dan calverley - critical study report

7/30/2019 Dan Calverley - Critical Study Report

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DANIEL CALVERLEY

Does the digital / future architecture styles detract from the human aspect of architectural

design?

BA (Hons) Architecture

Leeds Metropolitan University

2012


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Does the

digital / future

architecture

styles detract

from the

human

aspect of

architectural

design?


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Contents

Illustrations Page 5

Introduction Page 8

Developing the future style through historic p recedent

Introduction of the Urban City Page 10

The Futurist Movement Page 11

The work of Archigram Page 12

Future buildings in the modern age Page 13

Defining a future Architectural Style

Economic Sustainability Page 17

Environmental Sustainability Page 18Social Sustainability Page 21

Conclusion Page 23

Notes Page 24

Biography Page 25


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Illustrations

Title Page- Hweler + Yoon Architecture - Audi Urban Future Competition Entry -

www.aasarchitecture.com - Page 3

Developing Future Styles Cover Page - Harvey Wiley Corbett, Future New York - 1913 -

http://metropolisoftomorrow.tumblr.com - Page 8

Defining a future architectural Style Cover Page - Studio Gang, Aqua Tower, Chicago- 2006

- http://jump.dexigner.com/directory/15419 - Page 15

Figure 1 External Photo of Reux de Amiraux, Paris by Sauvage & Sarrasin built in 1912

parisinvisible.blogspot.co.uk - Page 9

Figure 2Cross Section of Reux de Amiraux, Paris by Sauvage & Sarrasin built in 1912


Figure 3Swimming pool entrance photo, Reux de Amiraux, Paris by Sauvage & Sarrasin

built in 1912 parisinvisible.blogspot.co.uk - Page 9

Figure 4External Photo of Reux de Amiraux, Paris by Sauvage & Sarrasin built in 1912


Figure 5La Citta Nouva by Antonia SaintElia 1914 - The Citt Nuova apartment building

with external elevators, galleries, covered walkways, on three street levels (tramlines,

automobile lanes, and pedestrian walkway), lamps and wireless telegraph -

www.arttatler.com - Page 11

Figure 6- Plug-in-city by Archigram - Axonometric drawing - .www.archigram.net - Page 12

Figure 7- Plug-in-city by Archigram - Concept Elevation Drawing - .www.archigram.net -

Page 12

Figure 8- A Walking City by Archigram - Module Elevation Drawing - www.archigram.net -

Page 12

Figure 9- A Walking City by Archigram - Concept sketch perspective Drawing -

www.archigram.net - Page 12
http://www.mystudio.us/http://www.aasarchitecture.com/http://metropolisoftomorrow.tumblr.com/http://jump.dexigner.com/directory/15419%20-%20Page%2014http://www.arttatler.com/http://www.archigram.net/http://www.archigram.net/http://www.archigram.net/http://www.archigram.net/http://www.arttatler.com/http://jump.dexigner.com/directory/15419%20-%20Page%2014http://metropolisoftomorrow.tumblr.com/http://www.aasarchitecture.com/http://www.mystudio.us/


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Figure 10 -Global Cities, London by Zaha Hadid Architects - Proposed Masterplan Render

- www.zaha-hadid.com - Page 13

Figure 11 -Global Cities, London by Zaha Hadid Architects - Proposed Masterplan Render

- www.zaha-hadid.com - Page 13

Figure 12Park Hill, Sheffield by Egret West Architects - Exterior photographs -

www.egretwest.com - Page 17

Figure 12Park Hill, Sheffield by Egret West Architects - Exterior photographs -

www.egretwest.com - Page 17

Figure 14Published records of surface temperature change over large regions. Source:

IPCC 2007 - Page 18

Figure 15Projected changes in global average temperatures under three emissions

scenarios (rows) for three different time periods (columns). Source:NRC (2010 - Page 18

Figure 16 Urban Farm, New York City by Vincent Callebaut Architects External Renders

- http://www.tuvie.com/dragonfly-a-metabolic-farm-for-new-york-city-in-the-future/ - Page 20

Figure 17 Urban Farm, New York City by Vincent Callebaut Architects External Renders

- http://www.tuvie.com/dragonfly-a-metabolic-farm-for-new-york-city-in-the-future/ - Page 20

Figure 19 -Sustainability Model Diagrams - Page 21
http://www.egretwest.com/http://www.egretwest.com/http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12782&page=223http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12782&page=223http://www.egretwest.com/http://www.egretwest.com/


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Not much longer shall we have time for reading lessons of the past. An inexorable present

calls us to the defense of a great future. - Henry Luce


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Do digital / future architectural styles detract from the human aspect of architectural

design?

