UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI
Date:______
I, ______, hereby submit this work as part of the requirements for the degree of: in:
It is entitled:
This work and its defense approved by:
Chair: ______
Syntactic and Semantic Role of Ornament in Architecture
A thesis submitted to the Division of Research and Advanced Studies of the University of Cincinnati In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE In the school of Architecture and Interior Design of the College of Design, Art, Architecture and Planning (DAAP)
2007
By
Haritha Bothireddy B. Arch, Anna University,India, 2004
Committee chairs: George Thomas Bible, Aarati Kanekar, Nnamdi Elleh ABSTRACT
This investigation on the shift in the role of ornament as a semantic and syntactic element in architectural practices focuses mainly on the design processes of renowned architects Carlo Scarpa and Peter Eisenman. By critically analyzing the works of these two architects based on their treatment of ornament in the Brion Cemetery and Aronoff Center for Art and Design respectively, this dissertation will aim at gradually defining the function of ornament based on the notion of ‘Re- membering’ and the importance of memory in representing architectural elements metaphorically.
Exploration of the design processes of the two architects will be developed on a site located at the intersection of Gilbert and William Taft Avenue in Cincinnati, Ohio in which only a fragment of the demolished First Presbyterian church of Walnut Hills remains. Two continuous sites located in front of the church bell tower will be taken for the purposes of this study. Due to the church’s historical ties with the Lane Seminary, Underground Railroad and Harriet Beecher Stowe, a design of a park with follies will be developed in the first site that acts as a transition space linking the design of an auditorium building with a library located in the second site. The design will attempt to compare the methods used by Scarpa and Eisenman for creating form and ornament, as well as explore the relation of ornament to remembering.
i
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART I: Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………1
Ornament and its function…………………………………………………………………4
Ornament and Semiotics……………………………………………………………………8
Re-membering- Memory and Reassemblage……………………………………..17
Ornament and Grammar…………………………………………………………………..22
PART II: Peter Eisenman and Aronoff Center………………………………………………….29
Henry N. Cobb’s “A Note on the Criminology of Ornamentation: From Sullivan to Eisenman” …………………………………………………………….33
Laugier’s interpretation of the classical system…………………………………35
iii PART III: Narrative language of Carlo Scarpa…………………………………………………..41
Vittorio Gregotti’s Exercise of Detailing……………………………………………..41
Marco Frascari’s The Tell- the- Tale…………………………………………………..42
Brion Cemetery………………………………………………………………………………..45
PART IV: Site Study………………………………….…………………………………………………….54
Design program and program for ornamentation……………………..………...57
Design Process…………………………………………………………………………………62
PART V: Reflection…………………………………………………………………………………………68
Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………………..72
iv PART I: INTRODUCTION
Ornament traditionally represented the historical and cultural values of society in a given time period. Ornament has been a method of architectural communication organized through a narrative process developed by the use of tropes in order to provide an identity to a building and the society. The use of motifs, entablatures, pediments and other elements in classical architecture depict the use of ornament in a small scale compared to the overall form of the building. Hence, ornament could be considered as ‘form’ in a small scale and the building as a whole was the larger form from which ornament was generated. This means that ornament came after the structure was built and hence played the function of surface application or decoration. The irony in this discussion is that classical ornamentation was also ingrained with the structure of the building as seen in Doric,
Ionic and Corinthian columns. These ideas will be discussed based on George Hersey’s theory relating to classical Greek architecture.
In modern architecture, buildings were not devoid of ornament but progressed from being an additive element on a facade to an element inherent with the structure. Ornament played a different role during modernism when the works of Venetian architect Carlo Scarpa came to light. He provided interesting metaphors and analogies through the detail of joints and also by the use of montage of materials to relate heterogeneous elements in a building. Scarpa treated the joint as a tectonic condensation; a way of joining the part to the whole. The details that Scarpa delivers were mainly
1 influenced by the cultural and historical context of a place, which was Venice in his case. The use of details as a metaphorical representation for communicating architecture can be seen in all his projects such as the Olivetti showroom where he placed a dark marble container filled up to the brim with water and a metal sculpture in the middle. This drew a metaphor that gave the idea of tension of overflow representing the threat Venice faced by natural forces of flooding. In the architecture of
Scarpa, ornamentation arises not only based on the need for details but also to capture certain views of the landscape especially seen in the Brion Cemetery design.
The role of ornament extended from being a small scale element on a façade to a tectonic expression and then into a series of metaphors for representing stories of the city and building. It could be said that ornament played the role of a generative component that produced form. As of today, this generative component of ornament has become an explicit tool for the design process as seen in the Aronoff Center for Art and Design by Peter Eisenman which is an addition to the existing
Alms and Wolfson building in the University of Cincinnati campus. This explicit nature establishes creative design rules through geometry in order to externalize the design process. Based on these ideas, the thesis will focus on three important aspects. Firstly, the potential sources of ornament in architectural history will be identified. Secondly, the various functions of ornament through history will be understood by applying the concepts of semantics and syntax. Thirdly, the role of ornament in the realm of ‘Re-membering’ will be developed to bolster the argument for the unique need of ornamentation in architecture for the twenty first century. These theories will be further emphasized
2 by attempting to provide a definition for ornament and what could be unveiled from the design processes of the Aronoff Center and the Brion Cemetery. A specific process for the purpose of this dissertation will come to light based on these interpretations.
3 ORNAMENT AND ITS FUNCTION
In order to understand ornament in architectural practice, it is necessary
• To provide definitions from history of architecture
• To understand its role and necessity and
• To interpret its function based on its relation to the structure of a building.
To define ornament is as difficult as defining the profession of architecture due to its multifaceted nature. Nevertheless, some definitions from history of architecture by renowned scholars such as Vitruvius, Leon Battista Alberti, John Ruskin and Henri Focillon will be considered for the purpose of this study. At the most basic level, let us consider a definition from the Oxford dictionary which states that ornament is “an accessory, article, or detail used to beautify the appearance of something to which it is added or of which it is a part.” This is one of the weakest assumptions because ornament has always been related to an additive element and never integrated into the structure of the building and also the fact that its sole function is to provide beauty. A better definition for ornament comes from the Dictionary of Architecture & Construction which states that “in architecture, every detail of shape, texture, and color is deliberately exploited or
4 added to attract an observer.”1 We can give credit for the fact that ornament here relates to detailing which is then exploited to create ornament.
Alberti always placed beauty on a higher pedestal than ornament. For Alberti beauty is “that reasoned harmony of all the parts within a body, so that nothing may be added, taken away, or altered, but for the worse….. ornament may be defined as a form of auxiliary light and complement to beauty. From this it follows, I believe, that beauty is some inherent property, to be found suffused through all the body of that which may be called beautiful; whereas ornament, rather than being inherent, has the character of something attached or additional.” 2 Joseph Rykwert clarifies the difference between beauty and ornament by stating that “beauty is the overall intellectual and primary framework - the essential idea- while ornament is the phenomenon- the individual expression and embellishment of this frame.”3
There have been several definitions for ornament although most of them are tainted by the use of the term ‘added.’ Several misconceptions of understanding ornament exist even in the present architectural practice. Some relate ornament to excessiveness, artificiality, superfluity, triviality and economic waste while others who enjoy ornament almost always relate it to a series of figurative elements frozen in time. Ornament is considered as a layer of embellishment to beautify a
1 Harris, Cyril M., Dictionary of Architecture and Construction, McGraw- Hill, Inc, 1975
2 Alberti, Leon Battista, “On the Art of Building in Ten Books, Book Six,” Sources of Modern Architectural Theory, University of Cincinnati Course Pack, 2006, 156
3 Rykwert , Joseph, On the Art of Building in Ten books, The MIT Press, 1991
5 building or that which has no relation to the function of a building. The most important aspect of ornament is that which carries inherent meanings and thus plays a syntactic and semantic role in architecture which will be discussed in the subsequent chapter.
Ornament has taken many roles in architecture such as a figurative element in classical architecture, decorative factor in the Art Nouveau movement and as a tectonic function in modern architecture. The basic roles of ornament as interpreted from architectural history can be Figure 1- Classical categorized into that of an applier or that which is applied or sculpted, as an inherent part of the ornamentation building, a tectonic condition, functional part of a façade and as being expressive or anecdotic.
Ornament performed the function of an applier in classical architecture and thus played a referential function which means that it has a relation to something or someone. For example, the columns used in classical buildings referred to the human figure – column capital to the head, shaft to the trunk of the body and base to the feet of a person. George Hersey analyzes this concept by relating ornament to the idea of tropes. He draws a metaphor by linking the sacrificial rituals of the Greeks to Figure 2- Mies’s I column in the ornamentation on the columns of their buildings such as depicting the base of the column to Barcelona Pavilion ropes tied around the victim’s feet during human sacrifices. The inherent function of ornament means that it is integrated to the structure of a building as seen in Mies Van Der Rohe’s “I” column which plays a non-referential function as it did not refer to the human body or anything else. It solely represented its own condition. The integral function of ornament will be elaborated based on
Thomas Beeby’s idea of relating ornament and structure based on four conditions. They are Figure 3- Querini Stampalia garden, Carlo Scarpa
6 structure ornamented, structure ornamentalized, ornament structuralized and ornament constructed. This study is necessary in order to better understand the tectonic role played by ornament. The tectonic function of ornament is an intriguing concept especially in the works of Carlo
Scarpa where ornament becomes an elaboration of the detailing joinery between similar and dissimilar materials. The functional role of ornament relates to a condition where ornament is Figure 4- Arab Institute facade, Jean Novel actively participating in the building façade as seen in the Arab Institute by Jean Nouvel where ornament acts as a mechanized louver system that open and close based on weather conditions.
The expressive role of ornament will be dealt in detail based on Peter Eisenman’s Aronoff Center for
Art and Design where ornament acts as a tool to make the design process explicit
Figure 5- Louver detail, Arab Institute facade
Figure 6- Aronoff Center for Art and Design, Eisenman
7 SEMIOTICS
Geoffrey Broadbent’s “A plain man’s guide to the theory of signs in architecture” discusses the history behind semiotics and semiology. Sanders Peirce coined the term Semiotics while
Ferdinand de Saussure called it semiology. Both the theoreticians emphasized the theory of signification in which how a word, image or building reminds use of something else. Charles Morris coined three words that constitute semiotics namely, Pragmatic, syntactic and semantic.
Pragmatic- “deals with the origins, uses and the effects of signs within the behavior in which they occur.”4 Architecture is the best way of displaying a sign system because it affects several senses of the subject at the same given time. Words affect us one sense at a time such as reading or writing or hearing. Architecture affects the sense of touch, smell, hearing, sight and even senses such as equilibrium and movement.
