I created this essay along with my class mate for my SA 199.1: Anthropology of Culture and Senses class.
My professor insisted to me that I should write an essay about parkour and architecture as my final paper for his class.
So here it is:
What is the relationship between parkour and architecture? Within the social boundaries of each discipline, these practiced disciplines are guided by the belief of form follows function. As the famous Architect Louis Sullivan has said:
“It is the pervading law of all things organic, and inorganic,
of all things physical and metaphysical,
of all things human and all things super-human,
of all true manifestations of the head, of the heart, of the soul, that the life is recognizable in its expression, that form ever follows function. This is the law.”
(Craven, Jackie)
This saying resonates between the two disciplines. Parkour is often called the art of movement. This discipline is fairly new and it has several definitions. The one definition that is closest to its essence:
“Parkour is an art of movement focusing on the adaptability of the human body to obstacles with a certain point to reach in the most efficient manner possible (Parkour Philippines, May 28, 2009).”
Architecture, the discipline that has been used by humans since the dawn of the first man made structure, similarly cannot be distilled into a single definition. Through different architectural styles and architectural philosophies, the discipline of architecture is as complex as Parkour and at the same time, it provides the beauty of human expression.
The History of Parkour
Parkour started out as a discipline that was done by a group of friends in Lisses, a district outside the city of Paris, France. This discipline was started by David Belle and other friends such as Sebastien Foucan and Stephane Vigroux.
Although it is the popular understanding of the start of Parkour, all traceurs and traceuses understand that Parkour is just a name for the natural movement that has been done since man has lived. Traceurs seek to improve this natural adaptation to environment and in the process, attempt to raise physical interaction to an all-encompassing philosophy and lifestyle.
Parkour’s origins start from David Belle’s father, Raymond Belle. Raymond, a former soldier for the French army and a former firefighter, was inspired by the discipline of méthode naturelle (natural method). The méthode naturelle combines several disciplines such as gymnastics, climbing, martial arts, running and other disciplines as well (Project Pilgrimage, 2008).
David Belle learned from his father because of his career. He applied what he learned from his father and adapted it to the environment that he lived in, Lisses. With the application of the méthode naturelle in the area, the discipline of Parkour gained a following through David Belle and his friends.
In 2002, Parkour’s popularity exploded through David Belle’s participation in a commercial for the BBC (British Broadcasting Channel). The video called “Rush Hour Le Parkour” provided the platform for Parkour to be exposed to millions of viewers in England. Because of the response of the public to the video, several documentaries in England such as Jump London (2003), Jump Britain and movies such as Banlieue 13 (District B13, aired 2004) provided the need for the public to be exposed to Parkour. Through the exposure in mainstream media, Parkour has gained the popularity that it has now.
It is being further developed in other countries as a philosophy, and not as a sport. Parkour espouses a mindset of playful calculation, something Filipinos could integrate with their fondness for the communal appreciation and interaction with the outdoors.
Basic Movements in Parkour
As Parkour is a distinct discipline, it has a certain set of techniques that practitioners call as movements.
Movements in Parkour are divided by the six basic techniques: running, jumping, landing, rolling, quadrupedal movement and vaults.
Running in Parkour is not different from basic running. Parkour uses the techniques in running in order to maximize the abilities of the Parkour in an open space environment (no obstacles).
In jumping, Parkour uses precisions (Saut de precision). Precisions are done through jumping by using vertical momentum in order to create maximum distance and to ease the landing. As the precisions help in landing, the landing in Parkour is done by landing using only the balls of the feet and the knees to soften the landing.
As Parkour is sometimes done in high places, the capability to master rolling is important. This becomes a safety measure when leaping from high places to lower level ground. Rolling utilizes the forward momentum of the jump by transferring the force into a diagonal movement of the body that starts at the arms which then goes to the shoulders and ends at the lower section of the back. The roll is done if the force of the landing is too much for the knees to handle.
The unique techniques in Parkour are the quadrupedal movements and the vaults.
Quadrapedal movement is the use of the four limbs of your body in order to move in an enclosed space such as a rail. It is also known as the cat balance since it resembles the movement of the cat.
Vaults are typically the use of the hands in order to overcome an obstacle.
Vaults have several techniques such as the monkey vault, kong, reverse vault, and others. It is similar to the vault in gymnastics since it based from it.
Parkour and the Senses
Parkour is a movement that relies greatly on the human senses. In understanding one’s environment, the traceur/traceuse uses the sense of sight and the sense of touch the most.
In the realm of the sense of sight, the eyes mostly define how the traceur’s/traceuse’s moves. The eyes play the largest role in Parkour since the movements are mostly based on the physical dimension of the obstacle.
With the sense of sight in mind, the height of the obstacle defines the move that will be used by the practitioner. A height that is low is not suitable for a vault. The use of a precision is encouraged. If the height of obstacle is five feet require, the use of vaults are now used.
