Crafting Luxury with ‘More-ish’ Qualities …
139
well as its association with what constitutes organic architecture, preservation alone
of architecture is substantial enough.
At the core of craft, traditional brickwork, especially the time it takes for layering
techniques emanating from ancient Berber culture as with its textiles and steppedpyramidal remnants in the Sahara desert, North Africa, have a profound underlying
presence in Marrakech’s architecture. Running bonds, twisted and crossed bricks are
most certainly Berber in origin and earlier abstract techniques used in Mesopotamia.
Outlining the original presence of brick in cities as the oldest hand-made material,
Dan Cruickshank states that in Urak, Mesopotamia, founded 6000 years ago created
sun- and kiln-fired bricks in building the city, such as the Ziggurats of Eanna and at
Ur. Cruickshank then states how in The Epic of Gilgamesh, the King of Urak ‘sought
immortality and found it’ [10]. King Urak ‘realised that his name stamped on the
hard bricks, “where the names of famous men are written” meant that his creations
and his memory would last for eternity. The kiln-dried brick was the passport to
immortality, a guarantee that your creations—and your names—would live forever’
[10]. As far as brick manufacture is concerned, The Book of Exodus recounts ‘when
the “Children of Israel” were exiled in Egypt the Pharoah increased their labour by
refusing to give them straw to make their bricks (Exodus 5: 12–14) … straw was
mixed with clay, which would bind sun-dried bricks and help as fuel if the bricks
were kiln-fired … Arguably brick making has much to do with the subsequent history
of the world’ (cited in [10]).
Through time, brick technologies improved and helped strengthen walls and transfer loads to create intricate bonding patterns and functional luxurious spaces. ‘In this
age of ever-increasing concern over ecology, sustainability and energy conservation,
bricks—with their long-life span and splendid insulation characteristics—remain an
ideal building material’ [10]. The poise and extrusion of the individual brick-bands
we find within its traditional brick-laying techniques have thus transformed the desert
built environment profoundly and aesthetically, especially within Studio KO’s work.
Apart from the sustainable and textural qualities of brick-craft are the Berber
textiles themselves. In Berber Costumes of Morocco: Traditional Patterns, MarieRose Rabate and Frieda Sorber discuss how ‘the structure and textures of garments
in themselves are powerful markers of Berber identity … [And] the woven part of
the Berber identity may well have its roots in antiquity. The textures of many textiles
from Moroccan looms strongly resemble archaeological finds from ancient Egypt’
[28, p. 25]. In North Africa, the loom ‘is reborn every time a new warp turns loose
beams and sticks into an entity, which empowers women to weave the fabrics that
provide shelter, protection and cultural identity for their community’ [28, p. 44]. The
Berber loom clearly imparts links to architecture through constructing static textiles.
Rabate and Frieda Sorber continue:
Berbers apply designs to functional objects…or ceilings. Designs protect the objects that
are necessary for the basic functions of domestic life. The evident decorative function of
patterned garments and jewellery was secondary to the hidden, beneficial influence that had
led to their adoption in ancient times. The makers of these objects were only known in their
own group. ‘Art for art’s sake’ did not exist among the Berbers [28, p. 272].
139
well as its association with what constitutes organic architecture, preservation alone
of architecture is substantial enough.
At the core of craft, traditional brickwork, especially the time it takes for layering
techniques emanating from ancient Berber culture as with its textiles and steppedpyramidal remnants in the Sahara desert, North Africa, have a profound underlying
presence in Marrakech’s architecture. Running bonds, twisted and crossed bricks are
most certainly Berber in origin and earlier abstract techniques used in Mesopotamia.
Outlining the original presence of brick in cities as the oldest hand-made material,
Dan Cruickshank states that in Urak, Mesopotamia, founded 6000 years ago created
sun- and kiln-fired bricks in building the city, such as the Ziggurats of Eanna and at
Ur. Cruickshank then states how in The Epic of Gilgamesh, the King of Urak ‘sought
immortality and found it’ [10]. King Urak ‘realised that his name stamped on the
hard bricks, “where the names of famous men are written” meant that his creations
and his memory would last for eternity. The kiln-dried brick was the passport to
immortality, a guarantee that your creations—and your names—would live forever’
[10]. As far as brick manufacture is concerned, The Book of Exodus recounts ‘when
the “Children of Israel” were exiled in Egypt the Pharoah increased their labour by
refusing to give them straw to make their bricks (Exodus 5: 12–14) … straw was
mixed with clay, which would bind sun-dried bricks and help as fuel if the bricks
were kiln-fired … Arguably brick making has much to do with the subsequent history
of the world’ (cited in [10]).
Through time, brick technologies improved and helped strengthen walls and transfer loads to create intricate bonding patterns and functional luxurious spaces. ‘In this
age of ever-increasing concern over ecology, sustainability and energy conservation,
bricks—with their long-life span and splendid insulation characteristics—remain an
ideal building material’ [10]. The poise and extrusion of the individual brick-bands
we find within its traditional brick-laying techniques have thus transformed the desert
built environment profoundly and aesthetically, especially within Studio KO’s work.
Apart from the sustainable and textural qualities of brick-craft are the Berber
textiles themselves. In Berber Costumes of Morocco: Traditional Patterns, MarieRose Rabate and Frieda Sorber discuss how ‘the structure and textures of garments
in themselves are powerful markers of Berber identity … [And] the woven part of
the Berber identity may well have its roots in antiquity. The textures of many textiles
from Moroccan looms strongly resemble archaeological finds from ancient Egypt’
[28, p. 25]. In North Africa, the loom ‘is reborn every time a new warp turns loose
beams and sticks into an entity, which empowers women to weave the fabrics that
provide shelter, protection and cultural identity for their community’ [28, p. 44]. The
Berber loom clearly imparts links to architecture through constructing static textiles.
Rabate and Frieda Sorber continue:
Berbers apply designs to functional objects…or ceilings. Designs protect the objects that
are necessary for the basic functions of domestic life. The evident decorative function of
patterned garments and jewellery was secondary to the hidden, beneficial influence that had
led to their adoption in ancient times. The makers of these objects were only known in their
own group. ‘Art for art’s sake’ did not exist among the Berbers [28, p. 272].