Space in process

Thoughts on our architectural intuition

Authors

Abstract

The architecture we create can be considered as a representation of prior work with, among other things, drawings. How we understand these drawings is therefore crucial. In the Renaissance, drawings–and geometry–were considered by Alberti as the possibility of making architecture articulate a harmony that should be so perfect that later changes would be undesirable. Today that view is challenged by the growing understanding that the architecture we create must continually adapt to a changing world. As such, architecture is never finished. This article presents the worldview behind Alberti’s ideas which today – due to the computer’s involvement in the creation of architecture – still seems to be prevalent. It is claimed that we can find resources for a different dialogue with the drawing than the one presented by Alberti, both before and after the Renaissance: By analyzing architecture that does not fit the Renaissance template, we can find inspiration for working differently with our spatial imagination.

Author Biography

Henrik Oxvig, Royal Danish Academy

Associate professor
Architecture, Urbanism and Landscape

References

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Published

2022-12-14