PROFESSIONWITHOUTDISCIPLINEWOULDBEBLIND

Thethesisofthispaperisthateventhoughthereisaclearandimportant
interdependencybetweentheprofessionandthedisciplineofarchitectureitisthediscipline,
withitsmajortasksandbasicquestionsthatisindispensabletotheunderstandingof
architectureasapartoffundamentallyhumanendeavor.Itsimplyhastobecomethe
foundationoftheeducationofanarchitecturalstudent.Ifwedontunderstandarchitectureas
apartofournatureaspeopleandifwedontseeitasatoolforexploringourplaceandour
beingintheworld,architecturelosesitschargeandbecomesonlyacraftratherthana
philosophicallyhumanendeavor.
InthiscontextIwouldliketoexploretwodesignstudioprojectswhichwere
experimentsinbringingthedisciplineofarchitectureasgatheringandgeneratingknowledgeto
afundamentalpartoftheearlydesigneducation.Bothoftheseprojectsusedthebodily
experienceoftheworldasatoolforcollectinginformationaboutnaturalforces.Inboth
projectsthisexperiencebecameabaseforaseriesofrepresentationsandtranslationswhich
consequentlyleadtoadesignofanarchitecturalelementandeventuallyarchitectural
structure. 1

Context
Themostbasicdifferencebetweenprofessionanddisciplineofanykindisthatone
disciplinegeneratesknowledgeandtheotherprofessionappliesthatknowledgetosolving
specificproblems.Thus,theprofessionanddisciplineofarchitecturedifferintheirprimary
foci.Theprofessionfocusesontheproductandthewaysofproduction.Itconcentratesonthe
practicalitiesandprocessesofbuilding.Discipline,inmyview,ismostlyconcernedwiththe
morephilosophicalquestionsofwhyandhowwebuild.Architecture,initsveryessence,
relatestothemostprimalhumanactivitywhichisbuildingofshelter.Inaverydirectand
physicalwayitmanifestsanddefinesapersonsrelationshipandplacewithintheworldat
large.Soitisthedisciplineofarchitecture,ratherthantheprofessionthattakesonthat
fundamentalandphilosophicalsearchforthedefinitionandunderstandingofourplaceinthe
world. 2
Thedisciplineofarchitectureisaccumulatedandorganizedknowledgethatrelatesto
makingbuildings.Partofthatknowledgeincludesthenaturalworldandnaturalforces,people
andtherelationshipbetweenthemandthenaturalworld.Oursocialrelationshipsand
hierarchiesarealsoapartofthediscipline,butinthispaperIwillratherfocusontheformer
partofarchitecturalknowledge.Thatknowledgecouldbeandquiteoftenisgeneratedthrough
personsdirectexperiencesofthenaturalworld,byexperiencingandintuitingtheforcesinour
bodilyreactiontothem.IntheprojectswhichIwouldliketodiscussinthispaperthestudents
wereofferedopportunitiesfordirectexperiencesofthenaturalforcesasabaseforgathering
andgeneratingworldlyandarchitecturalknowledgefirsthand,bythemselvesandfor
themselves.Myhopewasthattheywouldcometoknowandunderstandtheseforcesonthe
veryfundamental,intuitiveandintimatelevelandthatatthesametimetheywouldbeableto
lookcriticallyattheirexperienceanduseitinaconsistent,disciplinedandanalyticalwayto
designanarchitecturalstructure.

JuhaniPallasmaa,TheEyesoftheSkin,(GreatBritain:WileyAcademy,2005).Bothprojectsintheirconception
phasewereinspiredbyPallasmaasexplorationoftheroleofbodilyandsensualexperienceinperceivingtheworld
andarchitecture.
2
MichaelBenedikt,ForAnArchitectureofReality,(NewYork:LumenBooks,1987).

