Picon Ornament

The Politics of Architecture and Subjectivity
1. Auflage 2014
ISBN: 978-1-118-58824-6
Verlag: John Wiley & Sons
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 168 Seiten, E-Book

Reihe: Architectural Design Primer

Once condemned by Modernism and compared to a'crime' by Adolf Loos, ornament has made a spectacularreturn in contemporary architecture. This is typified by the worksof well-known architects such as Herzog & de Meuron, SauerbruchHutton, Farshid Moussavi Architecture and OMA. There is no doubtthat these new ornamental tendencies are inseparable frominnovations in computer technology. The proliferation ofdevelopments in design software has enabled architects toexperiment afresh with texture, colour, pattern and topology.Though inextricably linked with digital tools and culture, AntoinePicon argues that some significant traits in ornament persist fromearlier Western architectural traditions. These he defines as the'subjective' - the human interaction thatornament requires in both its production and its reception -and the political. Contrary to the message conveyed by the foundingfathers of modern architecture, traditional ornament was not meantonly for pleasure. It conveyed vital information about thedesignation of buildings as well as about the rank of their owners.As such, it participated in the expression of social values,hierarchies and order. By bringing previous traditions in ornamentunder scrutiny, Picon makes us question the political issues atstake in today's ornamental revival. What does it tell usabout present-day culture? Why are we presently so fearful ofmeaning in architecture? Could it be that by steering so vehementlyaway from symbolism, contemporary architecture is evading anyexplicit contribution to collective values?

Autoren/Hrsg.

Picon, Antoine

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Introduction: Architecture as Ornament? 009
Chapter 1: A Problematic Return 017
The Ornamental Revival in Contemporary Architecture 019
Textures, Patterns and Topology: A Different Ornament 027
The Subjective and the Political 047
Chapter 2: Ornament and Subjectivity 059
The Visage of Architecture 060
The Architect between Rules and Invention 062
Artists, Craftsmen and the Fabrication of Ornament 073
From Clients to Passer-By 082
Industrialisation and the Ornamental Impulse 090
The Ghost of ornament 097
Chapter 3: Politics of Ornament 103
From Economics to Politics 103
Communication and Style 106
The Power of Architectural Décor 122
Chapter 4: Reinventing the Meaning of Ornament 129
A New Architectural Subject 129
Political Uncertainties 144
Meaning and Symbols 145
Bibliography 157
Index 163
Picture Credits 167

Über Autor(innen)

Antoine Picon is the G Ware Travelstead Professor of theHistory of Architecture and Technology and Co-Director of DoctoralPrograms at Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD). He is alsoDirector of Research at Ecole Nationale des Ponts etChaussées, Paris. He has published numerous books and articlesmostly dealing with the complementary histories of architecture,science and technology, among which are: French Architects andEngineers in the Age of Enlightenment (Cambridge UniversityPress, 1992 and 2009), Claude Perrault (1613-1688)ou la curiosité d'un classique (Picard, 1988),L'Invention de l'Ingénieur Moderne,L'Ecole des Ponts et Chaussées 1747-1851(Presses de l'Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées,1992), La Ville Territoire des Cyborgs (L'Imprimeur,1998), Les Saint-Simoniens: Raison, Imaginaire, et Utopie(Belin, 2002), and Digital Culture in Architecture: AnIntroduction for the Design Professions (Birkhäuser,2010).