The need of mobility determines the apparition of new architecture programs. In this first part of the series dedicated to forms of architecture related to travelling, we talk about airports. Why cover this topic first? Because airports are obviously characterized by co-presence and because flight is the most advanced means of travelling.

Meinhard von Gerkan said that, from his experience, the planning process of an airport must follow three fundamental rules: ensuring a robust structure and, at the same time, ensuring individual variety, for the outline of a concept that can endure over the years and can sustain future development without creating a labyrinth of functions.

As curator of the Venice Bienale, Aaron Betsky has issued a warning regarding the state and meaning of contemporary architecture. Instead of buildings, he has shown the public installations, either challenging, agressive, interactive or subtle, to prove what should be obvious - "Architecture doesn't equal buildings" - but has become meaningless, in the context of the real estate boom of the last decade.

According to Betsky, "architecture is the way in which we think and talk of buildings, the way in which we represent and build them; (...) To put it in a more general way, architecture is a means of representing, modelling and offering critical alternatives to the man-made habitat".

Currently the President of the Romanian Order of Architects, Serban Sturdza graduated from the "Ion Mincu" Institute of Architecture in 1971, afterwards becoming a teacher at the Fine Arts and Architecture School in Timisoara. He is the author of numerous architectural projects, some at a large scale, others at a small scale. He was in charge of restoring patrimony buildings, as well as of projects of urban rehabilitation and safeguarding of traditional habitats and the characteristic social aspects.

"To me, the built space is nothing without the architectural aspect. Building and architecture are two completely different things. You can build without obtaining anything of significance and you can build important and useful things for the ones who will use that space. The architectural aspect of space is more than building, it is essential."