Projects

TheprojectsthatIwouldliketodiscussarebasedontwomajorprinciples.First,they
arestructuredastofollowadesignprocessconsistingofmultiplerepresentationsand
mappingsofthesameidea. 3 Thatseriesofrepresentationsandmappingsconnectsthepoint
ofdeparturewhichisaspecificbodilyexperienceandthearchitecturalstructurewhichisthe
conclusionoftheprocess.Itallowsforaclosetiebetweenthebeginningandtheend,butit
alsoallowsforeachofthemtobetheirownentity.Second,inbothprojectsthedesignprocess
isinitiatedbystudentsbodilyexperienceofthenaturalworldandtheircritiqueofthat
experience.Theinitialphaseoftheprojectisnotarchitectural,butitreliesonstudents
intuitionandobservationoftheworldasitisandunderstandingverybasicworldlyphenomena,
i.e.therelationshipbetweenwindandgroundinagivenplace.
Thefirstprojecttobediscussedfocusedontheunderstandingofthephysicalforcesofa
naturalenvironment,aplaceofapersoninthatenvironmentandtheroleofabuiltstructureas
amediatorbetweenthenaturalworldandaperson.Thesecondprojectwasanattemptto
offerstudentsanintuitiveunderstandingofstructure,enclosure,lightandshadow.
Thestudentstaskinthefirstprojectwastodesignandbuildastructurelocatedona
specificsitetobalanceandweighonespecificnaturalforce.Thesiteforthisprojectwas
locatedonaprairiehillbyClintonLakeinLawrenceKansas.Wechosethatsiteparticularlyfor
itsexposuretothewind,sun,gravity(hill)andbuoyancy(water).

Figure1;Siteexploration

OctavioPazinMarcelDuchamp;AppearanceStrippedBare,NewYork,1991inhisinterpretationoftheLarge
GlasspresentsDuchampsideathatthreedimensionalworldwhichwecanperceiveisaprojectionofthereal,four
dimensionalworld.Thefourthdimensionisalwaystheessenceofagiventhing.Thus,theappearances
(representations)coulddifferwhiletheessenceofaspecificthingstaysthesame

Asthisprojectwasgoingtobuildonadirectexperienceof
thenaturalforceswestartedwithverythorough,firsthand
understandingofthesite.Sinceourassumption,fromthe
beginning,wasthattheonlyinstrumentforrecognizingand
learningabouttheworldthatwehaveisourbodyandour
bodilyperceptionitwasclearthatweneededtospendas
muchtimeaspossibleonthesite.Ourfirstvisitlastedhalfa
dayandwasspentinsimplybeingthereandallowingforthe
differentaspectsofthesitetorevealthemselvesandcometo
Figure2;SketchbyGavinSnyder
us.Duringthesecondvisitwestartedtorecordthese
observations,mostlythroughsketchingandlaterthroughphotographing.Thepurposeofthe
observationwastoseethesiteasmadebyasetofinterdependentforcesthatshapetheplace
aswellaseachotherandtherecordingwasthefirstrepresentationofthesitefroma
particularpointofviewusingdrawingsandphotoscollagedtogether.Thatrepresentationwas
torevealthesiteclearlyasafieldofinterdependentforces.
Inordertomakestudentsunderstandingofatleastoneoftheforcesdeeperandeven
moreintuitiveeachgroupofthestudentswasaskedtorevealthatparticularforceoftheir
choiceinsomephysicalway.Thus,studentsplacedaninstallationwithinthesitewhich
wouldinteractwithoneoftheforcesandgaveitaphysicalandexperientialpresence.

