OSLO OPERA HOUSE = SKATEPARK

Photo: Jiri Havran via Wired

When I saw that Wired Magazine recently (Nov 08) did an article on the skate-ability of the new Oslo Opera House I got a little excited, stood up, and maybe...just maybe did a little dance.  In High School I did too much skating and snow surfing to actually become an Architect, but I always knew that my board was helping me develop  a very intimate relationship with our proverbial concrete jungle. My Senior year I won a Scholastic Gold Key for my photos of a skatepark that focused on the architectural merits of the shapes present and my post below about Mark Gonzalez is pretty specific about being hopeful for a more integrated public space and the interaction between skating and architecture.  

The article in Wired is short, but sweet and can be found here. 

"Snøhetta used different finishes of marble to guide skaters looking for rideable surfaces. Acoustically sensitive parts, like above the auditorium, got rough marble that's unpleasant to wheel over. But other areas silently beckon skaters. Surfaces rise up all over the place to become ledges, curbs, and benches—like the jagged facets of a glacier (or skate park). One particularly tempting spot is a 3-foot-wide railing of smooth stone. Snøhetta architect Peter Dang is, ahem, absolutely sure it's skatable. 'Just make sure to fall toward the inside,' he advises."

Another, even more informative and theoretically focused, article called "A Skateboarders Guide to Architecture, or an Architect's Guide to Skateboarding" can be found here.