Syntactic- “deals with the combination of signs without regard to their specific significations or relations to the behavior in which they occur.”5 Syntax is the grouping of several sign systems such
4 Morris, Charles,” Foundations of the Theory of Signs,” International Encyclopedia of Unified Sciences, Chicago University Press, 1938
5 Morris, Charles,” Foundations of the Theory of Signs,” International Encyclopedia of Unified Sciences, Chicago University Press, 1938
8 as arranging words to form a sentence. Saussure drew an analogy between the syntactic and semantic which he calls syntagmatic and associative respectively.
“From the associative and syntagmatic point of view a linguistic unit is like a fixed part of a building –example a column. On the one hand the column has a certain relation to the architrave that it supports’ the arrangement of the two units in space suggests the syntagmatic relation. On the other hand, if the column is Doric, it suggests a mental comparison of this style with others (Ionic, Corinthian, etc). Although none of these elements are present in space; the relation is associative.”6 One of the most influential texts written about syntax is Noam Chomsky’s “Syntactic Structures.” He states that each individual has an innate ability to create sentences which is an understanding of the world. He called this idea “deep structures.” Each sentence has something called a “surface structure” when an individual expresses it using certain generative rules. Each sentence has transformational rules that convert certain elements such as active tense to passive tense which leads to the type of a sentence such as interrogative, affirmative, predictive and so on.
Example: I lost my way in the midst of a journey through the forest.
Transformational rules applied to the negative connotation:
Interrogative: Did I lose my way in the midst of my journey through the forest?
Affirmative: I did lose my way in the midst of my journey through the forest
6 Broadbent, Geoffrey, “A Plain Man’s Guide to the Theory of Signs in Architecture,” Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture, Princeton Architectural Press, 1996, 129
9 Predictive: I will lose my way in the midst of my journey through the forest.
Chomsky utilized noun (N), verb (V), Noun Phrase (NP), verb phrase (VP) and so on to analyze his sentences.7
Deep structure
NP VP
T N V NP
T N Generative rules
(I lost my way in the midst of a journey through the forest) Surface Structure
Eisenman drew inspiration from Chomsky’s works. In House II, Eisenman’s design starts with a simple cube on which several transformational rules are applied. The cube is divided into 3x3 grids to develop 9 volumes on each floor. There was a further division of the cube by running the walls from one end and columns from the other end. The spaces created by this system became the living spaces of the house. This rigid syntactical approach to Eisenman’s Aronoff Center for Art and Design Figure 7- Eisenman’s House II
7 This chart is taken from Broadbent, Geoffrey, “A Plain Man’s Guide to the Theory of Signs in Architecture,” Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture, Princeton Architectural Press, 1996, 130 in order to understand the syntactical structure in architecture
10 will be dealt in detail later on. Eisenman’s House II and its complex syntax are not first of its kind. In
Sir Edwin Lutyen’s “Armature of Planes,” his son Robert states that
“a building is made up of solids and voids…which…are geometrically related…to state this relationship it is first of all necessary to visualize space…as divided along three planes, mutually right angles, into a number of cubical…cells. One series of planes is horizontal…the two other series…are vertical, at right angles to one another. This visualization of a space divided in all directions becomes an “armature of planes,” or foundation of three- dimensional relationships. It should be though of not as a grid or frame of three intersecting set of lines…but as almost invisible “lines of cleavage,” the whole being like a glass cube made up of smaller glass cubes.”8
Lutyen’s “glass cube” was best demonstrated by Venezuelan architect Domingo Alvarez when he created the cube with fixed interior mirrors. He created “lines of cleavage” in the cube by cutting strips of glass on the three mirrors; the first incision on the ceiling and two on the walls perpendicular to each other. Through these slits he allowed red, green and blue lights to pass. This is one of the best examples of developing a built entity by a purely syntactic method. Even Eisenman’s set of rules are not merely syntactic but also has several semantic interpretations such as the use of white walls (surface structures) derived from the International Style of 1920s. Even in the Aronoff
8 R. Lutyens, Sir Edwin Lutyens: An Appreciation of Perspective, London, 1942- this quote is provided to understand that Peter Eisenman was not the first to apply the concept of syntax to architecture by sub dividing the cube.
11 Center, the three- dimensional grids or “lines of cleavage” are color coded as pink, blue and green in order to create a syntactic relationship to differentiate each transformation on the cube.
Semantic- “deals with the signification of signs in all modes of signifying,” that is the different methods in which they bear meanings.
Saussure’s basic concepts of semantics developed from Vitruvius, who believed that,
“In all matters, but particularly in architecture, there are those two points: the thing signified and that which gives it significance. That which is signified is the subject of which we may be speaking; and that which gives it significance is a demonstration of scientific principles.”9
Even Saussure considered semantics as consisting of two parts- the signifier and the signified which are bound by a “social contract.” William Hillier and Arthur Leaman demonstrated that architectural spaces could be created by grouping elements together with a set of syntax. Steadman, William J.
Mitchell and Robin S. Liggert stated that the syntax rules can be applied to develop space by sub dividing them. Eisenman’s approach is similar to the idea of sub division as his spaces are formed as a result of breaking the grids into multiple cubes. In the Aronoff Center, the signifier could be the etchings on the façade that create the grid lines or “lines of cleavage.” But these lines are merely scorings and etchings on the façade and not incisions or cleavages. The signified is the concept to
9 Morris, Charles,” Foundations of the Theory of Signs,” International Encyclopedia of Unified Sciences, Chicago University Press, 1938
12 which that line refers to. In this case, the lines refer to the traces of the design process developed from a rigid syntactic methodology.
Semantics
Signifier Signified
(sign, symbol, object) (subject, observer, event, action)
Semantics can be explained better in terms of linguistics. Consider this example. The word ‘touch’ in
English refers to ‘toucher’ in French and ‘tocco’ in Italian. But all the words refer to the sense of touch or coming in contact with something. There exists a “social contract” that between everyone speaking English, the word would be called touch, toucher by the French and tocco by Italians respectively. But this type of social contract does not engage in the architectural discourse and this character makes it distinct from linguistics.
Saussure’s theory was elaborated by Charles Kay Ogden and Ivor Armstrong Richards when they declared that these two entities- signifier and signified- are not enough to define semantics. They called a signifier ‘symbol’ and the signified as ‘thought’ or ‘reference.' They introduced a third word called referent which is actually the object. This created a semiotic triangle.
13 Thought or reference (signified)
Symbol (signified) referent (object, observer, event, action) 10
Although several theoreticians such as Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti and Roberto Pane tried to interpret signifier and signified in architectural practice, Umberto Eco came closest to such an idea. He stated that for example a stair in a building is the signifier and it signifies the act of walking up. Broadbent expanded on Ogden and Richards theory by stating that a “building, at any time, can be signifier, signified or referent- or all these simultaneously in their three part scheme.” He takes the example of the Parthenon in Athens as the signifier or referent and photographs and documents on this building becomes the signified. He goes on to consider the idea if the Parthenon, the signifier is formed by the arrangement of stones constituting the signified. Whether the Parthenon in the original condition when built by the Greeks or the reconstructed building is a signifier is a question. This similar condition may be applied to the Barcelona Pavilion by Mies Van Der Rohe. Since this building was demolished and reconstructed, which should be considered a referent or signifier, the old or the new? The signified here could be the set of limited number of photographs taken of the original
10 The Semiotic triangle diagram is taken from Broadbent, Geoffrey, “A Plain Man’s Guide to the Theory of Signs in Architecture,” Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture, Princeton Architectural Press, 1996, 133 in order to understand what constitutes semantics and how they play a role in architecture.
14 building. What matters here is that the signifier may not even be an object but just a set of thoughts or images in our mind.
Peirce’s theory of Semantics breaks away from Saussure’s signifier and signified. He classifies semiotics into Icons, Indices and Symbols and defines them as follows.
“an icon is a sign which refers to the Object that it denotes by virtue of certain characters of its own and which it possesses just the same, whether any such object actually exists or not. A symbol is a sign which refers to the object that it denotes by virtue of law, usually any associations of general ideas, which operates to cause that symbol to be interpreted as referring to that object. An index is a sign or representation which refers to its object not so mush because of any similarity of, or analogy with it, not because it is associated with general characters which that object happens to possess, but because it is in dynamical (including spatial) connection, both with the individual object on the one hand and with the senses or memory of the person for whom it acts as a sign.”11
Examples of icons could be photographs, posters, maps, labels and even architectural drawings and models. An index indicates certain ideas such as a compass that gives the direction of north, a weather vane that provides the directions of wind blowing and the North Star indicates north.
Building typologies such as museums, exhibition spaces, pavilions are indices which are spaces
11 Broadbent, Geoffrey, “A Plain Man’s Guide to the Theory of Signs in Architecture,” Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture, Princeton Architectural Press, 1996, 136
15 organized as a sequential movement or route. Even buildings depicting functions such as nuclear power plants, mechanical equipment store house are considered indices because they indicate the function of a specific building. Even auditorium complexes that take the outer form of the hall depict the function of that space and hence could be part of indices. These indices are called symbols as well. A building itself can become an icon, it if reminds us of something else like Le Corbusier’s Figure 8- Corbusier’s Ronchamp Chapel Ronchamp chapel roof. The iconic role of buildings is elaborated by Charles Jencks in “The Language of Postmodern Architecture” where he discusses the use of metaphors in icons. An example that he elaborates on is the Casa Battlo by Antoni Gaudi. This building could represent the tides of the sea based on the undulating forms seen on the façade while the colonnades take the form of human bones and the colorful elements are part of a dragon. But the metaphor does not lie in just these direct relationships. The sea, bones and dragon are part of the Catalan traditional myth in which “the dragon of Castille has been slain by St. George, a patron saint of Barcelona.” The bones represent those left behind by the martyrs in this war.
Figure 9- Antoni Gaudi’s Casa Battlo
16 RE-MEMBERING: MEMORY AND REASSEMBLAGE
“….in the city, memory begins where history ends.” - Peter Eisenman, Introduction to Rossi, 1982, II
Ornament is an act of ‘Re-membering.’ Re-membering is a figment of our mind reminding us of an event, action or object and thus correlates to a collection of human memories. Hence memory is not just a series of images but also events and actions from the past that are inscribed in the mind of the subject or observer. These memories contribute to the semantic nature of ornamentation.
When memories are subject to acts of rhythmic sequence, they lead to ornamentation. The rhythmic sequencing of semantic elements leads to a syntax. Rhythm in ornament does not necessarily relate to sequential movement of our sight through space; rather ornament can also represent rhythm in its properties. The relationship between semantic and rhythm can be considered in the example of a poem by Alighieri Dante.
