portfolio_foundation studio_1

10
c. annalisa miller academic + student work Humans intrinsically seek orientation in the world derived from the location and measure of their body in space. This studio will employ the body and various modes of orientation to explore habitation in the world using the theoretical framework of point, line and plane. Similar to the omphalos, the stone that gave birth to ancient Roman cities, the body will serve as a POINT of beginning for understanding measure, scale and proportion. In the creation of cities, LINES extended outward from the ompha- los in cardinal directions. Similarly, students will extend lines and make recorded journeys, documenting their intersections overlaps, meetings and departures. Although the surface of a PLANE is often conceived as an object, landscape is a palimpsest––myriad artifacts and histories revealed both on the surface and below. These fragments and strands of site will drive the excavation of its particular cultural, historical or natural narratives. Practice of landscape architecture: is a multi-disciplinary field, which includes: geogra- phy, mathematics, science, engineering, art, horticulture, technology, social sciences, politics, history, philosophy and more recently, ecology. It is a profession closely related to architecture and urban planning and encompasses projects ranging in size from a small residential site to a few thousand units or more planned community. It is a profession that strives to improve the quality of lives for all human beings while also being aware of the implications the design has on the ecology of a site. Through landscape we can un- derstand relationships that exist between humans and the environment, between differ- ent cultures and geographical regions and throughout different historical time periods. Context: is critical information about the land adjacent to a site and critical when making about that site. It is a zoomed out view from the particular site usually encompassing key transportation routes, significant geographical features, adjacent land uses and critical cultural elements. O B J E C T I V E S This studio explores seeing, representing, and synthesizing as fundamental and interrelated processes in the study and practice of landscape architecture. Basic principles, vocabularies, and techniques for observing, recording, analyzing, and representing places are also examined. Emphasis is placed on learning to ‘read’ a landscape and respond appropriately to site and context (both natural and built). Projects provide opportunities to explore drawing (both analog and digital) as an essential tool for recording and conveying observations, analysis, and intentions. S T U D I O Within a landscape architectural curriculum, the studio serves as the principal setting for design research, exploration and experimentation. Fundamental to success in studio is understanding its collaborative nature. Students should take full advantage of the studio setting as a rich and shared environment for learning and where a range of ideas, interests, projects, and representation strategies are studied. Students are required to ‘be in studio’ every MWF afternoons as well as spend a significant amount of out-of- class time (including weekends) on studio projects. While in studio, each will be expected to work independently or, if appropriate, with classmates on the researching of topics, the discussion of ideas, and the exploration of design questions and answers. syllabus: foundation studio

Transcript of portfolio_foundation studio_1

c.

an

na

lisa

mil

ler

academic + student work

Humans intrinsically seek orientation in the world derived from the location and measure of their body in space. This studio will employ the body and various modes of orientation to explore habitation in the world using the theoretical framework of point, line and plane. Similar to the omphalos, the stone that gave birth to ancient Roman cities, the body will serve as a POINT of beginning for understanding measure, scale and proportion. In the creation of cities, LINES extended outward from the ompha-los in cardinal directions. Similarly, students will extend lines and make recorded journeys, documenting their intersections overlaps, meetings and departures. Although the surface of a PLANE is often conceived as an object, landscape is a palimpsest––myriad artifacts and histories revealed both on the surface and below. These fragments and strands of site will drive the excavation of its particular cultural, historical or natural narratives.

Prac

tice

of

land

scap

e ar

chit

ectu

re: i

s a

mul

ti-di

scip

linar

y fie

ld, w

hich

incl

udes

: geo

gra-

phy,

mat

hem

atic

s, s

cien

ce,

engi

neer

ing,

art

, ho

rtic

ultu

re,

tech

nolo

gy,

soci

al s

cien

ces,

po

litic

s, h

isto

ry, p

hilo

soph

y an

d m

ore

rece

ntly

, eco

logy

. It i

s a

prof

essi

on c

lose

ly re

late

d to

arc

hite

ctur

e an

d ur

ban

plan

ning

and

enc

ompa

sses

pro

ject

s ran

ging

in si

ze fr

om a

smal

l re

side

ntia

l site

to

a fe

w t

hous

and

units

or

mor

e pl

anne

d co

mm

unity

. It

is a

pro

fess

ion

that

str

ives

to im

prov

e th

e qu

ality

of l

ives

for a

ll hu

man

bei

ngs

whi

le a

lso

bein

g aw

are

of

the

impl

icat

ions

the

des

ign

has

on t

he e

colo

gy o

f a s

ite.

