Nyheter
To my friend Cornelius
In November 2000, during the European Forum for the launch of Europan 6 in Berlin, a young Norwegian architect, tall, fair, sympathetic and smiling came to speak to me about his interest, as a young professional, to take part in the contest, and to design an urban project in one of the European cities which offered a site.
23. oktober 2007
But by prolonging the discussion, I questionned him about the reason why, according to him, Norway had not joined the participating countries in Europan even though other Nordic countries, like Finland and Sweden, were already members. He gave me a brilliant analysis of the urban environment which underwent a total change in his country at that time. Because of the fast development of the economy and the ways of life which resulted from this, he made me understand that Norway was making a fast jump into modernity and was now searching for exchanges with other European countries. Confronted with his enthusiasm about the new interest in his country in the urban project, I immediately proposed to him, instead of answering his question about the contest, to be one of its organizers! Thus with luck and a random meeting, a seven years' dialogue between Cornelius and me started, initially centered around Europan.
One month after our Berlin meeting, Cornelius had already organized a tour of several cities of Norway where he had invited me to come to speak about Europan, in the center of architecture of Stavanger, the School of architecture in Trondheim and finally in Oslo. During this sympathetic trip, full of contact with young Norwegian architecture, a real complicity was created between us, one of these friendships which one knows are rare, solid and deep. I was immediately impressed by the fact that this young architect, less than thirty years old, had a mixture of maturity, on architecture and his necessary opening for the urban, and, at the same time, a spontaneous enthusiasm, almost youthful, and a force of conviction to mobilize people and to engage them in the cultural act of helping the young professionals.
In 2001, along with the creation of Europan Norway, I suggested that Cornelius take part in a European Commission composed of experts of various countries, with former winners of the contest, to prepare the contents of the European events of each session, and where he could develop this specific view that he had on the relation between Norway and Europe. In May 2001 in Sweden, Cornelius got involved with The Forum of the Cities and Jurys, and I discovered his admirable skills in intercultural dialogue. During his education at the school of architecture in Trondheim, he had, thanks to Erasmus, spent one year of studies in Paris, followed by another in Madrid. These cultural European experiences gave him this cosmopolitan open mind, a control of the French and Spanish languages that he liked to speak, and a taste for the critical debate which, I must admit, I had not yet come across, developed to such a degree, in any other Northern European person!
Thus we walked on together during these last seven years through seminars and other meetings of comparative analysis of the topics, the sites and the winning projects, at the same time discovering together the diversity of the European cities that welcomed us: Karlskrona, Liege, Cordoba, Graz, Athens, Ljubljana, Seville, Sintra, Dordrecht and Oslo, where, thanks to our friendship getting increasingly stronger, I stayed with him several times.
During this time Cornelius dedicated himself to develop Europan Norway, which is his true creation, knowing how to find the people and being able to turn the contest into a real arena of urban and architectural innovation. He succeeded to involve Knut Eirik Dahl and many personalities who believed in him, in the adventure, and through him, into Europan. He was, for the sessions Europan 7, 8 and the starting of Europan 9, a skilled and sensitive mediator between young architects, representatives of the cities, clients and the international experts. I still remember the passionate but courteous debates of the Norwegian jury of Europan 7 in Oslo, then in Graz, between all these local and European partners, and how he took a real pleasure in having a constructive exchange with them. Thus with Knut Eirik and, since Europan 8, also with Marianne Skjulhaug, Cornelius deployed great energy in turning Europan Norway into a true success and develop not only interesting projects, cosmopolitan, sometimes disturbing, but lead to create a partnership between the young teams and the cities so that these ideas became implemented.