_________________________________________________________________________

Introduction

In this paper, I am going to raise arguments which will enable me to conclude whether the

future architectural style detracts from human aspect and whether human form, movement

and use is disregarded as a driver within the design process and focuses more on a

sustainable or economic viewpoint.

To allow me to achieve a valid argument I first need to define the possible future style of

architecture, and track the historic development of futurist movements. It is also important

to factor in variables which have and will affect architecture in general i.e. computation,

climate change etc.


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Developing the future style

through historic precedent


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Introduction of the Urban City

Through industrialisation, mass exodus of the countryside and increased population, the

urban development of the western world exploded, with urban areas became denser and

vastly increased the size of cities. This development was unprecedented and provided a

new platform for future thinking and for exploring new technologies.

A major concern with the increase in densi ty and increased population was hygiene. The

solutions for this focused on ventilation, sunlight and the ability for a buildings fabric to not

deteriorate and be washed. This theory formed a basis for all urban development and

singular structures, which would dominate architectural thought until almost the final third of

the twentieth century.1

One of the first buildings to adopt theses principals was a low-cost apartment scheme at

Reux de Amiraux, Paris, designed by Henri Sauvage and Charles Sarrasin ( Fig 1-4). These

apartments were advertised as hygienic and althetic1

apartments due to the stepped form of

the floors allowing increased sunlight and external space, and internal courtyard to allow

through ventilation, tiled facade to allow it to be cleaned and the provision of a swimming

pool.

Figure 1

Figure 3 Figure 4

Figure 2


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Figure 1 External Photo of Reux de Amiraux, Paris by Sauvage & Sarrasin built in 1912

Figure 2Cross Section of Reux de Amiraux, Paris by Sauvage & Sarrasin built in 1912

Figure 3Swimming pool entrance photo, Reux de Amiraux, Paris by Sauvage & Sarrasin built in 1912

Figure 4External Photo of Reux de Amiraux, Paris by Sauvage & Sarrasin b uilt in 1912

The Futurist Movement

Archi tects, Designers and art ists saw this new development as a huge opportunity. An

opportunity to start looking forward, disregard historic precedent and design for the future.

The beliefs and study of this became known as the Futurist movement, which emphasized

futuristic themes including, speed, technology, industrialisation, youth, the urban setting,

violence and war.2

Art (...) can be nothing but violence, cruelty and injustice (Marinetti, 1909). This is an

extract from a piece of writing called Manifeste du futurism(Futurist Manifesto) by Filippo

Tommase Marinetti. Manifeste du futurismwas published in the French daily newspaperLe

Figaroon 5th

February 1909, which outlined the framework, philosophies and initiated the

futurist movement from then on.

An ear ly exponent of the futur ist movement in architecture is Antonia SaintElia. A builder

by trade; SaintElia opened a design office in Milan in 1912. Here he developed a concept

schemes for a future city, Citt Nuova ("New City") (Fig 5), which he exhibited at Nuove

Tendenze in 1914. His proposals looked at a separation between historic styles a modern

culture and concluded that urban design was needed. His proposals were for a mechanised

industrial city which comprised of large scale interconnected buildings highlighting the

possibilities of new architecture, technology and materials to suite a modern urban society.

Late that year, following the success of his exhibition SaintElia worked in collaboration with

Marinetti to outline a manifesto for architecture within the futurist movement Manifesto

DellArchitecttura Fututista.

The problem of Modern architecture is not a problem of rearranging its lines; not a

question of finding new mouldings; new architraves for doors and windows But to raise

the new-built structure on a sane plan, gleaning every benefit of science and technology

rejecting all that is heavy, grotesque and unsympathetic to us (tradition, style, aesthetics,

proportion). (Saint Elia, 1949)3


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Figure 5 La Citta Nouva by Antonia SaintElia 1914 - The Citt Nuova apartment building with external

elevators, galleries, covered walkways, on three street levels (tramlines, automobile lanes, and pedestrian

walkway), lamps and wireless telegraph

The work of Archigram

Between 1960 and 1974 the work of architectural collaboration Archigram focused on the

metamorphosis of cities and how we live and operate within them. They created a number

of theoretical projects which proposed various solutions to future living and work from

looking at the development of society and how people lived. Similar to the work of

SaintElia, the work ofArchigram looked at the processes of architecture and not

necessarily the buildings, therefore a lot of Archigram's proposals were more of a

framework proposal or an urban design rather than a single building. In 1964 there proposal

for a plug-in-city saw a mega structure framework proposed with standardised living /

working / enjoyment being able to slot in to the framework making the user an integral part

of the framework as a whole. A later project looked at the proposition of a walking city. This


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proposal consisted of intelligent self-contained living robot pods that would roam the city;

this project was highly influenced by the work of Le Corbusier and his proposals of home

being a machine for living.

