Point: Alternatives

According to dictionary.com the word alternative means employing or following nontraditional or unconventional ideas, methods, etc.; existing outside the establishment. The alternatives unit of History class is best described by this definition because there was a lot of recognition of rules followed by breaking those rules and rebellion. The unit was about testing boundaries and stretching resources and structural systems to their absolute confines in architecture. In other cases it was about exploring all different types of ideas and thoughts and combining them together to form one. Majority of design has to start somewhere since there are places to take inspiration from.

If ever architecture expresses spirituality and worship, it would be during the medieval Gothic time period. Gothic was a form that humbled man and glorified God. Focusing on verticality, this style brought inventive new construction methods that allowed churches, as well as other structures, reach grand heights. Most floor plans resembled that of a cross with the long nave and transepts. Pointed arches supported the roof giving it remarkable strength and stability and allowing the walls to be thinner. Borrowing and expanding on the early Romanesque’s period barrel vault, Gothic architects introduced the technique of ribbed vaulting. Flying buttresses were also introduced to further stabilize these massive structures in this time period.

During the Renaissance, the idea was to give a face-lift to the classicism period while still borrowing from the Gothic. It was in this time when villas and palazzos became more popular among those who could afford them and were focused on comfort and functionality. While the Gothic period was asymmetrical and complex the Renaissance period was about symmetry, careful proportions and geometry as established in classical antiquity. Andrea Palladio, also known as “the most influential architect of the whole Renaissance,” for his most copied from the Villa Capra, professed an original idea where sanctuary, leisure and entertainment were no longer expresses publicly, but privately amongst families. As the Renaissance because more apparent so did its rules. Man is the measure of all things, separation of spaces, harmony through repetition, geometric patterning and no building is just one style are all indicators of this period and emphasize its turning point in history.

A style that was an outcome of the Renaissance would be the Baroque period. Rules that were indicative of this period could be fluidity, challenging authority, lack of boundaries, testing limits, innovative and theatrical. The best comparison to use when discussing the Renaissance period and the Baroque period would be the two David’s; Michelangelo’s and Bernini’s. The statue of David by Michelangelo is a common ancient Greek theme of the eminent heroic male nude. The figure stands with one leg experiencing its entire weight with the other leg relaxed. The proportions are said to follow the classical proportion of scale. On the other hand, Bernini’s statue of David is a three-dimensional work that challenges viewers to walk around it and experience it from all aspects. This challenges most Renaissance statues which were strictly frontal and meant to be viewed from one side only. Bernini’s statue was an example of thinking outside the box, breaking boundaries, it showed movement and liveliness.

While Gothic and the start of the Renaissance time periods stayed focused on classicism and revamp the alternatives were not truly seen until the later of the Renaissance and the start of the Baroque period. Emphasis and creativity of design were more widespread throughout these times when people were not afraid of the consequences of not following the rules. 

image can be found here.

 I chose this image because although specific directions and ideas are pointed out to us, it does not mean we're forced to follow those predestined paths. Creativity cannot be contained by rules. The main rule to remember is, there are no rules.

rEading cOmprehension 4...

-- 1. Although each of the artifacts given are evidently different, there are also visible similarities within them all. The complexity and sophistication of details that are effortlessly seen represent not only the level of taste acquired by the owner but the amount of wealth also. This group of items characterizes symmetry on the y-axis because if folded in half vertically the two balanced halves would be identical. Noticeably, there is a large amount of repetition in the details, as well as, containments and geometric boundaries. Unmistakably, there is a sense of fluidity within these artifacts with their curved lines.

Spaces are designed to represent the differences in wealth, class or tastes. However, instead of discussing the differences between these particular spaces I’ll talk about the similarities. All five of these spaces make a dynamic statement in one way or another. This is accomplished by either using extravagant patterns to make vivacious textures and transitions from the walls, furniture or ceiling, like the Holkam Hall, or, as seen in Gunston Hall, singling out a particular design element and taking it beyond function to turn it into a statement. There is also a clear balance through repetition among these spaces. Specific visual elements and design elements which are repeated throughout help to achieve this. Large levels of contrast from dark to light are evident, in addition to, compartmentalization of definite features.

Buildings tell stories using their facades, choice of colors and design elements. These buildings in particular focus more on symmetry and geometry rather than how pretty they can look. Contrast, plus hierarchy, is evident by using darker and lighter colored materials. Color seems to be an important aspect in the language used because the repeating elements are all of similar colors. There is also contrast shown between the voids between columns or windows and the solids of the buildings walls. The entry ways are embellished to emphasize the centralized axis of these structures. The symmetrical balance of these arrangements creates a sense of harmony and lucidity.

