What is architecture?: Overview

I strongly and personally believe that when an architect is been added to a certain project it clearly meaner that art is being added to a project. Architecture is what runs a society. Without architecture society can be peaceful and happy but it cannot be organized and functional. Architecture brings stability to the society. Now why is architecture important? Because we all spend most of our lifetime indoors. We want a good environment. Our environment is largely effected by buildings and the amount of energy they use.
When I came to Pip to study architecture I thought it will be easy but then I realized architecture requires commitment. There is no room for choice. Either you will love it or hate it, there is no middle ground if you wish to be successful. If you want to be an Architect you must free your mind, break sways convention, think critically and learn to question and when appropriate challenge. I was told to study history in Architecture. I hated it because I am a militant modernists but history is essential and can’t be ignored.
From history we get precedents, form, influence, challenges, failure and materiality. An Architect is very important to the society for not what only do or what he brings to the society. A tremendous change can only be brought if an Architect works with its full education. Change is constant in this society and this amazing process of change has long been a source of inspiration for designers and Architects. Engineers and Architects for their building projects. This is because the designs which bring change are not Just aesthetically pleasing but are also practical and innovative.

Architecture is about ideas. Ideas can come from the location, nature, human beings, planets etc. The form can be inspired by the location. The materials can be influenced by the form. It is about space. Space is influenced by materials, scale, people and texture. “look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better. “-Albert Einstein. As I love buildings which are nature inspired. These buildings which are inspired from nature are more sensational because some of the designs also take on adaptive features of the things they were based on.
And I went searched for some buildings which were nature inspired and I was amazed to see the results that these buildings mark a great importance in today’s world, For example- The Beijing national stadium r better known as the bird’s nest stadium was designed by Swiss architecture firm Herzog & De neuron for the 2008 summer Olympics and Paralytics in Beijing china. As the name implies, the stadium looks like a giant bird’s nest made out of 110,000 tons of steel. The entire cost of constructing the stadium has been reported at over IIS$420 million.
The infrastructure was also built using advanced energy- saving design and environment friendly features such as natural ventilation & lighting, a recycling system for rainwater, use of renewable geothermal energy sources and utilization of photovoltaic power technologies. Now I said so much about this mega structure. Why? Because before reading about this bird’s nest stadium I always thought designing nature inspired building is useless. We can’t go far. Somewhere we will get stuck. This building changed my perception.
When I first saw this building in a magazine, the next fifteen minutes I Just stared at that image of this building and continuously asked Just one question to myself, how could they do this? I was Jealous at the very same time by the architect. By his vision. By his creativity. No matter he Just used steel to wrap up the stadium but the idea behind this was something very amazing. Another building I want to mention is Palm islands. Palm islands are an artificial archipelago in Dubbed, I-JAKE that is shaped like a palm tree, topped with a crescent.
The archipelago is made from sand and dredged from the Persian gulf and is house both residential and commercial establishments such as hotels, residential beach side villas and apartments, theme parks and restaurants. As an architect I want to leave an emotional response because architecture is about creating space in which people feel-sense and the proportions and rhythms of buildings create understandings that I know but how to put that into words. The beauty of architecture and the Joy of architect is we can set up potential for certain responses, but we can’t force it. Owe someone will react is entirely subjective. Some spaces may energize one person and frustrate another. However if I careful craft my design, I can make opportunities for people to engage most of their senses. Smooth, rough, cold, warm. When I will introduce water or other calming feature, the sound can create a memory of what one was doing or thinking at that moment. Visual qualities can certainly create an emotional response with color, texture, light/shadow ND form. The emotional response does not need to be profound, Just a response. Was the person happy or feel pleasant is one response.
Did it emitted curiosity? Or simply, does a space help one to focus or learning or lift their emotions to aid in their healing. Architecture of big malls and clash of sight and sound cause me to be frustrated, sometimes angry and sometimes I left an emotional response. In college every teacher who taught me said design a building in such a way that natural light should enter but when I design I hardly care about natural light. When any normal unman being goes to a mall he admires the outer faded of the mall. Then he enters and see interiors and gets amazed by it. He never cares about if natural light is coming or not.
If the building is functional or not. He Just admires what he sees. Taking an example of MOM Amanda, in this building natural light plays a great role. This is an remarkable building. But I got to know this thing after I came to study architecture. Before that I was unaware of this sensational master piece. My point is normal people hardly cares about all this. They Just want building to be beautiful. Hey want a building to glow like gold or smooth as silk or white as milk. La m not saying building should not contain natural light or it should be not functional. These points are very important for a building to work.