Figure 6 - Plug-in-city by Archigram - Axonometric drawing

Figure 7 - Plug-in-city by Archigram - Concept Elevation Drawing

Figure 8 - A Walking City by Archigram - Module Elevation Drawing

Figure 9 - A Walking City by Archigram - Concept sketch perspective Drawing

Future buildings in the modern age

In more recent years enhancements in technology have allowed us to convert some of

these more theoretical proposals into physical forms. Our understanding of the properties,

limitations and potential of materials has increased substantially as has the technology we

use to create these buildings. CAD (Computer aided design) was first introduced in the

early 1970s but principally only used by automobile and aircraft designers. Later

improvements to the stability of the software and simplification of the user interface saw

CAD being introduced into other industries in the 1980s although traditional methods of

producing drawings were still being implemented in design studios up to the mid-90s, until

Fig 6 Fig 7

Fig 9

Fig 8


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the explosion PC 3D CAD software and within the last 15 years it is common place that all

Archi tectural pract ices opera te with CAD.

Vast improvements in Parametric Technology allow for calculated 3d modelling of 3D

geometry which would have previously deemed too difficult to model or construct to be

created and tested. These improvements allow for new forms to be created which can

interact better with the environment and the user with sometimes a more aesthetic

approach. This is evident in the work and study of Patrik Schumacher and Zaha Hadid

where they have created a style based around parametricism. For their proposals for

London, which they saw as a wake up call for the architectural and urban sensibility of the

city they implemented urban parametricism as a design tool to reconstruct the fundamental

typological catalogue in terms of field conditions: villas, towers, slabs and urban blocks in

order to reconfigure the urban fabric of the city by applying a digital matrix game of

reconfiguration and interpretation, leading to mutations of both fields and components.4

Figure 10 - Global Cities, London by Zaha Hadid Architects - Proposed Masterplan Render

Figure 11 - Global Cities, London by Zaha Hadid Architects - Proposed Masterplan Render

These developments show how we as designers can improve architecture through looking

forward and projecting how the future can be shaped. This can be achieved simply by

looking at the situation from a different angle, whether it is through influence of art or

through a digital algorithm.

Fig 10 Fig 11


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The problems with futurist precedents is that very little has been built in this area of study,

as they often propose large change, which people are reluctant to commit, due to the

unknown outcome. In time this will have to change as we face large issues in the field of

sustainability, which historic precedents have never successfully tackled.


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Defining a future

architectural style


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The future of architecture is going to be predominantly led by the constraints forced upon it,

with the element of constraints being led by sustainable factors. Sustainability is the 21st

Century buzzword but it is often misconstrued to be a title that identifies environmental

issues, this is, however, incorrect. The literal meaning of sustainability is to have the ability

to sustain. In architectural terms, this is to design a building that can exist for an extendedperiod of time without interruption.

Sustainability is an idea, notion or concept that is triangulated by three important

concepts or ideas. The environment, the economy and society () There is a need to

change the paradime in which we view these elements as there is a constant threat to the

equilibrium of the world and the environment we live in (Mark Raymond, 2011).

I feel that these three elements will dominate the design processes for the majority of future

development.

Economic Sustainability

In late 2007 the global economy took a huge blow and fell into recession. This, in turn had

a fundamental effect on the construction industry and saw building sites closed, companies

folding and substantial unemployment. In 2009 the architects journal survey showed that 50

per cent of the practices surveyed had made staff redundant with at least 13 practices

having 50 or more employees leave their employment. The results of this survey were

released days after foster + partners announced it was making 400 employees redundant.5

According to Bui lding Magazine between February 2008 and March 2009 architects

claiming job seekers allowance rose by 760 per cent.6

The recession has put a lot of pressure on the construction industry. A client can no longer

take huge risks on property acquisitions, governments cannot allocate a budget on facilities

that arent vital, developers need to provide affordable housing and architects are unable

design buildings that will cost a lot of money over its lifespan.

