Atlantica - 01.06.2004, Blaðsíða 12

10 A T L A N T I C A
Say the word monster and all sorts of
images come to mind. Now, thanks to
an Oscar, alluring photos of the flat-out
gorgeous actress Charlize Theron pop
into my head.
I’m talking about her film Monster, in
which she portrays the serial killer
Aileen Wuornos as some sort of misun-
derstood hero we should all feel sorry
for.
Somebody get me a box of Kleenex.
Mine eyes are weeping.
The word monster is defined by Oxford
as an “imaginary creature that is typi-
cally large, ugly, and frightening”.
Charlize Theron? It’s amazing what two
months on the two-all-beef-patties-spe-
cial-sauce-lettuce-pickles-onions-on-a-
sesame-seed-bun diet can do to a per-
son’s appearance.
The word monster comes from the Old
French “monstre” which is derived
from the Latin “monstrum”, ‘portent or
monster’, deriving from “monere” – to
warn.
I guess the warning here is to future
actors who take on the rolls of serial
killers who are actually really good peo-
ple trapped inside the bodies of those
who had difficult childhoods. Try to
keep the sobbing in that Oscar speech
to a minimum. EW
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Funny Old Word: Monster
Surrey, that leafy suburban haven
just outside London, hides an
astonishing take on the family
home. The Butterfly House is a
refurbished house inspired by the
life cycle of the butterfly. An exper-
iment in zoomorphic design, the
house traces each change from the
larval stage, represented by the
walkway, to the chrysalis, captured
by the staircase and conservatory,
and finally the winged canopies –
the butterfly itself. The Butterfly
House is designed by Laurie Chetwood, an architect best known for redesigns of
the London Underground and bus stations, hotels and offices. The building, part
mechanical, part organic, has been growing, as if by itself, from a high bank over-
looking a bowl outside Godalming in Surrey for the past four years. It is at once
a work of art, a laboratory for architectural experimentation, a part-time family
home, a design studio and an attraction planted with lavender, hebe and bud-
dleia, for bright clouds of butterflies. Constructed of timber, Kevlar sails, steel,
copper and plastic ducts, two kilometres of bungee rope, over 100 metres of fibre-
optic cables and 50 interwoven carbon-fibre fishing rods, it comes as a delightful
shock. Inseparable from its garden, a tangle of natural and artificial roots, it’s hard
to tell where nature ends and architecture begins. Inside, chairs hang from the
ceilings, tables have folding wings and beds sway in webs of rope. Part dreamy,
part nightmarish, and definitely owing something to the imaginations of Lewis
Carroll and Franz Kafka. AMB
www.butterfly-house.co.uk
Organic Living
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