Responses to Katherine Rinne - Plumbing Rome
In response to the last blog post on the Katherine Rinne lecture, several students wrote critiques, assessments, and evaluations regarding the work done and methodologies used throughout her process.
The following are three of the responses:
Beth Mitchell
The Waters of
Rome: A Refreshing Methodological Approach
Like others who visit Rome, our guest lecturer Katherine Rinne was drawn
to the water that flows through the city’s landscape. It’s easy to see how one
would begin a journey looking at these water systems; when the heat is the
strongest the picturesque fountains appear around every corner, during the
rainy season the flooding Tiber threatens to swallow up the bridges themselves.
The more time you spend in the city, the more water begins to define your
experience. This could not be more true for Rinne, who has spent the last decade
carefully studying the water that, throughout its history, has defined the city
of Rome.
The approach that Rinne has taken in studying the network that connects Rome’s
baroque fountains feels somewhat unique in scholarship ̶ beginning not with a posed question, but a
passionate interest and something of a leap of faith. Water, she explained, is
“culturally neutral”, a commodity used the same way by everyone, and why for
her, it was an intriguing area of study. That, and the fact that it is
impossible to resist being drawn to the stunningly beautiful fountains designed
by the same architects responsible for the Baroque city’s sculptural building
compositions. In the five hundred years prior to their construction, the
abundant water supply that the early Roman emperors brought into the city through
ingeniously built aqueducts had fallen into disrepair, and the medieval city of
Rome lived mostly without the fresh and free water that had previously filled
its fountains and basins. As Rinne’s research has shown, it was the restoration
of this water supply that brought about the powerful and influential Rome of
the 16th century and beyond. Her work demonstrates what can be
discovered when we disregard preconceived notions, observe with an open mind,
and put ourselves directly into the shoes of the historical figures that we
study.
The starting place for Rinne’s study of water began where one trained in
architecture naturally would: on the site. In this case, the site in question
was the city of Rome. Starting at the northern edge near the Piazza del Popolo,
she walked each street carrying her notebook, maps, and a camera. Rinne traced
the map of Rome displayed overhead as she described her methods, noting how she
weaved her way through the city ̶ the
cluttered network of streets forcing her to retrace her steps several times
over. Though many scholars have examined the fountains of Rome closely over the
years, Katherine Rinne firmly believed that there was something new to
discover. What was clear in her talk was the fundamental notion that there is
always a new viewpoint you can bring to an area of study. Often in scholarship,
as well as design, it feels as if an idea has not only already been done, but
done many times over. This notion can leave us without a starting place for our
work. What Rinne shows us, is that when we disregard the thought that there is
nothing left to explore, our individual interpretations allow us to bring
entirely new ideas to the discussion.
In the case of Rinne’s approach, finding the unanswered questions came
from patience and careful documentation. Covering the entire city took over
three months and each street was captured at three times of the day. Rinne
explained that she wasn’t exactly sure what she was looking for, so she
recorded everything even slightly related to water. There were photos taken of
the fountains- ornamental, drinking, animal, the water in their basins, drains,
aqueducts, as well as flood markers, streets named after water features and
sewer infrastructure. This non-judgmental and comprehensive view was, for
Rinne, crucial in discovering the fundamental ideas behind her research ̶ that through gravity, the water was connected
in a system that lay hidden behind the dazzling baroque fountains. This path
led her outside of the city, following the aqueducts back to their ancient
sources, and to a careful study of Rome’s topography, which included the
creation of a map of her own design. Though the idea of gravity and water flow
seem obvious, this view of the water as a connected system, which included the
fountains of Rome, was an area of study yet to be explored.
The key figure in Rinne’s research was
the 16th century architect Giacomo della Porta. Della Porta was
responsible not only for restoring the Acqua Vergine, the renamed ancient Acqua
Virgo, but also designed the first group of fountains and the water
distribution system that became a model for later aqueducts in the city. The
daunting task of understanding how della Porta was capable of working out this
complex system dependent on the city’s topography, without modern surveying
tools, was taken on by imagining the Rome in which he lived. Peeling back the
layers of the modern city and visualizing the Rome of della Porta’s time, an
era when aqueducts were still out of commission, could not have been an easy
task. Through careful observations, as well as archival research, Rinne was
able to put herself in the place of a 16th century architect. With
barely any remaining notes or drawings from della Porta, she creatively
hypothesized how he was able to take on the task of distributing water to the
city.