“Midway upon the journey of our life I found myself within a forest dark, For the straightforward pathway had been lost. Ah me! How hard a thing it is to say
17 What was this forest savage, rough, and stern, Which in the very thought renews the fear.”12
If this poem had several repetitive lines, it would become dull and dreary. This could relate directly to visual expressions as well. A regular set of grids in a building design can also become monotonous and thus result in the same effect. In order to avoid monotony, the grids in the Aronoff Center are broken and fragmented to create multiple views for the observer. These views are provided by the architect through the design of the spaces and they can also be constructed by a moving entity.
These views tend to provide new ways of looking at an object by creating a different experience each time the observer visits the building. The idea of using grids to regulate a design project is broken down by subjecting the lines to specific rules of transformation. In this way, the rhythm of the elements in the spaces such as columns, walls, ornaments and so on are provided different forms by manipulating the basic grid.
Re-membering can also be linked to the idea of reassemblage or the joining of any number or different type of parts together in order to create an entity such as a building in a large scale or a detail in the small scale. This aspect of Re-membering is ideally applicable to the architecture of
Scarpa. In the Brion Cemetery, the details dictate the movement through space by providing specific views delivered by the architect. This idea is clearly visible in the meditation pavilion where the Figure 10- Scarpa’s Brion Cemetery
12 Dante, Alighieri, “Inferno, Canto I,” The Divine Comedy, http://www.bartleby.com/20/101.html (Accessed: 03/14/07)
18 center of its hovering roof is joined by two interlocking circles representing the eyes of the observer in the standing position.
Adrian Forty in ‘Words and Buildings’ provides an extensive discussion on the four aspects of memory as relating to architecture. The first is the question if memory is part of aesthetics in architecture and if it is, then in what way does it contribute to this discourse. The second aspect is that it is necessary to distinguish between history and memory. The third aspect is that memory has carried several different meanings in history of architecture and requires a definition. The fourth is the role played by memory in architectural practice as a means of communication through the use of metaphors in architecture.
Memory was related to the association of ideas as Payne Knight described in “An Analytical
Enquiry into the Principles of Taste” (1805). He stated
“As all the pleasures of the intellect arise from the association of ideas, the more the
materials of association are multiplied, the more will the sphere of these pleasures be
enlarged. To a mind richly stored, almost every object of nature or art, that presents itself to
the senses, either excites fresh trains and combinations of ideas, or vivifies or strengthens
those which existed before.”13
13 Forty, Adrian, “Memory,” Words and Buildings: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture, New York: Thames and Hudson, 2000, 210
19 One major drawback with this theory is that the ideas depended on each individual’s whims, fancies and tastes of interest. The second problem lies in the fact that the physical aspect of memory was ignored and only the mental phenomena of pleasure was emphasized. There was a different approach taken by Immanuel Kant. He was more concerned with what existed between the object providing these pleasures and the sensations developed by the subject.
In the 18th century, memory in architecture was developed in order to break away from the rules of order, proportion and ornament. This 18th century ideology provided another theory for
Ruskin in “The Lamp of memory” in “The Seven lamps of Architecture” (1849). He said “there are but two strong conquerors of the forgetfulness of men, Poetry and Architecture.” For him architecture was considered more important because it provided “not only what men have thought and felt but what their hands have handled and their strength wrought and their eyes beheld”.14
From Ruskin’s theory it could be noted that memory was not just a mental process but also a manual one. This also identifies with the idea that memory is not just an individual’s taste but also a collective memory of a group. Here memory becomes an act for the present situation and not just the recollection of the past.
In modern architecture the idea of memory was not negatively criticized. In fact it was not even considered as memory was threatening to the development of modern buildings. The conception of history required to be forgotten in order to not be influenced by historical events and
14 Ruskin, John, “Lamp of Memory,” The Seven Lamps of Architecture, New York, J. Wiley, 1878
20 buildings. This creates an interesting dialectical relationship between memory and the idea of forgetting. In order for us to forget, we require to remember something. Walter Benjamin’s quote best describes this condition. He said that a work of forgetting is one “in which remembrance is the woof and forgetting is the warp.”15
The word ‘Re-membering’ has been selected in order to break away from the negative idea of the traditional role of ornament as an appendage or decorative component. Ornament has always Figure 11- Greek columns- Doric, Ionic and Corinthian played the role of a carrier of signs and symbols since the Greek times. Ornament has played the symbolic role of representing several cultures in its features. In Greek architecture, tropes were immensely used to demonstrate the link between various columns such as Doric, Ionic and
Corinthian to human sacrificial ceremonies. For example, in a Corinthian column, the pedestal related to the human feet tied with ropes, the flutes represent the long robes worn by matrons, and the highly ornamented capital depicted the head dress of the human being sacrificed. George
Hersey’s “The lost meaning of Classical architecture” relating Greek ornamentation to tropes will be discussed in the following chapter.
15 Forty, Adrian, “Memory,” Words and Buildings: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture, New York: Thames and Hudson, 2000, 212
21 ORNAMENT AND GRAMMAR
In classical architecture, ornament was considered as the crowning glory of a building. It was necessary and an essential part of the building process. The architects of the modern movement tried to disassociate themselves from history of architecture (classical buildings) and hence ornament as well. Although ornament was not part of the architects’ dictionary or vocabulary of terms, did ornament still exist as a process? In order to understand this theory, it is required to relate ornament and the structure of a building at a very basic level.
In the “Grammar of Ornament” by Owen Jones, 37 plates representing different colors and forms of ornament were elaborated based on several principles of proportion, scale and harmony.
This created a process for ornamentation. Thomas Beeby in his “Grammar of Ornament/ Ornament as Grammar” elaborates on these principles. He says “these plates demonstrate that ornament is based on a unit and the finite number of different geometric manipulations that can be enacted upon it to produce the various types of symmetry and rhythm which lie at the heart of ornament. In ornament, symmetry results from a proportional relation of part to whole and rhythm is produced by the dynamic repetition of proportional parts to a uniform beat.” He specifies that this unit can be manipulated in four different ways to create ornament. They are translation, rotation, reflection and inversion. Translation is the repetition of the unit with no change in scale and orientation. Rotation is the process of orienting the unit in the 4 cardinal directions. Rotation can result in many different
22 forms and a good example is the Greek fret pattern forming a spiral. In the reflection procedure, the unit is symmetrically mirrored along a vertical axis and the unit subject to inversion is mirrored over its central horizontal axis. Combinations of the 4 basic principles can lead to complex configurations.
These operations were performed by drawing regulating or grid lies on the surface to be ornamented.
Rhythm is also employed in these principles by decelerating or accelerating these units to provide the desired effect. Ornamental patterns can also manipulate the figure- ground relationships of the surface. Organic forms of ornament can also be developed using the same grid lines. Hence the grids form “the modular base for the ornamentation.”16
In January 1867, Robert Kerr proposed that architecture was the element that transformed a dull structure into an “object d’art” and he carried this idea by stating four relations between ornament and structure. They are structure ornamented, structure ornamentalized, ornament structuralized and ornament constructed.17 ‘Structure ornamented’ relates to the idea of applied or surface ornamentation. This implies that ornament is independent of the structural components of a building. Art Nouveau is a good example for such a category of ornamentation wherein the same ornament from one building was applied to all other buildings. In 1908, “Ornament and Crime” was Figure 12- Example of Structure published by Adolf Loos and he directly attacked the excessive use of decoration on buildings. This ornamented- Greek caryatid
16 Beeby, Thomas. “The Grammar of Ornament/Ornament as Grammar” Via III, 1977,12
17 The terms ‘Structure ornamented, Structure Ornamentalized, Ornament Structuralized and Ornament Constructed’ mentioned in The Grammar of Ornament/ Ornament as Grammar essay by Thomas Beeby will be stated throughout this chapter to interpret the works of Carlo Scarpa and Peter Eisenman
23 book aimed at abolishing not ornamentation but this specific category called ‘structure ornamented.’
This idea can be bolstered by a quote by Loos where he states “I made the following discovery, which
I passed on to the world: the Evolution of culture is synonymous with the removal of ornamentation from objects of everyday use.”18
The second relation between ornament and structure developed during the modern movement and was called ‘structure ornamentalized’. In this method structural elements were arranged to create an ornamental effect. The process of ornamentation involves the using of a grid Figure 13- Mies’s I- Column seen in Lakeshore Drive Apartments or proportioning system that is applied to the whole building. Examples of this type of ornamentation can be seen in Mies Van Der Rohe’s use of the I- column. The I- column performed a non-referential function as it did not refer to the human body or anything else. It solely referred to itself. Rohe was particularly interested in the outward appearance of his buildings; in aesthetics rather than technology. He repeated the steel columns on the façade of his buildings in order to add aesthetics and hence ornament. In Learning from Las Vegas, Robert Venturi states that “Less may have been more…but the ‘I’ section of Mies’s columns is as complexly ornamental as the applied pilaster on the
Renaissance pier.”19
18 Loos, Adolf, “Ornament and Crime,” Ornament and Crime: Selected Essays, California: Ariadne Press, 1998, 167
19 Venturi, Robert, Learning from Las Vegas : the forgotten symbolism of architectural form, Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1977
24 The third category described by Kerr is ‘ornament structuralized’ in which ornament is the initial step of the design process. The structure and construction are manipulated in order to derive ornament and hence in this way, ornament is never compromised. In Le Corbusier’s ‘City for Three
Million plan’ there is a diagonal grid composition with rectangles inserted into them. This geometric pattern that begins with ornamenting a building is seen in several classical buildings such as the ceiling of St. Peters, Rome, the coffer ceiling of Barozzi da vignola, Farnese Palace, Rome and so on.
Corbusier’s plan when viewed closer reveals that the towers or buildings have bilateral symmetry Figure 14- Le Corbusier’s City for Three Million Plan along the horizontal vertical axis. This composition also relates to the Greek fret pattern. Hence in this project, there is the idea of using ‘ornament structuralized.’
