Vladimir Sitta ROOM 4.1.3

Vladimir Sitta
Room 4.1.3

105 Reservoir Street
Surry Hills NSW 2010

Vladimir Sitta is co-founder and co-director of iconic and iconoclastic landscape architecture firm, Room 4.1.3. Taking landscape design as merely a launching pad of the imagination, Room 4.1.3 is truly interdisciplinary in its approach, combining academic and professional practice. Since leaving Czechoslovakia in 1982, Sitta's innovative landscape designs have been received with much acclaim in Australia. In 1996 a summary of the firm's designwork was choosen for exhibition at the MCA, and in 1998 they were finalists in the Seppelt Contemporary Art Awards. Recently, Room 4.1.3 created the competition-winning landscape design for the National Museum of Australia.

Why did you decide to become a landscape architect?
To avoid damages to all perfect humans if I were to become plastic surgeon.

What keeps you motivated / inspired?
Hunger and curiosity.

What are you angry about?
Visual - I should say cultural - imbeciles in local government and my inability to initiate defenestration. They put on incontinence pants every time they see something marginally different.
And society permeated by greed.

What's your greatest achievement?
I somehow manage to still enjoy what I am doing despite frequent bouts of frustration.

In your opinion what personal qualities make a good designer?
Lack of resistance to risk taking, willingness to experiment and ability to learn from disasters and the urge to misbehave.

Have you ever said no to a client?
Oh yes but not often enough. One is often blind in the honeymoon period of the project. I have had many regrets afterwards.

Do you have a favourite artist? Why?
Federico Fellini, that mischievous celebrant of human imagination. When he died it was like a close relative had passed away.

What delights, provokes or enrages you about Australian architecture?
It's evolving and that delights me. Provoked? It's so difficult to be excited by buildings here but there are a few...
Most projects are trivial and full of servility to developers, or should I say to perceived needs of the market?

Is the mythology that surrounds our Australian landscape an inspiration? A hindrance?
I am quite impervious to any myths. Translation into 3D has failed abysmally so far.

If you weren't a landscape architect what would you be?
Comedian - you never run out of material. Such a delightful job when you have the whole government departments working for you.

Happiness is...
Ability to forget and forgive. But I am not always good at it.

Book, film, song?
Steppenwolf by H. Hesse; Amarcord, Stalker, Time of the Gypsies, Time of Drunken Horses...; Personalised Czech tramp song my to be wife was singing to me on our walkabouts.

What possible future or futures do you foresee for the built world?
Well I never found a humorous answer to this. All this talk about sustainability that leaves people out. The mirror of Narcissus reflects many skeletons... We haven't discovered yet how to be more cooperative with nature. While trying to be optimistic we are probably genetically capable only of the delay tactics. Maybe we should blame the gene of greed (if it exists).

What elements / concerns do you deem most important in your work?
3 "O"s: Open mind, open slate and open cheque book - in an order that is of course prone to change according to my personal circumstances.