SKETCHING,THINKING,LEARNING that there is a "good deal of superstition among designers include those forces that led to their resolution or current as to the deathly effect of analysis on their intuitions" condition.28 The objects or systems are epiphenomena remains relatively true,especially for students in the design "dependent on socioeconomic,political,and technologi- field.26 The analysis-as-killjoy myth presupposes that any cal processes"that informed the object's or system's initial visceral and intuitive satisfaction is mutually exclusive of form and,in turn,reinforce subsequent social,political and understanding and knowledge.In fact,analysis can allow technological processes.29 The argument is that in order to for enjoyment of a place,a piece of music or a painting understand a design,the analysis must investigate those and,at the same time,develop a more in-depth under- outside forces or contexts that shaped it:a building is standing.Learning this double-edge approach is critical more than a building.It is the consequence of those forces within which it was created and,reciprocally,the building An analytic methodology must be learned and often in continues to influence the context.Just as socio-cultural stages.When teaching my analysis course or design studio and economic conditions can shape a designed object,the to beginning design students,I do not expect them to designed object(architecture,urban design,product know how to analyze an entire building.Often I ask them to design)can,in turn,take on variegated levels of influence analyze specific elements or sometimes I have them focus within and upon the socio-cultural or economic system. on description only.If we recall the examples cited in the The design environment,by its mere dependence on the Introduction,it can be argued that perspective sketches are economic and social structure and its realities,offers processed representations:the mere act of looking at the confirmatory authorization of the status quo.Architects surroundings and then transferring that image,with some and their work are supported by patrons and a financial degree of discernment and abstraction,to the sketchbook system,built within a given physical and cultural framework page is processing.The experienced view has been (cities,property lines,zoning)and symbolically represent abstracted into a representative image.That said,for many those systems(corporate headquarters,social status,ideas young students,a perspective sketch remains only one of living,working).At most it might guide society gently view or is a single way of abstracting and understanding when the architectural or urban designer proposes slight the design environment.The sketching seeks representa- alternatives to the existing framework,when he or she tional alignment or seeks to look the way the view looks offers alternatives to zoning,works within the public sector Considered as an analysis,the perspective often remains a to shape planning and economic policies or offers alterna- singular description rather than critical,multifaceted inquiry. tive organizational strategies.30 In whatever direction, For an architect developing multiple views and seeing architecture itself does not bring about radical removal of through the building,there is a need to develop alternative the status quo,but at most its alteration. views of which perspectives are just one. The Autonomous Position For the designer who operates within complex systems, An alternative to the dependent,context-bound position is the analysis of similarly complex systems can lead to a the autonomous position,in which objects or systems are methodology of conscious and unconscious system deliberately liberated from cultural,social,economic, mapping and devising.Just as a writer might analyze short historic,material,functional or other external contexts or stories or essays to help establish and inform the funda- 'authorizations".31 Autonomy in this sense is based on the mental framework for his or her own work,a designer's conviction that the designed environment "is a self-con- analysis translates the designed environment into a form tained project with its own legible,meaningful forms"32 that can help establish and inform his or her own design The designed object is derived from aesthetic principles process.But how do we begin analyzing a complex system that are separate and thus more fundamental than external such as a building,an urban space or any designed object factors,and therefore objects or systems are examined and that not only may be outwardly complex,often over- analyzed to irreducible,internal principles.33 These whelming,but also was influenced by factors both seen irreducible internal principles are akin to language and, and unseen?It is helpful to begin by approaching the like written language,can be studied in terms of syntax design environment from fluctuating points between two, and semiotics.Abstract principles allow for architecture to often conflicting,positions:being dependent and being attain a certain distance from external forces.They can act autonomous. as a way to critique and develop architecture without those external forces and thus advance architectural production The Context-bound Position and thinking.The essential difference is that the autono- A dependent or context-bound position is one in which mous object is considered in terms of its own internal objects or systems are situated within,shaped by and language or form.When considered in this fashion,it offers continue to be influenced by a social,cultural,political the opportunity to see the form that can carry over and and economic milieu.27 That is,the systems or objects are extend beyond current conditions to make more universal contextually determined by external forces and,in turn inferences.Unlike the gentle affirmation provided by the those systems and objects themselves reinforce the contextually determined object,the position of some context and maintain a status quo:an object is a product theorists,such as Manfredo Tafuri and Theodor Adorno,is of x and in turn reinforces x.As instruments of culture, that only the autonomous object,separate from the status these contextually embedded objects or systems can quo and its interests,can offer radically critical alternatives 39
39 Sketching, Thinking, Learning that there is a “good deal of superstition among designers as to the deathly effect of analysis on their intuitions” remains relatively true, especially for students in the design field.26 The analysis-as-killjoy myth presupposes that any visceral and intuitive satisfaction is mutually exclusive of understanding and knowledge. In fact, analysis can allow for enjoyment of a place, a piece of music or a painting and, at the same time, develop a more in-depth understanding. Learning this double-edge approach is critical. An analytic methodology must be learned and often in stages. When teaching my analysis course or design studio to beginning design students, I do not expect them to know how to analyze an entire building. Often I ask them to analyze specific elements or sometimes I have them focus on description only. If we recall the examples cited in the Introduction, it can be argued that perspective sketches are processed representations: the mere act of looking at the surroundings and then transferring that image, with some degree of discernment and abstraction, to the sketchbook page is processing. The experienced view has been abstracted into a representative image. That said, for many young students, a perspective sketch remains only one view or is a single way of abstracting and understanding the design environment. The sketching seeks representational alignment or seeks to look the way the