Thro

ugh

land

scap

e w

e ca

n un

-de

rsta

nd re

latio

nshi

ps th

at e

xist

bet

wee

n hu

man

s an

d th

e en

viro

nmen

t, b

etw

een

diff

er-

ent c

ultu

res

and

geog

raph

ical

regi

ons

and

thro

ugho

ut d

iffer

ent h

isto

rical

tim

e pe

riods

.

Cont

ext:

is

criti

cal i

nfor

mat

ion

abou

t the

land

adj

acen

t to

a si

te a

nd c

ritic

al w

hen

mak

ing

abou

t tha

t site

. It

is a

zoo

med

out

vie

w fr

om th

e pa

rtic

ular

site

usu

ally

enc

ompa

ssin

g ke

y tr

ansp

orta

tion

rout

es, s

igni

fican

t ge

ogra

phic

al f

eatu

res,

adj

acen

t la

nd u

ses

and

criti

cal

cultu

ral e

lem

ents

.

O B J E C T I V E S This studio explores seeing, representing, and synthesizing as fundamental and interrelated processes in the study and practice of landscape architecture. Basic principles, vocabularies, and techniques for observing, recording, analyzing, and representing places are also examined. Emphasis is placed on learning to ‘read’ a landscape and respond appropriately to site and context (both natural and built). Projects provide opportunities to explore drawing (both analog and digital) as an essential tool for recording and conveying observations, analysis, and intentions.

S T U D I O Within a landscape architectural curriculum, the studio serves as the principal setting for design research, exploration and experimentation. Fundamental to success in studio is understanding its collaborative nature. Students should take full advantage of the studio setting as a rich and shared environment for learning and where a range of ideas, interests, projects, and representation strategies are studied.Students are required to ‘be in studio’ every MWF afternoons as well as spend a significant amount of out-of-class time (including weekends) on studio projects. While in studio, each will be expected to work independently or, if appropriate, with classmates on the researching of topics, the discussion of ideas, and the exploration of design questions and answers.

sy l labus: foundation studio

c.

an

na

lisa

mil

ler

academic + student work

Poet

ics:

is t

he b

eaut

iful,

the

intim

ate,

the

del

ight

ful,

the

crea

tive,

the

uniq

ue, t

he s

im-

ple,

the

intr

icat

e, t

he r

hym

e,

the

rhyt

hm t

he r

easo

n of

an

obje

ct.

Inte

rven

tion

: is

a co

nsci

ous

deci

sion

to

chan

ge s

omet

hing

abo

ut a

pla

ce a

nd m

ake

it be

tter

tha

n it

cur-

rent

ly is

. A

s la

ndsc

ape

arch

itect

s w

e re

ad a

nd w

rite,

rew

rite

or e

rase

and

cha

nge,

com

pose

and

impr

ovis

e,

high

light

or d

ownp

lay

cert

ain

feat

ures

on

a si

te.

We

are

trus

ted

with

am

azin

g po

tent

ial a

s w

e in

fluen

ce th

e on

goin

g hi

stor

y of

a s

ite.

Be a

war

e of

the

cultu

ral,

hist

oric

al a

nd e

colo

gica

l ele

men

ts a

nd th

e ro

le th

ey p

lay

with

in th

e en

tire

syst

em.

Topo

grap

hy: t

opo-

, “pl

ace”

, and

gra

phia

, “w

ritin

g”.

NO

T to

be

conf

used

with

typ

ogra

phy

and

ofte

n it

is

sim

ply

refe

rred

to

as ‘t

opo’

. It

is a

stu

dy o

f th

e ea

rth’

s su

rfac

e in

var

ying

con

tour

inte

rval

s of

one

, tw

o,

five,

ten,

or o

ne h

undr

ed fe

et.

