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Architecture Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Architecture

On Details, W. Elijah Hoisington Oct 1999

On Details, W. Elijah Hoisington

Architecture Thesis Prep

"This thesis makes the premise that detailing connections is the carrier of the designer's architectural intentions, and that through its expression is the method through which a construct grounds itself in a historical context and within a site."


Against Arbitrariness: Architectural Signification In The Age Of Globalization, Rumiko Handa Jul 1999

Against Arbitrariness: Architectural Signification In The Age Of Globalization, Rumiko Handa

Architecture Program: Faculty Scholarly and Creative Activity

The theory of arbitrary signification, predominant during the last half century, considers architecture’s intrinsic properties as having little to do with its meaning. Consequently, architecture’s significance is not based on itself but assigned externally. In the age of globalization, such an assignment is often ineffective. This paper will: (1) examine the post-WWII debates between the theories of arbitrary and natural signification; (2) relate these theories to more philosophical, historicist vs. normative positions; (3) discuss the implications concerning conservation of culture, legitimacy of interpretation, and fake authenticity in construction; (4) and examine some architectural works that have brought forth natural signification …