view looks. Considered as an analysis, the perspective often remains a singular description rather than critical, multifaceted inquiry. For an architect developing multiple views and seeing through the building, there is a need to develop alternative views of which perspectives are just one. For the designer who operates within complex systems, the analysis of similarly complex systems can lead to a methodology of conscious and unconscious system mapping and devising. Just as a writer might analyze short stories or essays to help establish and inform the fundamental framework for his or her own work, a designer’s analysis translates the designed environment into a form that can help establish and inform his or her own design process. But how do we begin analyzing a complex system such as a building, an urban space or any designed object that not only may be outwardly complex, often overwhelming, but also was influenced by factors both seen and unseen? It is helpful to begin by approaching the design environment from fluctuating points between two, often conflicting, positions: being dependent and being autonomous. The Context-bound Position A dependent or context-bound position is one in which objects or systems are situated within, shaped by and continue to be influenced by a social, cultural, political and economic milieu.27 That is, the systems or objects are contextually determined by external forces and, in turn, those systems and objects themselves reinforce the context and maintain a status quo: an object is a product of x and in turn reinforces x. As instruments of culture, these contextually embedded objects or systems can include those forces that led to their resolution or current condition.28 The objects or systems are epiphenomena “dependent on socioeconomic, political, and technological processes” that informed the object’s or system’s initial form and, in turn, reinforce subsequent social, political and technological processes.29 The argument is that in order to understand a design, the analysis must investigate those outside forces or contexts that shaped it: a building is more than a building. It is the consequence of those forces within which it was created and, reciprocally, the building continues to influence the context. Just as socio-cultural and economic conditions can shape a designed object, the designed object (architecture, urban design, product design) can, in turn, take on variegated levels of influence within and upon the socio-cultural or economic system. The design environment, by its mere dependence on the economic and social structure and its realities, offers confirmatory authorization of the status quo. Architects and their work are supported by patrons and a financial system, built within a given physical and cultural framework (cities, property lines, zoning) and symbolically represent those systems (corporate headquarters, social status, ideas of living, working). At most it might guide society gently when the architectural or urban designer proposes slight alternatives to the existing framework, when he or she offers alternatives to zoning, works within the public sector to shape planning and economic policies or offers alternative organizational strategies.30 In whatever direction, architecture itself does not bring about radical removal of the status quo, but at most its alteration. The Autonomous Position An alternative to the dependent, context-bound position is the autonomous position, in which objects or systems are deliberately liberated from cultural, social, economic, historic, material, functional or other external contexts or “authorizations”.31 Autonomy in this sense is based on the conviction that the designed environment “is a self-contained project with its own legible, meaningful forms”.32 The designed object is derived from aesthetic principles that are separate and thus more fundamental than external factors, and therefore objects or systems are examined and analyzed to irreducible, internal principles.33 These irreducible internal principles are akin to language and, like written language, can be studied in terms of syntax and semiotics. Abstract principles allow for architecture to attain a certain distance from external forces. They can act as a way to critique and develop architecture without those external forces and thus advance architectural production and thinking. The essential difference is that the autonomous object is considered in terms of its own internal language or form. When considered in this fashion, it offers the opportunity to see the form that can carry over and extend beyond current conditions to make more universal inferences. Unlike the gentle affirmation provided by the contextually determined object, the position of some theorists, such as Manfredo Tafuri and Theodor Adorno, is that only the autonomous object, separate from the status quo and its interests, can offer radically critical alternatives 008-057_DD_part_0-1_final.indd 39 24.09.12 16:13
that challenge the status quo.While architectural theorists through which we become aware or conscious of the might agree that given the nature of architectural practice mental activity involved in the analysis.Essentially,any and production there can never be a completely autono- satisfaction or fulfillment we find in critically analyzing an mous position or object,quasi-autonomy does offer object is not within the designed object itself but in the opportunities for clarification and examination of the process of evaluation.36 If,for example,we say an object is object and its possible role within a given system.34 beautiful,the satisfaction implied in that judgment is not that the object is beautiful,but that we were able to Formal Analysis actively analyze it.In the mid-20th century architects found These two positions play an ever present role in analysis that the formal principles in post-Functionalist architecture because how the designed environment is shaped,used relied on or developed architecture based on autonomy of and conceived parallels how we disassemble components architectural language.In the 1960s and 1970s,architects and which analytical tools we employ.In approaching art, such as Aldo Rossi and Peter Eisenman would embrace the architecture or,in general,the designed environment autonomous position and related internalized language critically,historians,analysts or architects walk a fine line in and its formal analysis as a means to find some substance a critical approach.If the analysis leans heavily on a in modern architecture,"something more permanent, context-bound critique,the object is seen as a symptom or essential,and universal"in architectural discourse and trace.If,on the other hand,the object is approached as production.37 autonomous form,the analysis becomes formalist.35 The formal analysis and linguistic approach to architectural Analysis,as it breaks down complex systems into smaller language as separate from specific authorizations and components,comes to understand the forces that shaped dependencies allows for a focused view on those essential those components (the materials,the culture,the econom- elements and their interrelationships.These languages are ics),the inverse effect those systems have on forces(how syntactical relationships of the elements within the project they shape culture,economic and material choices)and Syntactically,the elements,materials,tectonics within a the means that we use to understand the system(how we project can develop grammatical relationships between analyze,the methods we employ,the degree of inquiry). and among each other.Architects often describe a build- Essentially,in order to analyze a complex system we have ing's language using descriptive relationships