PARTS : WHOLE

ORDER – [or-der]
a. the disposition of things following one after another, as in space or time; succession or sequence
b. a condition in which each thing is properly disposed with reference to other things and to its purpose; methodical or harmonious arrangement
c. any class, kind, or sort, as of persons or things, distinguished from others by nature or character[1]
I think of ‘order’ as an organization of either people and their actions, or categorized objects. Throughout our classes this past week, we’ve discussed social order, chronological order, and design orders. Going back to last semester in studio, “Principles of Gestalt psychology suggest that the mind seeks to find utmost order and regularity…” [2]. We learned elements of this design psychology, such as proximity, continuity, figure&ground, similarity, closure, and symmetry, and still practice using these laws in our projects.  And in Suzanne's class, we've been trying to understand, or make order, of the floor plans of our assigned building on campus by walking around and experiencing it.

  

As I’ve already studied in other art history classes, we’ve also been reviewing the Classical Orders of architecture in Patrick’s class. This order consists of the three Greek column styles: the Doric – simple and masculine with rounded capital, massive, fluted shaft, and no base; the Ionic – taller shaft with flutes, scrolled capital, and large base; and the Corinthian – very decorative and feminine with Ionic shaft, and scrolls and leaves on the capital.

As far as social order is concerned, history class brought up a few concepts, one being Roman roads. We talked about how in Pompeii, all the roads were straight, forming a grid on which the city was organized. And last week, Patrick asked the class, “How do we use order to define or determine the hierarchy of the Parthenon, Erechtheon, Propylaia, and the Athena Nike?”…

HIERARCHY – [hi-er-ar-chy]
a. any system of persons or things ranked one above another[1]
…to answer Patrick’s question, the hierarchy of the main buildings on the Akropolis in Athens are easily determined by order as the Parthenon, Athena’s temple and the largest building, can be seen from all over the city and embodies great perfection, the Erechtheon, which hosts many political events and its Porch of Maidens leading your eye back to the Parthenon; then the Propylaia and its maze of columns engaging civilians who visit the acropolis; and it’s obvious that next in line is the temple of Athena Nike, a tiny version of the Parthenon to memorialize Athena’s messenger. This organization of size, orientation, and quality of such buildings is a great example of how order ties into hierarchy, two terms defined as sequence.

Blakemore talks about hierarchy in a social sense: “Furniture design reveals the same influences reflected in other arts of the dynastic periods: religion, inspiration from familiar objects, technology, and social hierarchy…decorative objects also placed there were suited to the status in life of the deceased…in tombs and preserved to climatic conditions, the most prevalent extant examples of Ancient Egyptian furniture represent those of royalty or upper-class citizens.” [3] In Rome, interiors were very important for they were where Romans expressed their wealth and social standing through levels of detail and decoration, and furnishings – their expression of materials was a sort of competition against their neighbors, just as Rome itself was a world of competition among its city states. Neighborly competition is also obvious in the villas of Pompeii. Each had a courtyard in the center where homeowners could hide necessary work and workers, giving the illusion on the outside that no work was ever done, that that’s how much better it was than the one down the street.
In studio, we bring up hierarchy quite often. For example, during our artifact wall critiques, we tried to determine the hierarchy of each model and how placement, colors, and sizes can emphasize or take away from intended focal points.


ENTOURAGE – [en-tour-age]
a. surroundings, environment
b. Architecture. The landscaping and other nearby environmental feature shown on a rendering of a building[1]
A strong example of architectural entourage would be Hadrain’s Villa in Pompeii. This ‘vacation home’ is surrounded by pools, baths, libraries, and galleries - an entourage of beauty, entertainment and relaxation. The acropolis, with it’s collection of temples and gathering sites, creates an entourage of society and hierarchy.

In Suzanne’s class, she wanted us to go to a coffee shop or somewhere to sit back and draw people within their environment. She really wanted us to capture their surroundings and the moment – an entourage. Compared to Roman amphitheatres that ignored nature and had man-made backdrops, the Greeks succeeded in creating an entourage for their theatres by taking advantage of their natural surroundings and building into the land rather than on it.