Frank Lloyd Wright’s textile block patterns seen in Millard house, Ennis-Brown house and the
Unity Temple are examples of ‘ornament constructed.’ The ornamental patterns were designed and then modules in concrete were made for the textile blocks. In this way, ornament came first and then the appropriate construction process was developed. Wright mastered the ornamental elements of
Louis Sullivan and converted them to three dimensional elements. Both architects used the grid
(inorganic device) as an ordering device to develop ornamentation and this comparison can be seen clearly in the illustration of Sullivan’s pentagon form and Wright’s square geometry seen in the plan for the Unity Temple. The Unity Temple is a good example of ‘ornament constructed’ as the structural grid becomes the grid for the design of the ornament as well. Figure 15- F.L Wright’s textile block
25 Mies Van Der Rohe selected an onyx block first in order to begin his design for the Barcelona
Pavilion. The size of the stone block determined the height of the ceilings and placement of walls based on the tile module. Hence the block of stone became an ordering device. We could say that design started with architectural detailing and study of materials and thus relates to ornament. This building could possibly fall under the category of ‘ornament constructed.’ Even the I- column seen in most of Mies’s buildings such as the architecture studios in Illinois Institute of technology, Lakeshore
Drive apartments and so on are merely ornamental elements serving no structural function. Figure 16- Unity Temple by F.L Wright is an example for There is probably one more category that could be related to ornament and structure based Ornament Constructed on George Hersey’s use of tropes in classical architecture. Along with ‘structure ornamented,’ there was also the use of ornaments as tropes. The Oxford Dictionary defines a trope as “A figure of speech which consists in the use of a word or phrase in a sense other than that which is proper to it; also, in casual use, a figure of speech; figurative language.”20 He goes on to say that in Latin, a
Tropus is a figure of speech, simile, metaphor or catachresis. Hersey states that
“A trope dwells in the world of puns, homonyms and associations. It is playful and poetic, not scientific and it is often etymologically incorrect… one thing that trope does is to link, through Figure 17- Sullivan’s Pentagon and 21 the pun or homonym, objects that otherwise seem to have little to do with each other.” F.L Wright’s Square geometry
20 Trope, Oxford dictionary, http://dictionary.oed.com (Accessed: 04/30/07)
21 Hersey, George, The Lost Meaning of Classical Architecture: Speculations on Ornament from Vitruvius to Venturi, Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1988, 4
26 Tropes can be seen in architecture especially in a Doric or Ionic capital. The rounded shape of a column capital or head is called the Echinus which can also mean several other things such as a sea urchin, a vase, shells of plants and animals. Since the sharp profile of acanthus leaves were used to create the head band or capital, the prickly sea urchin comes closest to the echinus. Echinus also has a mythological meaning built into it. “Echidna is the mother of the Lernian hydra and her lower body is that of the sharp- scaled viper.”22
The design of the Brion Cemetery, Venice and the Aronoff Center for Art and Design will be Figure 18- Onyx Block in the Barcelona Pavilion dealt in detail based on the four principles of Robert Kerr’s theory of relating ornament to structure.
Carlo Scarpa’s architecture develops out of excessive ornamentation arising out of architectural detailing especially seen in the joints linking homogenous and heterogeneous materials. The geometric layout of the Brion plan does not arise out of any grid system. It is formed by inscribing circles within a square and vice versa. There are three areas in this cemetery design. The first consists of a small chapel, the second houses the tombs which are not buried underground as traditionally expressed by cultural values but alleviated above ground and highly ornamented. The third area has a small meditation pavilion placed centrally on a water feature. The spaces of each of these three units are formed based on the manipulations of two ornamental elements- the form taking the shape of a three dimensional ziggurat and a set of two interlocking circles. The excessive
22 Hersey, George, The Lost Meaning of Classical Architecture: Speculations on Ornament from Vitruvius to Venturi, Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1988, 6
27 use of the ziggurat form dictates the dimensions and spatial layout of this whole complex. The forms or structures in this design are created by applying certain transformational tools to the ziggurat form such as scaling, interplay of solid and void, repetition, orientation and so on. Due to this nature of design, the Brion Cemetery can possibly fall under the category of ‘ornament constructed’ since only two ornamental elements are transformed to create the structures. It is impossible to place Scarpa’s architectural wonders under just one category due to the highly ambiguous nature of the design. The ziggurat forms also become motifs seen on the outer walls of the chapel and this notion relates to
‘structure ornamented’ as these motifs have no relation to structure. The same ziggurat form becomes the roof of the chapel and hence takes the category of ‘ornament structuralized.’ In Figure 19- Roof of the Chapel in Scarpa’s architecture, there is a certain degree of each category and Robert Kerr’s theory but the Brion Cemetery
‘ornament constructed’ constitutes the major portion of the Brion Cemetery.
The ornament in the Aronoff Center by Peter Eisenman arises out of the design process.
Ornament is solely used to express the design process rather than depicting a specific cultural value or architecture of a specific period. The grid lines etched or scored on the exterior walls of the building are remains or traces of the lines seen in the process and this relates to ‘structure ornamented’ as they perform no structural function. It could also relate to troping ornament to represent a rigid syntactic approach to design. These grid lines or lines of memory transform into different architectural elements such as the interior ceiling grid, profile of a column or the flooring Figure 20- Aronoff Center for Art pattern. This can also relate to ‘ornament constructed’ or ‘process constructed.’ and Design, Eisenman
28 PART II: ARONOFF CENTER FOR ART AND DESIGN
The Aronoff Center for Art and Design by Peter Eisenman located in University of Cincinnati campus will be studied in detail based on the application of ornament as a syntactic approach to design. The ornamental language applied in this building is one that is completely devoid of details and semantic elements that narrate a story. The ornament here is only expressing Eisenman’s design process by exploring several ways of treating drywall and how this material can be transformed to express his design ideas. Drywall is treated in several ways such as etching, scoring, cutting groves (effacing material) in order to transform the conventional use of drywall to create an ur- material. Another aspect to be noted in the ornamentation of the Aronoff Center is the use of colors to create a narrative that explains the components used in each step of the syntactical Figure 21 approach to design. Three basic colors are used which are blue, green and pink and variations of Aronoff Center for Art and Design these colors occur as a way of differentiating components of the design geometry. An essay called
“Connecting the Dots: The Three Dimensions of a wireframe” by Donna Barry will be summarized in order to explain the design process of the Aronoff Center based on geometry, color coding and the use of etchings and scorings as an ornamental feature. As Eisenman’s design creates new methods of construction and yet keeps the existing conventions in mind, this system of creation is called
“Symmetry Breaking” according to Donna Barry. The concept of symmetry breaking is related to science in terms of turbulence which is motion that is irregular and random. The process of
29 symmetry breaking creates new relations between form, function and meaning and these relations are said to be complex and asymmetrical. An example of symmetry breaking called “Self-Similarity” was considered for the purposes of this design. It was a way of repeating forms to produce an asymmetrical geometry and the form in this case is a rectanguloid measuring the size of one studio space. The difference between self-similarity and self-same is that, the latter necessarily produces Figure 22 symmetrical objects while the former creates asymmetrical objects. This idea was chosen because Contextual response the design involved the blurring and tracing of the existing Alms, DAAP and Wolfson buildings. The traces of these buildings were superimposed on the site to create a third form which became the
Aronoff Center.
Figure 23 The design process of the Aronoff is a long and complex procedure involving specific Box Geometry forming segmented line transformations such as phase shifts, torquing, twisting and tilting. Several three dimensional rectangles were placed side by side along a segmented line to form the “box geometry.”23 The dimension of each box is a standard 40’X70’X15’6”and these sizes are derived based on the functional requirements for a studio, corridor and office respectively. In this way, functionality of spaces is simultaneously incorporated in the form- making of the building. The segmented line is Figure 24 Box Geometry transformed into a transformed into a curve in order to contrast with the profile of the existing buildings. This curve can curve
23 Terms such as “Box Geometry, Symmetry Breaking, Phase, Torqued Solid Series, Stepping Solid Series” are taken from Donna Barry’s Connecting the Dots: The Dimensions of the Wireframe,” Eleven Authors in Search of a Building, New York: Monacelli Press, 1996, to explain the design process of the Aronoff Center
30 be considered as a way of “symmetry breaking” since it has no center or origin points and is developed from the earlier mentioned segmented line. The box geometry is overlapped horizontally based on a logarithmic function to form this curve. At the same time, no sequence of these overlaps Figure 25 Phase Shift Plan is repeated. These overlaps constitute the first algorithmic function. The second algorithm constitutes tilting or twisting (Asymptotic tilt) each box in the X-Y axis. The degree of tilt and the amount of overlap have no similarities and hence each condition is unique in its own way. The third step involved taking each box section and torquing it in the Z-axis and in turn the segmented line is subject to torque as well. This set of overlapped, twisted and torqued boxes is termed as a “Phase.”
In other words, a phase consisted of several snapshots at different locations of the segmented curve. Phase is related to a term in physics called phase transitions which refers to the behavior of matter when it changes from one state to another. This phase transition also tends to be Figure 26 mathematically nonlinear in nature. It is a kind of displacement from the original state of an object or Phase Shift Section matter. In accordance with this project, there is a representation of this linear mathematics between two realms of existence which are diagram- drawing and drawing- construction. The phase transitions derived from this methodology is shifted twice in section to form the 400, 500 and 600 floor levels of the building. A different degree of torque is applied in section for each floor level in order to create varied angles of tilt. These series of phases is referred to as “Torqued solid series.”
The solids created by these phases overlap one another at a particular point which forms a negative Figure 27 Torques Solid Series Plan space called the Atrium in the Aronoff Center.
31 The diagram created by all these procedures mentioned above could not be placed directly on the site as the land has sharply stepping contours. Therefore, a stepping phase was necessary in order to work along these contours. In this phase, the height of all three floor levels is taken as
46’6”. The height of each box steps vertically down in elevation and it is not subject to any torque. Figure 28 This creates a difference between the stepping boxes and the torquing boxes so that they can be Torques Solid Series Section easily read. These two types of boxes are shifted in plan so as to provide a way of stepping up and down the slope of the site. At the same time, they also provide a trace of this geometry that step in and out of the sloped site. This series of phases is called “stepping solid series.” The torquing and stepping series together constitute the overall “box geometry.” The diagram created by the torqued solid series and the torqued trace series become the atrium space of the building. Figure 29 Stepping Solid Series The second part of the design process involves tracing the outline of the existing Alms, DAAP and Wolfson buildings. The 500 level is common to all the three buildings. The shape of the 8’ corridor in the existing DAAP building is called a chevron. The chevron becomes a means of connecting the existing and new buildings and in turn the new building to the site and streets. Two traces of the chevron are created and placed orthogonal to the northern edge of each existing building. These chevrons create a blur between all the buildings to such an extent that they become indistinguishable. The combination of the box geometry and the chevron forms constitute the Figure 30 Torquing and Stepping Series form diagram for this project. In terms of executing this project, it was not possible to take a section of the the Box Geometry
32 complete building anywhere. The coordinate points were marked on site with lasers. This means that the building is created by “connecting the dots” of the coordinate points.