that establish to ask questions(method)about what makes it so (its clearer divisions of complex systems.Often these relation- nature)and its impact on others (its reciprocal impact).The ships,such as "walls that enclose/walls that support" method is varied and each polar extreme-autonomous or "planes that bend/planes that break"or "prospect/ dependent-has its own methodological corollary. refuge",are relationships that allow the architect to step back and see the building as a series of bigger decisions The autonomous position has "formal analysis"as its within which the smaller,often more complex decisions corollary.Formal analysis,like the autonomously posi- might be made.Materials,for example,may be abstracted tioned object,focuses solely on the object's form-its as "hard/soft","natural/artificial"or "wood/metal"so that organization,shape and patterns.Thus divorced from any the architect can determine where types of materials might external context,its internal language is independent. appear in some consistent or logical system that can be,if Rather than examine a designed object that was shaped by needed or desired,broken to embrace or emphasize a particular economy,social system,technological and particularly idiosyncratic moments.While many of these material limits or even functional mandate,formal analysis abstractions have an embedded reality and architects are examines the object strictly in terms of its own language of aware of a material's characteristics and properties,the form:instead of considering a house in terms of who built elemental abstraction nevertheless helps the designer filter it,the materials that were used or who lived there,formal out the material specifics in an effort to gain a broader analysis looks at its abstract organization and language,so sense of the interrelationships among materials,clarify the that the language of an object can be examined in terms material palette,and then,often simultaneously,test those of syntax (how the elements relate to one another)or emerging abstracted linguistic systems against actual semiotically (how the language creates meaning) material qualities and assemblies. Developed in the mid-19th and early 20th century by art Essentially,these relationships are syntactic rule systems, historians such as Alois Riegl,Heinrich Wolfflin and Paul grammatical structures that allow the designer to develop Frankl,formal analysis of architecture came to the fore a clear semiotic or symbolic system for the building. through Emil Kaufmann,Rudolf Wittkower,Colin Rowe and Architectural grammar becomes a guide to decision- Manfredo Tafuri.Linked to Kantian considerations of making.Tadao Ando's work,especially his smaller houses autonomy and the examination of the fundamental and chapels,are deliberately syntactically clear:all walls opposition between external constraints and personal are concrete,all metal is black,all floors are black slate freedom,the critical analysis of a designed object vacil- etc.The difficulty is extending a clear grammatical lan- lates between freed autonomy and the forces that con- guage to larger projects,which must adopt an appropri- strain or shape it.For Kant,the aesthetic evaluation or ately complex language. critical analysis is one of process,the active process 名
40 that challenge the status quo. While architectural theorists might agree that given the nature of architectural practice and production there can never be a completely autonomous position or object, quasi-autonomy does offer opportunities for clarification and examination of the object and its possible role within a given system.34 Formal Analysis These two positions play an ever present role in analysis because how the designed environment is shaped, used and conceived parallels how we disassemble components and which analytical tools we employ. In approaching art, architecture or, in general, the designed environment critically, historians, analysts or architects walk a fine line in a critical approach. If the analysis leans heavily on a context-bound critique, the object is seen as a symptom or trace. If, on the other hand, the object is approached as autonomous form, the analysis becomes formalist.35 Analysis, as it breaks down complex systems into smaller components, comes to understand the forces that shaped those components (the materials, the culture, the economics), the inverse effect those systems have on forces (how they shape culture, economic and material choices) and the means that we use to understand the system (how we analyze, the methods we employ, the degree of inquiry). Essentially, in order to analyze a complex system we have to ask questions (method) about what makes it so (its nature) and its impact on others (its reciprocal impact). The method is varied and each polar extreme – autonomous or dependent – has its own methodological corollary. The autonomous position has “formal analysis” as its corollary. Formal analysis, like the autonomously positioned object, focuses solely on the object’s form – its organization, shape and patterns. Thus divorced from any external context, its internal language is independent. Rather than examine a designed object that was shaped by a particular economy, social system, technological and material limits or even functional mandate, formal analysis examines the object strictly in terms of its own language of form: instead of considering a house in terms of who built it, the materials that were used or who lived there, formal analysis looks at its abstract organization and language, so that the language of an object can be examined in terms of syntax (how the elements relate to one another) or semiotically (how the language creates meaning). Developed in the mid-19th and early 20th century by art historians such as Aloïs Riegl, Heinrich Wölfflin and Paul Frankl, formal analysis of architecture came to the fore through Emil Kaufmann, Rudolf Wittkower, Colin Rowe and Manfredo Tafuri. Linked to Kantian considerations of autonomy and the examination of the fundamental opposition between external constraints and personal freedom, the critical analysis of a designed object vacillates between freed autonomy and the forces that constrain or shape it. For Kant, the aesthetic evaluation or critical analysis is one of process, the active process through which we become aware or conscious of the mental activity involved in the analysis. Essentially, any satisfaction or fulfillment we find in critically analyzing an object is not within the designed object itself but in the process of evaluation.36 If, for example, we say an object is beautiful, the satisfaction implied in that judgment is not that the object is beautiful, but that we were able to actively analyze it. In the mid-20th century architects found that the formal principles in post-Functionalist architecture relied on or developed architecture based on autonomy of architectural language. In the 1960s and 1970s, architects such as Aldo Rossi and Peter Eisenman would embrace the autonomous position and related internalized language and its formal analysis as a means to find some substance in modern architecture, “something more permanent, essential, and universal” in architectural discourse and production.37 The formal analysis and linguistic approach to architectural language as separate from specific authorizations and dependencies allows for a focused view on those essential elements and their interrelationships. These languages are syntactical relationships of the elements within the project. Syntactically, the elements, materials, tectonics within a project can develop grammatical relationships between and among each other. Architects often describe a building’s language using descriptive relationships