Sea

leve

l is

alw

ays

zero

on

a to

pogr

aphy

map

and

a h

igh

poin

t is

alw

ays

the

high

est n

umbe

red

cont

our i

n a

part

icul

ar a

rea.

The

land

scap

e ar

chite

ct s

hall

alw

ays

incl

ude

topo

grap

hy o

n th

eir p

lans

and

use

it to

info

rm a

nd d

raw

n se

ctio

ns. T

hrou

gh th

e m

anip

ulat

ion

of th

e to

pogr

aphy

land

scap

e ar

chite

ct’s

cha

nge,

sha

pe, a

nd r

econ

stru

ct t

heir

wor

ld. E

xist

ing

topo

grap

hy is

dra

wn

with

das

hed

lines

. Pr

opos

ed to

pogr

aphy

is d

raw

n in

sol

id li

nes.

Top

ogra

phy

can

be fo

und

on U

SGS

map

s an

d in

GIS

.

Sect

ion:

is

a cu

t th

ough

a

part

of

a pl

an t

hat

show

s, in

th

e ve

rtic

al s

cale

, w

hat

the

spac

e w

ould

be

like.

It

tel

ls

a st

ory

abou

t th

e sp

atia

l or-

gani

zatio

n, t

he s

cale

of

the

land

scap

e el

emen

ts t

o th

e hu

man

bod

y an

d ho

w t

he

topo

grap

hy i

s us

ed o

n th

e si

te.

The

lan

dsca

pe a

rchi

-te

ct s

houl

d de

sign

in s

ectio

n (a

nd p

lan)

and

mak

e cr

itica

l de

cisi

ons

base

d on

the

hu-

man

and

ver

tical

sca

le o

f the

ob

ject

s.

Sket

chbo

ok:

is a

por

tabl

e co

llect

ion

of

draw

ings

, wor

ds, p

lans

, sec

tions

, per

spec

-tiv

e, d

iagr

ams,

ins

pira

tions

and

the

fre

e ex

plor

atio

n an

d ev

olut

ion

of y

our

idea

s.

It in

clud

es d

etai

ls a

bout

wha

t yo

u se

e an

d ho

w y

ou i

nter

pret

the

wor

ld.

It

hous

es

the

aspe

cts

of d

esig

n th

at m

ost

fasc

inat

e yo

u an

d th

ose

that

mos

t ch

alle

nge

you.

It

will

be

a re

cord

of

your

tho

ught

s in

the

no

w, t

he e

xact

pla

ce y

ou a

re- t

his

mom

ent-

w

ithin

you

r de

velo

pmen

t as

a d

esig

ner.

It

is a

foot

prin

t for

whe

re y

ou h

ave

been

and

cl

ues

to w

here

you

are

goi

ng.

Natural/nature: is a common word but one you must ALWAYS know in which context it is used. Its meaning changes per profession, per culture and per time period.

Diagrams: are non-written notes that explain important spatial, behavioral and environmental characteristics about a place. They provide insight and understanding to the designer and serve as reminders of what phe-nomena occur on the site.

S K E T C H B O O K You are required to keep a sketchbook/journal throughout the semester. Have it with you always. This sketchbook/journal will serve as a design journal in which field notes, thoughts and observations about your surrounding environment, designed and natural landscapes, built work (both good and bad), precedents, analytical sketches, diagrams, design inspirations, etc will be recorded. It will provide a chronological record of your design and thought process, as well as a place to refer back to for ideas. There will be an open review of the sketchbooks throughout the semester and a final review at the end.

R E Q U I R E M E N T S Studio participation, lecture attendance, completion of assigned projects, project presentations, sketchbook, assigned field trips, and WAAC competitions are required. The course schedule or project requirements may change during the course of the semester. Students are responsible for any changes announced during the regularly scheduled class time or at the Monday weekly meeting.

A S S E S S M E N TIndividual projects will not be graded throughout the semester. Rather, final grades will be decided based on your growth and development throughout the semester, the process you engage in, the ability to think critically, to seek out creative exploration and the depth of your inquiry and presentation skills.