An intriguing essay called “A Note on the Criminology of Ornamentation: From Sullivan to
Eisenman” by Henry N. Cobb discusses the system of ornamentation in the Aronoff Center based on Figure 31 Atrium Overlap Section a paper published on Louis Sullivan’s “Ornament in Architecture” in 1892.24 Ornamentation is considered as the elimination of the background in this building. It is a system that creates strong emotional impulses in a perceiver. The emotions flow throughout the building in a harmonious fashion into the varying spaces and forms. This system of ornamentation is similar to the
“figure/figure” principle that Eisenman was exploring in his Klingelhofer Triangle project in Berlin. ALMS DAAP WOLFSON The figure/figure is a principle developed by Eisenman in which the background is considered as the Figure 32 figure. When this theory is applied the figure and object are blurred giving rise to the figure/ figure Existing Buildings outline principle. At this point it is appropriate to state Jacques Derrida’s thought on the function of deconstructivist architecture. “Architecture must have a meaning; it must present it and, through it, signify. The signifying or symbolical value of this meaning must direct it from outside, according to a principle, a fundamental and foundation, a transcendence or finality whose locations are not
Figure 33 Existing Buildings with Chevron
24 Cobb, Henry N., “A Note on the Criminology of Ornament: From Sullivan to Eisenman,“ Eleven Authors in Search of a Building,New York: The Monacelli Press, 1996),94
33 themselves architectural.”25 The symbolic or signifying element develops from the set of “traces” of the existing Alms building and the site. These “traces” create the form of the building; a form that is in constant flux and thus narrates new tales every time one visits it. There are incessant alterations in the dialogue between the field and object, figure and background. Initially, the figure/figure principle may have sprung from Sullivan’s paper but in several ways, Eisenman wavered from this path of study by developing his own language.
In “The Grammar of Ornament” Owen Jones states that “Construction should never be Figure 34 Composite Box geometry decorated and decoration should never be constructed.”26 But in the Aronoff, the whole concept of the conventional construction is challenged. Eisenman’s strategy of form- making in his buildings results from a construction of an idea rather than the ideas or ways of construction. He explores different construction techniques as his buildings are difficult to build with conventional methods.
Although the material used for this system of ornamentation in the Aronoff is just gypsum wallboard,
Eisenman challenges and successfully brings to life a completely negative material.
An interesting aspect to be noted in the Aronoff Center is the type of columns used to hold the structure. The columns have no specific language and hence differ in appearance in each
25 Derrida, Jacques, “Point de Folie- Maintenant l’architecture,” Architecture Theory since 1968, The MIT Press, 2000
26 Cobb, Henry N., “A Note on the Criminology of Ornament: From Sullivan to Eisenman”, Eleven Authors in Search of a Building, New York: The Monacelli Press, 1996, 94
34 location. Laugier’s “rules” on column building in Article I of “An Essay on Architecture”27 comes to mind. He stated “(1) The column must be strictly perpendicular, because being intended to support the whole load, perfect verticality gives it its greatest strength. (2) The column must be free standing so that its origin and purpose are expressed in a natural way. (3) The column must be round because nature makes nothing square. (4) The column must be tapered from the bottom to top in imitation of nature where this diminution is found in all plants. (5)The column must rest directly on the floor as the posts of the rustic hut rest directly on the ground.” 28 Although these “rules” are unnoticed in the Aronoff Center, there is one that seems to be quite explicitly visible. The idea of the column as being free standing is seen in most of the locations. In fact, there is a column located in Figure 35 Column detail in the Grand stair the middle of the entrance area to the grand stair that creates a shift in movement and vision from the entry at the 400 level. The classification of a structural member into pediment, entablature, capital and base is completely broken and distorted into a new metaphorical language in the free standing columns. In Article II, Laugier says “that the entablature must always rest on its columns like a lintel; that in its whole length it must not have any corner or projection.”29 If we assume for instance that there exists an entablature above the column, then in the Aronoff this entablature is anything but a clean form. It is torqued, turned and twisted at every point in space. But does it have
27 , 28, 29 Laugier, Marc- Antoine, “An Essay on Architecture,” Sources of Modern Architectural Theory, University of Cincinnati Course Pack, 2006
35 a hidden classical system of ornamentation that requires hermeneutics of interpretation? Or should this system be understood in terms of Eisenman’s “Not- Classical” architecture that explains the fictions of representation, history and reason?
As the Aronoff Center opens our visions to endless possibilities and new beliefs, we can also interpret ornamentation in this building in an unusual manner. This line of contemplation comes as a result of an essay by Sarah Whiting called “Building Inside Out: Perspectives on the conspicuously inconspicuous.”30 This essay provides an interesting way of looking at a building based on the idea of monumentality in architecture. To understand the idea of monumental buildings it is necessary to quote Robert Musil. “Monuments are so conspicuously inconspicuous.” He also wrote that “There is nothing in this world as invisible as a monument. They are no doubt erected to be seen- indeed to attract attention. But at the same time they are impregnated with something that repels attention, causing the glance to roll right off, like water droplets off an oilcloth, without even pausing for a moment.”31 The ideas of visibility and invisibility provide an insight into the Aronoff Center’s architecture. The Aronoff goes beyond the idea of water droplets rolling off. The scale of the building is felt inside the structure and not really on the exterior. It becomes conspicuously inconspicuous in this way. Instead of being a monumentality of a static view it becomes a monument causing
30 Whiting, Sarah, “Building Inside Out: Perspectives on the conspicuously inconspicuous,” Eleven Authors in Search of a Building, New York: The Monacelli Press, 1996, 98
31 Musil, Robert, “Monuments,” Posthumous Papers of a Living Author, Hygiene, Colorado: Eridanos Library, 1987),61
36 movement and constant flux in its spaces. This way the building redefines the conventional notions of monumentality and thus ornament has a monumental quality attached to it.
Monuments could be of two types. One is a monument dedicated to a person or an event in the broader scenario while the other is a building that becomes a monument by accident to specific cultural or social groups. A monument could be a way to signify or express through language the ideology of a person. Thus the Aronoff Center becomes a monument to the natives of the architectural discourse. Another reason for mentioning the idea of monuments is to give a first hand understanding of Adolf Loos theories. He rejected ornamentation to a great extent but he accepted its use for tomb and monument architecture because these are the only two building typologies wherein users only visit and not live in. If we consider a monument as an object that requires ornamentation, then the monumentality in the Aronoff arises out of the movement, constant change and endless possibilities of viewing as a result of multiple point perspectives. If one were to capture the vision of monumental ornamentation in this building, how would one go about it or even draw a simple perspectival interior view if it distorts the very foundations of our drawing skills and banal realities?
If we assume that grids were used to dictate the spaces and proportions of ornament in buildings from the classical to the modern times such as the buildings by Le Corbusier, Mies and
Frank Lloyd Wright, then Eisenman contradicts himself by proposing that his architecture is ‘non-
37 classical.’ As mentioned earlier, grids and its specific transformations create the ornamentation in the Aronoff Center. Eisenman follows the classical method in his design process but tries to break that very method by introducing these specific transformations which are intersections, projections, warping, repetition, shifting, tracing and blurring. Have these transformations always been there in architecture and only now has it been given fancy names or are they applied for the first time in such a different way? Then we need to wonder what a transformation is. Robin Evans states that “a transformation is a systematic alteration of form, simultaneous and pervasive, according to either the linguistic or mathematical usage.”32
Lines of memory in the Aronoff come from three aspects. The first comes from the contours of the site and the second set of lines comes from traces of the existing Alms, DAAP and Wolfson buildings. The third aspect is the dictating factor of the entire procedure. It is a rectanguloid that measures the size of one studio space. Through this approach, the process begins with the functional requirements of the space in the architecture department. As mentioned in the previous chapter, memory relates to a series of past events or images. The Aronoff center is a series of images of a single object and in this case, a cube that has been captured by frame shots during its process of transformation.
32 Evans, Robin, Translations from Drawing to Building and Other Essays, Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1997
38 Eisenman’s grid laying is the syntactical approach to ornamentation developed by the use of memory lines. Each line is a memory of the traces left by the design process. These lines are transformed into etchings and scorings of the grid lines on the façade of the building. The etchings could have been carefully articulated by varying the depth of the grooves to differentiate the geometry of each box. These memory lines activate ornaments not just on the façade, but also the spaces enclosed by the walls. When we see a grid or memory line in these spaces, it could be noted that they continue along an axis but transform into different construction elements. An example seen in the atrium space of the building best describes this condition. The line starts with etchings on the wall, continues onto the ceiling as the grid layout for lighting fixtures which then transforms into the profile of a column and then alters itself to become part of the floor pattern. These lines of memory usually come from traditional symbols for function, structure, and aesthetics and also from history of architecture. But in the Aronoff they arise from a design methodology that has been personalized to such an extent that it represents the ideas of the person who designed it. Eisenman’s process does not come from traditional symbols of ornamentation. Rather it arises from an index. In an essay for the Emory Arts Center, Eisenman states that “an index is that which refers to its own condition. Its
33 iconic role is more of resemblance than representation.” Then the question arises as to what the Figure 36 Grid Lines etched on the pastel distinction between resemblance and representation is. He goes on to say that “a representation colored exterior walls always refers to something external while resemblance refers to internal characteristics.
33 Eisenman, Peter, M Emory Games, Rizzoli International Publications, 1995, 58
39 Representations rely on a traditional notion of memory that is linguistic and historical”. For
Eisenman, representations are visual expressions without resemblance or the “sign of a sign.”
40 PART III: NARRATIVE LANGUAGE OF CARLO SCARPA
The semantic aspect of ornament is explicitly shown in the works of renowned architect Carlo
Scarpa. Ornament as a metaphor is suggested as a way of looking at the so called banal aspects of a building which are connectors and openings- doors, windows, passageways, bridges, stairs and so on. Here, ornament becomes an edge condition. This poses the critical and central question to
Scarpa’s architectural design methodology. He uses the expressive power of details in order to arrive at the building form. Hence, ornament through the detailing of joints as a tectonic expression becomes a derivative of the form. These forms have several semantic meanings attached to them and this becomes the most important aspect to be explored in the design process of Carlo Scarpa. Figure 37 Edge conditions in other buildings by Scarpa
Vittorio Gregotti states that “Detailing is, surely, one of the more revealing components of changing architectural language.”34 The cohesion of different materials is emphasized by detailing the joints between them. Detailing becomes a powerful to explore and improvise a design. In the essay “Exercise of Detailing,” Gregotti states that architecture is a result of details and that most contemporary architects have forgotten this important idea.35 Detailing emphasizes the use of materials and surface treatment in the construction of a building. It also articulates design decisions to a large extent. Details establish a connection between the part and the whole of a building. In the
34 , 34 Gregotti, Vittorio, “Exercise of Detailing,” Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture, Princeton Architectural Press, 1996, 496
41 fifties and sixties, detailing played a vital role in the architecture of Franco Albini, Carlo Scarpa and
Mario Ridolfi. It became the guiding principle for their projects. The connection between floors, relationship of different materials and the different ways of using them, both physically and aesthetically, formed the crux of their designs. Hence this building technique becomes a form of expression. In recent times, the idea of detailing has lost its flair and taken a turn towards ornamentation. It is believed that an overall grant concept for the building process is adequate and hence this has overshadowed the expressive nature of details. In classical architecture, details have always been expressed as a form of beauty in terms of decoration relating to cultural heritage.
