Diagrammatic Transformation of Architecture - Research Paper Example

? Diagrammatic Transformation of Architecture Diagrammatic Transformation of Architecture In regard to icist architecture, the classical period is considered as a period of discovery, learning as well as improving. This paper provides a comprehensive discussion of the diagrammatic transformation of architecture. The diagram is set as a convention of architecture and a discussion is provided of how this convention diagram has been understood in Classicist architecture. The paper also provides an explanation of the tradition of architecture’s orientation to the convention of the diagram. A detailed description of how this idea diagram has been critiqued through a manifestation in contemporary projects is provided. Finally, the paper provides theory analysis to stake a new position in the contemporary architecture field. A diagram is simply an illustrative figure that offers a general scheme or an outline of an object, devoid of representing the precise appearance of it, in order to show the shape and the relations of the different parts of the object. It is a technique utilized to help illustrate what people are thinking in their heads (Reynolds 11). Ever since the 1980s, the convention diagram has been the favored method for theorizing, communicating, making and researching architectural designs, projects and ideas. Therefore, the rise of diagrams, in preference to the model or drawing was a major novel development in the process of design in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Classical architecture is simply the architecture of ancient Rome and the architecture of ancient Greece, as well as the architectural style(s) influenced by those; it is the architecture of classical antiquity. Classicism in architecture stresses on geometry, proportion, symmetry as well as the regularity of parts as they are illustrated in the architecture of Ancient Greece and Rome. Many outstanding architecture practices whose design methods are based broadly on diagrams produced architectural outcomes that related to the physical context of the surroundings. Figure 1: classicist architecture It is of note that the convention diagram was employed in dissimilar ways in the three orders, or architectural styles of the classical period: Doric, Ionic and Corinthian as illustrated in the figure above (Davidson & Lynn 74). Figure 2: Diagram of the Parthenon The diagram of the Parthenon above illustrates how the way the Parthenon Frieze, in blue, ran around the architrave on the inner rows of the columns. It is of note that the frieze was a sequence of, bas relief stone picture carvings that show dissimilar people partaking in the Panathenaic Festival Procession. In regards to the tradition of classicist architecture’s orientation to the convention of diagram, various classical personalities such as Vitruvius, Philibert de I'Orme and Leonardo Da Vinci. Figure 3: Ampiprostyle temple and diagram of winds The figure above shows Amphiprostyle Temple. On the right is diagram of winds. Philibertde I’Orme: Architecture Rouen 1648. The diagram of winds figure resembles that in Vitruvius for perfect city plans, as well as the illustrious renaissance scheme of man as a measure of things by Leonardo da Vinci. It illustrates an obsession with the centralized plan. Figure 4: Vitruvius diagram of the winds Vitruvius who flourished during the late first century BCE describes 8 principal winds, although he noted that there are many other winds, though somehow dissimilar from the major 8 winds. He relates a list of 2 variations on either side of the 8 principal compass yielding up a wind rose comprising 24 winds. The winds are easy to draw since they are spaced equally at 15° from one another. Other than wind direction, Vitruvius also used diagram to show town planning expressing his ideas of ideal city. Other than Vitruvius, Leonardo da Vinci also flourished as far as classicism architecture is concerned. Figure 5: Vitruvian Man by Leonardo da Vinci, 1490 Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man is a depiction of a male figure in 2 positions that are superimposed, with legs and arms apart and simultaneously inscribed in a square as well as a circle. The Vitruvian Man consists of several levels of meaning in it and exemplifies themes of symmetrical proportions, humanism, the association to architecture among other philosophical perspectives important in the renaissance culture. Leonardo da Vinci’s inspiration for creating Vitruvian Man came from the rediscovery of a classical piece of literature on architecture created Marcus Vitruvius, a Roman architect. It is noteworthy that Vitruvius wrote a compilation of books titled De Architectura. In book 3 of this compilation, the association between architectural shape and man was introduced. The figure shows a human figure with a singular head and core. The feet and arms are in 2 fully outward extensions and overlap each other. One position of man is similar to a spiritual cross with legs straightened downward and arms extended outward at a right angle from the chest. The other position makes appears as though the man is in a cartwheel that