Centennial Hall Research Articles

Comparative interpretation of results after application of different non-destructive and portable techniques on historic concrete in the Centennial Hall in Wrocław

Many concrete buildings erected during the 20th century are assuming a cultural and historical value, and their conservation against the climate changes and the urban impact represent a major challenge for the heritage science for the future. A key aspect for their preservation is the development/application of innovative testing approaches based on non-destructive and portable techniques (NDPT) for diagnostics and monitoring the state of conservation. This research activity has been conducted on the case study of the Centennial Hall exhibition centre in Wroclaw (Poland), where the physical and mechanical characteristics of cementitious materials were estimated through indirect methods and therefore compared to prove their efficiency and usefulness in the limitation of invasive inspections. These methods were focused to control the hardness and compactness of the material (by ultrasonic pulse velocity and rebound tests), the surface permeability (by sponge test method), the water and salts content of the material (by Evanescent Field Dielectrometry - EFD), and the change of colour (by colorimetric measurements). In order to test the strength of the proposed approach, all these techniques (except the EFD) were made in duplicate by two different teams, using different instruments but following a similar protocol. The data were compared in between, and the environmental conditions were also considered. The results showed a good repeatability, furnishing useful information about the quality of concrete and its state of conservation, as well as possible forethoughts for a proper interpretation. This multi-technique approach could support the conservation decisions making process for the management of historic concrete building.

New Form, New Material and Color Scheme, the Exposed Concrete Phenomenon—The Centennial Hall in Wrocław

The aim of the article is to present the remarkable changes in architecture that took place in the 20th century. They can easily be called a revolution regarding the architectural form and the color scheme. Progress was being made through the development of reinforced concrete production methods. In the German Empire (Deutsches Kaiserreich), this material quickly found applications in more and more interesting solutions in architectural structures. In Wrocław (formerly Breslau), then located in the eastern German Empire, exceptional architectural works were realized before and after the First World War using new technology. In 1913, an unusual building was erected—the Centennial Hall, designed by Max Berg (inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2006). Berg’s work was inspired by the works of both Hans Poelzig and Bruno Taut. On the one hand, it was a delight with the new material (the Upper Silesian Tower at the exhibition in Poznań, designed by H. Poelzig) and, on the other hand, with the colorful architecture of light and glass by B. Taut (a glass pavilion at the Werkbund exhibition in Cologne). Max Berg left the concrete in an almost “pure” form, not hiding the texture of the formwork under the plaster layer. However, stratigraphic studies of paint coatings and archival inquiries reveal a new face of this building. The research was carried out as part of the CMP (Conservation Management Plan—prepared by the authors of the article, among others) grant from The Getty Foundation Keeping It Modern program. According to the source materials, the architect intended to leave the exposed concrete outside of the building, while the interior was to be decorated with painting, stained glass, and sculpture. The stratigraphic tests showed that the external walls were covered with a translucent yellowish color coating. Thus, the Centennial Hall shows a different face of reinforced concrete architecture.

The image of contemporary architecture of Wrocław depicted in recent tourist commercial and Internet media

The aim of the paper is to present the tourist and image potential of contemporary public architecture. Wrocław was chosen as the research subject, as it is a historical center with an extremely rich architectural heritage, which has enjoyed great interest among visitors for centuries. With the announcement of Wrocław as the European Capital of Culture 2016, and then the European Best Destination in 2018, its attractiveness increased significantly, which was reflected not only in the number of visitors, but also in the advertising materials themselves. Both before and after arrival, millions of tourists encounter a multitude of various advertising forms, both virtual and printed, which determine the direction of sightseeing and shape a specific image and perception of the city. In general opinion, Wrocław is considered a historic city, the most interesting places of which are concentrated around the Old Town and Ostrów Tumski. The Centennial Hall, built at the beginning of the 20th century, stands out from the „newer heritage”. The idea of the study, however, was to answer the question whether contemporary architecture is used in any way in the current tourist advertisement of the city. Another goal was to identify and list the most frequently appearing objects from the adopted group, and to analyze the manner of their presentation. Based on the collected materials, efforts were made to assess the role of the media in creating a tourist product in terms of promoting local architecture in recent years. At the same time, an attempt was made to evaluate the role of architecture in creating the city’s progressive brand. In the research, the author used the method of analyzing the existing statistical data, iconographic research and the method of analyzing the content of advertising materials, as well as scientific studies on cultural heritage and tourism in the city. The final part of the paper shows that modern architecture can be a significant element increasing the tourist attractiveness of the city.

