kxy kai xin yang
T H E S T O RY OF THE [1]
Kai Xin Yang
586146 ABPL90117 Twenty-first Century Architecture MANIFESTO: THE STORY OF THE Tutor: Joshua Haddad
Cover. Kai Yang, Perversion of Glass, photograph, 2015.
CONTENTS Introduction
8
Interplay
10
Labyrinth
12
Impact
16
Anti-climax
32
Alternative Ending
36
Parallel I
38
Parallel II
42
Process
44
Credits
46
body
noun the physical structure, including the bones, flesh, and organs, of a person or an animal.
mind
noun the element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think, and to feel; the faculty of consciousness and thought.
sense
noun a faculty by which the body perceives an external stimulus; one of the faculties of sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch.
experience
noun 1. practical contact with and observation of facts or events. 2. an event or occurrence which leaves an impression on someone. verb encounter or undergo (an event or occurrence). —Google
INTRODUCTION
1. Francis F. Steen, “The Paradox of Narrative Thinking,” Journal of Cultural and Evolutionary Psychology 3 (2005): 89. [8]
In this manifesto I would like to investigate how both individual architectural elements and architectural spaces can formulate the narrative through sequencing, in both curated spaces and personal encounters. The narrative is formulated through, the mind, whose memories stimulates the thought process in the sensorial experience, that is physically endured by the body which reciprocates these senses. Architecture is the mediator of personal narrative and the experience within is the outcome of the architectural journey. Architecture is the constant where the symbiotic relationship between body and mind takes place for those who occupy it. With the expansion of technology, the computational perspective of
narrative thinking1 is “inefficient” and “wasteful”. However humans prefer thinking in narrative. The architect designs with narrative, the human uses stories to remember and to experience. As you, the human, the user of the space traverses through the narrated path, you consummate a story of your own. From your own memories and personal experiences you evaluate which aspect of the space of the most important to you therefore your personal interpretation differs from everyone else. There may be similar perspectives, however none are exactly identical.
[9]
INTERPLAY “philosophical alienation of the body from the mind has resulted in the absence of embodied experience from almost all contemporary theories of meaning in architecture”.2 — Tadao Ando
2. George Dodds and Robert Tavernor, ed., Body and Building: Essays on the Changing Relation of Body and Architecture. (London: The MIT Press, 2002), 305. 3. Juhani Pallasmaa, Encounters 2: Architectural Essays. (Helsinki: Rakennustieto Oy (Building Information Ltd.), 2013), 30. 4. Dodds and Tavernor, Body and Buildings, 33. [10]
Throughout architectural discourse, the human body has always been a source of inspiration in relation to proportional expression, however the discussion on how the mind plays an integral part in the discourse has always been neglected. The discussion of affect and the sensorial experience ultimately stimulates the thought process, of relations and memories of one’s past. Architecture cannot create feelings,3 it triggers the mind’s memory to either augment or diminish the senses of bodily movements which then assists the completion of architectural interpretation. The body and the mind play an integral role in the architectural narrative process. The debate between the hierarchy of body and mind has been an ongoing
confrontation not only in architectural discourse, but as architecture is a multi-disciplinary field, this discussion is also shared with philosophy. Plato believed that the mind, is the most significant part of human which reigns over the body which contrasts Aristotle who contends that the body is the most important as if the living body is at rest, then everything becomes motionless.4 However, it is both naive and tedious to continue this discussion of hierarchy. Both components of human are interdependent and mutually affect the experience within architecture and its discourse. Architecture facilitates the interplay between mind and body.
[11]
LABYRINTH “programmatic uncertainty is based on architectonic certainty”.5 — from Rem Koolhaas: A Kind of Architect
5. Rem Koolhaas: A Kind of Architect, directed by Markus Heidingsfelder and Min Tesch (Germany: Arthouse Films, 2008), DVD. 6. Sophie Psarra, Architecture and Narrative: The formation of space and cultural meaning (New York: Routledge, 2009), 66 . 7. John Green, Looking for Alaska (United States: Dutton Juvenile, 2005), 54. 8. Bernard Tschumi, Architecture and Disjunction (Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1996), 41. 9. Tschumi, Architecture, 42. 10. Tschumi, Architecture, 38. 11. Rem Koolhaas: A Kind of Architect, directed by Markus Heidingsfelder and Min Tesch (Germany: Arthouse Films, 2008), DVD. [12]
Figure 1. Kai Yang, Cranbourne Botanical Garden: Red Sand Garden. 2015, photograph.
