7/11/2015 Vitruvian principles: The interdependancy of firmitas, utilitas and venustas in architecture and design Pui's Blog

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Vitruvian principles: Theinterdependancy of firmitas,utilitas and venustas inarchitecture and designBYPUI|FEBRUARY17,2011

IntermsofcontentmanagementwehavebeenaskedtolookatourthesisprojectsintermsoftheVitruvianprinciplesofBusiness,Commodity,FirmnessandDelight.

Havingmisunderstoodtheemphasisforthepresentation,IhadresearchedintotheconceptoftheVitruvianprincipleswhichIwilldetailherebrieflysoasnottowastetheworkthatIhavedone.Iambasicallystatingthattheoriginalprinciplesoffirmitas,utiliasandvenustascannotworkindependantlyofeachotherandcannotstandaloneinadesign.Iwillthengointodetailwithregardstocognateandnoncognatewebsites.

Thefundamentalprinciplesofarchitecture

Thefundamentalprinciplesofarchitecturecanbesummarisedasfirmitas,utilitasandvenustaswhichcanbetranslatedfromLatinasfirmness,commodityanddelight.

Firmitas(Firmness):Thisdenotessomethingthatiswellmadeandhasastructure.Utilitas(Commodity):Thismeansadesignshouldhaveafunction,ausage.Abuildingsfunctioncanbecategorisedintoitsprimaryspaceanditssecondaryspace.Theprimaryspacewillbethemainfunctionofthebuilding(i.e.itsrooms).Thesecondaryspaceiswhatmakesthebuildingusable(i.e.corridor,toiletsetc.).Venustas(Delight):Signifiesthatadesignmusthavebeauty.Thisinvolvesorder,arrangement,eurhythmyandsymmetry.Forexample,inadesign,eachcomponentisconsideredseparatelyaswellasproportionallytothewhole.Itrequiresanarrangementandanadjustmentdependantonitscharacter.

AlisonBarnesarguesinherblogthatdesigndoesnothavetobepleasurableordelightful.ShereferstotheBerlinHolocaustmemorialasanexampleofthis.Inherblogshehasaproblemwiththeworddelightasatranslationofthewordvenustasandsheadvocatesthatthismaybetoosubjectiveaword.Ratherdesignshouldbesomethingthatevokesanemotionalresponsefromthereader.ItisdescribedthiswaybyOGorman:

Architecturalspaceisfirstofallutilitarian.Architecturalartbeginsphysicaland

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7/11/2015 Vitruvian principles: The interdependancy of firmitas, utilitas and venustas in architecture and design Pui's Blog

http://www.webdesignstuff.co.uk/lp018/2011/02/17/vitruvian-principles-the-interdependancy-of-firmitas-utilitas-and-venustas-in-architecture-and-design/ 2/7

endspsychological.

Somaybetheworddelightindesigncanmeansomethingmorethanaestheticpleasure,butsomethingthatevokesmeaningtoitsusersintermsoftheirownexperiences.

However,itstillisthecasethatneitheroftheVitruvianfactorscanbeindependantofeachother.Wecanlikenthistotheinterdependancyofclient,builderandarchitecture.OGormandescribesitwell:

Theworkofthearchitectistheresultofthearchitectsinterpretationoftheprograminrelationtotheclientsbudget,thebuildingssite,andtheavailabilityofmaterialsandstructuraltechnology.

Thustheclientprovidestheplandiagramsoftheirneedsincreatingabuilding.Thebuilderprovidessectiondiagramsforthestructureofthebuilding.Thearchitectprovidestheelevation,thedesign,whichevokesthebeautyofthebuilding.

Thusneithertheclient,architectnorbuildercanpursueacreationdependentlyofeachother.ThesameappliestotheVitruvianprinciples:thereisnopointhavingawellstructured(firmitas)buildingwithoutithavingafunctionoranybeautyormeaningbehinditsdesign.Likewise,therecannotbeabeautifulbuildingwithoutitbeingwellstructuredorhavinganyfunctionetc.

Delightisstilldebatable.Howeverarchitectureisdesignanddesign,intheend,musthavemeaning.Wherebeitthemeaningispleasureorsomeotherresponse,thiswillbeuptothearchitectandthemeaningshe/shewouldliketoinputintotheirowndesign.

Cognatewebsites

Chinesefoodrecipes.com

Chinesefoodrecipes.comisthefirstsitetoappearinGooglesearchenginewhenauserentersthewordsChinesefoodrecipes.Thusitwillbepartofmycognatewebsiteanalysis.

Business:Intermsofthissitesbusinessitreliesheavilyonadvertisements,particularlyGoogle.Thesiteisheavilylitteredwithadvertsandmakeitlookappalling.Theadvertsinhibititsdesignandthesitesfunctionasarecipeindex.Thelessontolearnfromthissite,istointegratetheuseofadvertsinabetterwayandnottomakethesitetooheavywithit.