Insomecasestheinstallationwasassimpleas
lettingarockrolldownthehillandthesame
revealtheforceofgravityandinothersit
consistedoftyinglightyellowribbonstograsses.
Thecombinationofvisibilityoftheyellowcolor
andvulnerabilityoftheribbonstowindmadethe
windvisibletooureyes.Theinstallationonthe
sitehadadualcharge;itwasanotherre
presentationofaforceandthefirstphysical
interventiononthesite.Fromthatpointonthe
studentswereaskedtodevelopastructurethat
wouldbecomeapartofthatnaturalenvironment
ofthesiteandwouldrevealoneofitsforcesina
waythatwasperceivabletohumansenses.We
workedthroughseriesofstudieswhichwetested
inlargebathtubsandwiththeuseofbigfans
dependingonthenatureoftheforceunder
exploration.Oncethestudentsdevelopedtheir
ideasfortheindividualstructuresthatmeasuredandbalancedtheirrespectiveforcesthey
werechallengedtoturnthesestructuresintosheltersthatwouldprotectandconnectpeople
withtheenvironment.Fortherestofthedurationofthisprojectweworkedonusingthese
prototypicalstructurestodevelopanarchitecturalelementawall,afloororaroof.
Figure3;Siteinstallation

Figure4;Studies

LookingbackatthisprojectIbelievethatitsstrengthwasinthedirectnessofthesteps.After
experiencingaconcrete,existingphenomenon,suchaswindorgravitythestudentswereasked
toimmediatelyturnitintoapoeticrepresentationsuchastheyellowribbonsflowinginthe
wind.Thisimmediacyensuredacloseandsimplerelationshipbetweenthebodilyexperience
andthepoeticmanifestationofit.Ontheotherhandthatpoeticrepresentationofthe
experiencebecomesthefirstconsciousandphysicalmanifestationofthenaturalforce.
Following,therecameaseriesofmodelsthatwereinbetweenthepoeticrepresentationofthe
forceandtheactualityofaspecificarchitecturalelement.Gradually,inthatprocessthereality
ofthestructure,i.e.awallorafloorbecomesstrongerandclearer.Eventuallythewallness
orthefloornessofthearchitecturalelementasserteditselfstronglyenoughthatthe
structurebecameawalloraflooranditisnolongeranabstractionofthenaturalforcethat
werestudied.Thereisaconcrete,experienceablephenomenonononeendoftheprocessand
thereistheconcretenessandspecificityofanarchitecturalelementontheotherone.Thetwo
endsareconnectedbyaseriesofrepresentations,mappingsandtranslationsofessentiallythe
samephenomenaandideas.Inresulttheexperienceoftheforceandthearchitectural
elementaredirectlytiedtoeachotherbuttheyalsoaretwoautonomousentities.Bothof
theseentitiesrelyonperformanceinbothmajormeaningsoftheword.Anotheradvantageof
thisapproachisthatstudentsbecamesensitivetoenvironmentalissuesthatmayonlymanifest
themselvesasitemsonLEEDschecklist.

Figure5;WindWallbyBrentForgetandGavinSnyder

Thesecondprojectexploredtherelationshipbetweenapersonandabuiltstructureon
maybeevenmorebasiclevel.Theformulationoftheprojectstartedwiththeideathatwe
(people)relateandfeelconnectedwithstructureswhenweintuitivelyunderstandhowthey
work.Andweintuitivelyunderstandhowtheyworkifweareabletoprojectourbodiesinto
themanduseourhapticsenseandourintuitiveunderstandingofbalanceandmovementto
understandthebehaviorandbalanceoftheparticularstructure.
Inorderfortheprojecttoberootedinthisintuitive,bodilyandhapticunderstandingof
thephysicalforcesthatgoverntheenvironmentonEarthIdecidedtoallowforthestudentsto
literallybecomethestructureitselfandusethatexperienceindevelopingastructuralmember.
Thatmemberwouldlateronbeusedfordesigningadismountableshadingstructuresitedin
closeproximitytothearchitecturebuildingattheUniversityofKansas.
Thestudentswereaskedtoformpairsandperformanactinwhichtheirbodieswere
interdependentoneachotherandtheyformedasystemthatwasinthestateofequilibrium.