is fully extended, with legs spread outward and previously extended arms raised upwards. The fingertips touch the inside of every side in a circle and square that encompass the body (McCarthy 54). The facet which allows the geometric shapes to fit completely and in a perfect manner in the perimeter of the human body is found in the center points of both the shapes and the body. In the Vitruvian Man, Leonardo was exploring the principles of form, function and beauty, and how they are applicable to design. Proportions of every aspect of an architectural building have to be in correlation with each other. The functional language of architecture is used to a great extent in creating quality buildings. Nonetheless, da Vinci expanded more on the concept of proportions influence in contructing beauty. Leonardo held that everything has a connection to mathematical proportions which go further than architecture (Eisenman 76). A shown in the figure, man fits in both a square and a circle; da Vinci utilized this in order to reinforce the concept that there is a natural symmetry to man and that both harmony and symmetry need to be used in architectural buildings. To Vitruvius, the square and the circle, being perfect forms, are perfectly suited to temple buildings. The square, with its equilateral sides and solid base, stand rigid and cannot be moved; it is a representation of stasis. Conversely, the circle is created by the continuous motion of a single point around a still midpoint; by analogy, it stands for never-ending action. Other than Vitruvius and da Vinci, other architects in the classical era also maintained that man is the measure of everything as shown in figure 6 below. Moreover, Amphiprostyle Temple plans could also be viewed or read diagram from the classical era. Figure 6: Architectural diagrams by Francesco di Giorgio Figure 7: Amphiprostyle Temple plans Amphiprostyle Temple plans comprised a set of columns or prostyle at every end; it featured no column along the sides as depicted in the figure above. Vitruvius makes mention of circle as for the form of town, whereas Scamozzi mentions a dodecagon and Alberti mentions an octagon, hexagon or a circle; all these shapes serve to provide a street layout as well as a strong centricity. With regards to street planning, Vitruvius suggests radial pattern, Scamozzi recommends a grid pattern, whereas Alberti mentions a street pattern with gentle curve. They all place the issue of street as the major concept of physical planning of town space (Hatton 22). For the plaza, Scamozzi and Vitruvius suggest the central placement and they all recognize the centripetal force of town core. With regards to the town facilities, Scammozzi illustrates more practical concepts in its town image while Alberti suggests more diversity. Consequently, the principles of town planning during the classical period offer the concepts of plaza arrangement as a core. It is of note that its centricity, association of the outside and inside a town, homogeneousness of block and street arrangement as well as diversity of town space that are rational and functional, are common to the contemporary town planning main concepts. Those concepts regarding town planning are measures of recognizing the continuity of classicism architecture and the contemporary concepts of town planning (Reynolds 97). In classicism architecture, the geometry of human proportion was the foundation of architectural proportion. The perfect architectural building was a reflection of the geometry of the perfect man. This is one reason as to why contemporary architects feel comfortable in architecture whose basis is classical principles; every part of the whole correlates to our proportions despite the size. The diagrams of Amphiprostyle Temple plans are utilized in contemporary architecture in building temples. Contemporary architects employ such plans by placing columns at the 2 ends but do not place on the sides, just as it appears in some temples in Greece (Tate 41). The convention or idea diagram has been critiqued in different ways through a manifestation in contemporary projects. It is of note that today, diagram is employed by architects across the globe as a design tool; an innovative design tool. A diagram is also considered as an architecture. It is not a simplification, a scheme or a preparatory drawing that is to be deciphered in a particular discipline or into a language; it is directly a form, space as well as the material of construction. It is a direct voice devoid of language. An architectural diagram as manifested in contemporary projects comprises symbols and is about ideas. It is propositional and abstract, implying that its spatial relations as well as elements could be expressed as a set of statements. A diagram describes, explores clarifies or demonstrates correlations amongst various parts of a whole or it shows the way something works. The symbols of an architectural diagram in contemporary projects might represent objects such as a piece of furniture or a space; or concepts such as accessibility, a buffer zone or a service are (Hatton 69). In addition, a diagram in contemporary projects leaves out realistic graphic representations