Architecture and literature display parallels in their conceptual and perceptual strategies.6 Literature utilises the physicality of architecture to manifest their descriptive setting, however the themes and questions overarching both literature and contemporary films are also relevant to architecture. Architecture and Narrative can be viewed as a Labyrinth. The notion of the labyrinth and its presence in human life is evident; such as through Jorge Luis Borges’ literacy classic ‘Labyrinth’ and John Green’s award-winning debut novel ‘Looking for Alaska’. Unlike the pessimistic perspective in literature that labyrinths of life are a framework of suffering,7 architecture views the labyrinth in a much more poetic light.
The ‘Labyrinth of Experience’ 8 proposed by Bernard Tschumi, illustrates the labyrinth as the setting of enhancement, where human sensations and feelings are amplified9 which liberates each space to be distinctive to one another. 10 Bigness has often been misinterpreted as undervaluing the human experience due its sheer size, however, concepts of the narrative are present in both large and small scale projects. Rem Koolhaas displays his big buildings as a labyrinth that is composed of various parts, 11 which have their own sub-story of different emphases and function which appeal to different senses. Differing programs then come together to constitute the holistic value and story of the building.
[13]
Figure 2. Kai Yang, Cranbourne Botanical Garden: Backyard Garden. 2015, photograph. Figure 3. Kai Yang, Cranbourne Botanical Garden: Arbour Garden. 2015, photograph. Figure 4. Kai Yang, Melbourne Museum: Forest Gallery . 2015, photograph. Figure 5. Kai Yang, Melbourne Museum: Te Pasifika Gallery . 2015, photograph. [14]
The Labyrinth, of different forms of architectural and landscape sensations, requires human manoeuvre to embody the experience. 12 The same venue can have an assortment of components that have a different meaning to different people. For example, the house I grew up in holds childhood memories and symbolises belonging, however, to you, it will just be another suburban house with an unkempt front lawn. Glass as a material, as seen in Figure 3, can be a medium of transparency, voyeurism, control of sheer vanity. 12. Juhani Pallasmaa, The Embodied Image: Imagination and Imagery in Architecture (United Kingdom: John Wiley and Sons Ltd, 2011), 10. [15]
IMPACT
Not only does the body and mind enable architectural experience , but they also influences the design process. With the concept of interplay between architecture, body and mind being challenged with anthropomorphism engagement,14 new combinations can be discovered into the design scene; the body and mind helps produce architecture.15 This discovery can be seen through Alvar Aalto’s architecture. For example, in Aalto’s Paimio Sanatorium, the human tangibility is anticipated by the designer as the handrails are of a shade of grey, which contrasts the white walls of the library. Through this, we can understand that human presence, though dirty, is undeniable in the very detail of the building.
[16]
Figure 6. Sami Heikinheimo, Paimio Interior, 2014, photograph, http://www. paimiosanatorium.fi/wp-content/ uploads/2014/07/Paimio_int_ sh_4_rgb.jpg 14. Scott. Drake, A Well-Composed Body (Berlin: Saarbrucken, 2003), 29. 15. Elizabeth Diller and Ricardo Scofidio, Flesh: Architectural Probes (New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2011), 39.
[17]
Figure 6. Kai Yang, Gu In Sa 2014, photograph.
Often, the mind also includes the familiarity of body memory into the architectural narrative. 13
Scenario One illustrates the process of body and mind working together in the narrative. Previous bodily participations may be the determinant of future architectural engagements and the mental view13 of architecture helps determine the nature of the experience. Your body will always play a part in the architectural narrative as it is always “here”. It is the one that is physically experiencing the space first handedly. Whether it be an active role like climbing stairs or a passive role such as page turning when reading in the library. The narrative can always change with the participate of human mind and body. 13. Gaston Bachelard, The Poetics of Space (France: The Orion Press, Inc., 1964), ix.
[18]
Scenario One:
Why stairs? Why, stairs? Why? Stairs. Why stairs!!!! Since young, you recognise stairs as indicators of unfitness. Your body remembers its ideal proportions when climbing stairs, and uses that as the standard. If the stairs are horribly proportioned, your body is the first to know. Every time you walk up and down stairs, you can feel your body setting the pace of climbing. You can see its movement, as its presence is also included in your field of vision. Soon, you can see your body slowing down from fatigue, from interruptions. You can see the yourself pulling your slow body up and down the staggering stairs. Before you know it, and to save yourself from the embarrassment of panting and breathlessness on the staircase. You take the elevator. (Up one floor.)