7/11/2015 Vitruvian principles: The interdependancy of firmitas, utilitas and venustas in architecture and design Pui's Blog

http://www.webdesignstuff.co.uk/lp018/2011/02/17/vitruvian-principles-the-interdependancy-of-firmitas-utilitas-and-venustas-in-architecture-and-design/ 3/7

Commodity:Thesiteattempts,onthefaceofit,toachieveeverything:

CookingmethodsGlossaryTipsMeasurementconversionsFoodarticlesandfunstuffChineserestaurantguidesBookshoppingCookingvideosDetoxdiet

Itisinnowaylackingcontent.Howeverthecontentisextremelytextheavy.Thereareveryfewimagesanditmakesthecontenthardtoread.Itisntclearontheonsetexactlywhatthesiteisfor.

Firmness:ThesiteismadeusingXHTMLandCSSstylesheetsandPHP.Intermsofitsnavigationitcouldbealotmoresuccinctandclear.Thefrontpageisjustlitteredwithlinksofeverywordthatausermaysearchfor.ThisispossiblythereasonwhytheyaresohighintheirrankingonGooglesearch.

Delight:Thesiteusesthecoloursyellow,redandgreenandbluelinks,whicharehighlysaturated,onawhitebackgroundmakesitverydifficultontheeyes.Thereisnoclearhierarchyinitsinformationstructureanditslayoutofdifferentelementscausesconfusionfortheuser.

BBCFood

Business:BBCareacompanywhoprovidetelevisionentertainmentforthecommunitywhosupportit.Thustheirbusinessontheirwebsiteistopresentanextensiontothisservice.Inparticular,theirrecipeindexsectionisusedtopromotetheirtelevisionchefsandtheirprogrammesandprovideatrustworthyandusefulextensiontotheirprogrammes.

Commodity:Itisallaboutthesearch.Thatistherecipeindexsitesmainfunction.Assoonasauserentersthispage,theirmindisautomaticallyinnavigationmodewherebeitiftheyknowwhattheyarelookingfororjustbrowsing.Alsointermsofusages,BBCFoodprovidesvideos,imagesandhighqualitycontentinasimplisticmanner.

7/11/2015 Vitruvian principles: The interdependancy of firmitas, utilitas and venustas in architecture and design Pui's Blog

http://www.webdesignstuff.co.uk/lp018/2011/02/17/vitruvian-principles-the-interdependancy-of-firmitas-utilitas-and-venustas-in-architecture-and-design/ 4/7

Firmness:Thesiteensuresitiscodedwell,withuseofXHTMLandJavascriptandformfieldsforsearchbar.Itssitenavigationisexcellentandclear.Incomparisonwithchinesefoodrecipes.comitstillisincludingalotofkeywordstodrawinuserssearchingforthosekeywordsbutBBCFooddoesitinaclearandsuccinctway.

DelightDelightisanimportantaspecttothispage.Useofmouthwateringimagestoenticetheuserintoclickingandexploring.Alsoarrangementandorderofcontentisparticularlyimportant.Thereisastronggridofthirds(orsixths).Theuseofneutral,desaturatedcoloursincontrastwithitsstrongimagesevokesahomelyfeelandintermsofdelightitsproportionalspacingofindividualelementsprovideapleasurablereadingexperience.

BBCGoodFood

Business:BBCGoodFoodisasitewhichrunsoffitsmagazinebusiness.Aswellasthisitsupportsadvertisingfrompaidcompanies.Itsadvertsarequiteintrusive(notasmuchaschinesefoodrecipes)butfeelsacceptableasauserbecauseitpurportstotheirexpectationsofadvertising,duetothefactthattheyarerelevantandalsodonotclashwiththedesign.TheyalsoselliPhoneappsandaresponsoredtoadvertiseproductsontheirsite.

Commodity:Intermsofcommoditytheyhaveaplethoraoffunctionsfortheirusers.Usersmayregisterformonthlynewsleters,theymayrate/like,comment,addtheirownrecipesandsaverecipestotheirbinders.TheyhaveastrongsenseofacommunitythroughtheirLatestMemberRecipessectionandtheiroccasionalStarMembersRecipe.Userstendtocommentonsuccesswiththerecipeandsuggestalternatives.

Firmness:BBCGoodFoodisbuiltonaJavaplatform(J2EE).Intermsofitsnavigationalstructure,itisdoneinatastefulwayalbeitreminiscentofchinesefoodrecipes.comtextheavynavigation,thisisallimagerybased.

7/11/2015 Vitruvian principles: The interdependancy of firmitas, utilitas and venustas in architecture and design Pui's Blog

http://www.webdesignstuff.co.uk/lp018/2011/02/17/vitruvian-principles-the-interdependancy-of-firmitas-utilitas-and-venustas-in-architecture-and-design/ 5/7

Itisjustamassofimages,whichareatleastofhighqualityandforregularfoodiestothesite,itwillcatertoanykindofmoodthatoneisin,intermsoffoodandcooking.

Delight:Useofstrongcolourslikegreen,blueandbrownfortheheaders.Again,reminiscentofchinesefoodrecipes,butdoneright!Thereisasenseofhierarchyandthelayoutforthepagemakessenseintermsofthemanylinksthatareplacedinit.