M A T E R I A L S A recommended materials list is attached.

B I B L I O G R A P H Y Readings with citations and bibliographies will be handed out as they pertain to the projects.

S Y L L A B U SWe will complete three modules throughout the semester. Each module builds upon the previous module, in a progression of scale, skills, understanding, inquiry, materials, and representation. The first module will explore the notion of measurement and scale and how the human body is intricately involved in this process, and has served as a standardized unit throughout history. The investigation will integrate one of the four elements, fire, air, water or earth and investigate its physical qualities, poetics and purpose and its interaction with the human body and the built environment. The design will require an intervention on the site, and discover how a permanent object can change due to a force acting upon it. The second module will introduce topography, how geological features influence the organization and layout of cities and contribute to the culture and identity of a place. Through an analysis and section of King Street the student will discover how the landscape serves as landmarks, the character and functions change and progress and the importance of civic space. The third module will explore the design process through the four steps of landing, finding, grounding and founding. The project will explore the notion of landscape as palimpsest, a collection of cultural, historical and ecological clues intrinsic to the site and from which the landscape architect finds inspiration.

Palim

pses

t:

is a

met

apho

r us

ed i

n la

ndsc

ape

arch

itec-

ture

to

impl

y a

serie

s of

lay-

ers.

A p

alim

pses

t was

a s

tone

ta

blet

en

grav

ed

with

te

xt

in

anci

ent

times

. In

or

der

to r

e-us

e it,

the

sur

face

was

gr

ound

dow

n, b

ut t

his

left

tr

aces

of

the

orig

inal

tex

t.

In t

ime,

the

sur

face

wou

ld

be a

com

pila

tion

of t

he p

ast

engr

avin

gs

laye

red

on

top

of o

ne a

noth

er, w

ith t

he t

op

one

mos

t ev

iden

t. I

t is

use

d in

la

ndsc

ape

arch

itect

ure

to

desc

ribe

the

equi

vale

nt

laye

ring

proc

ess

thro

ugh

whi

ch

com

plex

la

ndsc

apes

ar

e fo

rmed

ove

r tim

e, w

ith

new

lay

ers

bein

g ad

ded

in

to o

ld o

nes,

for

min

g a

com

-po

site

tha

t be

ars

the

impr

int

of m

any

prev

ious

laye

rs a

nd

addi

tions

.

V I R G I N I A T E C HCOLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE

AND URBAN STUDIES

School of Architecture + Design

Program of Landscape Architecture

LAR 4705:: 96485

fall 2010:: mwf 1:30-5:30pm

Instructor:: Annalisa Miller [email protected]

FOU

ND

ATI

ON

STU

DIO

sy l labus: foundation studio

Poetics: is the beautiful, the intim

ate, the delightful, the creative, the unique, the sim

-ple, the intricate, the rhym

e, the rhythm

the reason of an object.

Intervention: is a conscious decision to change something about a place and m

ake it better than it cur-rently is. A

s landscape architects we read and w

rite, rewrite or erase and change, com

pose and improvise,

highlight or downplay certain features on a site. W

e are trusted with am

azing potential as we influence the

ongoing history of a site. Be aware of the cultural, historical and ecological elem

ents and the role they play w

ithin the entire system.

Topography: topo-, “place”, and graphia, “writing”. N

OT to be confused w

ith typography and often it is sim

ply referred to as ‘topo’. It is a study of the earth’s surface in varying contour intervals of one, two,

five, ten, or one hundred feet. Sea level is always zero on a topography m

ap and a high point is always the

highest numbered contour in a particular area. The landscape architect shall alw

ays include topography on their plans and use it to inform

and drawn sections. Through the m

anipulation of the topography landscape architect’s change, shape, and reconstruct their w

orld. Existing topography is drawn w

ith dashed lines. Proposed topography is draw

n in solid lines. Topography can be found on USG

S maps and in G

IS.