The Centennial Hall of Wroclaw: history of a modern architecture in reinforced concrete classified World Heritage Site

ABSTRACT The Centennial Hall in Wroclaw is a pioneering example of early twentieth century modern architecture and engineering. The construction of its reinforced concrete dome, the largest then built, was a daring initiative which, just for its extraordinary nature, used the most advanced technology of its time. Of particular compositional beauty, this work is equipped with innovative structural qualities, evidently linked to the very nature of reinforced concrete, capable of molding itself in any architectural form. The history of its construction and the reasons that led to its cataloging on the Unesco list, as a priceless cultural heritage, are an important example of the transitory evolution of the concept of ‘cultural heritage’, aimed at incorporating works which, in the past, struggled to be considered assets to be protected. Through this article we want to describe those architectural and technological and landscape peculiarities that have made the Centennial Hall a masterpiece of man’s creative genius; as well as an extraordinary example of composition that has become the spokesperson for one of the most relevant and suggestive phases of the history of world architecture.

PARALLELS OF GERMAN AVANT-GARDE ARCHITECTURE AND DEVELOPMENT IN KYIV

The article presents a comparative analysis of some key objects of German and Kyiv architecture of the early twentieth century to determine the corresponding trends. Parallels and identities are shown and noted. An analysis of the background and context is given, as well as the author's conclusions of the respective styles. In particular, German Werkbund, international Art Nouveau, Ukrainian architectural Art Nouveau, "New Objectivity", Bauhaus, functionalism, constructivism, post-constructivism, German and Soviet neoclassicism are mentioned.
 Were analyzed in detail: The Fagus Factory (1910-1911) by Walter Gropius and Adolf Meyer, Centennial Hall (1911-1913) by the Max Berg, the Kyiv district power plant (named after Stalin), (1926–1930) by Mikhailo Parusnikov with the participation of George Goltz and Andrey Burov, Rolit (1932) by Vasul. Krychesky, Ehrentempel (1933–1936) and The Haus der Kunst in Munich (1933 - 1937) by Paul Ludwig Troost, competitive proposals for the construction of the Government Quarter in Kyiv (1934 - 1935) and the hotel within the Government Quarter (1939). Mentioned Esposizione Universale Roma (EUR) by Marcello Piacentini, projects by Albert Speer and others.
 The article summarizes a series of author's researches devoted to a detailed analysis of international context and parallels of Kyiv architecture which is represented in the background of the consistent artistic transitions (from eclecticism and historical reminiscences to modernism, from Art Nouveau to avant-garde, from constructivism to Soviet neoclassicism and, finally, from Stalinist empire to modernism).

First international TNBC conference meeting report.

Recently, Georgia State University's Centennial Hall was the premier location for the 2017 International Conference on Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC): Illuminating Actionable Biology, which was held from Sept. 18 to 20, 2017, in Atlanta, USA. The conference featured a stellar line-up of domestic and international speakers and diverse participants including TNBC survivors, luminaries in breast cancer research, medical students and fellows, clinicians, translational researchers, epidemiologists, biostatisticians, bioinformaticians, and representatives from the industry. This report distills the burning questions that spiked the event and summarizes key themes, findings, unique opportunities and future directions that emerged from this confluence of thought leaders.

