Site drawing of ElliðarárdalurWhat is good Architecture, by Þorlákur Jón Ingólfsson
Introduction
Architecture is a complex act of reaction to a place and time. It interacts with climate, people, cultures, economics, and politics with a vision of the future. Architecture is a tool to solve problems of the modern world and affects our future with its presence to make our cities a better place.
If you ask me what good architecture is, my answer would be: Good architecture is when it can travel through time and carry on its life, even though the world around it changes. Good architecture adapts but holds on to the fundamental values of the profession.
Since I began studying architecture one a half year ago my opinion of what good architecture is has been continually changing. In this essay I will describe what I consider the most important values of good architecture. I will talk about beauty and its´ relation to architecture, aesthetics, perception of space and how my views on good architecture continually develop as I go deeper into my studies.
1. Beauty
Most people would say that beauty is subjective. What I find beautiful others might not. A matter of taste. Surely beauty is in many ways subjective, personal, emotional and often triggered from deeply rooted experiences that have personal effect on us but often beauty becomes a collective perception that is shared among those who experience it together.
It´s a common expression to use the word beauty in order to describe objects, experiences, situations or actions: A beautiful view, the sunset is beautiful, this is beautiful music or a beautiful building. If people do something to help others or create a memorable moment for their loved ones, we consider it an act of beauty.
Beauty has power of attraction. It attracts our senses and creates the need to dwell in contact with it. We feel the need to maintain it and share with others via photographs, make drawings, create music, write poetry, or make art.
Artists recreate beauty by putting it into a different context or medium than it was originally experienced and therefore nurture the beauty and maintain it for others to experience and carry on its´ existence.
The human spirit can be conveyed in verbal expression but also take on physical form as buildings and work of art. Therefore, I believe beauty is an import quality of architecture. Not only as creating visually beautiful buildings but through the beautiful act of research and thought designing buildings where people wish to come together and dwell.
2. Aesthetic
“Aesthetic experience of the environment is a matter of all our senses and there are even some situations where hearing, smell and tactility are more important than vision; they are not experienced with vision: they are experienced with extraordinary intensity. As designers we must never forget that!” - Pierre Von Meiss
Since I´m writing this essay in English I would like to talk about the usage of language. And how it affects the way we talk about phenomena such as beauty. When Icelandic scholars talk about art, architecture, music, design or other fine arts often they use the word “fagurfræði” which would translate to theory of beauty. It implies that beauty is a subject that we can study in order to develop our understanding of it, much like the subject of medicine, (læknisfræði), subject of physics (eðlisfræði) or subject of economics (hagfræði).
The word aesthetic originates from the Greek word aisthesis which means perception or the ability to sense. Instead of studying it and analysing we can simply experience with our senses. Architects and phenomenologists have written books and articles since ancient Greece, speculating about how we sense the world and places, how aesthetics create memories and impact how we visualise and imagine. This is very important for an architect to have in mind while designing a building.
3. Virtual and the real
In modern architecture most of the design process happens on a computer. The computer allows us to measure, calculate, to be precise and fast. Architects make renderings to visualise the outcome of their projects which they can then present to potential clients. But to sense space you need to be engaged with it with your body. The space has elements of sound, texture, light, and smell which one can only sense by being present. A photograph or a rendering will never translate to real experience of space.
Mediums such as Pinterest, Instagram, design magazines and YouTube feed their users images of their interest, for an architect or an architecture student that would mean images of buildings and spaces. Those images are edited to make the content more attractive to its viewer. Often those images don´t express the realness of its topic. The true experience of the places in the images is often very different from what is displayed. A good example are images of apartments listed on the Icelandic real estate market which often show misleading photos of what the apartment is like. The usage of wide-angle lens disrupts the true proportions of the space, and even if the proportions were accurate it still would not represent the true sense of space. This virtual expression does not display architecture but sell an image and lifestyle to consumers.