Gregotti finally states that detailing can be used for meaningful ornamentation as those seen in the works of Leon Battista Alberti where construction and ornamentation are used to testify the integrity of architecture.
Architect Marco Frascari like Gregotti identifies the source of architectural language in the joinery between materials and structures. He considers the joint as the generator of construction and in turn the meaning of the design is derived from it. The joint imposes its order on the whole and hence a set of endless architectural ideas are derived based on tectonics. Here, the joint also becomes aesthetic in nature. In “The Tell- the- Tale” essay Frascari identifies several ways of looking
42 at a joint.36 Details are identified as units of signification; that is, they attach meanings to man- made objects. It is through details that architects can provide a profound meaning for difficult or unruly environments. In this way, it becomes a dictating order of beauty. Careful detailing is the most important aspect in constructing a building in order to prevent its failure, both structurally and aesthetically. Detailing is nothing but the art of joining materials to each other, to the structure and other building parts. The complex nature of details arises when different set of details need to be designed for different buildings since one common detail cannot work in all conditions.
Leon Battista Alberti saw architecture as the appropriate selection of details to create an object of beauty. He stated that beauty comes from the skillful joining of parts in which nothing can be added or subtracted for the worse. This idea is best expressed in the Palazzo Rucellai facade,
Florence in which the details are so unique and perfect that nothing can be added or subtracted for the worse. Alberti developed a process of achieving beauty which he called concinnity. To achieve this, three basic conditions are required. The first is numbering which is a system of calculation.
Numbering is used as a tool to give meaning to a building. According to Alberti, numerology was a technique for selecting figures such as cornice, motifs, and capitals. The second is finishing which is a mathematical procedure for defining dimensions of objects. It gives the proportions of an object and these proportions are used as a measurement tool. The third is collocation, that is, the
36 Marco Frascari, “The Tell- the- Tale,” Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture, Princeton Architectural Press, 1996, 498
43 composing or placement of details in a building. Here, scale is the guiding tool for controlling the placement. Scarpa’s fetish for joints is the perfect example of Alberti’s concinnity.
Scarpa’s works stand for representation and function. This concept defines his architecture from structures to aesthetics. His adoration for details or joints is so great that he was guided by a flashlight during night time to study building details. He believed that it is difficult to concentrate on joints during the day time when sunlight flashes on all parts of the building. His details tell the story of the design process. These ideas are best seen in his Brion Cemetery project in San Vito de
Altivole, Italy.
44 BRION CEMETERY
The semantic elements providing the narrative process seen in Scarpa’s works is the most important factor for determining his ornamental language. His restoration and renovation projects have brought to existence the historical and cultural value of a particular place. He creates details to link existing historic structures to his modern architectural forms. These details also dictate the forms of his buildings especially in the Brion Cemetery. The Brion Cemetery is arguably the best of the seventy gardens and landscapes that Scarpa designed. The project came into existence when
Onorina Brion wanted a sarcophagus designed to honor the wishes of her husband Guiseppe Brion which was to be buried in the land of his ancestors in San Vito de Altivole, Italy. Scarpa had no programmatic constraints as compared to his earlier museum restorations in which every authority in the city was involved in dictating codes and procedures. This design is presented on a 2000 sq meter L- shaped site with an existing public cemetery of San Vito de Altivole on one side and corn fields on the other side forming the majority of the landscape. Scarpa’s program includes a small funeral chapel, cypress garden for burial of local clergy, additional graves of the Brion family members, arcosolium, floating water pavilion and cloistered walkways.
In the Brion cemetery, spatial organization can possibly relate to three stages of funerary ritual which is separation (pre-liminal), transition (liminal) and incorporation (post liminal) as
45 proposed by Arnold Van Gennep in “The Rites of Passage.”37 The cemetery relates to a journey of contemplation or a means of coming to terms with the loss of a loved one. The initial step in this journey relates to Separation which constitutes the performance of funerary rites in a small funeral chapel. The second is the transition phase which lays the foundation for resting the tombs of the
Brion couple. The third and most important part of the journey is incorporation which Scarpa provides by designing a small pavilion floating in the middle of a Lilly pond. Two important details not only connect these three spaces, but also define the volume of the spaces. One is the ziggurat shaped motif that creates majority of the volumes and the other is the two interlocking circle motif.
In order to understand the sensorial experience of spaces and its details, it is required to re- create the sequential movement through this landscaped garden by reconstructing the journey with the aid of several images of the site. The cemetery design has two entrances- private and public. For the purpose of this study let us begin the journey through the private entrance. The private entry is guarded by a solid concrete gate that slides to one side with the help of brass rollers. Upon entering, the first element that is visible is the corner wall of the funeral chapel. The chapel plan is rotated to an angle of 45 degrees in order to emphasize this corner or edge condition of the wall. The corner of the wall itself is incomplete as it is broken into fragments with the help of the ziggurat forms. It is Figure 38 known that the ziggurat ornaments are built based on a module system of 5.5cm x 5.5cm. The Corner inverted ziggurat ornament seen in the exterior pathway to the chapel diverges in two directions. One leads into the chapel which has a door located walls of the funeral chapel
37 Gennep, Arnold Van, The Rites of Passage, University of Chicago Press, 1961
46
Figure 39 Figure 40 Spatial layout of the Brion Cemetery Diagram representing the three stages of funeral ritual
47 Sequence 1
Sequence 2
Sequence 3
Sequence 4
Figure 41 Sequencing of Spaces 48 opposite to this entrance that exits into a cypress garden while the other path continues to the tombs of the Brion couple or the “arcosolium” as Scarpa described it. The form of the chapel is exaggerated to incorporate the ziggurat motif in most of its details and also its roof which is a large inverted ziggurat. The detail joining the crucifix to the altar is a double ziggurat form as seen in the picture. These series of movements through space form the first sequence of the garden.
The second sequence begins at the entry of the chapel leading to the tombs of the Brion couple. While proceeding through this pathway, one encounters a form with a sloped roof that holds the graves of the other Brion family members. The arcosolium is very interesting in terms of defying Figure 42 Inverted Ziggurat for chapel roof tomb architecture. Instead of burying the tombs, Scarpa raises them above ground and ornaments the stone sarcophagi with carefully manipulated versions of the ziggurat motif. The arcosolium consists of an arched canopy that depicts the function of protecting the sarcophagi of Onorina and
Giuseppe Brion. It is said that the term Arcosolium comes from the Italian word Arca which means ark and sarcophagus and in Latin it represents a monumental sarcophagus. Metaphorically speaking, the arcosolium might relate to the catacombs of Romanesque and Gothic tomb
Architecture.
The third sequence leads to the water pavilion through a short covered walkway. The transition space between the covered walkway and the pavilion is guarded by a heavy glass door. In order to pass through it is required to push the door to ground level which then submerges into the Figure 43 water surrounding it. This door acts as a transition element between life and afterlife and Arcosolium
49 emphasizes on the fact that it is difficult to reach the third phase which is Incorporation. The water pavilion has an unusual roof that seems to hover over it. This hovering effect is created by providing slender structural columns. The edges of the roof fold down to a height that is much lower than that of a standing person and hence the act of bending is required to enter this pavilion. Once inside this semi- enclosed space, there is a seating area oriented to capture the views of the surrounding landscape. The detail that connects the slender columns to the pavilion roof is a small brass viewfinder formed by the intersection of two circles. This joint is called a viewfinder because it frames particular views for a person standing or sitting behind it.
The path from the public cemetery to the garden forms the fourth sequence or rather the second part of sequence one as it is another entrance to the same site. The public entry can be reached only via a short walk through the existing public cemetery. This entry has a short cantilevered roof created by ziggurat forms and provides shelter for three steps. These entrance steps are placed off axis towards the left side in order to force a person to make a conscious decision to move to the left or right after reaching the top most tread. Located in front of these steps is a large opening of two interlocking circles that provide fragments of views to the water pavilion and the tombs. The condition of this opening is interesting because it is an opening that cannot be called a door or a window since it is too large to be a window and it does not provide a passage to the other Figure 44 Interlocking circle opening side and hence cannot be called a door.
50 The interlocked part of the two circles is called the vesica piscis which is “a symbol made from two circles of the same radius, intersecting in such a way that the center of each circle lies on the circumference of the other. The name literally means the bladder of the fish in Latin. In the Christian tradition, it is a reference to Christ, as in ichthys. The shape is called a mandorla
Figure 45 ("almond") in India and known in the early Mesopotamian, African, and Asian civilizations.” 38 This Vesica Piscis symbol was considered as a holy figure by the Pythagoreans since the measurement of its width to height ratio is 265: 153 or square root of 3 which is the “measure of the fish” as mentioned in the
Gospel of John. It is unknown as to why Scarpa selected this particular motif but its semantic values are inherent in this project as these circles could represent the union of life and death and the intersected shape (a fish- shaped opening) relates to the transition between these dualities. The Figure 46 interlocking circle and ziggurat motifs are not only seen as large elements on the façade and Mandorla openings but also in details such as door hinges, water stoup in the chapel, joint between the candelabrum (candle holder) and the chapel ceiling, elements linking the crucifix to the altar and so on. What is important here is that in every condition, there is a scale change in the motif in order to derive the required detail or form. These ideas constitute the major explorations in Scarpa’s process.
After walking up the stair there is two options. The left side of this covered walkway leads to the arcosolium and the passage to the right leads to the meditation or water pavilion through the Figure 47 Mandorla in Christian tradition
38 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vesica_piscis (Accessed: 12/15/06)
51 glass door as mentioned earlier. The glass door is usually locked to avoid public viewing of the meditation pavilion and it can only be accessed by members of the Brion family.
Water plays a very vital role in the design. There are several water features located in this garden and one such feature connects the water pavilion to the Arcosolium. A long thin water channel connects the pavilion to the arcosolium along the covered walkway. This channel has both the motifs mentioned earlier which are transformed to act as vessels that carry water. In the initial phases of the construction, the water was meant to flow into the arcosolium but then it was later disregarded for unknown reasons. The reason could probably be that water is an element that brings life and hence it would have been ironical to let water flow through the sarcophagi.
