Introduction to Architecture: Object, Space, Building, City PDF

1 Introduction: Object, Space, Building, City Portion of Giambattista Nolli’s map of Rome, 1736–1748 Pantheon, Rome, 126 CE The mother art is architecture....

1 Introduction: Object, Space, Building, City Portion of Giambattista Nolli’s map of Rome, 1736–1748 Pantheon, Rome, 126 CE The mother art is architecture. Without an architecture of our own we have no soul of our own civilization. — Frank Lloyd Wright  What Is Architecture? Architecture is a very complex discipline. Most people live their lives in constant contact with architecture. It provides a place to dwell, work, and play. With so much responsibility for determining our experiences, and with such a variety of uses, architecture has too many forms to be precisely categorized. One house is used essentially the same way as any other, but how many different sizes, shapes, or configurations are possible for a house? There is no single correct formula for determining the perfect layout of a house, or any other type of building. At the same time as architecture is indefinite, it also has a responsibility to facilitate specific functions. Houses may come in various forms and densities Because of the diverse forms architecture can take and the need for it to function in specific ways, it should be considered both an art and a science. It is an artistic discipline that seeks to invent through design. It is also a technical profession that relies on specific techniques of building construction. Artistic Discipline and Technical Profession Architects can use almost any techniques for drawing or making models to develop their ideas. However, they must document and communicate those ideas using a universally understood graphic language. Capital complex of Bangladesh, Dacca, 1962, Louis Kahn 2 / INTR O D U C T I O N  Creative Process and Construction Method Architects go through many versions of an idea to perfect it. They experiment with different materials and modes of representing their ideas in order to develop them. However, all of the ideas that are layered into the design of a building must be realized using conventional methods of building construction. As the idea develops, it must remain something that is possible to build. The development of an idea through a series of sketches leading to a construction drawing of the finished idea Intuitive and Academic Many of the architect’s ideas occur spontaneously, or through the act of making a drawing or model. Many also come from study and research and the accumulation of knowledge over time. The Ancient Greeks called these two sides of architecture episteme and techne. Episteme is the pursuit of knowledge. Techne is a craft or artistic pursuit. To understand architecture one must realize that these two notions are intertwined and are often overlapped in ways that make them interchangeable. Episteme Techne The two parts of architecture are realized through what architects refer to as “the design process.” The design process is the series of steps that are taken to develop a building from initial idea through the final proposal. While designing, architects must continually move back and forth between the creative act of architecture and the technical understanding of how a building is built. OBJECT, SPACE, BUILDING, CITY / 3  Episteme Architectural episteme lies in the inquiry that is intrinsic to the design process. In the design process many questions are asked. Those questions define the problem that a design is meant to solve. To answer these questions, the architect must rely on a body of knowledge to inform design decisions. In designing a building, the architect tries many different versions of an idea in order to test and refine it. Through this process, new ideas can be generated as discoveries are made—many of which are unexpected but can still be traced to a fundamental knowledge of architecture and its contributing disciplines. The following are aspects of architecture that refer to a pursuit of knowledge. S. Maria Novella, Florence, Italy History Leon Battista Alberti designed the Renaissance facade Theory (1456–1470) to complete a Gothic church (1278–1350). Human behavior Human perception Intimate zone Personal space Social zone The visual data received by the eye is processed, manipulated, and filtered by the mind in an active search for structure and meaning. 4 / INTR O D U C T I O N  Techne Architectural techne lies in the craft of building and the application of technique in design. It is the art and craft of building. In the design process, discoveries are made through the act of making. The architect must know how to draw and represent an idea before he or she can see if it adequately solves the design problem. Different techniques for representing an idea can allow the architect to investigate it in a variety of ways and better understand how it works. Additionally, an understanding of construction techniques and technologies can yield a more feasible building at the end of this process. The following are elements of architecture that refer craft or technique: Construction methods Material attributes Alternatives for Building technology structural elements and Representation and communication (through drawing or model) construction assembly Grain direction is the major determining factor in the way it is used as a structural material. Mechanical and electrical systems maintain necessary conditions of comfort, health, and safety for the occupants of a building. Design Thinking Taken together, these qualities of architecture inform design thinking. They define the way an architect generates ideas for a building. They also provide the architect with the tools necessary for design in a more general sense of the word. The priority of architecture is habitation—a design of the way people will occupy and use an environment. This has