compound KAIJU

2020 - ongoing

_ Featured on KoozArch

Much like the serpent-necked Serpopard of Egypt, the intertwining of architecture and mythology is a pervasive theme.

Epic poems, built follies, and sung ballads have long guided our exploration of a common thread in mythology — the existence, or purported existence, of supernatural beings, creatures, and deities. These entities, with extraordinary qualities that evoke both worship and fear, transcend cultures, from the Bunyips of Australian aboriginal folklore to the Islamic Buraq, the Icelandic Lyngbakur, the Jewish synthetic Golems, and the more contemporary Loch Ness monster of Scottish tales. Despite their ubiquity in narratives, these mysterious beings remain elusive, captivating our imaginations and prompting us to construe them through imagery and storytelling — a process mirroring our endeavor to document the undiscovered in the built environment.

In today’s pop culture, mythological elements are assimilated through a focus on the popular Greek pantheon, literary cosmic entities like Cthulhu, and various interpretations of dragons. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the Japanese Kaiju, initially a term expressing paleontological concepts but now synonymous with colossal beings like Godzilla and King Kong. These constructs share common qualities: colossal scale, unyielding agency over their domain, and the ability to instill a sense of the unknown in the beholder.

On the other hand, the archetypal building — an object conceived by, for, and defined by humans — bears qualities that echo those of mythological creatures. Buildings inhabit diverse environments, often in compliance with the forces they engage with. Their scale and purpose aren't always discernible, much like their mythical counterparts. Whether it's the Tower of Babel or Villa Savoye, these structures are enshrined in our history books, meant to be both worshiped and scrutinized. Yet, despite their gargantuan presence, they are always meant to be subservient to their maker. Buildings must obey.

But what if they didn’t? John Hejduk’s exploration of monsters and victims posits a fictional realm centered around nonhuman agents, where figures and objects conform to their own proclivities. Similarly, Bernd and Hilla Becher’s extensive documentations reveal a society of like-minded architectural bodies that coexist with us.

This series of drawings illustrates a world of obscure nonhuman architectural beings, possessing qualities both familiar and bewildering. These Compound Kaiju are kinetic and discreet, demonstrating autonomy while suggesting a symbiotic relationship with their environment. Their origins, age, and motives remain a mystery.

Each drawing, produced entirely through linework, hatches, and stippling, borrows from architectural drawing conventions, annotation, and pre-modern depictions of mythical creatures. Printed on Mylar at 36”x48”. The images below are low-resolution previews.