Renovation of the Centennial Hall

Renovation of the Centennial Hall

IUTAM Symposium on Vortex Dynamics: Formation, Structure and Function, 10–14 March 2013, Fukuoka, Japan

IUTAM Symposium on Vortex Dynamics: Formation, Structure and Function, 10–14 March 2013, Fukuoka, Japan

Strengthening the 100‐year‐old reinforced concrete dome of the Centennial Hall in Wrocław

AbstractThe Centennial Hall, a reinforced concrete structure with an auditorium for 10000 people, was opened in Wrocław, Poland (then Breslau, Germany), in 1913 after two years of construction. Its dome, covering the whole building, has a diameter of 65.0 m and in the year it was completed was the largest reinforced concrete dome in the world. This broke the previous record, held by the dome of the Pantheon in Rome (43.3 m), which had lasted for 1787 years. This paper describes the structure of the building, its condition after 100 years of use and the renovation works carried out in 2009–2011. An important part of the renovation was strengthening the lower (tension) ring of the ribbed dome by way of external prestressing. Details concerning the assessment of the technical condition of the hall, numerical calculations and the proposed system of strengthening are presented. In 2006 the monumental Centennial Hall was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its pioneering reinforced concrete structure, designed in the style of modernism.

12th MS Workshop in Fukuoka Cutting Edge Research in MS and NMO from Asia

Clinical and Experimental NeuroimmunologyVolume 4, Issue s1 p. 87-101 AbstractsFree Access 12th MS Workshop in Fukuoka Cutting Edge Research in MS and NMO from Asia First published: 30 September 2013 https://doi.org/10.1111/cen3.12057AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume4, Issues1Special Issue: Cutting Edge Research in MS and NMO from Asia at the 12th MS Workshop in Fukuoka, Japan. 12th MS Workshop in Fukuoka. August 3–4, 2013. Centennial Hall Kyushu University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan. This supplement was published with the support of Bayer Yakuhin, Ltd.December 2013Pages 87-101 RelatedInformation

Diagnosis of surface damage induced by air pollution on 20th-century concrete buildings

Abstract The present work focuses on the impact of anthropogenic multi-pollutants on modern concrete buildings exposed in two different European urban areas: Centennial Hall in Wroclaw (Poland) and Casa Galleria Vichi in Florence (Italy). Through a range of analytical techniques the complete characterization of the damage layer collected from the buildings under study has been achieved for the first time, including quantitative measurements of the carbon content. The experimental results allow the identification and prioritization of the air pollutants responsible for the surface deterioration, finding gypsum to be the main damage product on surfaces sheltered from rain runoff, with embedded particulate matter, especially carbonaceous particles, responsible for darkening of the building walls. The discrimination of carbon fractions shows different concentrations of elemental and organic carbon within the damage layers, depending on the location of the buildings. This step is essential for identifying the anthropogenic sources causing deterioration on the buildings, including the aesthetic impairment of surfaces. The contribution of air pollutants is also reflected by the elements found in the damage layers, while the evaluation of the enrichment factors is useful for identifying the elements of anthropogenic origin.

Winnipeg Modern: Architecture, 1945–1975 (review)