that establish clearer divisions of complex systems. Often these relationships, such as “walls that enclose/walls that support”, “planes that bend/planes that break” or “prospect/ refuge”, are relationships that allow the architect to step back and see the building as a series of bigger decisions within which the smaller, often more complex decisions might be made. Materials, for example, may be abstracted as “hard/soft”, “natural/artificial” or “wood/metal” so that the architect can determine where types of materials might appear in some consistent or logical system that can be, if needed or desired, broken to embrace or emphasize particularly idiosyncratic moments. While many of these abstractions have an embedded reality and architects are aware of a material’s characteristics and properties, the elemental abstraction nevertheless helps the designer filter out the material specifics in an effort to gain a broader sense of the interrelationships among materials, clarify the material palette, and then, often simultaneously, test those emerging abstracted linguistic systems against actual material qualities and assemblies. Essentially, these relationships are syntactic rule systems, grammatical structures that allow the designer to develop a clear semiotic or symbolic system for the building. Architectural grammar becomes a guide to decisionmaking. Tadao Ando’s work, especially his smaller houses and chapels, are deliberately syntactically clear: all walls are concrete, all metal is black, all floors are black slate, etc. The difficulty is extending a clear grammatical language to larger projects, which must adopt an appropriately complex language. 008-057_DD_part_0-1_final.indd 40 24.09.12 16:13
SKETCHING,THINKING,LEARNING Context-bound Critical Analysis Although the manifold external influences and,in turn,the The alter ego of formal analysis is context-bound critical inverse shaping of them by the building (the role the analysis.Just as formal analysis has inherently abstract Barcelona Pavilion played in shaping architectural thinking characteristics both in form and process,context-bound through photographs and sketches)are of great interest, analysis is inherently nebulous and less easy to translate for an architect these issues are usually both a matter of into any single analytical method or product.Context- extreme focus and tangential to the design process,in that bound analysis considers the dependent qualities of architectural historians generally focus on one or two of the systems more than the formal organization and internal many possible contexts to the exclusion of others.For the language.Rather than look exclusively at the formal designer who balances formal ordering with the external ordering systems or the internal language of the object or influences nearly simultaneously there is a need for analysis system,this analysis converges on historical,cultural, that balances within an intermediary position and that can, social,economic and material conditions that surround the at times,negotiate between formal analysis and context- object.For instance,in order to understand J.R.R.Tolkien's bound analysis The Lord of the Rings we would,the argument goes,have to analyze Tolkien's personal and professional experiences, Analysis from a Dynamic Intermediate Position his teachings,his previous and subsequent research and It is doubtful that there is pure "formal analysis"which writing,his colleagues,the physical,political and cultural focuses entirely on an object's internal language,excluding environment in Oxford or England in the early to mid-20th all external forces.Likewise,any qualitative analysis that century and any number of influences both real or provi- takes little notice of the formal and internal language is sional.Often this analysis imposes our own interpretations unlikely.Even more formal analyses associated with Colin on the work.Even while Tolkien admitted that the World Rowe or other theorists and architects are inclusive of the Wars,like any experience,played an inevitable role in his functional,environmental,economic and material nature of work,he spent much time and effort disparaging those the built environment.Michael Podro notes in his book The who claimed through their analyses that his three-part Critical Historians of Art that "it may be that it is not novel was allegorical. possible to conduct the two inquiries independently of each other,but at any one time,any one writer's main Where does the context and its analysis end?Taken to its concern can lie in one direction rather than another".39 logical conclusion,analysis could extend to even the most While both the formal analysis and context-bound analysis miniscule contexts.In the short essay,"The Metterling offer distinct advantages in discovering the underlying Lists",Woody Allen's narrator analyzes the most recent and patterns and the forces that shaped those patterns,the 'stunning"publication of conjured novelist and playwright separation of the two is,at times,difficult to maintain. Hans Metterling:the long-awaited "Laundry Lists".These Within a quasi-autonomous object there may be forces lists(published as an addendum to a four-volume oeuvre) that play a mitigating role in its formal organization.For serve,the narrator argues,"as a perfect,near-total intro- example,a mobile phone might be considered autono- duction to this troubled genius";and he goes on to mously:its dimension,proportion,material,composition speculate on,among other facets,the significance of and other quantifiable characteristics might be considered "1 sock"in Metterling's "List No.6".38 Allen goes fully with limited reference to outside forces.Yet the designer tongue-in-cheek into the possible extreme of analysis in and manufacturer's choice of dimension,proportion, which even dirty laundry can be the vital context in material and other"quantifiable"characteristics may be understanding literary works. highly influenced by interconnected context.An aesthetic refinement and tactile interface may contribute to a For architecture,context-bound critical analysis can mean positive user experience,but material availability,con- a study of those who patronized the architect,the social sumer habits and production costs may greatly inform its conditions that existed when the building was conceived, final form. the economic conditions that led to the building or any number of external,albeit highly integrated,conditions Rather than an"either/or"approach that embraces the For example,a contextually bound analysis examines Mies polar extremes of pure autonomy or complete determina- van der Rohe's Barcelona Pavilion in the context of pre- tion by context,architecture and its analysis tends toward Revolutionary Spain,of interwar Germany (the sponsor of the middle ground.Critical analysis tends to support a the building)at the time of its conception,the role of more flexible,"both/and"approach that is,as needed, construction technologies and methods available to Mies formal and contextualized.To understand an iPad it is in Barcelona and how they contrasted with those in important to understand its formal organization just as it is Germany,the value of materials used in its construction, important to study the economic,legal and social systems the construction schedule and the economics of the that contribute to its success.As Michael Hays notes:"In building.Philosophical and theoretical issues such as order to know all we can about architecture we must be symbolism in the choice of Mies,issues of reflectivity and able to understand each instance of architecture,not as mirror image,etc.are also important aspects to under- a passive agent of culture in its dominant ideological, standing the building's final form and use. institutional,and historical forms,nor as a detached, disinfected object.Rather we must understand it as 41