An important aspect of Rome’s history lies in the fact that the Tiber
floods regularly, and prior to the modern walls that currently keep the river
at bay, the murky water would flood the city streets. The markers left on
buildings show us how high the water levels rose during these floods, and
though we might think the traffic congested city of Rome is dirty today, one
can only imagine how filthy the streets were in earlier times. Rinne took
careful note of this, and observed that with the Tiber regularly spreading
through the city, as it would recede, layers of grime would have been left
behind on every surface. By imagining what the 16th century architect
could have observed, Rinne envisioned that these layers left over from past
floods would have been clearly visible. By noticing that water levels had crested
far higher in some areas versus others, della Porta would have had a type of
contour map at his disposal, and thus be able to systematically plan a water
distribution system that relied on gravity.
Designing a distribution system that brought water from the aqueducts to
the fountains across the city, would have taken a lot of advanced planning and
careful understanding of how water would flow and reach a state of equilibrium.
While the baroque fountain designs brought symbolism and focus to public spaces,
behind them lay a carefully planned infrastructure. With the distribution of
water, concepts of city planning were brought to Rome, including systems of
drainage for run-off, sewers and paved streets. These major changes to the city
led to more movement and trade, bringing with it prosperity and prestige for
Rome. The influence of Rome’s architecture and planning from this period was
far reaching, and Katherine Rinne’s thorough research makes it clear that much
of this achievement stemmed from the new system for water distribution that was
put in place. From her methods, we can learn the value in keeping an open mind,
and the reward that is possible from meticulously following the trail of a passion-filled
exploration.
Anna Hong - Rinne Response
In ancient China, the philosopher Lao Tzu once referred to the void
within a cup as the essence of the cup. He observed that space was what made
the vessel useful, and that the act of containment was what gave it meaning.
This idea has since been applied to architecture; most notably by Frank Lloyd
Wright, who used it to describe the true purpose of building – to contain human
life.
Whether intentional or
unintentional, architect, Katherine Rinne, pushes against this concept of
architecture as space making in her lecture, Plumbing Rome. Her studies are not
about walls or spaces, but about what is being contained within the cup, or in
this case the city of Rome. While she examines the 3,000-year history of the
city’s infrastructure and urban development, as well as conducts a survey of
the extensive network of fountains, drains and pipes, Rinne’s investigation is
ultimately about the living system that flows within them – water.
As director of the web-based research project, The Waters of the City of
Rome, Rinne has tackled the task of mapping the hydraulic systems of Rome with
meticulous, almost obsessive, attention to detail. The focus of her
investigation seemingly encompassed any and everything that could possibly have
to do with the theme of water: springs, rivers, aqueducts, fountains, drinking
spouts, toilets, drains, pipes, flood markers, dog fountains etc. In addition,
her four-month sojourn through the streets of Rome, identifying the origin,
containment, flow and distribution of water, produced an incredible amount of
data on the city’s infrastructure and development, gleaned from personal
observations, critical readings, analytical studies and archival research.
However (perhaps fortuitously) the results of her study remain fairly
open-ended.
In her lecture, Rinne presented several interesting findings, and
theories of her own, but she was also quick to emphasize that the ultimate goal
of the project was to create a foundation of evidence upon which other scholars
and professionals could establish their own work. Rinne refers to water as the
life source of the city, providing both physical and spiritual nourishment to
the body and the senses. She also highlights some of the connections that can
be made between the readily visible urban layout of the city and the harder to
discern flow of water. Aside from a few teasing glimpses into possible research
topics, Rinne holds back on offering too many concrete suggestions about how to
apply her study. In the end, it is exactly this freedom to interpret, which her
project fosters, that makes it so significant.