Section: is a cut though a part of a plan that show

s, in the vertical scale, w

hat the space w

ould be like. It tells a story about the spatial or-ganization, the scale of the landscape elem

ents to the hum

an body and how the

topography is used on the site. The landscape archi-tect should design in section (and plan) and m

ake critical decisions based on the hu-m

an and vertical scale of the objects.

Sketchbook: is a portable collection of draw

ings, words, plans, sections, perspec-

tive, diagrams, inspirations and the free

exploration and evolution of your ideas. It includes details about w

hat you see and how

you interpret the world. It houses

the aspects of design that most fascinate

you and those that most challenge you.

It will be a record of your thoughts in the

now, the exact place you are- this m

oment-

within your developm

ent as a designer. It is a footprint for w

here you have been and clues to w

here you are going.

Natural/nature: is a common word but one you must ALWAYS know in which context it is used. Its meaning changes per profession, per culture and per time period.

Diagrams: are non-written notes that explain important spatial, behavioral and environmental characteristics about a place. They provide insight and understanding to the designer and serve as reminders of what phe-nomena occur on the site.

S K E T C H B O O K You are required to keep a sketchbook/journal throughout the semester. Have it with you always. This sketchbook/journal will serve as a design journal in which field notes, thoughts and observations about your surrounding environment, designed and natural landscapes, built work (both good and bad), precedents, analytical sketches, diagrams, design inspirations, etc will be recorded. It will provide a chronological record of your design and thought process, as well as a place to refer back to for ideas. There will be an open review of the sketchbooks throughout the semester and a final review at the end.

R E Q U I R E M E N T S Studio participation, lecture attendance, completion of assigned projects, project presentations, sketchbook, assigned field trips, and WAAC competitions are required. The course schedule or project requirements may change during the course of the semester. Students are responsible for any changes announced during the regularly scheduled class time or at the Monday weekly meeting.

A S S E S S M E N TIndividual projects will not be graded throughout the semester. Rather, final grades will be decided based on your growth and development throughout the semester, the process you engage in, the ability to think critically, to seek out creative exploration and the depth of your inquiry and presentation skills.

M A T E R I A L S A recommended materials list is attached.

B I B L I O G R A P H Y Readings with citations and bibliographies will be handed out as they pertain to the projects.

S Y L L A B U SWe will complete three modules throughout the semester. Each module builds upon the previous module, in a progression of scale, skills, understanding, inquiry, materials, and representation. The first module will explore the notion of measurement and scale and how the human body is intricately involved in this process, and has served as a standardized unit throughout history. The investigation will integrate one of the four elements, fire, air, water or earth and investigate its physical qualities, poetics and purpose and its interaction with the human body and the built environment. The design will require an intervention on the site, and discover how a permanent object can change due to a force acting upon it. The second module will introduce topography, how geological features influence the organization and layout of cities and contribute to the culture and identity of a place. Through an analysis and section of King Street the student will discover how the landscape serves as landmarks, the character and functions change and progress and the importance of civic space. The third module will explore the design process through the four steps of landing, finding, grounding and founding. The project will explore the notion of landscape as palimpsest, a collection of cultural, historical and ecological clues intrinsic to the site and from which the landscape architect finds inspiration.

Palimpsest: is a m

etaphor used in landscape architec-ture to im

ply a series of lay-ers. A

palimpsest w

as a stone tablet

engraved w

ith text

in ancient

times.

In order

to re-use it, the surface was

ground down, but this left

traces of the original text. In tim

e, the surface would

be a compilation of the past

engravings layered

on top

of one another, with the top

one most evident. It is used

in landscape

architecture to

describe the

equivalent layering

process through

which

complex

landscapes are form

ed over time, w

ith new

layers being added in to old ones, form

ing a com-

posite that bears the imprint

of many previous layers and

additions.