The UK government have encouraged banks to help first time buyers enter the property

market. This is achieved by banks offering high percentage mortgages or shared equity

schemes where a bank or housing agency buys a percentage of the property with the view

that the occupier can buy the whole property at a later stage or sell their share of the

property. In order to achieve an affordable selling price the developer need to make the

scheme financially viable.


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Archi tects Egret West completed the renovation of Park Hi ll , Sheffield (Fig 12 &13) for

developers urban splash. The scheme saw the renovation of a 1960s, Grade II listed,

brutalist style apartment block transformed into a mix of private and social housing. The

affordable aspect of the scheme came from the use of an existing building and the use of

modular construction which allowed the scheme to be controlled off-site, increasing thespeed of construction and in turn reducing the overall cost.

Figure 12 & 13 Park Hill, Sheffield by Egret West Architects - Exterior photographs

With the construction value of affordable living being cheaper it doesnt mean the units will

be any less liveable than a private house or apartment. Most social housing agencies have

to meet certain criterias such as Lifetime homesorDesign and Quality Standards to

provide homes which occupiers are eligible to receive a social housing grant.

Environmental Sustainability

Environmental sustainability is currently one of the most prominent factors taken into

account when design building. It is only within the last 20-30 years that architects really

started to implement environmental strategies when designing buildings. This is down to the

recent realisation of the colossal affect we are having upon the environment. As we are

aware global warming is the rise in temperature of the ea rths environment and oceans, and

has been gradually increasing since the late 19 th century, (See Fig14) having tripled over

Fig 13Fig 12


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the last 100 years. This increase in the earths land and seas average temperature is

projected to further rise (See Fig 15) in the future. Therefore it is very clear that actions do

have to be made to counteract this shocking projection.

Figure 14Published records of surface temperature change over large regions. All time series were smoothed

using a 13-point filter. The Brohan et al. (2006) time series are anomalies from the 1961 to 1990 mean (C).

Each of the other time series was originally presented as anomalies from the mean temperature of a specific

and differing base period. To make them comparable, the other time series have been adjusted to have the

mean of their last 30 years identical to that same period in the Brohan et al. (2006) anomaly time series.

Source: IPCC 2007

Fig 14

Fig 15


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Figure 15Projected changes in global average temperatures under three emissions scenarios (rows)

for three different time periods (columns). Changes in temperatures are relative to 1961 -1990

averages. The scenarios come from the IPCC Special Report on Emissions Scenarios: B1 is a low

emissions scenario, A1B is a medium-high emissions scenario, and A2 is a high emissions scenario.

Source:NRC (2010

The magnitude of this issue is there for everyone to see and it highlights that not only

construction but every industry will need to develop in order to prevent further negative

effect to the environment. This will need to start from a micro scale of people preserving the

electricity we use to a macro scale where governments review the way in which we

generate our power.

The direct effect on architecture is of high significance, ranging from the energy

embodiment of materials, power generation, provisions of natural lighting and external

space and most importantly the amount of energy used through the whole lifespan of a

building.

It does seem there is a certain level of subconscious competition within modern

architecture with the aim to make the most environmentally sustainable building as

possible. This is a good thing of course, but I do feel it can often come at a price. A price

that sees the design of buildings being all about the preservation of the environment and

disregards the human or economic aspects.

For instance, Vincent Callebaut Architects have proposed and Urban Farm for New York

City to encourage people to eat healthier and provide a sustainable food source for the

future. The building will be self-powered via solar and wind. The first criticism of the

proposal was the overall size of the building. The architect proposes a building that is 700m

tall with a surface area of 350,000m2. How can humans relate to a building of such a scale,

even in a city like New York? This is over 150m higher than the current largest building in

New York, One World Trade Centre 7 As well as the lack of human interaction, the

projected costing of the building can in no way relate to the current financial situation mid

global recession. According to the Spons architec ts and bui lders price book 2012, based

on the floor area and a medium quality finish for an industrial building, it would cost

approximately 346.5m.

This example highlights how certain elements of sustainability can be driven by one

stronger element, which people will believe that the building is an exemplar sustainable

building without understanding the full implications.
http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12782&page=223http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12782&page=223http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12782&page=223http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12782&page=223


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Figures 16 & 17 Urban Farm, New York City by Vincent Callebaut Architects External Renders

Social Sustainability

Social sustainability within architecture aims to create social balance and interaction

through careful planning of the built environment. It (the city) is the form of shared

organization of human life, of human relations and coordination through economic, social

and political exchange; it is the reflection of values and culture (Girard 2003, 1). Girarddepicts how the city is the reflection of values and culture, which sadly in the modern world

is dominated by finance. Throughout the world cities have developed, becoming denser and

more financially driven. This, in turn has made city living and activities no longer financially

viable for everyone, suggesting a level of exclusivity of the city.