a broad range of applications that demand that the architect design at a variety of scales—from the size of a doorknob to that of a city block. OBJECT, SPACE, BUILDING, CITY / 5  The Scale of Design The domain of architecture is not just buildings. The architectural design process is one that translates to a variety of scales and is applicable to the design of objects, spaces, and even cities. Of course, the primary role of the architect lies in designing buildings, but there are many aspects of a building that require the architect to design at both smaller and larger scales. Architecture is a discipline of design, and the following are other facets of architectural design. Designing Objects Building design ranges from considerations of site down to the detail. Examples of suspended light fixtures Building details are designed toward specific functions of space. They also require the skills necessary to design as a very small scale. In addition to the detail, the architect can apply these skills toward the design of objects. Those objects might be directly related to building Print by Joan Miró design, such as an ornament or a door handle. They might also be isolated projects that tap the skill sets possessed by an architect. Furniture design requires the architect’s design sensibility and knowledge of ergonomics. Lighting design requires an architect’s understanding of the behavior of light and desire to create a particular experience with light. Sculpture and painting are often pursued by architects because of the similarity of compositional principles and crafting technique. Chairs by Arne Jacobsen and Alvar Aalto Designing Spaces One of the fundamental qualities of architecture is space. The architect is not just required to design a building but to configure the spaces within that building so that they can be used for a specific function. Designing spaces requires the architect’s understanding of proportion, organization, light, and material. A room requires an architect’s understanding of design to be configured for a specific function. An outdoor space requires an architect’s understanding of composition to define its edges without fully enclosing it. Buildings are experiential constructs. Experience is dependent on the configuration of spaces to inform the way it is perceived. This requires the architect’s understanding of material, proportion, color, texture, Living room, Villa Mairea, Noormarkku, Finland, 1938–1939, Alvar Aalto and the way environments are sensed. 6 / INTR O D U C T I O N  Designing Buildings The first understanding of the role of the architect is at the scale of building. Buildings have specific purposes and must be organized to fulfill those purposes. The architect also has the obligation to configure spaces within the building and to position the building within its surroundings. Both of these influence the success of the building in fulfilling its designed purpose. Fallingwater (Kaufmann House), Bear Run, Pennsylvania, 1936– The architect positions a building on its site to define relationships 1937, Frank Lloyd Wright with the buildings around it. The architect configures a building for a specific function. The architect distributes spaces within the building to adequately support its function. OBJECT, SPACE, BUILDING, CITY / 7  Designing Cities Cities share many of a building’s characteristics. They are spatial constructs, experiential environments, and designed with specific functions in mind. These similarities place the architect in an ideal position to influence the design, growth, and development of urban environments. Architects are also responsible for the buildings that compose a city, and through their design they can affect the urban environment directly. The design of space is the specialty of architects and is applied at the scale of cities for the development of public space and streetscapes. Buildings compose a city, placing architects in a position to define the development of the city. The zoning of a city determines the relationship between its various functions, requiring an architect to understand programmatic relationships. Plan of seventeenth-century Paris Walter Burley Griffin’s plan for Canberra, Australia, 1912 8 / INTR O D U C T I O N  Allied Disciplines Architecture is a very old and multifaceted discipline. It touches on many subjects that influence the way we live. Architecture is a fine art. It shares many of the same compositional principles that are applied to painting, sculpture, music, and literature. Through those principles of design and composition, it is allied with the other artistic disciplines. It is also responsible for creating products that work to facilitate the way we live. This aligns architecture with other design disciplines such as interior design, urban design, and industrial design. With their emphasis on inhabitable environments, interior design and urban design are historically rooted in architecture. Architecture is also a construction-based science that employs a Project for the capital complex of Islamabad, Pakistan, 1965, Louis Kahn knowledge of form and material to realize buildings and predict how they will act under stress. This allies architecture with the various construction industries and physical sciences. It also employs knowledge of human behavior, perception, and culture to create spaces that support the way of life of those who inhabit it. This allies architecture with the social sciences. Architects must have a general understanding of these allied disciplines even if they are not experts. This knowledge plays a crucial role in determining the success of a building. It enables the architect to make functional, humane designs that positively affect our ways of life. Interior design Structure and materials Human factors OBJECT, SPACE, BUILDING, CITY / 9  The Anatomy of This Text This text is intended to provide