41 Sketching, Thinking, Learning Context-bound Critical Analysis The alter ego of formal analysis is context-bound critical analysis. Just as formal analysis has inherently abstract characteristics both in form and process, context-bound analysis is inherently nebulous and less easy to translate into any single analytical method or product. Contextbound analysis considers the dependent qualities of systems more than the formal organization and internal language. Rather than look exclusively at the formal ordering systems or the internal language of the object or system, this analysis converges on historical, cultural, social, economic and material conditions that surround the object. For instance, in order to understand J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings we would, the argument goes, have to analyze Tolkien’s personal and professional experiences, his teachings, his previous and subsequent research and writing, his colleagues, the physical, political and cultural environment in Oxford or England in the early to mid-20th century and any number of influences both real or provisional. Often this analysis imposes our own interpretations on the work. Even while Tolkien admitted that the World Wars, like any experience, played an inevitable role in his work, he spent much time and effort disparaging those who claimed through their analyses that his three-part novel was allegorical. Where does the context and its analysis end? Taken to its logical conclusion, analysis could extend to even the most miniscule contexts. In the short essay, “The Metterling Lists”, Woody Allen’s narrator analyzes the most recent and “stunning” publication of conjured novelist and playwright Hans Metterling: the long-awaited “Laundry Lists”. These lists (published as an addendum to a four-volume œuvre) serve, the narrator argues, “as a perfect, near-total introduction to this troubled genius”; and he goes on to speculate on, among other facets, the significance of “1 sock” in Metterling’s “List No. 6”.38 Allen goes fully tongue-in-cheek into the possible extreme of analysis in which even dirty laundry can be the vital context in understanding literary works. For architecture, context-bound critical analysis can mean a study of those who patronized the architect, the social conditions that existed when the building was conceived, the economic conditions that led to the building or any number of external, albeit highly integrated, conditions. For example, a contextually bound analysis examines Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona Pavilion in the context of preRevolutionary Spain, of interwar Germany (the sponsor of the building) at the time of its conception, the role of construction technologies and methods available to Mies in Barcelona and how they contrasted with those in Germany, the value of materials used in its construction, the construction schedule and the economics of the building. Philosophical and theoretical issues such as symbolism in the choice of Mies, issues of reflectivity and mirror image, etc. are also important aspects to understanding the building’s final form and use. Although the manifold external influences and, in turn, the inverse shaping of them by the building (the role the Barcelona Pavilion played in shaping architectural thinking through photographs and sketches) are of great interest, for an architect these issues are usually both a matter of extreme focus and tangential to the design process, in that architectural historians generally focus on one or two of the many possible contexts to the exclusion of others. For the designer who balances formal ordering with the external influences nearly simultaneously there is a need for analysis that balances within an intermediary position and that can, at times, negotiate between formal analysis and contextbound analysis. Analysis from a Dynamic Intermediate Position It is doubtful that there is pure “formal analysis” which focuses entirely on an object’s internal language, excluding all external forces. Likewise, any qualitative analysis that takes little notice of the formal and internal language is unlikely. Even more formal analyses associated with Colin Rowe or other theorists and architects are inclusive of the functional, environmental, economic and material nature of the built environment. Michael Podro notes in his book The Critical Historians of Art that “it may be that it is not possible to conduct the two inquiries independently of each other, but at any one time, any one writer’s main concern can lie in one direction rather than another”.39 While both the formal analysis and context-bound analysis offer distinct advantages in discovering the underlying patterns and the forces that shaped those patterns, the separation of the two is, at times, difficult to maintain. Within a quasi-autonomous object there may be forces that play a mitigating role in its formal organization. For example, a mobile phone might be considered autonomously: its dimension, proportion, material, composition and other quantifiable characteristics might be considered with limited reference to outside forces. Yet the designer and manufacturer’s choice of dimension, proportion, material and other “quantifiable” characteristics may be highly influenced by interconnected context. An aesthetic refinement and tactile interface may contribute to a positive user experience, but material availability, consumer habits and production costs may greatly inform its final form. Rather than an “either/or” approach that embraces the polar extremes of pure autonomy or complete determination by context, architecture and its analysis tends toward the middle ground. Critical analysis tends to support a more flexible, “both/and” approach that is, as needed, formal and contextualized. To understand an iPad it is important to understand its formal organization just as it is important to study the economic, legal and social systems that contribute to its success. As Michael Hays notes: “In order to know all we can about architecture we must be able to understand each instance of architecture, not as a passive agent of culture in its dominant ideological, institutional, and historical forms, nor as a detached, disinfected object. Rather we must understand it as 008-057_DD_part_0-1_final.indd 41 24.09.12 16:13
actively and continually occupying a cultural place as an knowledge types becomes ambiguous when knowledge architectural intention with ascertainable political and becomes "both/and"-a particular skill and the perfor- intellectual consequences."40 mance of that skill,for example.44 The analysis argued for in this book is one in which the Linking common knowledge to research in cognitive designed world is both formal,autonomous architecture, psychology affirms sketching's essential role in design but that is ultimately informed by the social,economic and education.With this cross-disciplinary approach,educators political forces.These forces embed themselves semanti- might develop pedagogies and methodologies beyond cally and physically into the architecture.An office building personal intuition and help clarify the considerable role of is just as much a system of patterns and proportions as it is and,therefore,the need for analytical sketching in archi- a result of the economic,social and political forces.As a tectural design studio.Through the act and practice of start,a building can be understood as a formal,material putting substantive codes on paper and transforming ideas object separate from other forces.Ultimately,they have to into a code language,which can then be discussed