A pri me example of an unsustainable ci ty is Mumbai, India. In 2010 Mumbai was identi fied

as 7th in the world for the amount millionaires within a city8. In this same city over 20 per

cent of the population are living below the poverty line which is approximately 2.5 million

people9.This is such an astronomical figure of poverty compared to the amount

millionaires that it would take a huge change in social equality to bridge the void between

the two, to create a sustainable society of Mumbai

Christian Ballo of Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility (ADPSR) asks:

For years, the diagram for holistic sustainability was three concentric circles ( Fig 19)

with economic sustainability seen as the pre-requisite for the others. Social sustainability,

in this model, was at the edge of the circle, with the implication that it was the last priority.

Fig 16 Fig 17


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The diagram has evolved into three overlapping circles, suggesting that Environmental,

Economic, and Social Sustainability are of equal importance, but are they treated that way?

Figure 19 - Sustainability Model Diagrams

I would say that they are not treated in this way. As shown in the original graph I would

suggest that that economic sustainability is still at the centre of sustainable factors. And the

emphasis of designing sustainable building needs to shift to designing buildings with people

in mind, to encourage efficient use of energy rather than require the financing of expensive

energy generators that may not be financially viable. As I previously mentioned I also feel

that the environmental aspect of sustainability is given higher precedence over social

factors due to the buzz around the environmental field.

Economic

Environmental

Social

Social

Environmental Economic


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Conclusion

This leads me to conclude that future architectural style is in danger of detracting from the

human aspect. The argument can be made that by enforcing environmental strategies we

are preserving the planet for future generations but if the human issues within architecture

are still to be sidelined this future will be a place of social unrest and inequality with the

large possibility of a social recession.

Archi tects need to understand and balance the d river s for a project and accept a personal

responsibility to deliver a design that is fully sustainable.

It is impossible to know what exactly is going to happen in the future. We have learnt from

historic precedents that we can estimate and propose a building to suit the projections of

the future but it is impossible to test the success of this building when we dont know the

future conditions. Therefore I feel the key to any typology of future architecture is

adaptability and mitigation which allows for buildings, cities and spaces potential to adapt

to expected and unexpected variants.


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Notes

1 See Cohen JL (2012)

2 SeeBerghaus G (2000)

3 See Banham, R (1960)

4 See Zaha Hadid Architects (2007)

5 See Waite R, (2009)

6 See Dave Lowery D, Wright E, Ijeh I (2011)

7 See emporis.com - The largest buildings in New York

8 PTI (2010)

9 Baliga, L (2011)


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Bibliography

Banham, R (1960). Theory and Design in the First Machine Age. Cambridge, MA: MIT

Press

Baliga, L (2011) 1 in 5 Mumbaikars below poverty line The Times of India -

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-23/mumbai/30193453_1_bpl-population-

bpl-survey-poverty-line

Berghaus G (2000). International Futurism in Arts and Literature. Walter de Gruyter & Co.

Cohen, JL (2012), Future Architecture since 1889, Phaidon

CADAZZ (2004) CAD Software history -http://www.cadazz.com/cad-software-history-1970s.htm

Emporis.com - The largest buildings in New York -

http://www.emporis.com/city/newyorkcity-ny-usa/all-buildings/highrise

Garcia, M (2009) Patterrns of architecture London, Wiley

Langdon, D (2012) Spon's Architects' and Builders' Price Book 2012 Taylor & Francis

Long, K (2008) New Architectural Generation London, Lawrence King

Lowery D, Wright E, Ijeh I (2011) Architects and recession: Battered, bruised and broke

Building (2011) - www.building.co.uk

PTI (2010) Mumbai among world's top ten billionaire cities: Forbes The Economic Times -

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2010-03-11/news/27571331_1_billionaires-

forbes-list-shashi-ravi-ruia

Waite, R (2009) 'It's a bloodbath': architects savaged by the recession Architects Journal -

www.architectsjournal.co.uk

Zaha Hadid Architects (2007) http://www.zaha-hadid.com/design/global-cities
http://www.zaha-hadid.com/design/global-citieshttp://www.zaha-hadid.com/design/global-cities

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