A New Site to Behold
By Mico Letargo
The actual site of TriNoma used to be the location of "Divisoria sa EDSA", a flea market built by Mayor Brigido Simon as a livelihood project for the informal settlers of Quezon City. Due to unbalanced competition from a mall nearby, Ayala Land started constructing the mall on June 2005 under the project name "North Triangle Mall".
The mall was named "TriNoma" inspired by the redevelopment of industrial district TriBeCa.
TriNoma was officially launched in a private ceremony in April 24, 2007. It was inaugurated by officials of Ayala Land, its developer, and authorities of Quezon City, led by Mayor Feliciano Belmonte. Members of the media were also present but were restricted from releasing certain footages and photos, as not to spoil consumer excitement.
The physical structure of the mall literally resembles a triangle. This unique design gives the illusion that one would easily get lost in wanderlust while inside the premises. Another notable architectural feature is that at its core, the Activity Center forms a circle where all three main corridors of the mall are interconnected.
The mall also has a Rooftop Garden, the first of its kind among shopping centers in the Philippines. The mall has a total of seven water features, including a reverse waterfall.
Trinoma also boasts one of the largest indoor carousels in the nation, rivaled only by that of the now outdoors Fiesta Carnival. The flagship branch of Time Zone here also happens to be the largest Philippine location.
Hosting over 500 retail establishments and two major department stores (Crossings and The Landmark), 90% of the total available area are already occupied by about 600 tenants.
Currently, plans of an overpass connecting TriNoma with SM North Edsa are being disputed and negotiated over by both camps.
A Church with No Bell
By Lealeny Mani
San Agustin Church is a significant monument to the Spanish colonization of the Philippines being the first religious structure. The design of the church was derived from other churches that were built by the Augustinians in Mexico. The Augustinians who came from Spain and those born in Mexico had a great opportunity to observe and study the South American monastic architecture which they later used in the Philippines. They took into consideration the quality of the local stone and the weather condition which required them to sacrifice aesthetic requirement for durability.
With this architecture, its static appearance and dark adobe stone lack grace and charm. If I will compare it today with those churches recently built the structure is quite different. The color is plain and bright and welcoming. It has open space and round-shaped. The San Agustin church has a triangular form and blackish color and flanked by two towers one of which has no bells. The physical structure has no extraordinary design maybe because it is a colonial church. But the interior design is quite different because with a barren, plain surface, they managed to sculpt and gave life to the ceiling with their paint brushes. Every space was animated with wonderful floral motifs, geometric patterns, classic architectural themes, coffers and religious images. The super-imposed columns which divide each side chapel are echoed above by covered bands that traverse across the barrel vault. Even the faux coffers are organized along the length of the ceiling to suggest depth, movement, balance and proportion to the nave below.
The playful effect of chiaroscuro-light and shadows and perspective restrained only by the limited palette of a few earthly colors is a visual spectacle. The facade follows the style of High Renaissance. The symmetrical composition is prefixed by pairs of Tuscan columns that flank the main door of the two-tiered façade. The vertical movement of the paired columns is adapted at the second level by equally paired Corinthian columns.
The facade has a touch of Baroque by the ornately carved wooden doors that depict floras and religious images. Baroque is also evident in the carved niches that quietly reside between the paired lower columns.
The Beauty of Parthenon
By Lealeny Mani
The Parthenon is a Doric peripteral temple, which means that it consists of a rectangular floor plan with a series of low steps on every side and a colonnade of Doric columns extending around the periphery of the entire structure. The architects are Iktinos and Kallikrates and the sculptor is Pheidias.
The three main types of columns used in Greek temples and other public buildings are Doric, Ionic and Corinthian. The Doric capital has the simplest design, the Ionic has the curlicues called volutes and the Corinthian has the acanthus leaves. The Doric order is characterized by the series of triglyphs and metopes on the entablature. Each metope was occupied by a panel of relief structure. The Parthenon combines elements of the Doric and Ionic orders.
The metopes of the Parthenon all represented various instances of the struggle between the forces of order and justice, on the one hand and criminal chaos on the other.
The Parthenon is a kind of great architecture not only because it is ancient but the structure itself and its history that makes the building still alive in the eyes of the beholder. What makes it different among others is the image of simplicity yet has the power to conquer the attraction of the viewer not just to look at the outside but there is a kind of magnet to come in and discover the mystery inside the temple.
