The Spanish architects and the Arvo Pärt Centre have collaborated to publish a book of photographs and essays titled Arvo Pärt Center & Nieto Sobejano Arquitectos: A Common Denominator. The book is published by the German architecture publishers ArchiTangle. The presentation at 3pm on 7 December 2020 will be live streamed from the Arvo Pärt Centre via the Estonian Public Broadcasting culture portal.
According to Michael Pärt, the instigator of the idea for the book, it all started with the desire to highlight the outstanding architecture created by Fuensanta Nieto and Enrique Sobejano, which at the same time fully serves both nature and music.
“The book looks at the building’s connections with Arvo Pärt’s music, the surrounding natural environment, the composer’s spiritual principles and the idea of the centre. It also shows the meticulous work and commitment that goes into creating an architectural work of art,” said Michael Pärt.
The book of photographs and essays opens up the APC building through the eyes of nine photographers: Roland Halbe, Tõnu Tunnel, Arne Maasik, Paco Ulman, Birgit Püve, Kaupo Kikkas, Priit Grepp, Kris Moor and Riho Kirss. The book has more to offer than just eye-catching visuals of the building’s architecture. It also includes a sensitive dialogue between musical manuscripts and architectural drawings; quotes from the composer’s diaries at the beginning of each chapter create a symbolic bridge between Arvo Pärt’s work and Fuensanta Nieto and Enrique Sobejano’s architecture. Five essays written by Michael Pärt, Enrique Sobejano, Fuensanta Nieto, Covadonga Blasco Veganzones, Kristina Kõrver and Nikita Andrejev shed light on the intersection of music, architecture, nature and theology along this creative journey.
The minimalist design by Angelika Schneider is complemented by architectural drawings on transparent paper to make this a special volume in terms of both content and form.
The building of the Arvo Pärt Centre has received several awards, including the grand prize of the Estonian Cultural Endowment in the field of architecture in 2019. The building was also shortlisted among the top 40 projects for the prestigious Mies van der Rohe Award, which recognises architectural excellence.
The book presentation, starting at 3pm on 7 December 2020, will be live streamed from the Arvo Pärt Centre via the culture portal of Estonian Public Broadcasting and the Centre’s Facebook page.
Presenters:
Fuensanta Nieto and Enrique Sobejano (Nieto Sobejano Arquitectos)
Covadonga Blasco
Michael Pärt (Arvo Pärt Centre)
Kristina Kõrver (Arvo Pärt Centre)
Cristina Steingräber (ArchiTangle)
Moderator:
Andres Kurg (Estonian Academy of Arts)
Musical performances:
Robert Traksmann (violin) and Sten Heinoja (piano)
You can buy the book here: https://bit.ly/2Jx1YbR