NODE “architects do not invent anything, they just transform reality”.16 — Alvaro Siza
16. Brian Mackay-Lyons, and Peter Buchanan, Ghost: Building an Architectural Vision. (New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2008), 201. 17. Juhani Pallasmaa, Encounters: Architectural Essays. (Helsinki: Rakennustieto Oy (Building Information Ltd.), 2005), 60.
[20]
Narratives follow an outline. Every narrative consists of the “necessary” components such as characters, complications and conclusions otherwise it would not be a narrative. Similarly, architecture constitutes of constants that exist in every architecture space. Components like walls, roofs, envelopes define architecture as a whole. However Pallasmaa iterates the two most important architectural elements, being door and stair,17 as they are the facilitators of the architectural narrative. These two elements are the nodes of human intimacy, as you enter the labyrinth through a door, an opening into the space; and transcend between levels through stair of vertical organisation. These elements are also thresholds of opportunities in the narrative. Elements in architecture cannot be controlled. Though they are designed with a specific intent, the human mind associates these elements with preexisting representations which ultimately alters its purpose or function.
Where and when you encounter these elements can reconfigure the architecture experience.
past...
Figure 7. Kai Yang, Asakusa Sensoji Temple, 2014, photograph.
My previous travel encounters enable me to see elements differently. When I enter a labyrinth, memories of the past are evoked. Is it a door? A gate? A passage? A tourist attraction? A spiritual aspiration?
[24]
Figure 8. Kai Yang, The Climb, 2011, photograph.
Stairs as monument. As a witness of ancient history which now encounters the contemporary endeavours. Symbolism is a enticing distraction.
[25]
...present
Figure 9. Kai Yang, MSD Stairs from below, 2015, photograph. Figure 10. Kai Yang, MSD Stairs from above, 2015, photograph.
[28]
The same object, when experienced from different perspectives, in different timeframes can have a totally meaning.
[29]
Scenario 2:
This is a door. This is an opening door. This is a closing door. This is the door which separates two spaces. This is the door which links two spaces. This is not a door. This is the door to Narnia. You are a door.
Figure 11. Kai Yang, What is a Door?, 2015, photograph.
[31]
ANTI-CLIMAX
Figure 12. A series of circulation diagrams of Ian Potter Art Centre, The University of Melbourne. The only define paths of movements are the stairs, the vertical conection; as visits within are spontaneous and unpredictable across users. However, they must use the stairs.
[32]
Figure 13. Kai Yang, Mountain or Wall?, 2015, photograph. Depicting the many sides of the Labyrinth, what’s on the other side?
Galleries and museums are curated labyrinths that emphasise on the human experience, despite housing non-humans. Though the exhibition spaces are sequenced in a particular order, usually based on timeline, the human may not adapt to the space as planned.
[33]
18. Juhani Pallasmaa, Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses. (United Kingdom: Wiley, 2012), 15. Figure 9. Kai Yang, Installation in Darkness 2015, photograph. Figure 10. Kai Yang, Egyptian Exhibit, 2015, photograph.
[34]
The difference in the lighting in two spaces within the Ian Potter Art Centre - University of Melbourne displays the different experience wanted, in the same building. Shadows, darkness can stimulate the mind’s imagination, which teases the mind to send its body out to venture into architecture and immerse in the art18. Brightly lit rooms and elevated displays, cabinets or no cabinets increases the visibility and tactility of the objects which entices the body to participate with [35]
ALTERNATIVE ENDING
Figure 11. Danica O. Kus, Frank Gehry’s Fondation Louis Vuitton, 2014, photograph, http://www.archdaily. com/572538/frank-gehry-s-fondation-louis-vuittonimages-by-danica-o-kus Figure 12. Mark Dorrain, “Blur Building” in Clouds of Architecture in Radical Philosophy Vol 144, Issue 26 (2007): 29.
[36]
19. Bachelard, The Poetics, xix. 20. Mark Dorrain, “Clouds of Architecture.” Radical Philosophy Vol 144, Issue 26 (2007): 30.
The output of narrative thinking is greatly different from the likes computational methodology. If given the same parameters, the output of computation would always be the same. A different output can be a result from different story inputs. The same story can never be interpreted differently from computational perspective. It is then the experience of the human that strengthens the value of the architecture rather than the actual design of the space. The actual design enables the mind to venture and the body to investigate, however the outcome ultimately depends on individual architectural interpretations, which is why architecture doesn’t discriminate, it can be anything. Through the mind’s imagination of changing rationality and reason, of built forms; into personal places of memories and beings,19 architecture becomes personalised. There are some scenarios where computational technology aims to improve the sensorial narrative as seen in Diller + Scofidio’s Blur Building, where the proposed raincoats or prosthetic skin assists the progression of one’s experience within the building. 20 The Blur building is an example of the importance of sensual and emotional journey within architecture, but also a case study of an ‘incomplete’ architecture due to its identity-less-ness. Though the building is meant to represent an actual cloud, the anti-spectacle nature of the building is what architecture should be, it should evoke and strengthen existing imagination and not promote new forms.