Reviewed by: Winnipeg Modern: Architecture, 1945–1975 Adele Freedman (bio) Serena Keshavjee, editor. Winnipeg Modern: Architecture, 1945–1975. University of Manitoba Press. xii, 292. $44.95 The first, and therefore welcome, book about mid-century modernism in Winnipeg begins on a surprisingly unwelcoming note. ‘Sour’ summarizes the first essay, by social historian David Burley, who describes a city that could get nothing right. According to Burley, there was no opportunity to [End Page 382] revive a city centre frayed by three decades of war, economic bust, and labour strife that Winnipeg couldn’t flub; no challenge in the way of public housing it could successfully rise to; no megaproject it would refuse to entertain, even one requiring the storied crossroads of Portage and Main to be sacrificed to an underground shopping concourse. (The corner was erased, the concourse never built.) Every wrong that befell Winnipeg after 1945 is laid at the door of high-handed modern planning. Mercifully the following seven essays are more upbeat, although the book’s graphic design in shades of grey might suggest otherwise. A vivid exception is photographer Martin Tessler’s documentation of surviving modernist structures, some still in their original state, others renovated or under renovation. The range of architectural expression, from the calm Miesian order of Winnipeg International Airport to the Japanese-inspired wood detailing of Rae and Jerry’s Steak House and the jaunty little Bridge Drive-in where you can still grab a sundae, shows modernism at mid-century to have been anything but monotonous, anonymous, or dull. Nor was it resistant to history or place-making, as art historian Serena Keshavjee, the editor of Winnipeg Modern, argues in her essay on Centennial Hall at the University of Winnipeg, a downtown campus. The building was the brainchild of a young local architect named Lewis Morse, who sold the firm charged with the university’s expansion on a ‘groundscraper’ – a low, transparent, glass and steel structure to be erected over and around two existing buildings, thus creating a variety of in-between and up-above spaces that could be programmed and reprogrammed as needed. Keshavjee calls it a ‘mini-city in the core of a bigger city’ – complete with streets, courtyards, and super-graphic arrows guiding circulation – and claims it anticipated Centre Georges Pompidou, which speaks the same hi-tech language in the name of accessibility and democratization. Centennial Hall opened to international fanfare in 1972. By that decade’s end, Keshavjee laments, it had been so shamefully neglected and altered that, instead of revitalizing the downtown as intended, it had become its shabby likeness. One valuable service performed by Winnipeg Modern is the attribution of buildings to their designers, such as Morse, who had previously gone nameless. Kelly Crossman, in a particularly thoughtful essay, singles out James Donahue and David Thordarson. Donahue was the independent Harvard-educated architect and professor who, on behalf of one of the five firms that got all the big jobs in town, designed the Monarch Life Building and the University of Manitoba architecture school, as well as two houses, modest but influential. Thordarson, who worked for Green, Blankstein, Russell, especially admired the creamy Manitoba limestone mined in Tyndall, a traditional material, which he put to strikingly to [End Page 383] use in the Elizabeth Dafoe Library, the Norquay Building, and St George’s Anglican Church. Thordarson and Bernard Brown, who had Mies on his mind, were co-designers of Winnipeg International Airport, a landmark of such sophistication it figures large in two articles. Herbert Enns, in a far-ranging piece about the meeting of modernism and the prairies – the former valued light, space, and openness, the latter had them to spare – sees the airport, with its floating mezzanine and ‘luminous, artificial-sky ceiling,’ as the poetic embodiment of the surrounding prairie landscape; while Bernard Flaman addresses the federally funded public art, inspired by the prairies and commissioned from some of Canada’s leading abstract painters and sculptors, that enhanced the airport’s now greatly diminished allure. Two essays devoted, one apiece, to Gustavo da Roza and Etienne Gaboury, round out Winnipeg Modern. Mention must also be made of the many mentions of John Russell, the exemplary...

Japan-ness in Architecture (review)