My point is these points should be kept in mind while designing but they should not be given over emphasize. In this world there is a line of good ideas. What we think that good or brilliant ideas comes rare to the people. No, this world is full of talented people. But there are powerful people too who are at the top and dominates everyone. Making a good design is not enough. You should first learn to save what you have created if you want to survive in this world. If you want to prove your existence that yes I do live here you better know how to respond when someone raise a finger over your work.
Anyone can through away your work or design in a dustbin saying this is a sit. If you don’t know what to say or if you have not prepared yourself for that then no matter how amazing your design is or was, that was nothing. Many architects take this term way too seriously- sustainable architecture. When a builder tells them to design a building for him they hunk of giving a foyer, multiple opening in the wall so that light can enter. But they forget that their first motive is to give their client a fool profit design. They should think about their client first.
Morals too order you to do this. If someone has asked you to do something and he is paying for you than you should better think about them first. Suppose you were asked to design an office building and how your client will make more profit. You think about going for sustainable architecture and help in giving back something to environment. That is very good thing. But thinking other ay round if you will give windows and openings then the workers working inside will remember that they have a life outside too. They will be connected to outside world too. F we think of sustainability than we should too think about this. This world work both ways. If I talk about why I chose architecture over another profession its because, to be very honest architect sounds cool. I know I will feel very proud to introduce myself as Architect Dear Bagman Sings. It sounds so good now too. Santiago collateral inspired me. I am a big fan of him. Why I love him or why I respect IM so much its because he has its own signature style. His buildings only will tell you that I was designed by collateral or I am a result of collateral’s vision. This happened with me. Hen I was gowning through a magazine I saw a building and I thought this might be collateral’s work and I was very happy when I read his name on the next page. This proves he has done architecture right when he is basically not an architect too. If you go and see collateral’s building it will tell you a different story from every side you see. His buildings always have something new to offer. A suspense, a never ending building is what he designs. This is how architecture should be done. On your own terms. In this modern era when there are many great architects present, collateral stands in a different row.
He has developed his own style and that’s the most significant thing about him. He combines artistry with engineering. The title of the book written on him goes perfectly on him- “poetics of movement”. He is truly a genius in himself and the best thing is he is best in the stuff he do. Collateral’s entry into high rise design began with an innovative 54-story-high twisting tower called Turning Torso(2005), location Mammal, Sweden. He is famous for his bridges and train stations. He is someone I want to be. He has his own thing in architecture. He belongs to architecture.
There are many more great architects, greater than collateral too but what he is, is more important for me. I don’t know his full biography or his history neither I no about all his works and projects but still he make me go crazy with whatever I know about him. Some of my classmates made a model of Lyon, airport railway station, Lyon France and they had many difficulties in starting. When they finished making the model they were very happy. The model name up very good. They said this was one of the best experience for them. But what I liked was when they said,We felt very good after making this model. I love this impact of claptrap which he have on every one of us. He faced a lot of criticism in his life but he replied by making awesome buildings. His work speaks. The thing I learnt from him his if you believe in yourself and in the stuff you do than you too can become great. Mummy…. One thing I realized after studying architecture for 2 years is most of the buildings which stands out loud in croup were the result of an architect ho designed by theory. If you Just make a functional building it will be like any other normal building.
But if you start a building with a concept which has nothing to do with architecture and then after you explore that and then when design a building by the properties and character of your concept you will surely win the battle. The more you think about theories, the more you will go into detailing. Theories will lead you to design every part of your building differently and with something which will increase the importance of that part. I will explain it with an example.. Like when you a photo of ours you like that photo more which was taken random.
The picture in which you made poses will not entertain you that much because the picture which was clicked random will have a certain story behind that and that increases its importance. Same goes to design of a building. When you design lets say a room and if it has a certain concept or a story or a theory behind that then there are chances that your client will love that. Anything which is expressed or told in a certain way attract us. So does buildings too. Coming back to Pip, design reviews are the most difficult parts but cost important and interesting too. T that time I find that I am finding it difficult to discuss my own design. Not Just me, even the student who has highest number of sheets and has worked very hard whole semester finds tough to deal with reviews. When whole class is standing behind you and you are there selling out your design to the two externals you never saw. Its hard. But from design reviews only we learn many things. At that very same time when I see my design I automatically realize I should have done this or I have made this block here. Reviews should be held very often.
Reviews are the best teachers if someone asks me who is the best teacher of the block. That’s the point where you have to save what you have created. Your design is like your small baby and you need to protect that from the world. You have to be at your best if you want to mark your existence. The last thing I want to add is architecture is clearly the most interesting thing ever happened to humanity. It is interesting, it is important, everyone needs this, it is cool, it is awesome, it is big, it is great. We need architecture to survive. Architecture changed the face of the earth. This explains its greatness.