Words of Architectural Theory Volume 2 Fall 2019 / Winter 2020 Words of Architectural Theory Volume II Fall 2019 / Winter 2020 ARCH 5006EL / Architectural Theory Seminar Professor Izabel Amaral, PhD. Words of Architectural Theory Volume II ARCH 5006 EL Architectural Theory Seminar Professor Dr. Izabel Amaral McEwen School of Architecture 85 Elm St, Sudbury ON P3C 1T3 Table of Contents Introduction 4 Izabel Amaral Alex Klein Gunnewiek Complexity 6 Henry Dyck Embodiment 12 Jessica Haire 18 April Machum Expression Emilie Valiquette Geometry 24 Hamza Adenali Suleman Khan Historicism 30 Lisa Hoshowsky Eischezsorush Sadiq Innovation 36 Eric Lalonde Brianne Lauzon 42 Noémie Lavigne Memory Emilie Renaud 48 Clare Chatigny Movement Joshua Vitez Marina Schwellnus 54 Ornament Stacy Smith Bryce Jaekel Pattern 60 Taylor McGee Alisha Bishop Place 66 Holly Sutton Trevor D’Orazio Post-modernism 72 Jacob Riehl Benoît Lachapelle Proportion 78 Devon Legge Marie Jankovich 84 Semiotics Celina Rios-Nadeau Ra’anaa Brown 90 Spatial Politics Keegan McGowan Shayne Bol 96 Sustainability Adam Petit 102 Prabhjit Brar Technology Jordan Feldberg Margaret Burt Uncanny 108 Michelle Philip Chris Baziw 114 Utopia Matt Hunter Bibliography 120 Dictionary of Architectural Theory Vol. II Introduction Izabel Amaral Students from the course Architectural Theory Seminar in a Sharing circle with knowledge keeper Will Morin, September 2019. Photography by Izabel Amaral. 4 Live and moving words Started with the McEwen School of Architecture each and every one to deeply connect architecture to Charter class in 2018, this project proposed the study of its fundamental mission of caring and creaing places architectural theory through a compilaion of essays on for life. As words carry ideas of life and movement in the speciic terms that have developed signiicant importance Anishinabek language, Will brought a powerful image to to the discipline of architecture throughout past or recent interpret this project, as students contemplated in their history. Not only a methodological route that facilitates essays the phenomenon of words being alive and moving the understanding of a complex subject by a subdivision through ime, cultures and disciplines. into smaller navigable units, the study of words has the objecive of unveiling historical trajectories, cultural The compilaion of nineteen essays on inluences and a collecion of meanings that will the following pages covers a range of meanings and contribute to each students’ relecive pracice in the approaches to the study of architectural theory. Each future. essay comes with syntheic deiniions, translaions to French and Ojibway, as well as with illustraions that For this second volume of Words of Architecture complement the reading and show our discipline's strong Theory, we coninued to invesigate architecture as a connecion to the realm of images. form of cultural pracice that overlays muliple ways of knowing. During fall 2019, the course “Architectural Five essays unveil relaions of architecture Theory Seminar” orchestrated a careful confrontaion to other arisic disciplines, as we can read in the texts of ideas, through presentaions and the readings of key about the noions of Expression, Geometry, Ornament, texts in architectural theory. We have welcomed a few Patern and Proporion. Four essays bring forth scholars to this class that have presented their research arguments about the relaion of architecture to natural on philosophy, theory of architecture or indigenous or human sciences, as shown on the entries about ways of knowing. We are very grateful to professors Complexity, Semioics, Sustainability and Technology. Jean-Pierre Chupin, Carmela Cucuzzella, David Forin The essays on the noions of Historicism, Postmodernism and François Côté-Vaillancourt for enriching some of and Spaial Poliics invesigate the inluence of socio- our Wednesday aternoons with thoughful content and historical condiions, poliical and arisic movements to discussion. Knowledge keeper Will Morin brought to our architectural theory, while the essays on Embodiment class a deep quesioning of our place in the world. The and Movement dig into tangible aspects of condiions photograph to the right depicts an acivity of weaving a that generate our percepion and self-construcion of giant Dream Catcher with the group, during which Will the built environment. Finally, ive essays invesigate the asked about the essence of his lessons of respect and importance of abstract thinking to architectural theory, life from Anishinabek culture. During this acivity, we exempliied in the entries on Innovaion, Memory, Place, proclaimed words about our mission in the world, forcing Uncanny, and Utopia. 