V I R G I N I A T E C HCOLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE

AND URBAN STUDIES

School of Architecture + Design

Program of Landscape Architecture

LAR 4705:: 96485

fall 2010:: mwf 1:30-5:30pm

Instructor:: Annalisa Miller [email protected]

FOU

ND

ATIO

N S

TUD

IO

c.

an

na

lisa

mil

ler

academic + student work

POINT 1.WAAC plan

M E A S U R E A N D P R O P O R T I O N

“Man is the measure of all things.” Protagoras (sic)

The human desire to quantify and measure the world has existed since the beginning of civilization. Some of our earliest tools were used for measurement. The ancients created calendars based on the lunar cycles and the movement of the sun and stars. The pace of one man’s stride was standardized into a meter, the clay brick fits the hand that lays it, and the width of a thumb that later became the inch are all examples of how the human body was used for measurement. The Spanish word for thumb is “pulgar” and the word for inch is “pulgada” and within the names of the various units exists a rich history. During the Italian Renaissance, Leon Battista Alberti wrote in his architectural treatise On the Art of Building in Ten Books how the braccio, the unit of measurement that was based on the length of the (mayor’s) forearm, was used for construction. However each Italian city-state’s braccio was a different length.1 Over time units of measure have been standardized to facilitate in communication and the exchange of goods.

The human body was also the model for beautiful proportions. Within it proportions between the length of one body part to its whole was translated into artwork and buildings among other things. Vitruvius, the Roman Architect who wrote the first surviving architectural treatise The Ten Books on Architecture wrote, “Since nature has designed the human body so that its members are duly proportioned to the frame as a whole, it appears that the ancients had good reason for their rule, that in perfect buildings the different members must be in exact symmetrical relations to the whole general scheme,”.2 Nature offers objects that demonstrate perfect proportions and man should imitate them in order to achieve beauty. Within music, architecture, geometry and art one can find proportions that when combined correctly capture the mind and arouse the soul.

Today our world is full of standardizations: the time, the currency, distances, and building materials, etc. Customization comes at an additional cost. Landscape architects use their own set of standards, and negotiate the conversion between the engineering scale of feet to the architectural scale of inches. When drawing and translating our ideas to a plan or section of an actual scale we most often represent them using the unit of feet, the engineering scale. When drawing details, the intricacies of a design, we often draw them in the unit of inches, the architectural scale, as they require a more magnified scale. It is through our drawings of plan, section, elevation, perspective and axonometric that we communicate our concept, design intent and construction methods.

1Alberti, L. B. (1988). On the Art of Building in Ten Books. In J. Rykwert (Ed.). Cambridge: The MIT Press.

2Vitruvius.(1960).TheTenBooksofArchitecture.InM.H.Morgan(Ed.).NewYork:Dover.

point: man’s measure

c.

an

na

lisa

mil

ler

academic + student work

P U R P O S E

The purpose of this activity is to discover through bodily measures the notion of proportion and to become aware of the spaces one inhabits. The practical task is to learn how one measures, documents and draws a site plan.

A C T I V I T Y

PART 1: collect data

One important measurement that you will discover today and use for the rest of your life is the length of your pace. We will walk off a distance of 100’ and you will count the number of paces it takes you to walk the distance. You will then divide the distance by the number of paces and get the actual length of your pace. You will also measure the length of your outstretched hand from pinky to thumb and use that dimension for smaller details. Once determined, the next task is to measure the entire WAAC building(1001 Prince) up to the face of curb on Henry and Prince, and the brick wall on the backside of the building and the 1021 building. All distances should be measured to the precision of a quarter of a pace and documented according to the number of paces. It will most likely require you to revisit the site to verify the distances and check alignments.

PART 2: translate to a plan drawing

The measurements that you found based on your pace should be translated into a plan drawn with graphite pencil on trace. The size of your trace will be determined by how large your plan is. (DO not tape two pieces of trace together. Use a roll that will accommodate your entire plan.) The established scale for everyone is 1” = 4 paces. Your drawing will be unique to your pace and not look like your classmates’. The drawing should be legible, drawn with appropriate lineweights and hierarchy, and as close a representation of WAAC that you can achieve. Doors, windows, walls, grade changes, material change, north arrow and scale should be indicated on the drawing.

Hint: You will want to draw and work out the plan first, and then draw your final plan on a clean piece of trace. To reduce the amount of graphite smudging by the palm of your hand, draw from top to bottom and left to right (If you are righthanded!!). Use your Mayline to draw the horizontal lines and all the ones parallel to them and them use your triangle edge to draw the vertical lines.