SOURCE – [source]
a. any thing or place from which something comes, arises, or is obtained; origin
b. a manufacturer or supplier[1]
“George Hersey suggests that the Greek orders were first developed in imitation of the trunks of trees in sacred groves…” [2], in other words, tree trunks were the source of inspiration for the Greek columns. This semester, although we’ve put a lot of emphasis on sources of inspiration, we’ve also talked about sources of light, sources of water, and sources of materials. Roth even reminds us that, “Vitruvius is the source of ancient advice” [2] as a lot of what we’ve been reading has been his findings and theories. In Baroque churches, architects “created hidden sources of daylight, focusing light on specific areas to direct attention” [2]. The oculus – a hole at the top of the dome - also provided a source of light in the Pantheon. Some say it was also a source of communication between heaven and earth, as well as a source of ventilation for the building.

In Egypt, the main source of water was the Nile. The river was also Egypt’s axis on which they built around; and sand and mud were the main sources of building materials. Wood, stone, and nature were the Greeks main sources of materials and inspiration. Greek architecture was Rome’s source of inspiration; and the Roman Empire’s strong source of control was their theory of “Bread & Circuses”. In studio, our fairy tales started off as our main source of inspiration from the beginning of the Found in Translation project.
























As we’ve moved through more and more phases of this project, our fairy tale has remained an important source, but others, such as phases themselves, have become inspiring sources as well – like the our 3 models due tomorrow which are supposed to be inspired from the previous 5”x 5” thumbnail graphics.


ARCHETYPE – [ar-che-type]
a. the original pattern or model from which all things of the same kind are copied or on which they are based; a model or first form; prototype
b. a collectively unconscious idea, pattern of thought, image, etc. universally present in individual psyches.[1]
PROTOTYPE – [pro-to-type]
a. the original or model on which something is based or formed
b. someone or something that serves to illustrate the typical qualities of a class; model
c. something analogous to another thing of a later period
d. an archetype; a primitive form regarded as the basis of a group[1]
HYBRID – [hy-brid]
a. anything derived from heterogeneous sources, or composed of elements of different or incongruous kinds
b. composite[1]
Evident in their definitions, ‘archetype’, ‘prototype’, and ‘hybrid’ are interchangeable terms and heavily used in the world of design. One of the earliest known prototypes is the aedicule, starting as tree arbors connected by manipulated branches and added horizontal beams to divide and organize space, to interior aediculed paintings in Pompeii, and still existing in today’s architecture. Ancient Egypt’s post and lintel system was used throughout ancient Greek and Roman architecture and is still common today. Blakemore notes that, “…it is clear that the Romans relied on Greek prototypes of the Hellenistic period for their inspiration” [3]. Assimilation was easy for Rome because Greek ruins were right there for them to study and copy. ‘Hybrid’ can be described as eclectic, or freely borrowed. The Romans were quick to borrow Greek style and technology, but they also used their prototypes and archetypes to build onto. For instance, they created hybrid columns by creating different combinations of the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders - “…three columnar types, or orders, were adapted by the Romans, who added more ornate variations of their own, and the orders became, part of the basic architectural vocabulary…” [2].

As Greek architecture was Rome’s major prototype, Roman architecture and society has been America’s prototype - “…their (Rome) great architectural achievements were to be a recurring prototype for centuries to come.” [3] In class, we talked about how ancient Rome and present day America are both modern looking, a forward thinking society, have similar political ideas and procedures, identical competition of power and wealth, and they share the idea of “Bread & Circuses”.
Another prototype would be the basilica of Pompeii as future inspiration for gothic cathedrals. Our current phase of the studio Found in Translation project is a good example of archetype/prototype/hybrid. Each preceding phase has served as inspiring archetypes and prototypes, but the 3 models were working on for tomorrow are intended to be hybrids of the 5”x 5” thumbnails and black and white 3D structure. Each model is supposed to focus on a certain vocabulary word (hopefully used in the 3D structure) and be developed and inspired by combinations and elements of the graphics.

In summary, the world of design revolves around the idea of “parts:whole”. This weeks prompts tie into each other in their definitions and in the way they’re applied to design and architecture in ancient and present times. Order defines hierarchy, and hierarchy gives purpose to order; sources provide inspiration and possibilities to create order, as well as build up entourages. And the three very similar elements, archetype, prototype, and hybrid, provide reference, or sources, to continue to show and improve hierarchy, entourages, and order.

citations
[1] www.dictionary.reference.com/browse
[2] Roth, Leland, M. (2007). Understanding Architecture: Its Elements, History, and Meaning. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press.
[3] Blakemore, R.G. (2006). History of Interior Design & Furniture, From Ancient Egypt to
Nineteenth Century Europe, Second Edition. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons
Inc.