Although the locations of all these artifacts, spaces, buildings and places differ, there’s one idea that remains the same, as Augustin Charles D’Aviler described in Roth, “those architects [who] consider their caprices to be ingenious inventions, and say that it is an error to constrain oneself by the rules, when one can make new ones,” (Roth; p. 397) the rules of ancient architecture have been recognized, and ignored.

-- 2. During the Noe-Palladian and Late Georgian periods the focus was on monumental proportions. They weren’t interested in straying much from the rules of classicism, but re-interpreting them. Within their structures it was not uncommon to see classical details such as ornamentation and certain types of materials in rich finishes. The focus was on structure and aesthetics as a couple. The Louis XVI and French Provincial periods were more about mathematical proportions and coherent arrangement. This brought more stability, minimal ornamentation on facades and precision. Emphasized toward the peasants and bourgeoisie located in rural areas, the French Provincial period in particular focused on local tastes and traditions in the architecture.

To me it would only make sense that the early American colonies copied designs from their founding countries in Europe. Architecture has a lot to do with starting with a foundation, or a prototype, and evolving it into something new and different. Europe was the prototype for the American colonies. They started with what knowledge they had, what they’ve already experienced, and built upon it to reflect their new society. The reoccurring design elements and principles were maintained; symmetry, repetition, contrast, lines, centrality, proportion, etc., but the use of materials changed as well as the stories told. Roth explained well how new social orders partake in the design realm by saying, “first, as in any period of artistic creativity in which the goal is to achieve a state of stasis, once that goal is reached, a reaction sets in.” (p.398) There’s always an attempt to perfect architectural character.

-- 3. Palladian villas were majorly based on symmetry and proportion. There was a reason why certain rooms were specific sizes. In a typical villa the rooms had a square or rectangular plan equal to either 1 1/3, 1 1/2 or 1 2/3 squares or at most 2 squares. They possessed a central vertical axis, a cube-like area capped with a dome over the center, a round salon and identical temple porches on all four sides. However, based off the music provided it made me think slightly differently. In my head I saw this villa without a dome and with two main entry ways rather than the four. The music to me sounded structural and not very free-flowing, so the movement throughout is slightly more linear, depending where you stand.

-- 4. The style of architecture in the Baroque time period can be described as an outlet for creativity to be seen by the masses, the breaking of limits, fluid and theatrical. In acting, the stage is used to captivate the audiences with what seems to be a perfect reflection of life. It encompasses the ideas of the ideal and reflects it back to society. Baroque theater evolved all art forms and meshed them together to become a unified whole to grant a multimedia experience to the spectators. All of these ideas about the theater can be spotted within the architecture of this period. The idea of one extravagantly decorated façade, as we talked about in class discussion, is similar to face paint or make-up used in performances on stage. Gathering different types of ancient architectural elements and ideas and fusing them together to create an entirely new idea was what it was all about during this time, acknowledging the rules then breaking them. How can you deny that the Baroque period stands as a form of social performance in the theater of the world when theatrum mundi, or “the world is a stage,” became the motto for the age. In Roth he described how “in baroque architecture and art, the line between three-dimensional reality and mystical illusion was increasingly blurred.” (p.404) Throughout this time architecture was about optical illusions and visual games, thinking outside of the box and straying away from tradition.

Point: Foundations

Foundations are the basis and groundwork for all structures. They are the prepared base in which most structures rest on, an establishment. Without a strong, sturdy foundation objects would deteriorate and fall apart. Our foundations unit started with the early settlements of Mesopotamia, China, the Ohio Valley and Teotihuacan. Here we saw the advancement from horizontal lines moving across the land, to circles and then to stacking as different styles of getting an important point across. From these representations the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece and Rome adopted and supplied us with majority of the archetypes, prototypes and hybrids of foundations. They took these previous ideas and built upon them turning them into their own, advanced ideas.

To start, Egypt implemented the idea of the stacking concept in their tombs for the kings. Giant stones stacked and stacked on top of each other to unbelievable heights were uncalled of within this time period. The amount of exertion it would have taken is unthinkable. There are a few theories to how this came about but, without direct proof, all we can do is speculate. The Egyptian pyramids advanced our explorations of the horizontal and vertical axes. In ancient times it was believed that the world was square rather than the spherical shape we know it to be today. The golden tip resting on the top of the pyramids were meant to absorb the light from the sun and disperse it through the base to horizontally reach the four corners of the Earth. The vertical aspect was height used to relate earth and its people to the Gods. The higher a structure was, the closer the buried was thought to be to God. There was also a difference in gender roles shown in Egypt, as with the Pyramids of Giza versus the Temple Hatshepsut. The Pyramids of Giza were quite large and stood out against its surroundings with its white limestone covered shell and colorful hieroglyphics. Hatshepsut’s temple, on the other hand, blended into a Cliffside and was structurally horizontal.

