Opus 10

Louis Kahn spoke of silence as the force that drives the creative mind toward knowledge – toward the light. The space between is the design process. We have learned that during the 18th and 19th centuries, architecture moved beyond being defined by the structural, tangible form to also holding technique in high regard as seen through the planning and process depicted in design competitions. The drawings that result have shown to fully investigate site, materiality and form without placing a single element in the ground. These drawings challenged what architecture is. Does a building have to be physically experienced to be considered architecture or can the structure be explained and understood through other means? Building on paper is able to push design ideals, challenge known systems and create innovative ideas to be tested in the field.



Taking technique to another level was the Arts and Crafts movement started by William Morris. In response to the industrial revolution, building construction and furnishings started to be mass produced. This typically meant higher quantity and lower costs, but inferior quality due to profit margins being a driving force. The Arts and Crafts Guild strived to illustrate the importance of craft in construction. They brought technique to the forefront stressing craftsmanship and placing value on hand-made construction, "believ[ing] strongly that good design could only be produced by men and women working creatively with their hands." (Massey, p.12) Their holistic design approach shaped buildings and interiors with intricate detailing, yet simple, clean, natural environments. Their challenge to industrialism and the changes in the design process create a niche in the field of architecture, but the costs associated still make it inaccessible to the middle class.





What was meant as a design movement for the public, ended mostly limited to private spaces due to cost. The ability to reduce costs through mass production allowed for the middle class to acquire more “stuff.” As industry grew and societies changed, a greater need for more specialized spaces emerged. Residences now needed rooms to house this “stuff.” Rooms and furniture were designed as a resting place for the goods of society. As collectibles were exhibited around the room, so were patterns adorning all surfaces to create a space showcasing a person's worldliness. "The 'Artistic' interior became a mark of wealth, status and good taste in the 1880's." (Massey, p. 21) As public items and information moved more rapidly, people strove to create more intimate private spaces in which to reside and relax. The dynamic interaction of public and private needed new means of communication.



Practicing at the same time as the Arts and Crafts Guild were many architects designing classical revivals. Instead of being innovative, using the new technological advances in building materials, and interpreting these styles to coincide with the new ideals of society, the classical language used were mere copies of the past. These again looked back to create order and logic on the landscape or incite revolution through diversion from an accepted style. "It was against a background of such historicism that designers in Beligium and France created a style without historical precedent, that made use of new materials such as iron, and was directed toward the middle classes and intelligentsia rather than the very wealthy." (Massey, p.32) As iron and glass construction rose in availability and affordability, the new structural unit creates an entirely new language in building design. Designers now have the tools to completely shed the past and move design in a new direction.

As time passes and new tools, products and technology are being realized at an incredible rate, virtually anything seems possible. It is at this time that designers begin to choose a direction. At the same time that the Arts and Crafts movement shies away from technology, others are embracing the new products available and beginning to realize new possibilities: new ways of introducing light into the interior environment, new ways of lightening construction and creating a structural system that is independent of its envelope. This new wave of design and construction begins to revolutionize the built environment. "Art Nouveau architect-designers...developed a new language of ornament to suit new building types." (Massey, p. 50) Ornament changed from applied replicas from nature to geometricized representations inlayed within the surface. Other designers used twisted metal, wood and surface designs to create a continuous line of movement through the interior, all with the aim "to dissolve existing barriers between art and design." (Massey, p.58)



As art and technology take the forefront in design - nature, the natural environment takes a back seat for most designers. The excitement of new building types and structures placed less importance on the affects to the natural world, but designers that incorporate both continue to practice and integrate the natural and built environment. Unfortunately as time passes, buildings spring up at an imncredible rate, most of which do not embrace these ideals. They move to the outskirts of the design team for the 20th century but it is here in the 21st century that their knowledge is needed. As the last hundred years have pushed at the limits of the natural world, it has come to society’s attention that we are reaching those limits. We must return to putting the environment first if we wish to continue to inhabit it. And it is designers that must take the lead and introduce these changes to the rest of society. After first showing them excess, we must teach them preservation, conservation, reservation. American society has become reluctant to changing their ways, feeling inadequate without their “things”. Designers must take the reins, embrace technology and improve it – with the end result of not only reducing our impact on the natural environment, but in the hopes of eliminating it.