Wemustconcludethatinordertobesuccessfulintermsoftargetingkeywords,itisimportanttohavemanylinksonthefrontpageaspossibletogettrafficintoyoursiteandtorankhighlyinsearchengines.Thewaythatthisisdonehasbeenshownhere,rangingfromthebadtothegood.

Noncognatewebsites

Favecrafts.com

Favecraftsisasiteforknittingandcrochetpatternsalongsidecrafttutorials.

Business:FavecraftsupportsGoogleadvertisements.Theadvertsareintegratedwellintothedesignwhichjustshowsthatthisispossible!Theyalsolinktoacraftsstoreofadifferentdomainname,howevertheymaywellbeconnectedintermsofbusiness.

Commodity:ItissimilarinsubstanceandfunctionalitytobbcgoodfoodasusersareabletoregisterandsavetheirfavouriteprojectsintotheirMyCraftProjectssection.Theymayalsosignupforanewsletterandcomment,rate,saveandshare

7/11/2015 Vitruvian principles: The interdependancy of firmitas, utilitas and venustas in architecture and design Pui's Blog

http://www.webdesignstuff.co.uk/lp018/2011/02/17/vitruvian-principles-the-interdependancy-of-firmitas-utilitas-and-venustas-in-architecture-and-design/ 6/7

(socially)oneachofthetutorials.Thereisalsoasearchbartofindaparticulartutorial.Thefrontpagehoweverisquitetextheavyintermsofitscontent.Thedesignmakesitslightlyeasiertodissect,andisonlytheinformationthatisbelowthefoldthatisquiteheavy.

Firmness:ThesiteisbuildonaPHPframework.Intermsofitsnavigation,thereisasimilaritytothepreviouscognatesitesinthatmanykeywordsaretargetedintheirmenu.Thislefthandnavigationisquitetextheavyhoweveritworkswellanddoesnotcausetoomuchconfusion.Sothissiteshowsthattextheavynavigationalsystemscanwork,particularlyasitisalphabetised.Althoughitismoreessentialforarecipeindexsitetouseimagestoenticereaders.

Thesitehastwonavigations,onethatishorizontalalongthetop,andtheotherwhichshowscategoriesalongthelefthandside.Itsnottooconfusingbutitisquitealottotakein.Iwouldavoidthisonmyownsite.Isuspect,thisisdonejusttotargetkeywords.

Delight:Iparticularlylikethesitescolourschemeanditslogowhichmakesthesiteseemfun.Theuseofthetwodifferentshadesofgreenforitsheadersseparatesthedifferentsectionsquitenicelyandechoesbbcgoodfoodssite.

Summary

InorderforasitetobesuccessfulitmusthaveallaspectsoftheVitruvianprinciples.Delightisdebatable,howeverwehaveseenthatforrecipeindexsites,anaestheticallypleasingsitewithhighqualityimagescanevokeapleasurableandmouthwateringexperiencefortheuser.Alongsidethis,itmustbewellbuiltinordertoaccomodatethefunctionsthatauserwouldrequirefromthesite.

IvebeenparticularlyinspiredbyGooglesdesignprinciples.

TheGoogleUserExperienceteamaimstocreatedesignsthatareuseful,fast,simple,engaging,innovative,universal,profitable,beautiful,trustworthy,andpersonable.Achievingaharmoniousbalanceofthesetenprinciplesisaconstantchallenge

Aswellasthistheyaimtoprovideuserswiththebestexperienceintermsofitsfunction.Itsprovisionforvideos,images,webcontent,mapsetc.inthequickestamountoftimeissomethingthattheystrivefor.

Thusalthoughtheworddelightisdebatableastowhetheritonlymeansaestheticpleasureorsomethingwhichevokesemotionorevensomethingwhichaidsfunction,suchasGoogle,whateverthecase,delightorbeautyisasubjectivenotionandintheenditisalwaysuptothearchitecttointerpretanddesigninwhateverwayhe/sheseesasbeautiful.

Delighttheeyewithoutdistractingthemind

7/11/2015 Vitruvian principles: The interdependancy of firmitas, utilitas and venustas in architecture and design Pui's Blog

http://www.webdesignstuff.co.uk/lp018/2011/02/17/vitruvian-principles-the-interdependancy-of-firmitas-utilitas-and-venustas-in-architecture-and-design/ 7/7

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References:

Wikipedia.org,Vitruvius[Accessed13/02/11]

Penelope.uchicago.edu,Vitruvius:OnArchitecture,[Accessed13/02/11]

Library.thinkquest.org,Thefundamentalprinciplesofarchitecture,[Accessed13/02/11]

NYtimes.com,ABCofArchitecture,JamesOGorman,[Accessed13/02/11]

Blogspot.com,Firmitas,utilitas,venustas,AlisonBarnes,[Accessed13/02/11]

Google.com,GoogleUserExperience:DesignPrinciples,[Accessed14/02/11]

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