? Hence, sacred geometry and many books and literature can describe this intimate relationship between two opposing concepts: nature and geometry. The magic of Anunnakisart is to be able to decipher its language and understand the balance of the invisible.
A-Life. Architecture of Life
April 18, 1:15 a.m. DJ Technasia plays just a meter away while Suga performs live. In that fleeting moment, a thought crossed my mind: The Pyramid of Illumination—my latest commission, designed in collaboration with a group of artists from Colorado, creators of some of the world’s most renowned sacred geometry glass pieces.
In that instant, a conclusion becomes clear: it is possible to create live architecture. A-Life architecture is born from the intersection of sacred geometry and large-scale design, a response to the need for structural simplification while maintaining nature’s inherent complexity. This new approach to architecture strikes a balance between modernity and minimalism, with evolutionary lines that create spaces imbued with emotion. These spaces exist in a timeless future, balancing the material and the spiritual.