or comprehensive scale; it only illustrates spatial correlations approximately with the use of indefinite shapes. It is also of note that diagram is a pictorial depiction of the evolution of phenomena; it comprises a form, a structure as well as lines and it works by illustration, abstraction and education. The architectural diagram in contemporary projects, as a medium, has 2 function: first, it is a model for thinking, synthesizing as well as productive that engenders; and secondly, it is a form of notation, reflexive and analytical that sums up. There are several classifications of architectural diagrams in contemporary projects: these include spatial diagrams; chronological/chronographical/chronometrical diagrams; sequence/serial diagrams; structural diagrams; and flow diagrams (Davidson & Lynn 92). The change with regards to the idea of diagram between the classical era and contemporary times is primarily because of the evolution of the concept of architecture through time. The way architects view architecture in modern times is dissimilar from how architects of the classical period viewed architecture. In contemporary projects, the inside of architecture is generated by the internal forms or shapes while the outside of architecture, the projects are typically governed by external forces including scientific processes and site. Moreover, diagram-based approach to design is employed wherein structures and sites could be manipulated in a diagram form (Eisenman 72). Some references of the contemporary sensibility include Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander and other authors. A pattern language comprises the structure of a network. When patterns are taken collectively, they start to form a type of language; every pattern forms a thought or word of a true language instead of being a prescriptive way of soling or designing a problem (Alexander et al. 21). An important value is that the system of architecture comprises only of timeless patterns which have been tried and test in the real world and reviewed by many architects for both their practicality as well as beauty. Figure 8: Theo van Doesburg and Cornelis van Eesteren perspective Dutch architects Theo van Doesburg and Cornelis van Eesteren conceived of a house as not a cube enclosed in on itself, but they saw a house as an open space which encompasses both outside and in; painting was not restricted as a decoration, but provided a dynamic impetus to the space as depicted in figure 8 above. According to van Doesburg, man does not dwell within the construction, rather, man lives within the atmosphere that the surfaces generate (Tate 13). They stressed more on primary colors. Le Corbuiser in his architectural sketches illustrated domestic architecture. Parts of the house are all joined together by a spatial continuum, whilst the open space created by the pilotis and the roof which is flat serve to increase the otherwise small available area. The five points are perfectly shown by Le Corbusier’s domestic architecture as illustrated in figure 9 below. Figure 9: Le Corbuiser Comparative sketches to show the advantages of the Five Point. Figure 10: OMA-YOKOHAMA PROJECT – 1992 (Hatton 16) The Oma-Yokohama project of 1992 peak hours and assemblage of programmes diagram Figure 11: Jencks’ theory of evolution (Jenck’s 2011) Jencks (23) stated that certain facets of the previous century were creative forces which lasted for long periods. At the beginning of the 21st century, Jencks gave a provocative, perceptive and personal summary of the architecture of the 20th century as depicted in figure 11 above. It is of note that the best architects often influence and lead the profession and good architecture trickles down (Jencks 27). The theory analysis to stake a new position in the contemporary architecture field is digitized effect. It is notable that computer technology provides another aspect to the convention diagram. Computer technology offers an accurate and quicker device to draw, for instance adobe illustrator and AutoCAD. With adobe illustrator, the architect draws and modifies paths with the use of a set of drawing techniques and tools common to Adobe illustrator, Adobe Photoshop as well as Adobe inDesign. AutoCAD is an imperative utility for drawing, editing, printing and saving architectural drawings. Works cited Alexander, Christopher., Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein, Max Jacobson, Ingrid Fiksdahl-King & Shlomo Angel. A Pattern Language: Towns, Building, Construction. Berkeley, CA: Springer Publishers. 1977, Print. Davidson, Cynthia & Greg Lynn. Tracing Eisenman: Complete Works. Boston, MA: AMACOM. 2003, Print. Eisenman, Peter. Diagram Diaries. New York City, NY: Universe Publishing. 1999, Print. Hatton, Chaz. Architectural Review. Tokyo, Japan: Springer Publishers. 2003, Print. Jencks, Charles. 2000 July: Jencks’ Theory of Evolution, an Overview of 20th Century Architecture. The Architectural Review. 2011, Web. McCarthy, Brian. Architectures and Diagrams. Cleveland, OH: Penguin Publishers. 2008, Print. Reynolds, Peter. The Dot. 2012, Austin, TX: Prentice Hall. Print. Tate. Van Doesburg and the International Avant-Garde, 2001, Web. Read More