[37]
PARALLEL I Narrative making architecture not only involves the phenomenological triggers, but also the feasible constructional detailing as depicted in Edward Ford’s The Grand Work of Fiction. Ford exemplifies the logical composition of joinery through the three types of detailing: the articulated, the seamless and the material collision;21 where these different types of detailing tell a story by themselves. A parallel between the tangible construction details and the intangible memories, and architecture itself can be deduced. Pallasmaa highlights the three types of memory: one that seeks to be remembered (articulated), one that cannot be recalled (seamless) and one that evokes depth and continuity (material collision).22 Today’s architecture also follow similar types, the presentation of Post-Modernism symbolism and loud signage (articulated), the current trend of smoothness that denotes human tactility (seamless), and one that conveys natural continuity, such as valued natural decay in Japanese architecture (material collision). 21. Edward Ford. “The Grand Work of Fiction: The Detail as Narrative.” Architectural Design Vol 84, Issue 4 (2014): 35.
Page 38-41 Top to Bottom.
Seamless
Figure 13. Kai Yang, Concrete Column, 2015, photograph. Figure 14. Kai Yang, Kyoto Fish Exhibit, 2014, photograph. A memory where the smooth water prevails over the fish. Figure 15. Kai Yang, DongDaeMun Design Plaza, 2014, photograph.
Articulated Figure 16. Kai Yang, Curved Wall, 2015, photograph. Figure 17. Kai Yang, Itsukushima Shrine, 2014, photograph. A classic tourist photo that I show everyone to proof that I’ve been to Japan. Figure 18. Kai Yang, Hanging Studio MSD, 2015, photograph.
Material Collision Figure 19. Kai Yang, Column to Ceiling, 2015, photograph. Figure 20. Kai Yang, Summer Palace on Ice, 2012, photograph. Went to the Summer Palace in Winter, a different yet natural icy outcome. Figure 21. Kai Yang, Carlton Apartments, 2015, photograph.
[38]
PARALLEL II
Figure 22. Hoenn Map, 2015, image, http:// bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/ Hoenn Figure 23. Mudkip Evolutionn Map, 2015, image, http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/ wiki/Mudkip_(Pok%C3%A9mon)
Figure 24. Flat Experience Gain, 2015, image, http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/ wiki/Experience
5 senses
EXP
=
X(M + B)
x = architecture M = Mind B = Body
[42]
My current obsession with Pokémon has enabled the current segment of this manifesto. The notion of experience in narrative is imperative in both the built and virtual world. Pokémon, Nintendo’s revolutionary game, consists of parallels with the architectural world and elements. The user’s physical senses are forced to succumb to the conditions of the virtual, where setting gives context to the weather, background music and Pokémon types, which ultimately determines the mood and pace of gameplay. The results from battle also manipulates the character’s virtual senses and wellbeing, from being immobilised by love to being stricken by poison. The game has a constant storyline that concretes the development of the game, however the way and duration the user chooses to complete the set missions is entirely up to the user’s personal preference. Pokémon also features a literal experience gaining aspect which facilitates the advancement of the game. The given formula depicts experience gain from battle, in which the factors of nature of the the opposing Pokémon and the number of Pokémon are the main determinants. The architectural experience can also be interpreted though the methodology of formulae. Relating Pokémon to architecture, the opposing Pokémon would be the constant, the architecture, the different moves used to combat the Pokémon, the senses, are chosen by the user so experience gaining will be more efficient. The number of Pokémon you send out into battle and how they result in (fainted), can be understood as the number of memories recalled or practiced as well as the body’s physical participation. The stats of your Pokémon and the opposing Pokémon can be viewed as the senses. The stats , of accuracy, speed, strength etc. regulate the amount of experience available for gain; which defers in every Pokémon; similar to how each individual values a certain sense. It is only with all the components present, can experience be fulfilled in both Architecture and Pokémon.
