Urs Primas

Urs Primas: I think it would be interesting not to turn one's back on certain aspects of a culture. In the early '90s, friends of mine worked in Berlin. By day they drafted retro-architecture; at night they went to the Tresor and other clubs and listened to techno music, which was still really radical and new at the time. I never reconciled them, these two worlds. Contending with the conflicting and ugly aspects of our time interests me.

In Switzerland, competitions are a very interesting way of gaining prominence on the one hand, and actually obtaining commissions on the other. I consider this a better way to promote architecture than grants, or the lists of architects formerly used to promote young architects in Holland. Competitions are very time-consuming but in this way young prize-winners get an opportunity to establish their own firms. What I find interesting about housing is the search for a strategy that satisfies all the well-behaved requirements as to programme and economics and also introduces something else. Only tricks can do that, I think. In our previous project, 'Boba Fett', for example, the trick was to make the building so deep and compact that the facade became very inexpensive and the interior could include rooms without functions. In 'Ringling' it's the huge public courtyard, brought about by combining three cooperatives in one building.