and be understood,analyzed and designed within a totality of eventually transformed into a design drawing,students forces. start to engage in the cycle of action/reflection.In this cycle,physical sketching can be contemplated and revised Not All Sketches are Equal:Syntactic Sketch Diagrams while the student is engaging in design language in which Before establishing links to the cognitive sciences and the physical world is transformed and tested in an architec physiological research it is important to establish some tural coding.This learning by modeling architectural understanding of analytical sketching.The focus of this coding is akin to what psychologist Albert Bandura notes is research are syntactically dense,ill-structured and inher- a way of recalling and representing what is learned:"in ently ambiguous sketches that help interpret fundamental order for observers to profit from the behavior models formal,spatial and tectonic codes that,in turn,help inform when they are no longer present to provide direction,the design processes.41 These are sketches that translate"what response patterns must be represented in memory in is"in order to help formulate "what may be".The intention symbolic form."45 Students learn the symbolic or represen- of these sketches is not completion or illustration,but tational methods of what they are observing in order for design processing to help decode and encode while these to be consciously and unconsciously available to questioning and uncovering underlying systems.In so them in design practice studio.With a fundamental skill set doing,they transliterate complex ideas into more simpli- -specific diagrams drawn with a specific method of line, fied,mnemonic form.42 tone or other pencil technique-the student is able to adapt these symbolic or representational methods to their Syntactic sketches are linguistic doodles or explorations of own methods and their own representation. thought conducive to translation and transformation in the design process.These are distinct from drafted architec- Diagramming is something that must be taught not only to tural drawings or hard-line illustrations which research understand those things which are analyzed but to take psychologist Vinod Goel maintains are types of "well- advantage of both the analytical process and the product structured"representations.43 These "well-structured" of the analysis,the diagram itself.Psychologists Jill Larkin representations,Goel argues,are syntactically and seman- and Herbert Simon found that "diagrams are useful only to tically differentiated and disjointed,meaning that each those who know the appropriate computational processes symbol corresponds to only one thing(for example,in a for taking advantage of them.Furthermore,a problem drafted floor plan,a "round circle"is always a "column"). solver often also needs the knowledge of how to construct Like drafted plans,perspectives aim for correspondent a'good'diagram"in order to benefit from its virtues.46 representation and,therefore,are more "well-structured" Effective diagramming-diagramming that achieves its representations.In contrast,ill-structured syntactic intended goals with minimal effort-depends upon sketches,such as freehand diagrams and analytical learning,differentiating and understanding the nature of sketches,have a greater ability to transform information diagrams.Diagrams and the diagramming process are not from one state to another or distill a problem's variegated as intuitive as they might appear. elements into definite categories What are Diagrams? Syntactic sketching is,fundamentally,an interaction of "What is a diagram?"While seemingly simple,the ques- distinctly human physical and cognitive abilities in which tion and its answers are complex.This may come as a the world is represented in symbol systems.In this repre surprise to anyone who has followed furniture assembly sentative interaction we project and manipulate material instructions,considered aircraft emergency instruction and spatial analogs.Through this physio-cognitive act we cards or adhered to street signs.Cognitive scientists,art acquire knowledge that is both declarative and procedural, historians,architects and even diagramaticians have declarative knowledge being the "what"we know(such as attempted to define a diagram but usually cannot agree on specific dates,codes or locations),and procedural knowl- a particular definition nor the criteria to establish a edge,the "how"something is executed (such as how we diagram's parameters.For example,Vinod Goel,who has tie our shoes or use a fork).The division between these spent a career experimenting with designers and diagrams 名
42 actively and continually occupying a cultural place as an architectural intention with ascertainable political and intellectual consequences.”40 The analysis argued for in this book is one in which the designed world is both formal, autonomous architecture, but that is ultimately informed by the social, economic and political forces. These forces embed themselves semantically and physically into the architecture. An office building is just as much a system of patterns and proportions as it is a result of the economic, social and political forces. As a start, a building can be understood as a formal, material object separate from other forces. Ultimately, they have to be understood, analyzed and designed within a totality of forces. Not All Sketches are Equal: Syntactic Sketch Diagrams Before establishing links to the cognitive sciences and physiological research it is important to establish some understanding of analytical sketching. The focus of this research are syntactically dense, ill-structured and inherently ambiguous sketches that help interpret fundamental formal, spatial and tectonic codes that, in turn, help inform design processes.41 These are sketches that translate “what is” in order to help formulate “what may be”. The intention of these sketches is not completion or illustration, but design processing to help decode and encode while questioning and uncovering underlying systems. In so doing, they transliterate complex ideas into more simplified, mnemonic form.42 Syntactic sketches are linguistic doodles or explorations of thought conducive to translation and transformation in the design process. These are distinct from drafted architectural drawings or hard-line illustrations which research psychologist Vinod Goel maintains are types of “wellstructured” representations.43 These “well-structured” representations, Goel argues, are syntactically and semantically differentiated and disjointed, meaning that each symbol corresponds to only one thing (for example, in a drafted floor plan, a “round circle” is always a “column”). Like drafted plans, perspectives aim for correspondent representation and, therefore, are more “well-structured” representations. In contrast, ill-structured syntactic sketches, such as freehand diagrams and analytical sketches, have a greater ability to transform information from one state to another or distill a problem’s variegated elements into definite categories. Syntactic sketching is, fundamentally, an interaction of distinctly human physical and cognitive abilities in which the world is represented in symbol systems. In this representative interaction we project and manipulate material and spatial analogs. Through this physio-cognitive act we acquire knowledge that is both declarative and procedural, declarative knowledge being the “what” we know (such as specific dates, codes or locations), and procedural knowledge, the “how” something is executed (such as how we tie our shoes or use a fork). The division between these knowledge types becomes ambiguous when knowledge becomes “both/and” – a particular