The Brion Cemetery project deals extensively with capturing views from its enclosed walls to the exterior landscapes and vice versa. George Dodds states “Scarpa’s program for the sanctuary is not limited to an assemblage of architectural objects, however; it includes the historic and mythic dimensions of a culturally constructed site wherein the viewing body negotiates between landscape- as- representation and landscape- as- experience. The Brion Garden’s visual program includes specific views borrowed from both its walled interior and the surrounding landscape, while its somatic program engages one’s syncopated movement into and through the garden complex.”39
From this we understand that that the Brion cemetery has three types of program. One is the
39 Dodds, George, “Desiring Landscapes/ Landscapes of Desire: Scopic and Somatic in the Brion Sanctuary,” Body and Building: Essays on the changing relation of Body and Architecture, Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2005, 240
52 program for spatial organization, second is the program for the ornaments formed by details seen in the “Map of Details” and the third is the program for the sequential movement through spaces in which the body actively participates in encountering ornamentation which is projected in varied ways to the mind.
Figure 48 Map of details- collection of all the different joints used in the project
53 PART IV: SITE STUDY
We could note the fact that Scarpa mainly dealt with addition or restoration projects to develop his own ornamental language. Similarly, Eisenman’s ornamental language reached its zenith in the Aronoff center, which is also an addition to existing buildings. In order to apply the processes of these two architects, a similar site with an existing historical building was accepted as the initial step. A fragment of an old historical church stands at the intersection of Gilbert and William Taft
Avenue in Walnut Hills, Cincinnati. A further study of this site led to the understanding that it was the
First Presbyterian Church designed by renowned architect Samuel Hannaford in 1885. The Lane
Theological Seminary was established in this church to house debates on anti- slavery. In 2003, a Figure 49 Church before demolition major part of the church was demolished and only the bell tower remains as of today. The approximate height of the tower is 100 feet. Several preservationists have actively participated in saving this tower. The church immensely contributed to the history and culture of the Walnut Hills community. The tower provides a physical reminder to the unique history of this place and enhances the visual qualities of the neighborhood by acting as a living history.
The restoration of the interiors of the tower has been commissioned to Paul Mueller
Architects in Cincinnati. A brief discussion with the architect provided a design typology that was Figure 50 being established in the tower. The tower will have display areas that will depict the history of the Church during demolition church and the Lane Theological Seminary. An interesting aspect of this project is that this tower is
54 considered as a physical link for visitors traveling from the Underground Railroad Freedom Center and the Harriet Beecher Stowe House. The Harriet Beecher Stowe house is perched on a very steep hill to the North of the church site on Gilbert Avenue. This house has been registered as a historical monument in the National Register for Historic Buildings not really for its architecture but for the fact that Harriet Beecher resided in it. This house becomes a direct tie to the Underground Railroad movement and hence the Presbyterian Church as it was used to provide shelter for escaping slaves on their route to freedom. Harriet Beecher Stowe was an important identity in history as she was involved in the abolitionist movement and the Lane Theological society to eliminate slavery. One of the most influential abolitionist novels, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” was written by her. Her father, Rev. Figure 51 Lyman Beecher became the first president of the Lane Theological Society founded in 1830. Church after demolition
A funeral home which is owned by Rev. Jordan was built two years ago to the immediate
North of the church fragment. Earlier Rev. Jordan owned the property for the demolished church as well which was later bought by the Cincinnati Preservation Association in order to restore and maintain the bell tower. Adjacent to the funeral home on the opposite side of Gilbert Avenue is a church called the Church of the Assumption of Walnut Hills. There are several residential buildings up to two stories to the west of the site and they are mainly brick cladded buildings. Adjacent to the tower on the east are two vacant plots which will be taken as sites for the thesis design. Opposite to the first site is a large apartment complex that was recently rebuilt and complies with the similar brick architecture of the houses in the community. Further down Taft Avenue towards the east is a
55 large senior housing and a small Episcopal church. The community is also developing a new school which is under construction now. The rest of the areas in the community is filled with commercialized commodities such as Wendy’s, Chevrolet showroom, Provident Bank, Kroger, CVS Pharmacy and so on.
It is important to understand the context of Walnut Hills in order to select the appropriate program for the thesis design. For the first site, a design of a park has been chosen to revitalize the neighborhood and also to provide green open spaces for outdoor recreation. There will be follies in the park that will depict the history of slavery and the Underground Railroad movement. The journeys through the park portrayed by the pathways become important linking elements between the different follies. A park design was also selected in order to apply Eisenman’s and Scarpa’s process to a non- programmatic design. Hence the first site becomes a testing ground for the process to be 0 developed in the second site. The second site will house an auditorium with library. The programmatic concerns of the design will be explained in the following chapter. Figure 52 Context of Walnut Hills
Key to Map: 0- First Presbyterian Church 1- Large apartment complex 2- Carnegie Public Library 3- Episcopal Church 4- Senior Housing 5- School (under construction) 6- Church of the Assumption 7- Funeral Home 8- Harriet Beecher House
56 DESIGN PROGRAM AND PROGRAM FOR ORNAMENTATION
The information regarding the site was very valuable for the progress of the thesis in determining the program. The tower will be restored and no programmatic elements will be added to it. Two lots in front of the tower were also considered for the purposes of the thesis. The first site Tower closest to the tower will be treated as a transition space in order to create a link between the second Site1 Site2 site and the tower. It will be a community garden space with follies that perform the function of narrating the history of abolishing slavery in Cincinnati, Ohio. A narrative sequence is applied to create a journey through history.
The second site next to the park will hold an auditorium complex with a library. The idea of a Figure 53 Parcels for Site 1 and 2 space for discussion arises out of debates conducted by the Lane Seminary in the church. Bringing the debates back to life would be a way to metaphorical connect the present to the past through the narrative qualities of ornament. This auditorium will act more like a debate center where citizens living in the Walnut Hills neighborhood can voice their opinions and put forth concerns and issues.
The library within this complex will exclusively hold books on the works related to Harriet Beecher
Stowe, Lyman Beecher, Lane Seminary scholars and African American history. The library is a means to develop a literary memory into a living reality. This forms the design program for the project. But an important aspect is the program for the ornamentation and this arises out a study about African
American freedom quilts.
57 The ornaments on the tower are mainly concentrated around the openings, doors and windows. This ornamentation is an imagery of Gothic architecture and has no relevance to African
American culture. An understanding of the history of African American culture is required to tie the design methodology to the history of the church as mentioned in the previous chapter. In the years when the civil war ended in America, bits and pieces of fabric camouflaged with secret codes were Figure 54 discovered which tied back to the Underground Railroad experience. These quilts became the main Tower elevations showing concentration of ornament carriers of stories that narrated the tales of slavery. It was an ingenious method of communication between slaves which helped them escape. A further knowledge of the quilts led to the understanding that they were woven with several important symbols which formed a secret sign system stitched into the fabric and placed on the fences of houses which the slaves lived in. the reasons for placing these quilts in such a manner will be discussed in the preceding lines once an explanation for the sign system is provided. There were possibly twelve different symbols which were called monkey wrench, wagon wheel, bear’s paw trail, crossroads, log cabin, shoofly, bowties, double wedding ring, flying geese, drunkard’s path and the North Star. There was a quilt code based on these symbols which read Figure 55 Study of ornamentation lead to the “The monkey wrench turns the wagon wheel toward Canada on a bear’s paw trail to the crossroads. understanding that it was proportioned according to the Once they got to the crossroads they dug a log cabin on the ground. Shoofly told them to dress up in golden section
58 cotton and satin bow ties and to the cathedral church, get married and exchanged double wedding
rings. Flying geese stay on the drunkard’s path and follow the star.”40
Each symbol was featured on each quilt to form twelve different quilts. The quilts were placed one at a time on the fence of house in which the African American slaves lived. The master and mistress of the house were not suspicious of these quilts as they were placed outside to be aired. This was the only non- verbal communication between the slaves who wished to escape. But they had to be familiar with this language of communication and hence they were tutored late in the nights. In order Figure 56 Sample quilt with 12 secret codes for this to be done, a single quilt with all the twelve codes stitched together formed something called a ‘sample quilt.’ Each quilt depicts a particular action to be taken by the slaves. When the monkey Monkey Wrench Wagon Wheel wrench quilt was laid, it meant that it was time to gather all equipments in order to prepare for the journey to freedom. When the wagon wheel sign was displayed, it was time to keep the tools and equipment in a wagon prepared for people to escape. The tumbling blocks pattern is very important Tumbling blocks Bear’s Paw trail although it is not mentioned in the quote mentioned above. It was a sign that depicted that it was time to escape right now. Once the slaves escaped, they followed a bear’s paw trial through the mountains to reach a safer place away from their masters. When they reached the crossroads, their lives changed. Crossroads is the code word for Cleveland, Ohio which was the major port to Canada. Figure 57 Quilt symbols
40 Jacqueline L.Tobin & Raymond G. Dobard, “Hidden in Plain View,” (New York, Doubleday publishers, 1999),22
59 What is very intriguing about the log cabin pattern is that it has been associated with the oral history of the Underground Railroad. These logs were used to build slave pens- the rustic houses in Crossroads Log cabin which the slaves lived. But in the quilt code, it states “dig a log cabin” and not build a log cabin. A closer look at the arrangement of the logs shows that they form a zig- zag pattern. This probably meant that slaves needed to travel in a zig zag or broken path in order to not leave any traces behind. An interesting metaphor is that in the African American culture, it was believed that evil Shoofly Bow ties travels in straight lines. The center of the log cabin pattern has a square which was colored red, yellow or dark indigo and the yellow signaled a safe house. The red and indigo probably meant that it was unsafe to take refuge in a particular house. But “digging a log cabin” meant that this symbol was Double wedding Flying Geese drawn on the ground by different group of slaves who were meeting at a specific place to identify ring themselves and also when it was unsafe to speak. Shoofly actually referred to a person who aided the escaping slaves.
“Dress up in cotton and satin bowties and go to the cathedral church” meant that the slaves had to change clothes and go in disguise to a nearby church and be helped in taking off their chains Drunkard’s Path North Star which is represented by the double wedding ring pattern. This wedding symbolized the idea of letting go the bonds of slavery. The next symbol in the quilt code is the flying geese that represented the direction in which geese flew. Geese flew north during spring and summer time and this was the direction to be taken in a drunkard’s path or zig zag manner as mentioned earlier. The North Star Figure 58 represents the destination of safety and freedom which was Canada. Quilt symbols
60 We could draw inspiration from the metaphorical language of quilts. The sample quilt can relate to the ‘map of details’ that we learnt in Scarpa’s Brion Cemetery project. This contributes mainly the semantic aspect of the thesis project as the patterns symbolize actions and re- presenting them would bring back ‘memories’ of the struggle to freedom. The quilt symbols are transformed into several architectural elements to form the ornamentation in the folly and auditorium design. All the symbols were not taken for the design; only the log cabin pattern was considered as the main symbol as the log cabin has a deep history tied to the construction of a slave pen.
