The glow of grime Of course this 'sheen of antiquity' of which we hear so much is in fact the glow of grime. In both Chinese and Japanese the words denoting this glow describe a polish that comes of being touched over and over again, a sheen produced by the oils that naturally permeate an object over long years of handling—which is to say grime. If indeed 'elegance is frigid', it can as well be described as filthy. Jun'ichirō Tanizaki & Thomas J. Harper, In Praise of Shadows timeaestheticsfilthflaws
How Much Does Your Building Weigh, Mr. Foster? A Documentary by Norman Foster www.imdb.com The film traces the rise of one of the world's premier architects, Norman Foster, and his unending quest to improve the quality of life through design. Beijing airport ceiling architectureurbanism