skill and the performance of that skill, for example.44 Linking common knowledge to research in cognitive psychology affirms sketching’s essential role in design education. With this cross-disciplinary approach, educators might develop pedagogies and methodologies beyond personal intuition and help clarify the considerable role of and, therefore, the need for analytical sketching in architectural design studio. Through the act and practice of putting substantive codes on paper and transforming ideas into a code language, which can then be discussed and eventually transformed into a design drawing, students start to engage in the cycle of action/reflection. In this cycle, physical sketching can be contemplated and revised while the student is engaging in design language in which the physical world is transformed and tested in an architectural coding. This learning by modeling architectural coding is akin to what psychologist Albert Bandura notes is a way of recalling and representing what is learned: “in order for observers to profit from the behavior models when they are no longer present to provide direction, the response patterns must be represented in memory in symbolic form.”45 Students learn the symbolic or representational methods of what they are observing in order for these to be consciously and unconsciously available to them in design practice studio. With a fundamental skill set – specific diagrams drawn with a specific method of line, tone or other pencil technique – the student is able to adapt these symbolic or representational methods to their own methods and their own representation. Diagramming is something that must be taught not only to understand those things which are analyzed but to take advantage of both the analytical process and the product of the analysis, the diagram itself. Psychologists Jill Larkin and Herbert Simon found that “diagrams are useful only to those who know the appropriate computational processes for taking advantage of them. Furthermore, a problem solver often also needs the knowledge of how to construct a ‘good’ diagram” in order to benefit from its virtues.46 Effective diagramming – diagramming that achieves its intended goals with minimal effort – depends upon learning, differentiating and understanding the nature of diagrams. Diagrams and the diagramming process are not as intuitive as they might appear. What are Diagrams? “What is a diagram?” While seemingly simple, the question and its answers are complex. This may come as a surprise to anyone who has followed furniture assembly instructions, considered aircraft emergency instruction cards or adhered to street signs. Cognitive scientists, art historians, architects and even diagramaticians have attempted to define a diagram but usually cannot agree on a particular definition nor the criteria to establish a diagram’s parameters. For example, Vinod Goel, who has spent a career experimenting with designers and diagrams 008-057_DD_part_0-1_final.indd 42 24.09.12 16:13
SKETCHING,THINKING,LEARNING and is usually quite adept at describing and establishing labels.A benign drawing or word can become inflamma- criteria of research and experiments,endeavors through- tory by an event or use or newly acquired association. out nearly the entire book Sketches of Thought to examine diagrams'characteristics and defining criteria.47 Symbols have syntactic and semantic properties.Properties are syntactical in that the form and arrangement of Any understanding of diagrams begins with an understand- elements or the symbols represent a particular,even ing of the nature of symbolic language and how their specific concept and any change in that organization or marks or lines denote particular concepts.This is most syntax alters their meaning.Semantic properties include clearly explained by Nelson Goodman in his seminal book, how terms of symbols convey meaning.When someone Languages of Art:An Approach to a Theory of Symbols.48 It remarks,"It's an issue of semantics",they are saying that it is here that Goodman establishes a way to understand is a matter of how a particular symbol has different inter- symbols and how those symbols help us see,understand pretations regardless of the way it is organized within a and conceive the world.Essentially,Goodman argues that larger syntax.References or labels have varied degrees of through analysis and diagrams we can decode experiences specificity,but it is often best to begin with a symbol's so that we can better conceive of and construct places or most specific meaning.This is described by,among other objects.This decoding is both within the symbol system things,its disjointness or the degree of unambiguity in the itself and in the way those symbols imply and we infer reading and interpretation of a particular symbol:one meaning. symbol means one thing.This is most easily visualized as an unsuccessful Venn diagram in which two or more circles The fundamental aspect of Goodman's approach is that do not overlap.The circles are,in a sense,not joined or are symbols are references or labels that represent ideas or disjoined because each circle is of itself and its meaning is concepts either directly or indirectly in different modes unambigous.Symbol systems have two types of disjoint- through denotation and exemplification.Denotation is that ness:syntactic disjointness and semantic disjointness. connection between a symbol or label and what it symbol- Syntactic disjointness means that each mark aligns with izes or labels.Simply put,one thing denotes or refers to no more than one character and exact differentiation is another thing:the letter "x"refers to object "y"because always possible.50 There is little ambiguity between the we agree that x denotes y.Denotation is the act of one label and its meaning,whereas non-notational systems are thing referring to another.For example,an octagonal,red vague or ambiguous.Semantic disjointness indicates that "STOP"sign denotes the concept "stop"because we,as a the meaning is clearly differentiated so that it is possible culture and society,agree to that relationship.While these to know what each symbol means.51 denotations are labels and sometimes linguistic(letters or numerals),they are also pictorial and can include diagrams, Disjointness in both symbols and their meaning becomes drawings or musical notes that denote particular ideas or important in a fundamental way in relation to freehand concepts.A second aspect of symbols is exemplification drawing:they fail disjointness because freehand drawings Exemplification is a characteristic that refers back to a sketches and diagrams,by their nature,are inherently particular quality possessed by that which is labeled or,as ambiguous or joined.Because they are inexact,they can Goodman notes:"Exemplification is possession plus denote and exemplify the designed environment ambiqu- reference."49 The properties of a particular object deter- ously,yet are filled with a great deal of information.The mine the meaning of other objects of similar qualities.For freehand sketch can move from specific to vague with the example,a wall paint sample is an example of a color(it is flick of the pencil and thus offers opportunities for both a reference or symbol for a particular color),but because it specific and vague explorations,especially important in possesses qualities or characteristics of that specific color both interpretation and design.The line use compounded it is said to exemplify it. by freehand characteristics can help analyze complex situations,yet open a range of interpretations.A scribbled The denotation and exemplification are not static but often line can mean many things including material change, vary by context and natural transformation.Context alters