Figure6;Explorationofforcesandstresses

Theyanalyzedthepositionoftheirbodiescentersofgravity,thechangesinbalanceand
stabilitycausedbythechangeintheirrespectivebodypositionandthestressesintheir
muscles.Basedonthatanalysiseachpairofstudentsdevelopedastructuralmember.These
membersweretobedismountableandintheirsizeandweighttheyweretocorrespondwitha
humanbodysoanaveragepersoncouldeasilytakeeachmemberapartandputitback
together.

Figure7;Structuralmember

Atthesametimeastheyweredevelopingthestructurethestudentsstartedexperimenting
withdifferentmaterialsandtheirresponsetolight.Theylookedforawaytouseaspecific
materialinspecificstateandformtomouldandshapelightandshadow.Theseexperiments
concludedincreatingafullscalepanelofwhatwouldlaterbecomeaskinoftheirpavilion.
Theytookthatpaneltothesiteandspenthalfadaylookingatdifferentwaysthattheirskin

panelinteractedwiththesunatdifferenttimesofthedayandindifferentpartsofthesiteand
documentingthatinteraction.

Figure8;Shadowstudiesandfinalstructures

Onceagainthedirectexperienceoftheforcesandstressesinonesbodyaswellasthe
experienceofthelightandshadowwarmandcool,wasmappedinaseriesofrepresentations
andtranslatedintoatemporaryshadingstructurewithaspecificphysical,architectural
qualitiesandspecificprogram.

Conclusion
Ibelievethatthestrengthoftheseprojectswasinallowingandmaybeevenforcingthe
studentstothinkforthemselves.Theywereaskedtofindtheirownway,evenifguided,tothe
solution.Becausethatwaystartedatthepointofaverypersonalexperienceitwasreadily
accessibleandsignificantlydifferentforeachstudent.Thesuccessoftheseprojectswasin
givingstudentstheindependenceofcriticalthinkingdevelopingtheirownproject.
Theweaknessoftheseprojectswasinnotbeingabletoarrive,inthetimegiven,atareally
soundarchitectural(inthetraditionalsense)solution.Thisaspectoftheprojectswas
responsibleforexcludingtosomedegreesomeofthemoretechnicallyorientedstudents.They
encounteredthedifficultyinmakinganimmediateconnectionbetweenthebeginningphases
oftheprojectandwhattheysawasproperarchitecture.Inresult,therewereanumberof
studentswhoweredistrustfulandbehindintheirworkfromtheverybeginning.Thequestion
thatappearedwasisthisanappropriateprojectforanarchitectureschoolwhichisa
professionalschoolanditsprimarygoalistoeducatearchitectswhowillpractice,supportand
developtheirprofessionandtakeonalltheethicalandpracticalresponsibilitiesthatthesociety
placesontheprofessionals.Idobelievethateducationthatplacesmorestressonthe
disciplinethantheprofessionisveryappropriate.Anyarchitect,whiledesigningandbuilding
willhaveahandinplacingbuildingsintheworldandthesameheorshewillinfluencethe

physicalfromoftheworld,heorshewillinfluencecreatingoftheworldinwhichotherslive
theirlives.So,inthatwayeveryarchitecturalstudentwhoturnsintoapracticingarchitectwill
atsomepoint,consciouslyorunconsciously,successfullyorunsuccessfully,addresssomeofthe
aspectsofarchitectureasfundamentallyhumanendeavor,whichdefinesourbeinginthe
world.ThisisagreatresponsibilityandIbelievethatrealizationofthatresponsibilityneedsto
beattheverybasisofarchitecturaleducationandshouldbepresentthroughoutthesequence
ofdesignstudiosandsupportcourses.
Itistruethatdisciplineofarchitecturewithouttheprofessionwouldnotexistbutthe
professionwithoutthedisciplinewouldbeblind.Myconvictionisthatwhatmakesagreat
professionalisnotonlytheabilitytoputabuildingtogether,butmostofalltheawarenessof
theimportanceofarchitectureasdiscipline.