a brief overview of the issues and practices of architecture. It is a very old, complex, and diverse discipline, and the subject matter of this book presents only its most basic aspects. The format of this book follows the distinction between episteme and techne as described previously. The first chapters of the book are dedicated to the histories and theories of architecture as well as design elements and process. The second portion of the text is dedicated to the technical aspects of the contemporary profession of architecture. Even within these subsets, however, one can see the interrelationship between the knowledge and craft of building. It is not possible to divide the two facets of architecture. In the first portions of the text, which detail design concepts and process, it is not possible to remove the aspects of craft and knowledge upon which those concepts are built. Similarly, in the later chapters, which detail technical aspects of the profession, it is not possible to completely remove the artistic desire from the act of construction. For that reason, one can understand the book’s structure as a division between design thinking and design execution, knowing that neither is ever isolated from its artistic or academic foundations. The chapters that detail architectural design thinking are: Origins of Architecture—Chapter 2 addresses the ancient history of architecture. It looks at the formation of the discipline and the factors that motivated its early development. Rather than providing a specific history, this chapter focuses on the events that surrounded and motivated the earliest developmental stages of architecture. A Concise History of Architecture—Chapter 3 addresses the history of architecture from the Renaissance to the contemporary period. It also focuses on the different global events that shaped the profession as opposed to supplying a detailed historical accounting. 10 / IN T R O D U C T I O N  Fundamentals of Architecture: Form—Chapter 4 discusses form as one of the fundamental design considerations of architecture. It is the physical nature of architecture. This chapter details the ways in which it is understood and used in the design process. It also looks forward to the way formal thinking prefigures an understanding of material, construction, and other acts of making. Fundamentals of Architecture: Space—Chapter 5 discusses space as one of the fundamental design considerations of architecture. It is the experiential and habitable nature of architecture. This chapter details the ways in which space can be understood and used in the design process. It also looks forward to the way spatial composition prefigures issues of programming and experience. Fundamentals of Architecture: Order—Chapter 6 discusses order as one of the fundamental design considerations of architecture. It is the organizational nature of architecture. This chapter details ways in which organization and ordering can be used in the design process. It also looks forward to the way arrangement and composition of architectural elements prefigures programmatic relationships and spatial sequencing. Elements of Architecture—Chapter 7 discusses the elements that comprise architecture. It looks at the anatomy of a building and different ways in which different elements can be combined to spur innovation as a part of the design process. The Design Process—Chapter 8 discusses the design process as the primary means by which an architect generates design ideas about a project. It looks at considerations of the design process; it also addresses the iterative and heuristic nature of design. This chapter discusses in more detail the various representation techniques and drawing types that can be applied throughout the design process. OBJECT, SPACE, BUILDING, CITY / 11  The chapters that detail architectural design execution are: Materials of Architecture—Chapter 9 discusses the use of material in architecture. It details material as a means of affecting the perceptions of space. It also addresses the behavior of material as it is used in construction and influenced by a variety of factors that affect a building as it ages. Methods of Construction—Chapter 10 details various methods of construction and the ways in which these techniques might influence design decisions. It addresses the advantages and disadvantages of common construction types. Building Structure—Chapter 11 discusses the structural considerations of building design and construction. It addresses the forces and loads that affect buildings and architectural elements. It also addresses the behavior of common structural systems for buildings. Building Systems—Chapter 12 discusses building mechanical systems. These systems enable a building to function appropriately by providing electrical service, plumbing, and mechanical control over temperature, ventilation, and other factors that influence the interior environment. Architectural Practice and Communication—Chapter 13 discusses the profession of architecture and the role of the architect in the realization of a building. It provides an overview of legal responsibility and techniques for organizing and communicating with the various members of a design team. Allied Disciplines: Interior Design—Chapter 14 discusses interior design as an allied discipline to architecture. It addresses the priorities of interior design and the way they relate or overlap with those of architecture. Allied Disciplines: Urbanism—Chapter 15 discusses urban design and urban planning as allied disciplines to architecture. It addresses characteristics of the city. It discusses the priorities of urban planners and the way they relate or overlap with those of architecture. It also discusses the influence the architect has over the development of a city and the role one might play in defining strategies for its advancement. 12 / IN T R O D U C T I O N