“I WANT DISORDER -- GET IT?”:
THE PARADOXICAL REPRESENTATIONS IN CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURAL NARRATIVES

Underneath outwardly exhibited randomness and disorder in contemporary architecture today, there is a tendency towards greater organization for its representation. And this tension—between order and disorder—provides much of the narrative power of contemporary architecture. The seemingly chance encounters of surfaces, materials, or forms - which are generally judged to be negative – are today seen as immensely exciting. And yet, behind this seemingly disordered outlook, which demands the attention of the viewer, there is an enormous organization without which it would be impossible to build such designs in reality.

This paper argues that theatricality, ambiguity, and hollow virtuosity are some of the conditions driving the language of contemporary architecture - but largely neglected in the current discourse. In this research the recent work of Frank O. Gehry will especially be studied for how it encourages, even impels, these conditions. Selected works of Gehry will be examined emphasizing: their theatrical and festive character; their simultaneous attempt to create ambiguity and curiosity; and their relationship to the concepts like autonomy, and opacity; and finally how they become an important means of displaying and celebrating technological virtuosity. This articulation will allow demonstrating different instances of the paradoxical representations of contemporary architecture.