Brutalist Games Are Not Over
Interview with Architect Amon Cali, UAP, Principal Architect of Cali Architects, Baguio City
“GREEN ARCHITECTURE BOOTCAMP FOR GAMERS! Known by the game Mobile Legends, Team Execration has earned great success through championships. Take a look at the proposed bootcamp for their team designed by Cali Architects. It’s amazing how green architecture goes well with technological innovation!” (1)
1. Green Architecture Bootcamp for Execration Gaming Team (Cali Architects)
Loyal viewers of Lantawan Magazine Facebook account can still remember this posting of June 15, 2021. It was a success—maybe because many students play computer games. They also follow a ESports Teams, including Team Execration. It’s just nice how bootcamps for these teams now become a new building type. Architect Amon Cali, Principal Architect of Cali Architects discovered it and offered an ingenuous solution.
2. Amon Cali, Principal Architect of Cali Architects, UAP-Baguio
Q: Nice to meet you, Architect Amon. I see on your page that you are architect, musician, and designer. And quiet famous even here in Cebu. Many of our students know about your studio. Thank you for being ready for this interview. My first question comes from our students, not directly from me. What was the thought process behind your proposed Boot Camp for the Team Execration?
Amon: We, as an architectural Studio already have a trademark which is Brutalism. Our approach to the project was to connect Brutalist architecture with gaming technologies, the design brief for the project. What does Team Execration do? Who are the people involved? What are the existing structures within the vicinity? In the design, we express both our identity and the client’s identity together.
Q: Is then gaming “Brutal”?
Amon: No! Gaming is an industry. And Brutalism is the design style that we are really passionate about. It came from the word “beton brut” which means raw concrete. In most of our projects, we want to express the natural state of a material, especially concrete. We don’t paint it. We expose the natural character of a certain material. Having the gaming industry and then the Brutalism architecture, we try to merge it together. In line with this, we created the Execration Team’s Boot Camp.
Q: For me, there is much common between the two. Gaming also exposes the inner self of a person. Your gaming habits show who you are. True? Gaming can be then “brutal”, in all meanings of the word!
Amon: It can be, it can be. Yeah.
Q: What inspiration connects these two, gaming and being a Brutalist?
Amon: In fact, games also feature architectures. There are games which feature our kind of Brutalist architecture. The gaming companies work with architects who design for the atmosphere of the game. I think gaming and architecture do have a really deep connection because the developers create these games for a full experience of the players. The same is offered by architecture, too! For that experience, game developers need to hire different professionals. Their architects will create the environment of the game. So gaming and architecture are quite connected to each other.
3. Peu Brut, the modular tiny house designed by Cali Architects
Q: Horror movies love Medieval architecture, do they? Other movies prefer other architectural inspirations. What about the games? Do games usually apply Brutalism architecture? Are there other styles applied?
Amon: It also depends on the theme of the game. Correct me if I’m wrong but I believe that Assassin’s Creed focuses on Renaissance. And then, some games, like Left 4 Dead, prefer other approaches like apocalyptic types of architecture. It really depends on the theme of the game or on the question, what environment theme would promote the game.
Q: Therefore Brutalism is fit for the Execration Team as I am getting your point.
Amon: I mean Brutalism can fit for all types of architecture. We have this project called Peu Brut, the Brutalist tiny house—see it above. It’s a tiny home, a modular tiny house which can be built anywhere. So, in that way, it is also Brutalism. We also have other projects, like Grey Area which will be constructed in Batangas. It is a museum, a cafe, with complex spaces. So Brutalism in our understanding is not only limited to a gaming facility, but it can be applied to different types of living spaces.
Q: What makes a boot camp design efficient?
Amon: It shall be in considerate with our architectural principles. It must be able for passive cooling and water harvesting. Harvested water can also be used to water the plants—water from the laundry shop will go to the plants. We also propose solar panels to harvest energy for the gamers. We recommend to use the energy from the Sun to power the gamers’ computers. Execration Team isn’t just for personal passion, as most private gamers play just for entertainment. These are professional gamers. They go
4. Green Architecture Bootcamp for Execration Gaming Team (Cali Architects)
abroad and they compete. They represent our country. So, we have to create an environment where they could practice to bring out the best from them in these games. We don’t want them to feel like crowded or stuck in a box. So we created an open plan, which is oriented with this green wall hydroponic system, so that sense, they would have a feeling of being outdoor without really being outdoor.
5. Logo of Cali Architects, Baguio City
Q: How does youth culture inspire your architecture?
Amon: I think that youth culture evolves. Every generation has a different type of style: from retro disco to modern or hip-hop. In these styles, every form of art has a role to play. While growing up, I was really into movies. Music and fashion influenced my daily life. I think if I was born in a different era, my design approach would also be different.
6. Peu Brut, Cali Architects
Q: Do you have a mentor?
Amon: Yeah, I have a lot of mentors through advices and inspirations—from architects who are already on the top, like Le Corbusier or Frank Gehry. I see them as my mentor. I study their works and their actions. I apply the good practices to my daily life. I am also influenced by architect vloggers.
Q: Who is your favorite vlogger?
Amon: I don’t have one specific favorite vlogger but I like the channel Living Big in a Tiny House. I think the most famous architect blogger in the Philippines right now is Oliver Austria who is from Baguio. I had a personal mentor years back, a pioneer of modern architecture in Baguio: Architect Villalon. He told me that his mentor was Leandro Locsin, one of the pioneers of Brutalism in the Philippines. It just hit me that I have a Brutalist lineage up to Locsin! From Locsin through Villalon, Brutalism was passed on to me. So there’s a sense of continuation.
