Space

Space has volume. It is a measurable amount of occupancy. Kahn descibes it in a more elaborate way by talking about the characteristics of space. He attributes space to sound, tones, mass, etc. I find this interesting because when I initially think of space...I think of volume not the elements in the space. Although, I do believe Kahn is correct. Space is more then just the footprint of an object. It is also about what happens within that footprint. Thinking about space in this manner makes me think about the design I am working on for my studio. It is a library space here in Greensboro, NC. I have been designing this space in plan form but now looking at what Kahn descibes as space...I am actually missing out on many elements of design within the "space" requirements. I have just been dividing up volumes of space and not paying attention to the other factors involved in the space like light, sound, color, and emotion.

Place

One of the first issues a designer has to respond to is the "place" or site. It is the backdrop to the architecture. In today's society site is a major concern. The environment has become one of the leading issues with design. We as designers can no long just uproot the earth on which we live and place harmful, expensive structures that damage our world. We should have and are now looking more closely at the factors that go into our designs. By this, I mean we are paying closer attention to the site on which our designs are located. Designers not only want the site to showcase their designs but they want to respect on the land which the design is housed upon. This involves looking at area like sustainability, waste, energy, renewal, recycle, and human interaction.
By looking at how Kahn talks about Place, we get a sense that the location is important for the design but I feel like it has gone beyond this. The design is also important for the location. The design must honor the place for which it is put upon as well as the place must become a stage for the design. They work as a cohesive unit.

Form + Design

Form and Design...they are two different things that respond directly to each other. Design is personal. It is a relationship between the creator and the object while form communicates the design to others. Design is an act of creating a shape and purpose. Kahn describes design as "how" and form as "what."

This can be confusing. Reading Kahn and thinking about form + design. I revert to images of the Sydney Opera House. The design by Jon Utzon is an expressionist modern design where the form resembles a sail like structure. The design is honored for its unique apperance due to the fact the building looks like a large ship sitting on the harbor. The design is a unique feature to Australia but the form took awhile to construct. The roof shells are actually a series of parabolas supported by precast concrete ribs these where formed based on the design.

Making

Kahn describes making as a method to test the rules of nature. This is true... to make is to fully understand the properties of your design. The really question is how do you "make?" Is this a physical model, conceptual drawings, a conversation amoung friends. These are all forms of making an idea come to life. Is one better then the other?

I have a hard time answering this question. Each method of making is a form of testing the rules because making is all about trying something. It works out sometimes and other times you find that you need to work out some details. Making also brings about a realization into new ways to design or realization of failures. Making is a very important process in design because without testing the rules you can't change the rules.

I great example of making is the "100 Chairs in 100 Days" by Martino Gamper. Gamper's interest are in the psycho-social aspects of furniture design. He uses unwanted objects in mismatched ways to tell a story about people, places, events, techniques, and materials.

Singularity

Kahn describes this as a transition from Silence to Light.  He looks at Singularity as the desire to express.  So can we as designers look at Singularity as the moments we discover what drives our passion?  I think this is when something moves from a silence form into a conceptual reality and desire becomes larger then just the single moment but the force that drives all the decisions.  Thus, singularity becomes that one magnificent moment where all elements aline and the design process begins.  

An image that comes to mind when I think about the idea of Singularity, is a painting by Emily Christenson called Suouagibma.  It is a 45 x 90 oil painting done on canvas.  The piece resembles a moment when all the emotion comes together to provide the viewer with a single passionate image.  The viewer is then left to wonder what happens after this connection is made and what is going on in the exterior of this canvas.  It is a single moment of desire expressed in art.

Light

Kahn looks at Light as the source of all being.  I feel light gives meaning and life to all being. Think about it...if everything was black then we would never see what is in front of us.  Once black is removed we see the light.  Shapes, forms, and life evolves around us.  So, there is "being" all around us but light gives the "being" purpose and life.

When I read Kahn's thoughts on Light, I thought about a study I did in Australia based on a series of images and charcoal drawings.  I was asked to view the architecture of the city through a series of black and white images capturing the shade and shadows that transform space over a day, week, and month.  Light became an element or a being in my drawings.

Silence + Light

The non-verbal meets the unmeasurable.  Does one break the other?  I feel that in silence you can see light while in light you can feel silence.  So each one is greater with the aid of the other.  Kahn talks about Silence as the "desire to be, desire to be expressed, the source of new need" while Light is the "measurable giver of all presence."  He talks about how these two entities meet to create a manifestation to be.

I found the manifestation of Silence and Light in the work of Lynn Fox.  Fox studied at the Bartlett School of Architecture.  She is dedicated to the pursuit of architectural ideas through moving image.  She designs by exploring the spatial concepts of using animation and film to develop a series of exhibitions that bring the viewer into a realm of visual space. The mysterious nature of her work provides the viewer with a wonderment of the non-verbal and unmeasurable atmosphere from which her designs encompass.