Rinne intends for her project to be used as a design tool for students
and professionals in the field of architecture, but the study also opens doors
for scholars in other fields such as civil engineering, geoscience and history,
just to name a few. Research in these other fields could possibly include a
socio-political study of class hierarchies that governed water circulation, an
economic study of water as commodity, or a mechanical study of hydrodynamics.
The straightforward presentation of her study lends itself to multiple
interpretations; the GIS data mapping, especially, allows users to easily
assess her findings and reach their own conclusions. One of the most interesting facets of the Waters project is the
development of a complex narrative structure that interweaves the story of
water, with the cultural, political and social histories of the city. Not only
does Rinne’s project help redefine our understanding of urban landscapes, but
it also serves to expand the scope of architectural inquiry beyond the study of
material structures and spaces. In this instance, it is not the physical form
that defines the cup, nor is it the space within. Rather, the value of the cup
is determined by what it contains. In the case of Rinne, this would be the
water that runs through Rome, bringing together various narratives of the city,
giving life and meaning to its built environment.
Blake McDonald - "Plumbing Rome" Blog Post
In the lecture “Plumbing Rome,”
Katherine Rinne narrated her ongoing investigation of the interconnection
between Rome’s public water system and the city’s physical growth. Rinne illustrates
Rome as a city built upon a culture of water, from the centrality of the Tiber
River and the baths of the ancient Romans to the public drinking fountains and
decorative cascades that form the basis of her research. Unlike previous
studies of Roman fountains as purely aesthetic objects, Rinne seeks to reveal
the scientific, social, and political mechanisms that brought water into the
city, tracing channels from source to distribution.
Rinne’s lecture began with a
description of medieval Rome, where the ancient aqueducts had all but crumbled
and the majority of the city relied on private water sellers. With the return
of the popes from Avignon the aqueducts were slowly rehabilitated, and the
revived flow allowed for the construction of a network of fountains both
monumental and minute. Rinne focused her attention on Giacomo Della Porta, an
architect whose illustrious building career was preceded by his integral role
in the reconstruction of the Acqua Vergine and his design of several of Rome’s
most well known fountains. Della Porta’s work allowed for what Rinne describes
as a cleansing and rebirth of the city as “a place of plentiful water and
life.” Rinne also expressed how the forms of the architect’s fountains
prefigured his later architectural practices, and the locations of the
fountains themselves drove speculative development. In these ways, Rinne
illustrated the fountains as more than the civic features, but as vital engines
to the health, growth, and artistic progress.
Perhaps the most fascinating part
of the project is how Rinne undertook her survey of the city’s constructed
water features. Armed with several historic maps and a modern tax atlas, Rinne
spent nine months walking each street in city’s core, recording fountains,
drains, flood markers, and anything else that seemed associated with urban
water systems. Rinne told how, not knowing precisely what she wished to do with
the findings of her survey, she not only sketched and measured each site but
also photographed the sprays and pattern that the water made in each fountain.
The result was not only a deep understanding of extant water infrastructure on
Rome’s streets, but also the ability to create pictographic depictions of how
the linear conduits emanating from each of the city’s three water sources
produced different types of fountains. Equally compelling was Rinne’s method of
producing a topographic map of Rome to gauge which fountains had been built at
higher elevations, which she achieved by measuring the height of flood markers
from the same event in different locations around the city. Through these
endeavors, Rinne was able to put herself into the mindset of Giacomo Della
Porta and begin understanding the city’s fountains as fixed to and physically
formed by the contours of Rome.
Rinne’s
work on the waters of Rome is inspiring in a number of ways, not least of which
is her persistence and ingenuity in determining how to represent and connect
complex and often invisible infrastructures. Her work helps us to understand
Rome not as a series of historical sights and monuments, but as a complicated
feat of engineering, connecting each neighborhood and tying the city to the
surrounding geography. Moreover, Rinne’s ongoing research shows that even
subjects of past historical analysis will continue to yield compelling insight
when looked with fresh eyes and an open mind.