7. Peu Brut by Cali Architects
Q: What principles does your studio promote in the word of architecture? What values?
Amon: One of the biggest values that we want to promote is uniqueness. This is because nowadays, it is so easy to be influenced by what is trending. So the architect might get the most amount of money—but to the point that there is no more architectural freedom. We love freedom, we are unique! Another thing is, of course, energy efficiency and harvesting water needs to be incorporated in all the designs. In a way that energy would become free for the people, so that we don’t have to pay for electricity or water bills anymore. There are different ways to harvest electric energy: not only through solar panels but also through wind turbines. Building footprints need to be minimized. We should always respect the site and think of ways on how to give back on Mother Nature.
Q: You love Brutalism. Other Filipino architects have other preferences: Mediterranean style, other Minimalism, vernacular style, and many more. How far is your love for Brutalism? Should it be the ideal style which is best fit for the Philippines? Should it be dominant here? Or is it your personal approach only?
Amon: It is my team’s personal approach. Regarding those different styles here in the Philippines, I don’t think there’s an ideal style. This is because every style may be applied in a way that it could be sustainable and adaptable to the site. It is up to the designers and to the client, what final output they want. It should always be a collaborative approach—depending not only on the architect. We want the client to design with us. In fact, there are architects who are specialized on their own particular styles—they follow different design paths. They promote their styles. In this way, a variety of design styles will be provided. I don’t want the Philippines to have all structures in Brutalism—although I love Brutalism. I really encourage that all architects find their own style and promote their own identity. If they’re into Minimalist clean lines—that, yeah, that’s a good thing. If they are into Mediterranean, it’s a good thing. As long as the client loves the style, the design is efficient, it doesn’t destroy the environment—it’s a good thing!
Q: But would you yourself design in Mediterranean style? If the powerful client comes with that wish: ”Architect, please design it in Mediterranean.” No Brutalism! Would you do it?
Amon: No! I would recommend him to another architect because at the end of the day, as much as possible, we want to design structures that we love and what we enjoy. I don’t hate Mediterranean or anything. But if I design, even though they pay me a lot, if I don’t like what I’m designing, then it is not worth it at the end of the day. So I would rather recommend the client to another architect who is specialized in doing Mediterranean rather than forcing myself to do it. However, in some cases, if the Mediterranean-loving client would really heavily motivate me, I could try the “Mediterranean” but at the end of the day, I will still inject the concepts of Brutalism. And then it would be really interesting to see this unique mixture of Brutalism and Mediterranean. So it will not be purely Mediterranean, but “Mediterranean with Cali Architects’ touch”.
Q: In fact, there is another group of Cali Architects in California who are eager to design Mediterranean residences.
Amon: They thought that we we’re also practicing in California but then I clarified that we are from the Philippines. Cali is not a place (like California) but a brand name from my personal family name.
8. Baguio’s skyline (Wikipedia)
Q: Baguio is home for excellent architecture studios and great buildings. Even the best architectural blogger is also originally from Baguio. How far is Baguio City an inspiration for you? Are you from Baguio?
Amon: The art scene in Baguio is really good. We have wood carvings from indigenous people who are originally from Baguio. They are naturally good in arts and crafts. We also have great artists like Kidlat Tahimik, a National Artist. Look at his restaurant (Oh My Gulay), a form of architecture and interior which is out of the norm. He uses rift wood to make unique shops. So that he is a big eye opener to me proving that we don’t have to follow usual trends or norms. We can create our own thing. People might criticize that “your work doesn’t go with the National Building Code,” etc. But it tickles the imagination of designers that you are not always stuck in the box. So, back to your question. Does the city really influence me? A big influence on me is to know that this is a creative City. Other details, like having stilts in Baguio’s vernacular architecture, have also a huge influence on how I approach design problems.
Q: How many are you in Cali Architects’ studio?
Amon: I have four junior architects. I also have a lawyer-accountant. So we’re six in the team right now.
Q: When was the studio founded? When did you start?
Amon: We started last year, in 2020, when the pandemic hit. It started just with me last year, so Cali Architects was just me, and then little by little we grew. We developed, we got clients, we had a huge impact on the social media. People are starting to notice our works until to the point that we are where we are now. Now, we still have to study a lot of things. But it is nice, it is really amazing that we have done this for a span of one year.
Q: Would you support the slogan of Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) which is “Go Local”? In pandemic times, import is more expensive and we cannot travel.
Amon: I think that “being local” is also a form of sustainability. The availability of the local materials is important. Sometimes designers want imported materials so much that it is too expensive to ship the material from a far place. So going local is actually a good thing. I’m so also interested in the Lantawan magazine. What does the word mean? What is the purpose of the magazine in general?
Q: ”Lantawan” means “viewpoint” in Bisaya. It is the art and architecture magazine of University of San Carlos. Not a textbook—although many Filipinos think that all school periodicals are just textbooks. But Lantawan wants to give a motivation, represent an advocacy of our school. We also have the Lantawan Magazine Facebook account. That’s where we noticed a great influence of your design through the whole Philippines. It is run by eight students from various departments of our University.
Amon: Nice! That is like really a good initiative which empowers the students to move forward. You have my support for the magazine and what you are doing. I hope one day I could visit your school, talk to the students and experience what you guys are doing there.
Q: I am sure that our Theater will be full if you visit us since Carolinian architecture students already know you from the media. Unfortunately, we have to wait for the face-to-face classes. Thank you very much for the interview.
(The interview was conducted by Br. Bela Lanyi SVD assisted by Mr. Raphael Xandro Milan, BS Architecture student, University of San Carlos, Cebu City.)
(1) Source: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=CaliAvantegardeArchitects&set=a.2636280666681663