Cornelius was full of paradoxes, which made all his richness, at the same time a pragmatic idealist, a dreamer with his feet on the ground, a strong personality but open to others. During the 10 and a half months that he fought step by step against his very serious illness, he gave me an extraordinary lesson of life. He never complained about his state no matter how unjust, on the contrary he crossed each obstacle which was inflicted upon him with determination and the desire to fight because of his love for life, and for Elisabeth his wife and their son Johannes, and because he wanted to accompany them as long as possible. Unfortunately, disease won and I feel the cruelty of destiny, a feeling I share with very many people who knew him these last years. The departure of such a dear friend will be attenuated only by knowing that in his too short life, Cornelius did many good things in the service of others, and with a real joy of life he was able to communicate with people. I am very proud to have been one of his best friends, and if Cornelius thought that I, with my experience, could give some small things to him, it is in fact he, through his vitality, his culture and his nobility of soul, who gave me the most.
One month after our Berlin meeting, Cornelius had already organized a tour of several cities of Norway where he had invited me to come to speak about Europan, in the center of architecture of Stavanger, the School of architecture in Trondheim and finally in Oslo. During this sympathetic trip, full of contact with young Norwegian architecture, a real complicity was created between us, one of these friendships which one knows are rare, solid and deep. I was immediately impressed by the fact that this young architect, less than thirty years old, had a mixture of maturity, on architecture and his necessary opening for the urban, and, at the same time, a spontaneous enthusiasm, almost youthful, and a force of conviction to mobilize people and to engage them in the cultural act of helping the young professionals.
In 2001, along with the creation of Europan Norway, I suggested that Cornelius take part in a European Commission composed of experts of various countries, with former winners of the contest, to prepare the contents of the European events of each session, and where he could develop this specific view that he had on the relation between Norway and Europe. In May 2001 in Sweden, Cornelius got involved with The Forum of the Cities and Jurys, and I discovered his admirable skills in intercultural dialogue. During his education at the school of architecture in Trondheim, he had, thanks to Erasmus, spent one year of studies in Paris, followed by another in Madrid. These cultural European experiences gave him this cosmopolitan open mind, a control of the French and Spanish languages that he liked to speak, and a taste for the critical debate which, I must admit, I had not yet come across, developed to such a degree, in any other Northern European person!
Thus we walked on together during these last seven years through seminars and other meetings of comparative analysis of the topics, the sites and the winning projects, at the same time discovering together the diversity of the European cities that welcomed us: Karlskrona, Liege, Cordoba, Graz, Athens, Ljubljana, Seville, Sintra, Dordrecht and Oslo, where, thanks to our friendship getting increasingly stronger, I stayed with him several times.
During this time Cornelius dedicated himself to develop Europan Norway, which is his true creation, knowing how to find the people and being able to turn the contest into a real arena of urban and architectural innovation. He succeeded to involve Knut Eirik Dahl and many personalities who believed in him, in the adventure, and through him, into Europan. He was, for the sessions Europan 7, 8 and the starting of Europan 9, a skilled and sensitive mediator between young architects, representatives of the cities, clients and the international experts. I still remember the passionate but courteous debates of the Norwegian jury of Europan 7 in Oslo, then in Graz, between all these local and European partners, and how he took a real pleasure in having a constructive exchange with them. Thus with Knut Eirik and, since Europan 8, also with Marianne Skjulhaug, Cornelius deployed great energy in turning Europan Norway into a true success and develop not only interesting projects, cosmopolitan, sometimes disturbing, but lead to create a partnership between the young teams and the cities so that these ideas became implemented.
Cornelius was full of paradoxes, which made all his richness, at the same time a pragmatic idealist, a dreamer with his feet on the ground, a strong personality but open to others. During the 10 and a half months that he fought step by step against his very serious illness, he gave me an extraordinary lesson of life. He never complained about his state no matter how unjust, on the contrary he crossed each obstacle which was inflicted upon him with determination and the desire to fight because of his love for life, and for Elisabeth his wife and their son Johannes, and because he wanted to accompany them as long as possible. Unfortunately, disease won and I feel the cruelty of destiny, a feeling I share with very many people who knew him these last years. The departure of such a dear friend will be attenuated only by knowing that in his too short life, Cornelius did many good things in the service of others, and with a real joy of life he was able to communicate with people. I am very proud to have been one of his best friends, and if Cornelius thought that I, with my experience, could give some small things to him, it is in fact he, through his vitality, his culture and his nobility of soul, who gave me the most.