A brief synopsis of architectural history reveals that man, throughout time, had particular fascinations in interpreting, perceiving and manipulating the phenomenon termed space. Though all the fascinations were simultaneous,each period of history was dominated by a particular typology of form. Architecture, today, is the inheritor of these fascinations, and the designer, today, has the opportunity to "pick and choose" among these fascinations.
The five prime fascinations are :
Object to Object :
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In this particular spatial interpretation, man perceives space as dominated by the position and relationship of objects to one another and to the existing natural landscape. The shape, texture, color and proportion of the object is critical to this spatial concept. The void between the objects exists, but the fascination is within the realm of the object and not within the captured void.
Objects in space gather our attention and tend to serve as an organizer of the space around the object. Objects can be landmarks to entire communities. The church steeple or a domed structure can be an identifying object to a community. The closer we are to an object, the more clearly we understand the spatial territory the object defines. When one views two objects in close proximity, there exists a space between them. If an imaginary line is drawn adjacent to the objects, the void becomes more visually defined. Imagine two garden gate posts five feet apart, the void between the two posts is the threshold between two realms - the garden, the inside space and the outside space.
Multiple objects can be used to define a perimeter or precinct of space. The objects, we tend to see as markers, imply a boundary or edge between the area described by the markers and the territory outside. In ancient cities, towers or minarets can be seen as defining precincts within the town's walls.
The natural landscape is the horizontal, and the vertical is the complement, linking the earth to the sky. Historically, the horizontal is linked with the profane and the vertical with the sacred. Within the context of our nomadic ancestor's environment, the landscape or the horizontal plane would have dominated their view. A strong vertical element would have been special as it broke the horizon with its edge. In ancient times, nomadic tribes used stones to mark the burial places of the dead. These vertical elements marked a place, unique in spirit, in the never ending landscape.
Erosion:
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In this spatial interpretation, man is fascinated with the void, and the mannerism in which the void is sculptured by the manipulation of the planes enclosing the void. Using a simple example, imagine that space or the void is filled with the food substance called jello. The complexity of the configuration of the jello is directly determined by the complexity of the mold.
Another example of this particular fascination is by imagining yourself to be within the center of a giant mass of clay. As you erode the mass, one creates a space that is contained and reflects the shape of the eroding path.
The process of erosion and thus the fascination with the sculpturing of space led to certain structural innovations, namely the vault and the dome.
One distinction between the first spatial concept, object to object, and the second spatial concept, erosion, is within the realm of thinking and doing. The first concept is a result of the process of additive thinking, the second is a result of subtractive thinking.
Transition:
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In this spatial fascination or interpretation, man is fascinated with the "in-between realm" of the void outside and the captured void within the volume created. It is a fascination with edge-making or a fascination with facade making, as it manipulates the outside realm and the sensation of experiences one perceives as one moves from the outside to the inside and the reverse, from the inside to the outside realm.
Imagine that you are walking along the beach on the ocean's edge. As you walk, your feet will become wet sometimes and other times they will be dry - you are neither in the water or completely on land - in a moment of transition - the "in-between realm"
Emanating:
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In this particular concept, man is fascinated by the idea that an object, due to its own dynamics, can charge the space surrounding it, with tension. The tension experienced is the spatial experience. Imagine two people in an argument. The void or the space between the two people is charged with their anger. If you stand between the two arguing persons, you feel contained within the space, even though no succinct edges exist. You are captured in the space.
Emanating, as a concept can be achieved by manipulating geometry, texture, color and proportion through the mechanism of distortion, illusion and exaggeration.
Time:
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In this particular concept, man is fascinated with the idea that time is potentially a device which can change the way we perceive the void or the space, and the objects positioned within the space. Time perception is achieved by manipulating orientation, light and the movement of man within the space. We can also move the object within the space and this changes our perception of it. Movement systems will be discussed later.
Another concept that emerges from a brief synopsis of architectural history lies within the realm of the creation of architectural history. The concept is termed, evoked perception, in which any concept or idea is transformed through individual interpretation and distortion, and through this distortion emerges from the mind as a new concept and idea.
Potentially, all architectural history is then a distortion and re-interpretation of the above five fascinations.
The five principles and the concept evoked perception had a tremendous impact on the form of cities.
Forward Course Content related questions & commentsto: Brigitte Knowles