4. Space
“Space is made by an artist or architect; it is not found and packaged. It is made by thought. Therefore, buildings have no space. Most people are not aware of this absence. They are not bothered by confusion and nothingness that is enclosed. Of course, they don´t miss real space and desire it. Sometimes when they are travelling, they enter a cathedral, recognise space, and thank god instead of the architect!” - Donald Judd
The fundamental elements of architecture are invisible. Proportions, compositions of materials and form make the spaces we live in.
Pierre Von Meiss describes in his book Elements of Architecture the work of architecture studio Atelier 5 in Switzerland where they re-erected the art museum in Berne. The museum has very clear function to display work of art by other artists. The architects would invest great amount of time in experimenting and investigating light in pursuit of creating perfect natural lighting system to conserve and present paintings in the best possible conditions.
When an architect makes his visit to a new museum, built by their colleagues, he does not go there to see the art on display but rather to experience the space itself. And yet, in this case, the colleague at the end of his visit has discovered that he had only seen the art and forgotten to look at the museum as a piece of architecture. It is perhaps the greatest compliments that can be paid to the work of architect. I´m not necessarily saying that architecture should disappear behind its content. There are cases where architecture must play more of a role by its presence. For example, the building of the supreme court in Iceland by studio Granda I feel, has the presence of power and weight, transforming the image of the institution in to a building.
5. Care
Since I started studying architecture my interest and focus has changed. I was interested in buildings as objects or even sculptures. The combination of different materials composed by the mind of the architect resulting in incredible buildings. Peter Zumthor´s bathhouse in Vals, the Usonian Houses by Frank Lloyd Wright, the concrete structures by Tado Ando and recently built Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg designed by Herzog og De Mauron are all breath-taking examples of architecture but during my education the importance of social and environmental context has shifted my ideas of what good architecture is.
It was a shifting moment for me when Lacaton and Vassal were handed the 2021 Pritzker price for their work on three large residential buildings in Bordeaux, France. They suggested a renovation instead of deconstruction of 500 dwellings. They would use simple solutions and low budgets reducing the cost and negative impact on each resident. They extruded the facade of the building and were able to create better apartments for the residents by adding more quality in terms of light and space. None of the residents had to move out of the building while the constructions were taking place, so the architecture had minimal negative effect on their lives. The added materials were concrete, steel, glass, and corrugated sheets of metal resulting in an honest and functional addition to the pre-existing buildings.
This case of good architecture is a good example of architects who are mindful of both community, environment and people. Their attention to social living and understanding the importance of the residents shows a beautiful act of care. Allowing the building to live but not destruct and build new, means they are having minimal environmental impact.
I find the building beautiful by itself. I think that the program listed before, emphasises the beautiful act of the architects. The beauty of this examples is not only in the visual perception but in the care and thought of the architect.
6. Changing values
Between the 1880´s and 1930´s Icelanders started building rugged, small scale timber frame houses clad top to bottom with corrugated sheet of metal. Elsewhere it would almost exclusively be used for industrial buildings such as sheds, warehouses, or factories. Iron cladding had practical applications, protecting the timber structures from sideways rain and snow in the winter. The corrugation of the sheet allowed the timber structure to breath and it was cheap. Those buildings represent innovative, resilience and adaption to difficult living situations at the time. When the concrete revolution came to Iceland and our economical situations improved, those houses became symbols of poverty of the past and many of them were deconstructed and had negative value in the minds of people. Now we see them as gems in Icelandic history of architecture with their multicoloured facades. This shows how our understanding of beauty can change.
Conclusion
Before I started studying architecture, I had opinions of what good architecture was. I was interested in beautiful buildings as objects. But now I have learned to consider more variable elements of functionalities, environmental and social factors, climate concerns and local adaptions of international thought and ideas. As a second-year student in architecture I´m still in a learning face of my development. My opinion of what good architecture implies will most likely continue to change with my development and the fast-changing world around me.