[43]
PROCESS Architecture is the architect’s narrative. This storytelling aims to challenge the body’s experience through tactility, human usage and apropos; which ultimately stimulates the mind’s perception of physical journey. To me, the architectural narrative is a part of the design strategy. It is the conceptual process which differentiates and derives your design. The architectural journey iterated has soul and character, each part of this journey differs from one another, which also responds to the brief, and to the different contextual issues present. Its overall architectural intent is ‘design to enhance’. To enhance the senses, or to enhance the diminishment of the senses which gives meaning to the design, through participation of mind and body. If it evaporates one sense it heightens the other, spatial contraction foreshadows spatial expansion. This teasing of senses, this push and pull, ever-changing equilibrium is what keeps the users sane and intrigued to ensure continuous engagement and occupancy of the building. The narrative determines materiality: at moments of tension the material should be raw, harsh; at moments of peace the material should be smooth and fluid. The narrative is also the experience of the building. It is the continuous, chaotic, unanticipated journey within the building is what makes each sequence different from one another however, is still coherent when sauntering through. It provides a controlled story however, interpretation of the story is also uncontrolled and limitless.
From top to bottom. Figure 25. Kai Yang, Shadows: Foyer, 2015, digital image. Figure 26. Kai Yang,Shadows: Forum, 2015, digital image. Figure 27. Kai Yang, Shadows: Within Fans 2015, digital image.
[44]
Figures 25-27 depict my previous studio’s exploration where a scheme for a music school is proposed, based on the narrative of ‘Expectations vs. Reality’. The layering of buildings ultimately compose a visual obstruction, illusion. As the visibility is reduced, the hearing is supplements, the introduction of the water into design relays this concept.
CREDITS Bachelard, Gaston. The Poetics of Space. France: The Orion Press, Inc., 1964. Bastea, E., ed. Memory and Architecture. New Mexico: University of New Mexico Press, 2004. Bloomer, Kent C., and Charles W. Moore. Body, Memory, and Architecture. London: Yale University Press: 1977. Borden, I., Joe Kerr, Alicia Jivaro and Jane Rendell, ed. Strangely Familiar: Narratives of architecture in the City. London: Routledge, 1996. Colomina, Beatriz, and Jennifer Bloomer. Sexuality and Space. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1992. Diller, Elizabeth and Ricardo Scofidio. Flesh: Architectural Probes. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2011. Dodds, George and Robert Tavernor, ed. Body and Building: Essays on the Changing Relation of Body and Architecture. London: The MIT Press, 2002. Dorrain, Mark. “Clouds of Architecture.” Radical Philosophy Vol 144, Issue 26 (2007): 26-32. Drake, Scott. A Well-Composed Body. Berlin: Saarbrucken, 2003. Ellin, N., ed. Architecture of Fear. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1997. Ford, Edward. “The Grand Work of Fiction: The Detail as Narrative.” Architectural Design Vol 84, Issue 4 (2014): 26-35. Green, John. Looking for Alaska. United States: Dutton Juvenile, 2005. Harris, Steven, and Deborah Berke. Architecture of the Everyday. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1997. Kirke, Phillip James. The Architecture of Perception. Shelley: Friend Books: 2006. [46]
Koolhaas, Rem and Bruce Mau. S, M, L, XL. New York: Monacelli Press: 1995. Leder, Drew. The Absent Body. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1987. Livesey, G., ed. Deleuze and Guattari on Architecture: Critical Assessments in Architecture. United Kingdon: Taylor & Francis, 2015 Mackay-Lyons, Brian, and Peter Buchanan. Ghost: Building an Architectural Vision. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2008. Mitnick, Keith. Artificial Light: A Narrative Inquiry into the Nature of Abstraction, Immediacy, and other Architectural Fictions. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2008. Pallasmaa, Juhani. Encounters: Architectural Essays. Helsinki: Rakennustieto Oy (Building Information Ltd.), 2005. Pallasmaa, Juhani. Encounters 2: Architectural Essays. Helsinki: Rakennustieto Oy (Building Information Ltd.), 2013. Pallasmaa, Juhani. Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses. United Kingdom: Wiley, 2012. Pallasmaa, Juhani. The Embodied Image: Imagination and Imagery in Architecture. United Kingdom: John Wiley and Sons Ltd, 2011. Psarra, Sophie. Architecture and Narrative: The formation of space and cultural meaning. New York: Routledge, 2009. Rem Koolhaas: A Kind of Architect. DVD. Directed by Markus Heidingsfelder and Min Tesch. Germany: Arthouse Films, 2008. Steen, Francis F.. “The Paradox of Narrative Thinking.” Journal of Cultural and Evolutionary Psychology 3 (2005): 87-105. Sumrell, Robert, and Kazys Varnelis. Blue Monday: Stories of Absurd Realities and Natural Philosophies. New York: Actar, 2007. Tschumi, Bernard. Architecture and Disjunction. Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1996.
[47]