Chapter 15: Architecture

I) In this chapter, I learned that architecture has always been dependent on the interplay between man's environment and his technology. This chapter follows that "interplay", from the distant past to the present day. It gives many examples. Below are a just a few. The Egyptian pyramids are thought to have been built to honor Re (Ra), the Sun god. By the same token, the Mesopotamian ziggurat is thought to symbolize local foothills and mountains. Why? Because this was where "precious water" originated and where the gods dwelled. A lot of architectural forms are born as an attempt to address environmental challenges. For instance, The "slave houses", on the Mulberry Plantation in South Carolina, have a West African design. Why? Because the very steep roofs found there, allow warm air to rise above the living space and cooler air to be confined below. I really liked the Anasazi Cliff dwelling referred to as "Spruce Tree House". Not only did the cliffside caves provide security, they had a religious function. The "kivas", with the "sipapu hole", reminded the tribe of their creation myth. (It held that the tribe emerged from the bowels of "Mother Earth".) I found out, in the technology section, that the most basic challenge in architecture is finding effective ways of erecting "upright walls with a roof over the empty space they enclose." The two most basic ways to confront this challenge are as follows: 1) the "shell system" and 2) the"skeleton and skin system". Because a building's height is dependent on the structural materials ability to support weight, almost all of the technological advances in this area have resulted from two things. First, finding building materials with greater "tensile strength", and/or, second, finding improved ways to distribute that weight.
 The most basic method of redistributing weight, is the "load -bearing construction" methods of the Anasazi kivas, Egyptian pyramids, et cetera. Another solution, the "post-and-lintel" method  was used by the Greeks in constructing the "Lion's Gate" at Mycenae. I learned  that Greek temples had three distinctive architectural styles: 1) Doric, 2) Ionic, and 3) Corinthian. The "Temple of Hera" at Paestum is an excellent example of the first type. The "Erechtheion" is a famous example of the second type. The "Pantheon" is a wonderful example of the third type. The next major stride came in the development of Arches, Vaults, and Domes. The "Pont du Gard", a Roman aqueduct in France, contains numerous arches. The "Roman Coliseum", is an amphitheater constructed out of "barrel"and "groined vaults". In addition to these improved methods of distributing weight, the Romans found new materials. In this case, they discovered that mixing "volcanic aggregate" with concrete made a stronger building block. The Romans also developed the "dome", a fine example of which is again is present in the "Pantheon". "Romanesque" architecture was used in many later cathedrals, including St. Sernin's at Toulouse, France. How were  great heights reached by"Gothic"cathedrals like "Notre Dame"at Chartres, France? Our text reveals the answer, was due in no small measure, to the development of "pointed arches" and "flying buttresses". The "Eiffel Tower" was once the tallest man-made structure in the world. It gave birth to the "skeleton-and-skin system of building". It was made possible by the use of a new technique known as "lattice beam construction" and a new material called "cast iron". Another "skeleton-and-skin" method was "balloon" or "wood frame" construction. Along with mass produced nails and the "rigid truss", it became "the foundation of American domestic architecture". (For example, at  Leavittown.) It was versatile enough to accomodate a variety of styles". For instance, one of the most familiar being the "bungalow" style popularized by Gustav Stickley. The next major advance was, "Steel-and-Reinforced-Concrete" construction as exemplified by Louis Sullivan's "Bayard (Condict) Building" in New York. His "system or ornament" and belief in "form follows function", helped this building accomplish its lighting and ventilation functions without making it sterile in design. (Anyway, at the time it was erected.) He also helped mentor Frank Lloyd Wright, as "chief draftsman"of his firm. Wright's "Prairie House" concept of organic architecture, held the belief that houses should be "of" rather than just "on" the land. There is probably no finer example of the execution of this concept then the cantilevered construction of "Fallingwater". (The home he designed for the Kaufmann family in Pennsylvania.) This, as well as the so-called "skyscrapers", were made possible by steel-and-reinforced-concrete construction methods. Le Corbusier, was co-founder of the "International Style" of modern architecture. It is characterized by using "simple but austere geometric forms", like circles and rectangles, as can be seen in his "Villa Savoye". The other co-founder of this school was Mies van der Rohe. His "Farnsworth House", is so transparent (from all the glass used in its construction) that the inside and outside become virtually one! On the other hand, architects like Eero Saarinen have rejected simple geometric forms in favor of more complex curvilinear structures. One great example of which, was his "TWA Terminal" at JFK airport in New York. It literally looks like a bird in flight. Another architect, who turns to more complex geometric forms, is Santiago Colatrova. His "Turning Torso Residential Tower" in Sweden reminds me of a DNA double helix. Tom Wills-Wright's, "Burj Al-Arab" (in the Persian Gulf off Dubai) is reminiscent of a "wind-filled sail". However, my favorite in the entire chapter has to be the computer assisted design of Frank Gehry for the "Guggenheim Museum Bilbao" in Portugal. It's form, makes it look like it is melting under the Portuguese sun. Other worldly! Our text, then moves on to "Green Architecture". This type of architecture  is "in tune" with the environment. It trys to maximize adherence to the following principles: 1) "Smaller buildings", 2) "Compatability and integration" with the surrounding environment, 3) "Energy efficient and solar" friendly construction, and 4) Using "recyled, reusable, and sustainable materials" in construction. Piano's "Cultural Center" in New Caledonia and Cutler's "Bridge House" in Washington State are two of my favorite examples. Landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmstead, promoted the idea of "a residential community within commuting distance of the city"". That concept is now referred to as a "suburb".(Olmstead and Calvert Voux are responsible for the design of New York City's Central Park. A historic example of an "urban greenspace".) At any rate, Olmstead's idea led to the "rise" of the automobile and highway system and, inadvertently, to the "decline" of some urban centers. (The suburbs were one of the factors responsible for the urban decay of downtown Detroit.) On the other hand, in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center site, some wonderful architectural designs have been submitted to fill the void. My personal favorite, is Colatrova's PATH station idea. Finally, this chapter makes a point of how "the more things change, the more they stay the same." The text's example, compares Moshe Safdie's "Habitat" in Montreal, with the Native American "multi-story Pueblos" of Taos, New Mexico. Amazingly, the Pueblos  were built centuries earlier!  
II) Gaudi's, "Casa El Battlo" is a masterpiece of "modernist" architecture. Imposing from a distance, it is even more striking close up. It looks like a fairy tale castle but with hints of a dragon and its victims. For example, it has support columns that look like human bones. Plus it has balustrades, like skull fragments, that frame its many balconies. The roof sways like the back of a mythical dragon. That roof also has snake-like scales for shingles. The chimney, looks something like a monster's flaring nostrils. If I could only see one piece of architecture in Barcelona, then this mammoth work
would definitely be it. (Blog post concludes)