Architecture is a complex act of reaction to a place and time. It interacts with climate, people, cultures, economics, and politics with a vision of the future. Architecture is a tool to solve problems of the modern world and affects our future with its presence to make our cities a better place.
If you ask me what good architecture is, my answer would be: Good architecture is when it can travel through time and carry on its life, even though the world around it changes. Good architecture adapts but holds on to the fundamental values of the profession.
Since I began studying architecture one a half year ago my opinion of what good architecture is has been continually changing. In this essay I will describe what I consider the most important values of good architecture. I will talk about beauty and its´ relation to architecture, aesthetics, perception of space and how my views on good architecture continually develop as I go deeper into my studies.
1. Beauty
Most people would say that beauty is subjective. What I find beautiful others might not. A matter of taste. Surely beauty is in many ways subjective, personal, emotional and often triggered from deeply rooted experiences that have personal effect on us but often beauty becomes a collective perception that is shared among those who experience it together.
It´s a common expression to use the word beauty in order to describe objects, experiences, situations or actions: A beautiful view, the sunset is beautiful, this is beautiful music or a beautiful building. If people do something to help others or create a memorable moment for their loved ones, we consider it an act of beauty.
Beauty has power of attraction. It attracts our senses and creates the need to dwell in contact with it. We feel the need to maintain it and share with others via photographs, make drawings, create music, write poetry, or make art.
Artists recreate beauty by putting it into a different context or medium than it was originally experienced and therefore nurture the beauty and maintain it for others to experience and carry on its´ existence.
The human spirit can be conveyed in verbal expression but also take on physical form as buildings and work of art. Therefore, I believe beauty is an import quality of architecture. Not only as creating visually beautiful buildings but through the beautiful act of research and thought designing buildings where people wish to come together and dwell.
2. Aesthetic
“Aesthetic experience of the environment is a matter of all our senses and there are even some situations where hearing, smell and tactility are more important than vision; they are not experienced with vision: they are experienced with extraordinary intensity. As designers we must never forget that!” - Pierre Von Meiss
Since I´m writing this essay in English I would like to talk about the usage of language. And how it affects the way we talk about phenomena such as beauty. When Icelandic scholars talk about art, architecture, music, design or other fine arts often they use the word “fagurfræði” which would translate to theory of beauty. It implies that beauty is a subject that we can study in order to develop our understanding of it, much like the subject of medicine, (læknisfræði), subject of physics (eðlisfræði) or subject of economics (hagfræði).
The word aesthetic originates from the Greek word aisthesis which means perception or the ability to sense. Instead of studying it and analysing we can simply experience with our senses. Architects and phenomenologists have written books and articles since ancient Greece, speculating about how we sense the world and places, how aesthetics create memories and impact how we visualise and imagine. This is very important for an architect to have in mind while designing a building.
3. Virtual and the real
In modern architecture most of the design process happens on a computer. The computer allows us to measure, calculate, to be precise and fast. Architects make renderings to visualise the outcome of their projects which they can then present to potential clients. But to sense space you need to be engaged with it with your body. The space has elements of sound, texture, light, and smell which one can only sense by being present. A photograph or a rendering will never translate to real experience of space.
Mediums such as Pinterest, Instagram, design magazines and YouTube feed their users images of their interest, for an architect or an architecture student that would mean images of buildings and spaces. Those images are edited to make the content more attractive to its viewer. Often those images don´t express the realness of its topic. The true experience of the places in the images is often very different from what is displayed. A good example are images of apartments listed on the Icelandic real estate market which often show misleading photos of what the apartment is like. The usage of wide-angle lens disrupts the true proportions of the space, and even if the proportions were accurate it still would not represent the true sense of space. This virtual expression does not display architecture but sell an image and lifestyle to consumers.