Reviewed by: Japan-ness in Architecture Ken Tadashi Oshima (bio) Japan-ness in Architecture. By Arata Isozaki; edited by David B. Stewart; translated by Sabu Kohso. MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass., 2006. xx, 349 pages. $29.95. The central problematic of my book takes form as a hypothesis, namely that the epitome of the creation of this something Japanese is encountered in the twentieth century—with the advent of certain architects who contrived to deal with the external pressures of modern architecture, responding with something unique. My essay "Japan-ness in Architecture" tackles their struggles; it is placed first in the book, but was written last. My aim was to trace their formative stance toward Japan-ness, up to and including my own personal involvement from the late 1960s. This essay is a sort of metacritique of what I had written about Ise, Chōgen, and Katsura and their discursive grounds. It attempted to trace the process through which Japan-ness itself was constructed as a discourse in Japanese modernity. (p. xiv) –Arata Isozaki The question of what is "Japan-ness in architecture" has preoccupied Isozaki Arata (1931– ) for more than two decades through a series of essays that are compiled and presented together for the first time in English in this 2006 book. Isozaki emerged in the 1960s as the leading designer and theorist of his generation as a student and as a collaborator of architect Tange Kenzō (1913–2005). Through his career, he has designed more than 450 projects that span the globe and has written more than 50 books. While noted internationally for projects such as the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (1981–86), the Nara Centennial Hall (1992–98), and most recently the Turin Ice Hockey Stadium for the 2006 Winter Olympics, a majority of his writings that combine historical survey, critical analysis, and theoretical reflection have previously remained untranslated into English. In Japan-ness in Architecture, rather than theorizing his own designs, Isozaki interprets the great Japanese monuments of Ise Shrine (seventh century), Tōdaiji (twelfth century), and Katsura Imperial Villa (seventeenth century) as dynamic events and textual spaces and not merely as inert objects. In other words, Isozaki's book presents these landmarks as challenging discursive spaces, rather than as an exhaustive historical study or illustrated monograph, and thereby begs for further contextual background. From the outset, the term "Japan-ness" is presented as a polemic counter to an essentialist understanding of "Japan" or "Japanese" (as an adjective, language, and race) and consequently a critique of works such as the German expatriate architect Bruno Taut's Fundamentals of Japanese Architecture [End Page 234] (1936) and Kuki Shuzō's "Iki" no kōzō (Reflections on Japanese taste: the structure of iki) (1930). While the term "Japan-ness" may seem awkward as a newly constructed word, it is a translation of the phrase Nihon-teki na mono which literally means "things Japanese in character." As translator Sabu Kohso asserts, the English phrase embraces the heterogeneous adjectives of Japanesque, Japonica, and japonaiserie. Isozaki contends that Japan's obsession with Japanese-ness or Japan-ness is "due in the final analysis to Japan's mentality as an island nation" (pp. xiv–xv). "The Island Nation Aesthetic" is the title of Isozaki's previous pamphlet book published in 1996, which he begins by quoting Oscar Wilde's contention that "'Japan' or the idea of 'Japanese things' was purely an invention, an aesthetic fiction" and that "'Japanese things' (could) be found by studying the works of a certain Japanese artist in the comfort of one's home (with no need to go to Tokyo)."1 Instead of rejecting such an outside perspective as inaccurate or misinformed, Isozaki embraces interpretations of monumental works such as Ise Shrine and Katsura Villa, both praised by Taut when he visited Japan in 1933. Accepting that all notions of Japan, Japanese, and Japan-ness are fictive, whether perceived within or outside the nation's geographic borders, Isozaki argues that what is considered as emblematic of the Japanese aesthetic outside Japan "is far from the embryonic Japan-ness born in such critical moments of an earlier past as are here described" (p. xv). He...