Greece used Egypt as it’s prototype for design. The Egyptians started with a papyrus column and the Greeks further developed that idea ending up with the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian columns. They also incorporated the stacking concept when building the columns, which were made up of smaller pieces of stone stacked on top of each other. Their temples focused more on the Gods and Goddesses they worshipped but the gender roles were not so definite. Take the Parthenon in the Acropolis, a temple built for the goddess Athena, which is more dominant than the other temples surrounding it. The Greeks also moved more toward a-symmetrical axis design. Although the Greeks did borrow ideas from the ancient Egyptians, they built upon those thoughts and took from real to ideal.

Rome took us for a bit of a loop. Making use of the designs from the ancient Egyptians and Greeks, they spun in a different direction to move forward. Rome’s daily life was focused on the people. Instead of using the lessons learned about stacking and columns for structural purposes, they merely threw all aspects into one using the columns as more of a visual aid. They incorporated the stacking concept but further produced it using arches, which made the composition more structurally sound. Using these new developments they produced the mega-structure we know as the Coliseum. Again we see a representation of gender roles in Rome with the Wu-Wu, the male depiction, and the Arch, the female depiction. By having these architectural elements to refer to from the past, the Romans have helped to build upon this strong foundation system we have to refer to today.

In present times, we still continue to see the advancements of these aspects and elements of design made by the ancient Egyptians, Grecians and Romans. The only direction to move in now is forward. Foundations aren’t left behind; they are picked up and carried with us along the way.

rEading cOmprehension 3...

1. A- Inside/Outside (Cologne vs. Salisbury); The Cologne Cathedral and the Salisbury Cathedral have extremely similar interiors but differ on the outside. They were both based on the Basilica form borrowed from the Romans and most commonly had a ground plan of the Jewish cross, with the long nave. This form serves as functional because it allows the building to be divided into sections where different activities can take place, or that are occupied by different people, such as the clergy, the choir and the laity. It also served the purpose to perform the initiation process of faith.
The Salisbury Cathedral’s exterior’s facade is wider and shorter than that of the Cologne Cathedral. England concentrated on more the balance of verticality and horizontality, even though the structure still made a huge statement to the people. The flying buttresses of Salisbury were smaller in size because there was less weight to counter. While at Salisbury the attention was more grounded, at The Cologne Cathedral the Germans concentrated on slender verticality because of its urban location and reaching high to the heavens to show religious superiority. Having two spires at the entrance verses the one in Salisbury accentuates the importance of receiving God by having these clearly indicate the entrance.
These two structures differ externally because although the religious beliefs and practices are similar, the depictions of their faiths are different. Location also has an effect. Salisbury is more of a rural area. With the presence of its outside court it implies more concentration on prayer and being one with God through rumination. Cologne concentrates more on how high you can get physically to the Heavens and shows of the vertical height.

B- Composition (Cologne vs. Amiens); In my opinion there are differences between a one-tower and two-tower cathedral. Normally, two-tower cathedrals have them situated in the front which is logical if the point is to direct people into the Christianity faith. They act as giant arrows pointing down saying “Enter Here”. They also serve multiple purposes. The towers hold bells that announce special events and ceremonies and possess windows to reflect light for a mystifying experience.

C- Symbol (Cologne vs. Florence); Florence’s Duomo symbolically aids an understanding of the rebirth of antiquity because of its massive dome. The largest dome since the Pantheon, it represented the similar engineering power as the Romans. They not only accomplished the structure of the antiquity dome but went above and beyond pushing the human potential beyond means.
The Cologne Cathedral symbolizes the idea of heaven on earth. The stained glass windows filter sparkling, diffused light into the inside. The infinite height brings a feeling of lightness and contentment. It forms the perfect location to reflect your connection between this world and the next.
The meanings of both cathedrals are designed to motivate the people’s faith and beliefs. The Duomo further concentrates on human potential and pushing beyond all means, while Cologne is meant to keep focus on a close relationship with God and acceptance into the next life or heaven. The materials used on the interior are very similar in that both contain the clerestory and stained glass windows to filter light into the space as well as the barrel vault. The Duomo strayed away from the heavy stone and implemented the brick, especially for use on the roof, being that brick is lighter.
As for the people of the environment, I do believe they laid their symbols upon the Cologne Cathedral. However, because this structure has been maintained over a long period of time, these symbols may no longer be present or have been altered in some shape or form.

2. The domestic, medieval interior was usually a setting where people enjoyed tranquility and prosperity. The woman in the picture seems to be located in the kitchen. The kitchen was typically a detached building from the main home in either a square or rectangular shape. It was connected with the hall by a passage. Commonly located on the ground floor, the kitchen was very distinctive as a safety measure against fires. The ceiling was usually vaulted to further protect against fires. Within the space were stoves and ovens, a table and three-legged stools. Everything necessary for use in the kitchen was available on the spot.