5 Dictionary of Architectural Theory Vol. II 6King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Centre, Zaha Hadid Architects, 2017 , Boromini, Commissioned 1634 Klein Gunnewiek and Dyck : Complexity “When circumstances defy order, order should bend or break: anomalies and uncertainties give validity to architecture.” 1 -Robert Venturi Complexity by : Alex Klein Gunnewiek and Henry Dyck 7 Dictionary of Architectural Theory Vol. II Complexity (n) / (adj) /kəmˈpleksədē/ From its etymological roots complexity takes the many as a perspecive of seeing them as a whole. Derived from the Lain word complicaionem complexity Complexity in context of the combines the parts com – with/together, and plicare – larger theoretical framework of to fold/weave - which form the primary understanding architecture, is the interaction of the word.2 Complexity and our ability to synthesize between two or more elements or an understanding of it, is evident in our ability to place systems whose whole is greater ourselves within the interacions of the world.3 Due to than the sum of their individual its self-evidency, complexity and the synthesis of its ideas parts; these are the interaction’s are prevalent in nearly every ield of study, which follow emergent properties [Gestalt]. For a common methodology for reconciling a concepion of complexity theory the scale of the complexity. emergent properties is directly proportionate to the concurrence of A primary understanding of the evoluion the elements or systems in a given of the theory of complexity comes from the scieniic interaction. ield, which originates from the Newtonian worldview of reducionist thought. In this worldview the world French: is perceived as a series of interacions which can then Complexité be broken down into individual components.4 In this worldview complexity is viewed as the parts of the world Dutch: that have not yet been raionalized or broken down Ingewikkeldheid, enough into their fundamental components to have a Samengesteldheid ‘full understanding’ of the properies of the interacions.5 or, complexiteit Newtonian Science seeks to provide an objecive understanding of individual things / paterns within the Theorists world, but it does not seek to understand the prope ries Robert Venturi of systems of interacions. Vitorio Gregoi Charles Jencks 1. Robert Venturi, Complexity and Contradicion in Architecture (New York: The 5. Francis Heylighen, et al. “ Complexity and Philosophy,” in Complexity, Science and Museum of Modern Art, 1977). P. 41 Society, (CRC Press, 2007), p. 120 2. “Complexity | Search Online Etymology Dicionary.” Accessed September 15, 2019. htps://www.etymonline.com/search?q=complexity+. 3. Gregoi, Vitorio. “Lecture at the New York Architectural League.” Secion A vol. I, no. 1 (Montreal: February/March 1983.) 4. Andrew Janiak, “Newton’s Philosophy,” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Stanford University, May 6, 2014), htps://plato.stanford.edu/entries/newton- philosophy/. 8 Klein Gunnewiek & Dyck : Complexity San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, Boromini, Commissioned 1634 9 Dictionary of Architectural Theory Vol. II Figure 2 School of Fish; demonstrates the pattern of emergent properties rising out from the patterns of the individual ish swimming. The worldview of Holism & Emergence processes occurring staisically are directly linked to (or General Systems Theory) seeks to address the macroscopic observaion);9 computaional modeling inadequacies resuling from a reducionist worldview of complex interacions; and biological evoluion (blind held by the Newtonian perspecive. This world view is variaion and natural selecion).10 These systems are built fundamentally of of the idea that the whole of a fairly robust in developing an understanding of the system of interacions is greater than the sum of their operaion in the world, however, our ability to implement parts.6 This worldview extends the Newtonian Theory by Complexity Theory in disciplines outside of the scieniic looking not just of the consituent parts of a system but ield has been overshadowed by the small subset of also looking at the sum of the whole. However, due to the Chaos Theory.11 (Chaos Theory only deals with systems numerous interacions in a given system the whole and that are highly sensiive to iniial condiions and diverge the parts are studied separately; macro & micro scales.7 widely from each other, making long-term predicions In these ields of study it is generally accepted that the next to impossible.)12 Complexity Theory and its rise micro is the study of the individual agents and the macro to prominence in the 20th century parallels with the studies the emergent characterisics of the interacions rise of designers implemening a more complex and of the individuals. However, the sum of the individual comprehensive understanding of interacions within the agents