Conceived as an entry to the competition "Taking Buildings Down", Exquisite Corp. is the second chapter of a (fictional) project and (architectural) narration designed with Esther Mysius and Camille Rouaud.


Exquisite Corp.

One of the sad developments of the 21st Century is that we haven’t entered the future that Science Fiction promised us in the 1970s. Instead of flying cars and permanent sun, European cities become more and more historicized and cherish their past. The preservation of architecture functions as a magnet for tourism while killing any chance of experimentation. On the other hand, in Asia, the need for new gigantic towns and mega-factories is growing and creating outrageous urban situations.



Politicians and owners face a dilemma. On the one hand, listed monuments sometimes do pose urban problems and face demolition. On the other hand, historians, experts, and public opinion can strongly oppose any change to the buildings. Among this chaos, enters Exquisite Corp. with a great business plan. Instead of demolishing, the company unbuilds in a very careful way. It reconstructs and recycles the constructions a few thousand kilometers from their original location. A soft, ecological and highly manual process replaces the violence of explosions. The power moves from Semtex and C4 to the hands of men and women unscrewing, unbolting, unroofing, unbuilding, transporting and reconstructing any piece of architecture.



Actually, plans are made for a New Silk Road between China and Rotterdam, while the border between Europe and Asia draws a line between the North and the South of the Eurasian continent. Gemcity, the new town where Exquisite Corp. collects buildings, will be installed exactly at the intersection of those two lines, somewhere at the middle of Eurasia. This geographical position facilitates both in the transportation of the buildings as well as attracting people from anywhere on the continent.







Exquisite Corp.’s business plan is clear: a building owner calls the company, which dismantles it for free. To be economically sustainable, the workers become the new owners and inhabitants of the architecture. They move from one country to another, unbuilt churches, theaters, social housing or schools of Brutalist, Postmodernist or Hi-Tech style that they’ll use once settled in Gemcity. In that sense, they surpass the Voluntary Prisoners of Architecture (the diploma from Rem Koolhaas in 1972). They become travelers, going from one site to the next to work and fully enjoying life and free time in their own ideal town. The workforce, like in the old communist ideal, possesses not only the tools but the results of the production.



Gemcity is a Cadavre Exquis of architectural masterpieces or vernacular unused architecture. It’s an experiment; a great decor for movies. After a few years of existence, around 2030, it became viral. Since the first buildings to leave old towns were listed monuments, people wanted to enjoy the great life in this unique city. The whole continent saw a massive exodus of both their workforce (who found permanent employment and pleasure) and intellectuals (architects and aesthetes being fascinated by the beauty of Gemcity). Complete parts of Paris, London or Barcelona went back to nature while — in the middle of Eurasia — a new utopia was born.



Project: Thibaut de Ruyter, Esther Mysius & Camille Rouaud