Preface

Abstract The 14th IUPAC International Symposium on Organometallic Chemistry Directed Towards Organic Synthesis (OMCOS-14) was held in Nara, Japan, 2-6 August 2007, under the auspices of IUPAC, and with cosponsorship of the Science Council of Japan and the Chemical Society of Japan. OMCOS-14 was held at Nara Centennial Hall, surrounded by National Treasures including eight World Heritage assets. This symposium is a continuation of the successful series of OMCOS meetings, previously held at Geneva (2005), Toronto (2003), Taipei (2001), Versailles (1999), Göttingen (1997), Santa Barbara (1995), Kobe (1993), Utrecht (1991), Florence (1989), Vancouver (1987), Kyoto (1985), Dijon (1983), and Fort Collins (1981). The event once again brought together industrial and academic chemists from all over the world to discuss the latest advances in new metal-mediated and -catalyzed reactions, mechanistic insights into important reactions, new preparations and applications of organometallic reagents, as well as ingenious methods for the synthesis of pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and materials using metals. Almost 1000 participants attended from 34 countries, one-third of them from abroad. Particularly strong representation from Asian countries such as China, Taiwan, and Korea underscores the remarkable growth of interest and development in organometallic research in these countries. The scientific program of OMCOS-14 featured 6 plenary lectures, 20 invited lectures, 28 short oral presentations, and one OMCOS Award lecture. The lectures were uniformly outstanding and held the attention of an audience fascinated by the excellent chemistry. One sensed that the warmth of the weather was matched by the warm enthusiasm that prevailed at the venue throughout the meeting. Themes that attracted attention included metal-catalyzed direct functionalization of alkenes, alkynes, and arenes, environmentally benign processes and gold-catalyzed reactions. In a particular highlight, Prof. F. Dean Toste from the University of California, Berkeley received the OMCOS-14 Award (sponsored by the Yen Chuang Foundation and Springer Verlag) for his glorious research on gold-catalyzed reactions. The scientific program also presented well-supported poster sessions comprising 546 posters of remarkably high quality. On the basis of assessments by distinguished juries, 27 posters were selected for awards of OMCOS-14 Poster Prizes, two of which included free registration for students to participate in the 23rd International Conference on Organometallic Chemistry (ICOMC-2008, co-chaired by Profs. Dixneuf and Bruneau at Rennes, France, 13ñ18 July 2008). This issue of Pure and Applied Chemistry comprises a collection of 40 papers based upon lectures delivered at OMCOS-14. It therefore offers readers an enduring and representative record of the great achievements announced during the symposium. The series continues with OMCOS-15, which will be held in Glasgow, UK (<http://www.omcos15.com/>), 26-30 July 2009, under the chairmanship of Prof. Pavel Kočovský. Koichiro Oshima Conference Chairman

国際研究集会「第８回物理探査学会国際シンポジウム」報告

The Society of Exploration Geophysicists of Japan (SEGJ) hosted the 8th SEGJ International Symposium on Imaging and Interpretation Technologies at Kyoto University Clock Tower Centennial Hall, Kyoto, Japan on November 26-28, 2006, following a tutorial course for young geoscientists and engineers on 24 and 25 at Kyotodaigaku Kaikan. A technical tour was also held on November 29. The symposium was co-sponsored by the Korean Society of Exploration Geophysicists (KSEG), the Australian Society of Exploration Geophysicists (ASEG), the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG), European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (EAGE), and the Environmental and Engineering Geophysical Society (EEGS), and Vietnam Association of Geophysicists (VAG). Discussions at the symposium focused on Imaging and Interpretation technologies that contribute to Interdisciplinary Integration of Geosciences for better understanding and modeling invisible underground structures and processes. In particular geophysical imaging technologies, such as seismic methods, electrical and electromagnetic methods, ground penetrating radar, gravity and geomagnetics in various applications in human activities, such as natural resource exploration, civil engineering, environmental applications, and natural hazard mitigation were discussed as a major theme of the symposium. Also, our discussions included theoretical developments in geophysical methods, laboratory measurements, various data-processing schemes, and modeling and inverse theories that help to understand geoscientific processes in the invisible underground. Geophysical data management and integrated geophysical technologies were recognized as indispensable tools for deepening our understandings of subsurface structures and focusing into survey objectives.

IMLB-12 Meeting Highlights

The 12th International Meeting on Lithium Batteries, IMLB-12, was held June 27 to July 3, 2004 at the Nara Centennial Hall in Nara, Japan; Nara was the east end of the Silk Road and had been the glorious capital about 1,300 years ago.

Centennial hall of fame: Today's electrical engineers select the major contributors - Technical, industrial, and academic - to the profession and society

Centennial hall of fame: Today's electrical engineers select the major contributors - Technical, industrial, and academic - to the profession and society

Spectral lines: A centennial hall of fame

At the turn of the century, the American Institute of Electrical Engineers was not yet 16 years old. Yet the young society decided to poll its members to see which inventors were deemed to be the most important contributors to a profession that was clearly still in its infancy. In response to the poll, some 227 members voted for those whom they thought most significant, and the results were published as a list of “Greatest Names in Electrical Science and Invention during the Nineteenth Century.”