Another aspect in sight is the shape of the obstacle. A flat surface will provide a number of vaults that will not be the same if the surface is round such as the rails. On flat surfaces, the use of techniques such as the monkey vault is easier to do. On round surface, the uses of the quadrupedal movement are usually more done and vaults are done in a different manner since the round surfaces encourages a longer grip on the surface. A wide surface will also affect the traceur’s/traceuse’s move and the thin surface as well. A wide obstacle of 2 feet or more requires the use of the kong vault, kash vault or even the dash vault. On a thin surface, the monkey vaults are more used and the quadrupedal movement.
It is quite hard to understand these concepts in Parkour in words. To understand these conditions, it requires a person to experience Parkour or to see it through videos and in real life. This further emphasizes the physicality of Parkour’s philosophy; it must be experienced and utilized to be fully appreciated.
Another sense that is used in Parkour is the sense of touch. The most evident use of touch is the type of surface. The discussion on the flat and round surface is highly influential to the move since the surface can dictate the amount of force and the balance that traceur’s/traceuse’s will use.
In using the touch, the traceur/traceuse gets to use the technique according to the traction of the surface. A rough surface is ideal for a traceur/traceuse since it provides more grip. Such as the case in wall runs. In doing wall runs, a slippery surface reduces the chance for a practitioner elevate. The difference between a painted wall and an unpainted wall creates a difference in elevation. The rougher surface of an unpainted wall will create a higher elevation. The best traction for an obstacle is the brick. It provides the best grip. Last but not the least, the use of a shoe with good traction is also needed in order to have higher elevation.
Parkour and Architectural Appreciation
The use of the techniques in Parkour are applied to the obstacles in the locations are not utilized by their basic function. Since Parkour is the overcoming of obstacles, the function of the man made structure is on another perspective, the structure becomes the traceur’s/traceuse’s playground. Because parkour is visually impressive, people think parkour is solely for traceurs, ignoring the fact that the philosophy behind parkour is imbued with the value of practice.
As Parkour is starting to become more popular in the general public, it is inevitable for Parkour to be practiced in popular and accessible locations. The locations that tracuers and traceuses use in order to practice their craft are defined by the availability of the obstacles and challenges of the place. This provides the application of form follows function in Parkour but it is not limited to the practitioners itself. Even though the architecture of the areas such as Luneta Park and Ateneo are not intended for Parkour, the design of these buildings provides a function for the practitioners to hone their craft due to the nature of adaptability of the discipline.
As a practitioner in Parkour sees the environment differently, it doesn’t confine the practitioner to view the location as a way to be overcome. Since the design of a certain location is created in a purpose that it has a certain function, the practitioner sees the value of the location and understands it deeper since he/she feels it in a more complex manner. Parkour is efficiency actualized, and the world turns into a playground – not an obstacle course, because everything is utilized so that it aids you in your short speedy journey. In parkour, nothing is an obstacle.
The beauty of the location is no longer confined to the aesthetic dimension of the structure. The communication of Parkour and its environments is unique. The tracuer/traceuse communicates in a metaphysical manner through the sense of touch. The reciprocal aspect of the nature of the moves in Parkour creates a closer and an in depth experience.
Although the communication of Parkour and Architecture is mostly experienced through the actual practice of Parkour, the visual material in Parkour also encourages Architectural Appreciation.
Through the viewing of Rush Hour Le Parkour, the composition of the video highlights not only David Belle but also the city as well. The beauty of the movement of David Belle in the video brings an essence of beauty and graces him and the environment as well. Parkour should be espoused in the Philippines as a method of appreciating the architecture, as well as a way to get from one point to another in the fastest way possible. It is a refreshing way of looking at Filipino architecture, as well as a new method of visiting and traversing the many landmarks our nation has to offer. Filipinos are fond of strolling in parks and in malls, and parkour injects a lively spirit into communal activities such as these.
Most urban activity in the Philippines consists of strolling around malls with family and friends, as well as visits to local parks like Luneta Park, the park in Quezon City Circle, or La Mesa Ecopark. Parkour harnesses this energy and turns every stroll into an adventure.
To sum it all up, Parkour provides an understanding of our environment that is quite different. The unusual exposure of environments along with the graceful movement of a traceur/traceuse provides a humanistic feel that brings out appreciation of architectural structures. Parkour also provides an understanding of Architecture that goes beyond the visual aspect. The tactile aspect of Parkour provides a glimpse of the environment that is not easily experienced and it is an enjoyable moment.
To finish this very long post, here is a video of one of our jams in Luneta Park.
http://www.facebook.com/video/?of=635543830#/video/video.php?v=68840933830&subj=635543830
If you want to know more about parkour, here is a video featuring me and my fellow traceurs from PKPH and PK Manila.
I don’t have the video upgrade so please bear with me.
