The Opus City by Drewes+Strenge is another fine example of the subversion of the modern architectur style through the use of materials and the importance of location. This building, like the Lubbering Residence, has a distinct emphasis placed on the view, with the forms of the building designed so as not to interfere or distract from these views. The street-facing side of this house, as with many of their buildings, is almost excessively blocky and betrays little of the content, or even the general shape, of the house.
The purpose of this disconnection from public perception seems to be to completely seperate the residents public activities, such as work, shopping, etc, from their private activities. This is reflected not just in the structure of the house, but also in the materials. The public face presents low-grade concrete and rusted steel plates, while the interior and back-facing views consist of high-quality white render and wooden boards.
The building is presented as an industrial extrusion of a biological system, crisp lines and rough materials suggest efficiency and accuracy, contrasting with the flowing green surroundings and the wildness of the trees at the back fence.
The building itself appears as a block punctuated with unnecessary details; excessively thin windows, useless extrusions of concrete, cantilevered platforms which hover a few centimeters above a potential support, these details allow a closer inspection to reveal that the apparent industrialism has been lampshaded through the addition of aesthetic, subtle imbalances in the apparently systematic form of the structure.
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