61 DESIGN PROCESS
As mentioned in the earlier chapter, the first site will hold a design for a park with follies. The follies will carry semantic meanings for the project by depicting the history of slavery and
Underground Railroad movement in their form. Two sets of ornaments are visible in the park design.
First is ‘ornament constructed’ and the second is ‘structure ornamented’ or ‘applied ornamentation.’
The former is seen in the pathways and follies while the latter is seen in the design of ‘markers.’
Markers are light elements formed by layering several panes of glass and words from slave diaries will be etched on them. During the Underground Railroad movement, safe houses were identified by those which had a lit lantern hanging in front of the house. These markers relate to that notion of history. Since the markers have words etched on them, they form the applied ornamentation for the project. There are two pathways cutting through the site; one connects all the markers while the other links all the follies. This is done in order to provide varied methods of movement for users so that they can choose their own path and explore the possibilities of the site.
The syntactic approach to design begins by selecting the street layout and existing tower plan to create two sets of grids which forms the lines of memory for the project. The first set of grids are based on the width of Gilbert Avenue and angled according to the street as well. This creates large- scale grids of 50’ X 50’. The second set of grids arise out of the plan of the tower with a size of 20’ X
20’. Hence two grid modules are formed from the context of Walnut Hills. The smaller grids are the
62
Figure 59 Conceptual models of Site 1
Figure 60 Plan of Park with Follies
63 forces that carry ornaments as they relate directly to the tower. Both the grids cut through the first site and transform from merely lines drawn in plan to grooves and etchings in the three dimensional environment. These etchings are found on the pathways that link the five follies together. The depth and width of the etchings arise out of the proportions of the ornaments on the tower. In some parts of the design the etchings continue onto the walls of the folly to bring slits of light to the interior spaces.
Before the process for the folly design is discusses, it is important to understand what a station is. During the Underground Railroad movement, stations were places of safety and refuge Figure 61 Folly 1 model- slave pen which the slaves took on their journey to freedom. Follies on this site become the stations and representation function as elements carrying this history. The design of the folly begins with the understanding of what it really means.
“A folly is an eye-catcher; a functionally useless structure, often a fake ruin, sometimes built
in a landscaped park to highlight a view.”41
These eye- catching elements on the site are developed by applying several transformations to the log cabin pattern taken from the secret quilt symbols. The log cabin pattern becomes ‘ornament constructed’ because it is integrated into the structure of each folly. The first folly is a metaphorical representation of the slave pen. It has similar characteristics of a slave pen such as the gable roof, Figure 62 positioning of the door, dormer window and so on. But at the same time these elements have been Folly 2- log cabin pattern is ‘ornament constructed’
41 Harris, Cyril M., Dictionary of Architecture and Construction, McGraw- Hill, Inc, 1975
64 disguised to produce something other than its original condition. Only an image of the slave pen remains and not its reconstruction. The construction of the slave pen slowly disintegrates in the next three follies and the last folly is ornamented to such an extent that it has no traits of the original condition. The log cabin pattern is seen in the construction of the folly walls, door and window details, and flooring pattern and so on. A transformation of the log cabin pattern is seen in the edge condition of the first folly where two walls meet. They form slits to allow light to enter the folly. The sensorial experience and the meanings carried by the details form the semantic aspect of the park.
The park design is not the final project of the thesis. It is merely a testing ground for a process to be applied in the second site. It provides a better understanding of the syntactic and semantic qualities derived from Eisenman’s and Scarpa’s processes. The design approach for the auditorium and library is quite different. As mentioned earlier the tower and street grids are applied in this site as well. The modules of 50’ X 50’ and 20’ X 20’ are converted to cubes and these two cubes form the basic geometry. Each cube takes the form of the tumbling blocks pattern of the quilt code. The cube is broken down by this pattern such that only fragments of the cube remain. This is done mainly to explore the possibilities of deriving form from ornament. But in the park design form was manipulated by ornament. The cubes are subject to certain transformational tools mentioned in
Eisenman’s process for the Aronoff Center. Two sets of 50’ X 50’ and 20’ X 20’ cubes are rotated and copied along two segmented lines. The segmented lines are formed by rotating the 50’ X 50’ cube towards the tower grid and the 20’ X 20’ cube towards the street grid. Figure 63 Integration of Street and Tower grids
65 The interesting aspect of this process is that the cubes overlap to form intersecting spaces called transition spaces in this project because they transform from one condition to another. This relates to memory as well because there is a state of transition when we try to re-member something from the past in order to link it to the future. The present becomes a state of transition. The focus of
‘ornament creating form’ will be in these transition spaces. Some such identifiable spaces are entrance to the building which is a transition from outside to inside, intersected spaces between cubes, and movement from lobby area to library entrance and access from the lobby to the auditorium. Figure 64 In the next phase of the design, the major programmatic elements such as the auditorium, Cubes translated across segmented line library and entrance foyer were organized in plan. Once this conceptual stage was complete, a unique space started to appear in plan. It is a long running passageway linking the lobby to the exit door that opens onto a landscaped garden. This is a large transition space because before you reach the exit door there are paths that allow people to enter into the auditorium. This space is envisioned to be semi enclosed, providing pleasant views of the garden.
In stead of detailing the plan of this building, a reverse methodology will be followed. This approach involves the design of each of these transition spaces such that only fragments of the design will be visible at a time. Once these details are resolved, the other aspects of the design will come to light. Hence the idea is to work from part to whole just as Scarpa designed to create his Figure 65 highly fragmented architecture. The details at the transition points also act as viewfinders, trying to Two copies of tower and street cubes made along segmented lines
66 capture subsequent views of movement through space. For example, the entrance to this building has a unique condition. The entry door is surrounded by the library on one side and the passageway on the other side. The wall abutting the door has a fragment of the log cabin pattern built on its inner face. The door takes the other fragment of this pattern. The door opens by sliding onto the wall and completes the whole log cabin pattern. These types of details will fuse the entire design together to from the three dimensional forms and the spaces that they enclose. Figure 66 View from inside of the building
Figure 67 Door closed condition
Figure 68 Door open condition
67 PART V: REFLECTION
We notice that in the works of Carlo Scarpa the design process emerges as a result of details by bringing the part to a whole which in turn leads to a narration of his architecture through ornament. The details become the generators of ornament and the ornament in turn, is transformed into spaces. Scarpa’s architectural details leave behind enough fragments to understand that the ziggurat and interlocking circles become the form generators in the Brion Sanctuary. Not only is
‘constructed ornament’ present but also applied ornamentation is seen in the ziggurat motifs on the exterior walls of the funeral chapel. In this case, the concept of applied ornament is not an appendage to the façade. It has strong three dimensional qualities built into it. The difficulty arises in placing Scarpa’s architecture in a particular category of ornamentation. His forms and spaces are a synthesis of fragments from ‘structure ornamented,’ ‘applied ornamentation’, ‘ornament structuralized’ and ‘ornament constructed.’ Each of these characters is present in some condition or another. A beautiful fusion of all these elements creates a rich architecture. The ornaments also act as a gateway to framed views of space beyond what is immediately visible. In Scarpa’s architecture,
‘Re-membering’ comes from the idea of ‘Re-assembling’ details (parts) together to form a single frame shot (whole) in space. It should be noted that the frame shot is still a small fragment of the whole building. Several frame shots arranged in a sequence create the movement through space.
Hence ornament is not only a tectonic condition but also an inherent property which cannot be
68 avoided in Scarpa’s buildings. We could conclude by stating that form is not solely derived from ornament but rather from a constant interaction between form and ornament, in this case, the detail.
The semantic nature of the project arises from all these elements mentioned above and the syntax is the set of rules that Scarpa uses to apply certain transformations which has been the most challenging aspect to decode.
In the Aronoff Center the concept of part to whole is quite different. Scarpa uses details as the starting point of his projects, while Eisenman uses the rectanguloid as the base geometry to generate the form of the Aronoff Center. Here, the rectaguloid is the detail that drives the design process. This brings a new understanding that detail arises as a result of scale changes and transformations of an object. The rectanguloid is a form that is large in scale compared to the details in Scarpa’s architecture which are minute. The spaces within the building are in a state of constant flux because of the varied interior forms and forced perspectives formed as a result of scale transformational. Ornamentation is not just seen in the etchings left from the traces of the design process but also built into the form if we agree that one unit, in this case the rectanguloid, creates the whole form by several iterations. These transformed volumes create a series of frame shots that constantly change as the subject moves further into the building. These frame shots have different scalar components as compared to the Brion Sanctuary since there is no focus on details.
Eisenman’s process is more tilted towards the syntactical approach to design because of all the rules of transformation applied to manipulate a single object. This does not mean that the semantic
69 language is lacking in the Aronoff. It is rather minimized and seen mainly in the etchings or grid lines that constitute memory lines. Without these grid lines there would be no memory of relating the traces of the design process. Hence the notion of Re-membering arises from the grid lines that carry memories of each line drawn when the architect was designing the building. Here, ornament becomes a personalized factor of explicitly displaying an architect’s individual interest in design.
In both the design processes, it would be appropriate to say that the buildings create reactions instead of an action and ornament is reacting constantly based on each observer’s view of the depicted space. Ornament leads to a continuous dialogue between object (building) and subject and in this aspect it becomes dynamic and stimulates a thoughtful dialogue. Ornament performs an interactive role of memory and invention that act as catalysts for visual perception. It is evident now that ornament is not just a decorative element applied to beautify a building but also a method to express or narrate the story of a building in a metaphorical way. The exploration of the Brion
Sanctuary has provided a richer understanding of ornament wherein the detail is the only element that links the building to its structure in a highly semantic manner. It is also true that very complex forms are developed by a simple ornamental detail. The difference visible in twenty first century architecture is that the language of ornament has taken the role of making the design process explicit in delivering the tale of a building. In this way, ornament has proceeded from a troped component in Greek Classical architecture to structural elements in Modern Architecture and then to a tectonic condition in Scarpa’s buildings to a tool to explicitly display the design in Eisenman’s
70 process. Ornament and form have an interdependent relationship and one cannot work with the other. The same applies to syntax and semantic where one cannot exist without the other. Overall, ornament has significant theoretical interpretations in enhancing and codifying the architectural experience.
From these ideas we can try to define the realm of ornamentation although an overall definition does not do justice to these explorations. Ornament is the action frozen in time between the syntactic and semantic elements of a design process in order to create a rich, meaningful and memorable architectural experience.
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