PART 3: present

A pin-up of your plan will take place in studio time. Be prepared to discuss your plan, your method of collecting data and the translation process.

O B J E C T I V E S

• Document a site and its measurements • Distinguish between engineering and architectural scales • Draw a plan using correct lineweights and hierarchy • Observe and recognize nice proportions

D U E D A T E S

• September 1, 2010: Assignment given • September 3, 2010: 30 minute drafting lesson at the

beginning of class in the upstairs classroom in 1021 • September 8, 2010: Pin-Up

• NO CLASSES Labor Day: WAAC observed holiday

LeCorbusier’sModular

point: man’s measure

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academic + student work waac plan:man’s measure

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academic + student work

Cosmology is a way to explain how one believes the world to be ordered. A few well-known cosmologies are the Ptolemaic model, where the universe rotates around the Earth, and the Copernican model, in which the Sun is the center of the universe and planets rotate around it. The Greek philosopher Empedocles established a cosmology based around the classical elements of fire, air, water and earth. Each element refers to a particular state of matter, such as a liquid, solid or gas. Cultures around the world have similar cosmologies based on three, four, or five elements, and often the fifth element is of non-matter. Hippocrates created a four-element metaphysical cosmol-ogy matching each element with one of the four bodily fluids also known as the four humours. Aristotle’s paired up each element with a temperament and other cosmologies have paired up one of the four elements to one of the four seasons or the four ‘ages of man’. In Ten Books on Architecture, Book One, Chapter Four Vitruvius wrote, “One form of mixture is proper to birds, another to fishes, and a far different form to land animals. Winged creatures have less earthy, less moisture, heat in moderation, air in large amount. Be-ing made up, therefore, of the lighter elements, they can more read-ily soar away up into the air.” He further provides explanations of fish and land animals and like the bird, each species has its particular composition and maintaining that balance is critical to its health and survival. Like Vitruvius, many other architectural treatises explore similar explanations, and through architecture and landscape archi-tecture we can better understand the structure, order and relation-ships within our world.

C O S M O L O G Y :: 4 E L E M E N T S

cosmology = cosmos + logos = order + plan

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f o u n d a t i o n s t u d i o

POINT 1: collect and investigateJohn Evelyn, a member of the Royal Society during the 1600s, wrote Elysium Britannicum, a landscape architectural treatise that dis-cussed topics pertinent to the profession of landscape architecture. Similar to many other architectural treatises he began by introduc-ing the four elements that informed his cosmological construction and their interaction with the landscape. The order in which he intro-duces them is deliberate and insightful into the forces that influence his way of thinking. You will be given one of the four elements, fire, air, water or earth and use John Evelyn’s writings as a springboard into a deeper investigation and more intimate understanding of your element. Your investigation should include, but is not limited to, con-temporary and classic literature, poems, music, artwork, mythology, personal experience, cross-cultural perspectives and anecdotal ob-servations that contribute to a rich, well-informed and insightful per-spective on the given element.

POINT 2: 3-d representation Make four hand-held representations of your element. Each repre-sentation should provide a unique way in which you have come to know the element. You should provide text, poetic or technical, an-cient or contemporary, borrowed or personal, that emphasizes your insight into each representation. All representations should be in beautiful proportion.

Additional requirementsYou MUST have one model of cardboard, one of metal, one of rice-based materials, and one which uses materials inspired by your par-ticular element. One MUST be solid. POINT 3: present to classA well-thought through display of your four representations and text will be presented to your classmates. Be prepared to discuss your in-vestigation process, your findings and the way in which translated your findings into your physical representations.

Smith, Virginia. (2007). Clean: a history of personal hygiene and purity. New York: Ox-ford University Press. page 93Smith, Virginia. (2007). Clean: a history of personal hygiene and purity. New York: Ox-ford University Press. page 93Vitruvius. (1960). The Ten Books of Architecture. In M. H. Morgan (Ed.). New York: Dover. page 19.

the four elements

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academic + student work the four elements: ai r

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academic + student work the four elements: water

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academic + student work the four elements: earth