4. Space
“Space is made by an artist or architect; it is not found and packaged. It is made by thought. Therefore, buildings have no space. Most people are not aware of this absence. They are not bothered by confusion and nothingness that is enclosed. Of course, they don´t miss real space and desire it. Sometimes when they are travelling, they enter a cathedral, recognise space, and thank god instead of the architect!” - Donald Judd
The fundamental elements of architecture are invisible. Proportions, compositions of materials and form make the spaces we live in.
Pierre Von Meiss describes in his book Elements of Architecture the work of architecture studio Atelier 5 in Switzerland where they re-erected the art museum in Berne. The museum has very clear function to display work of art by other artists. The architects would invest great amount of time in experimenting and investigating light in pursuit of creating perfect natural lighting system to conserve and present paintings in the best possible conditions.
When an architect makes his visit to a new museum, built by their colleagues, he does not go there to see the art on display but rather to experience the space itself. And yet, in this case, the colleague at the end of his visit has discovered that he had only seen the art and forgotten to look at the museum as a piece of architecture. It is perhaps the greatest compliments that can be paid to the work of architect. I´m not necessarily saying that architecture should disappear behind its content. There are cases where architecture must play more of a role by its presence. For example, the building of the supreme court in Iceland by studio Granda I feel, has the presence of power and weight, transforming the image of the institution in to a building.
5. Care
Since I started studying architecture my interest and focus has changed. I was interested in buildings as objects or even sculptures. The combination of different materials composed by the mind of the architect resulting in incredible buildings. Peter Zumthor´s bathhouse in Vals, the Usonian Houses by Frank Lloyd Wright, the concrete structures by Tado Ando and recently built Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg designed by Herzog og De Mauron are all breath-taking examples of architecture but during my education the importance of social and environmental context has shifted my ideas of what good architecture is.
It was a shifting moment for me when Lacaton and Vassal were handed the 2021 Pritzker price for their work on three large residential buildings in Bordeaux, France. They suggested a renovation instead of deconstruction of 500 dwellings. They would use simple solutions and low budgets reducing the cost and negative impact on each resident. They extruded the facade of the building and were able to create better apartments for the residents by adding more quality in terms of light and space. None of the residents had to move out of the building while the constructions were taking place, so the architecture had minimal negative effect on their lives. The added materials were concrete, steel, glass, and corrugated sheets of metal resulting in an honest and functional addition to the pre-existing buildings.
This case of good architecture is a good example of architects who are mindful of both community, environment and people. Their attention to social living and understanding the importance of the residents shows a beautiful act of care. Allowing the building to live but not destruct and build new, means they are having minimal environmental impact.
I find the building beautiful by itself. I think that the program listed before, emphasises the beautiful act of the architects. The beauty of this examples is not only in the visual perception but in the care and thought of the architect.
6. Changing values
Between the 1880´s and 1930´s Icelanders started building rugged, small scale timber frame houses clad top to bottom with corrugated sheet of metal. Elsewhere it would almost exclusively be used for industrial buildings such as sheds, warehouses, or factories. Iron cladding had practical applications, protecting the timber structures from sideways rain and snow in the winter. The corrugation of the sheet allowed the timber structure to breath and it was cheap. Those buildings represent innovative, resilience and adaption to difficult living situations at the time. When the concrete revolution came to Iceland and our economical situations improved, those houses became symbols of poverty of the past and many of them were deconstructed and had negative value in the minds of people. Now we see them as gems in Icelandic history of architecture with their multicoloured facades. This shows how our understanding of beauty can change.
Conclusion
Before I started studying architecture, I had opinions of what good architecture was. I was interested in beautiful buildings as objects. But now I have learned to consider more variable elements of functionalities, environmental and social factors, climate concerns and local adaptions of international thought and ideas. As a second-year student in architecture I´m still in a learning face of my development. My opinion of what good architecture implies will most likely continue to change with my development and the fast-changing world around me.
Residential Houses and studios next to Kartöflugeumslur
Urban Lab - Design Agency