Section introductions Each chapter section represents a different unit or area of study.The section introductions signify the start of a new unit and briefly outline what will be discussed. Diagrams Help to explain architectural theory and concepts in more detail. 7 Colour coding Denotes the chapter. Box outs Contain more detailed and contextual information about those architects or practices that are referred to in the body copy. Navigation Chapter navigation helps you determine which chapter unit you are in and what the preceding and following sections are.new 7.indd 1 10/8/07 8:59:33 AM p7 7 Navigation Chapter navigation helps you determine which chapter unit you are in and what the preceding and following sections are. Box outs Contain more detailed and contextual information about those architects or practices that are referred to in the body copy. Diagrams Help to explain architectural theory and concepts in more detail. Section introductions Each chapter section represents a different unit or area of study. The section introductions signify the start of a new unit and briefly outline what will be discussed. 14 22 23 Placing Architecture The Fundamentals of Architecture POSITION Sites have specific and unique location qualities, and this creates dynamic and ever-changing circumstances for anything positioned on it. For example, the shadow a building projects will change from one day to the next, and the light quality in any room will continually move and change. The position of a building relative to natural light determines many aspects of its planning. In a house, the position of a garden terrace or the location of, say, a dining room, rely on an architect’s understanding of how light enters a room or how shadow is cast across a garden. On larger scale buildings, orientation can significantly affect heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer. This will affect the energy efficiency of the building and the comfort of its users. The positioning of a building is part of the mechanics of understanding the site, and it provides a changing varying impression of the site, from the point when the sun rises to when it sets, and from the summer solstice (when the sun is at its highest point), to the winter solstice (when it is at its lowest). 13., 14., 15. & 16. Position and Light 13. External louvres on a building can modify the light coming into the building and can be manually adjusted to control the light. 14. Shadows cast by structures can have an impact on their surrounding environment, creating a local climate of light and dark. 15. Internal shadow can dramatically affect the way an interior environment may feel. Architects can play with light to create different moods within buildings. 16. Understanding that sunlight entering a building will change over the course of the day or will vary from season to season informs the design and layout of the interior spaces. Orientation In terms of architecture and building, orientation describes an understanding of how a building’s position on a site can influence specific factors concerning its design. How light affects our appreciation of buildings, and the activities we experience within them, is one of the most fundamental aspects of architectural design. Natural light in interior space brings life, a moving dimension and a connection with time and the outside. Site < Orientation > Climate Design Orientation Factors 1. For living accommodation in the northern hemisphere, in design terms, bedrooms should be east facing and dining rooms west facing to enjoy the light from the rising and setting sun. 2. South facing buildings will need some form of protection from sunlight. During summer months solar heat gain can raise temperatures to uncomfortable levels. This protection or modification can be in the form of internal blinds or brise soleil (external projections that affect the light entering the building). 3. North light can provide constant and unvarying light. 4. Orientation is concerned with prevailing wind as well as sunlight; different aspects or elevations of buildings may need to be treated in different ways to acknowledge this. 5. Buildings project shadows; understanding orientation requires an appreciation of the potential effect a building mass could have on its site or that of an adjacent one. 13 15 16 126 127 Contemporary Ideas The Fundamentals of Architecture Contemporary Ideas < Universal Ideas and Principles > Functionalism GEOMETRY In this context, geometry describes the ordering and organising of spaces according to geometric principles. Geometry can affect the plan, elevation or section of a building, as well as its individual elements, such as the doors or windows. Symmetry is an organising system that reflects either a plan, or elevation around a central line or axis. An axis connects two or more defined points and can regulate elements such as windows and doors (which will affect experiences such as views and vistas, and the entrance to and exit from buildings). Proportion describes the relationship of parts to a whole. Within architecture proportion is the relationship of scale (see page 96) and the hierarchy of a building or structure’s elements to its whole form. Universal Ideas and Principles There are universal ideas and concepts that transcend style or time and affect all architecture in varying ways. These have been categorised into three groups: geometry, form and route. Within each of these groups most architecture can be defined or described. 2. Plan of The Villa Rotunda Symmetry in architecture symbolises rational mathematical principles. Plans for Andrea Palladio’s Villa Rotunda (situated in Vincenza, Italy) show bilateral symmetry in two directions. The red lines indicate the axis of symmetry that crosses the villa’s central point. 3. Plan of the Château de Versailles This plan of the Château de Versailles displays the relationship of the château (designed by architect Louis Le Vau) to the gardens (designed by landscape architect André Le Notre) and demonstrates strong systems of symmetry along an axis. Within each of the parterre gardens other symmetrical patterns exist. The red lines here indicate the main organising axis of both garden and house. 4. Plan of Villa Stein The seemingly irregular plan of Le Corbusier’s Villa Stein (situated in Garches, France) is governed by the precise geometric proportioning system of a modular grid. The numbers shown relate to the module measurement that is applied to both the plan and the elevation of the building, which creates a certain rhythm. 2 4 3 How to get the most out of this book Colour coding Denotes the chapter. 2nd 76451_CTP_001-051.qxd 5/23/07 3:08 PM Page 7