Unit Summary 1

Week 1 : Looking in + outward, humans materially encounter the cosmos + construct inhabitable signs + symbols as objects, spaces, buildings + places.

The study of object, space, building and place is important when focusing on the history and theory of design. Looking closely into something at a certain scale can have a very different outcome. If you focus on an object in a building you may gain more information from the object that in return relates back to the building. This process gives you a deeper knowledge of what the building or over all space is about. If you break down something to examine it and then build it back up it tends to make much more sense.

Week 2 : Circles, groves + stacks stand as humanity’s first elements + principles of design throughout a world populated by diverse human expression. 

Humanity’s first elements copied things that we find in nature. Our life experiences help us make the connections between the shapes and what they mean or resemble to us, individually. We associate circles with the sun, moon, and sacred spots. We think of groves as groups of trees, things that reach vertically and groups of people. Stacks can be thought of as mountains and can show hierarchy. These concepts all relate back to the principles of design. The principles of design are contrast, repetition, emphasis, unity, harmony, balance and proportion. It stands true across the world that these shape influence the way we build. These shapes are useful because they emulate the natural environment. 

Do environments influence rituals or do rituals influence environments?

Environments influence rituals. The way an environment is shaped creates the rituals that go on within the space. People move within a space according to how the space is designed. Even if a space is being designed for a certain ritual, the environment around and outside will influence the ritual and why that ritual takes place where it does. 

week 3 : The buildings atop the athens acropolis serve as archetypes for all western architecture + design; elsewhere, humans expand groves + stacks.

The two concepts of groves and stacks are combined and found in many architectural buildings all around the world. Palaces and temples are examples of groves and stacks together. Repetition within a group of columns, such as the ones on the Parthenon, lead a persons eye to the object in the center, which has much more importance. The groves along the outside of the structure are marking the sacred place inside and telling stories about that temple.

week 4 : diverse building types abound in the west. empires stand tall throughout the world. trade routes bring people, goods + ideas into proximity.

Although throughout the west there are many different building types, most follow somewhat of the same guidelines. The guidelines are commodity, meaning useful arrangement, quality and interrelationships, firmness, which talks about the structure and stability of the building, and delight, what makes someone’s eyes happy. “The end is to build well. Well building hath three conditions: commodity, firmness, delight” said Sir Henry Wotton. Building types relied upon what they needed to do within their city. Rome used arches as a support system.