edge or window,and thus the symbol and its interpretation the label or reference's meaning in the sense that where or mutate both understanding and conception. when the label appears can have a great influence on its denotation.For instance,a particular word may mean one As representations,diagrams are characterized by their thing in one conversation or with one group of people,yet notational,procedural and efficiency qualities.First, that same word may have a completely different meaning diagrams are visuo-spatial notational systems(graphic) in a different situation.This is especially clear with homo- rather than linguistic notational systems (words,text, graphs,which share the same spelling but have different sentences).Visuo-spatial notations are,unlike photographi- meanings depending on context and pronunciation(e.g. cally depictive representations,graphically simplified and "moderate"and "moderate","separate"and"separate"), not always visually similar to what they represent.As such or homonyms,which sound the same but are spelled differ- pictorial sketches,photographs,sentences or even words ently (e.g."eight/ate","wear/where").Likewise,symbols (including a STOP sign)would not be classified as dia- transform and take on new,often unexpected meanings grams.Goodman tries to explain it another way:he notes due to circumstance or culture as they combine with other that the difference between a diagram and a picture 43
43 Sketching, Thinking, Learning and is usually quite adept at describing and establishing criteria of research and experiments, endeavors throughout nearly the entire book Sketches of Thought to examine diagrams’ characteristics and defining criteria.47 Any understanding of diagrams begins with an understanding of the nature of symbolic language and how their marks or lines denote particular concepts. This is most clearly explained by Nelson Goodman in his seminal book, Languages of Art: An Approach to a Theory of Symbols. 48 It is here that Goodman establishes a way to understand symbols and how those symbols help us see, understand and conceive the world. Essentially, Goodman argues that through analysis and diagrams we can decode experiences so that we can better conceive of and construct places or objects. This decoding is both within the symbol system itself and in the way those symbols imply and we infer meaning. The fundamental aspect of Goodman’s approach is that symbols are references or labels that represent ideas or concepts either directly or indirectly in different modes through denotation and exemplification. Denotation is that connection between a symbol or label and what it symbolizes or labels. Simply put, one thing denotes or refers to another thing: the letter “x” refers to object “y” because we agree that x denotes y. Denotation is the act of one thing referring to another. For example, an octagonal, red “STOP” sign denotes the concept “stop” because we, as a culture and society, agree to that relationship. While these denotations are labels and sometimes linguistic (letters or numerals), they are also pictorial and can include diagrams, drawings or musical notes that denote particular ideas or concepts. A second aspect of symbols is exemplification. Exemplification is a characteristic that refers back to a particular quality possessed by that which is labeled or, as Goodman notes: “Exemplification is possession plus reference.”49 The properties of a particular object determine the meaning of other objects of similar qualities. For example, a wall paint sample is an example of a color (it is a reference or symbol for a particular color), but because it possesses qualities or characteristics of that specific color it is said to exemplify it. The denotation and exemplification are not static but often vary by context and natural transformation. Context alters the label or reference’s meaning in the sense that where or when the label appears can have a great influence on its denotation. For instance, a particular word may mean one thing in one conversation or with one group of people, yet that same word may have a completely different meaning in a different situation. This is especially clear with homographs, which share the same spelling but have different meanings depending on context and pronunciation (e. g. “moderate” and “moderate”, “separate” and “separate”), or homonyms, which sound the same but are spelled differently (e. g. “eight/ate”, “wear/where”). Likewise, symbols transform and take on new, often unexpected meanings due to circumstance or culture as they combine with other labels. A benign drawing or word can become inflammatory by an event or use or newly acquired association. Symbols have syntactic and semantic properties. Properties are syntactical in that the form and arrangement of elements or the symbols represent a particular, even specific concept and any change in that organization or syntax alters their meaning. Semantic properties include how terms of symbols convey meaning. When someone remarks, “It’s an issue of semantics”, they are saying that it is a matter of how a particular symbol has different interpretations regardless of the way it is organized within a larger syntax. References or labels have varied degrees of specificity, but it is often best to begin with a symbol’s most specific meaning. This is described by, among other things, its disjointness or the degree of unambiguity in the reading and interpretation of a particular symbol: one symbol means one thing. This is most easily visualized as an unsuccessful Venn diagram in which two or more circles do not overlap. The circles are, in a sense, not joined or are disjoined because each circle is of itself and its meaning is unambigous. Symbol systems have two types of disjointness: syntactic disjointness and semantic disjointness. Syntactic disjointness means that each mark aligns with no more than one character and exact differentiation is always possible.50 There is little ambiguity between the label and its meaning, whereas non-notational systems are vague or ambiguous. Semantic disjointness indicates that the meaning is clearly differentiated so that it is possible to know what each symbol means.51 Disjointness in both symbols and their meaning becomes important in a fundamental way in relation to freehand drawing: they fail disjointness because freehand drawings, sketches and diagrams, by their nature, are inherently ambiguous or joined. Because they are inexact, they can denote and exemplify the designed environment ambiguously, yet are filled with a great deal of information. The freehand sketch can move from specific to vague with the flick of the pencil and thus offers opportunities for both specific and vague explorations, especially important in both interpretation and design. The line use compounded by freehand characteristics can help analyze complex situations, yet open a range of interpretations. A scribbled line can mean many things including material change, edge or window, and thus the symbol and its interpretation mutate both understanding and conception. As representations, diagrams are characterized by their notational, procedural and efficiency qualities. First, diagrams are visuo-spatial notational systems (graphic) rather than linguistic notational systems (words, text, sentences). Visuo-spatial notations are, unlike photographically depictive representations, graphically simplified and not always visually similar to what they represent. As such, pictorial sketches, photographs, sentences or even words (including a STOP sign) would not be classified as diagrams. Goodman tries to explain it another way: he notes that the difference between a diagram and a picture 008-057_DD_part_0-1_final.indd 43 24.09.12 16:13