Anatomical Architecture

This part of the blog will explore multiple aspects including comparing human anatomy to architectural elements (anatomical architecture), experiencing architecture (driving an experience in architecture), human-centric design, the completion of a building (future life of a building), new social dynamics in post-pandemic architecture and what does architecture need to consider for the future. 

Anatomy, commonly regarded as the study of the human body, can also be viewed as an inquiry into the structures and internal workings of something. It is the combination of these definitions that this blog is formed upon; the discourse between our built environment (anatomically) and human anatomy. Human behaviour is continuously changing, evolving and adapting; so, accordingly, our built environment will follow a similar dynamic pattern. Our behaviour and the 

adaptations of a building can be compared almost directly; that is because they are similarly convoluted and complex. 

Arguably given the above definition of anatomy, buildings can be viewed in an anatomical way. The theory of ‘living buildings’ is an emerging theme within architecture, although often referring to nature living within or upon a building for the purpose of this blog ‘living buildings’ will refer to how the dynamism and internal workings of buildings can be interpreted as similar to that of human anatomy. Not only do we experience architecture but buildings also have their own stories to tell. 

Buildings serve many purposes and therefore, there are many different types of buildings. No single one is insignificant, each one has its own story and anatomical-like features. This segment will explore both the direct analogy of buildings having almost human-like body parts as well as the stories buildings have to tell. This segment of the blog will be split into two sections. The first section will be a discussion of the blog title exploring living buildings as anatomical elements of architecture, The second section will focus on the future life of a building, exploring what it means for a building to be completed and introducing my view that “a building is only complete when it is demolished”.

A dystopian world once filled with hope, dreams, amusement and joy now falling into disrepair resulting in a polar opposite to what it was made for - AI generated

Abandoned architecture - the modern world

Architectural Ruin admiration is not just limited to that of buildings of historical value but also to buildings of more modern eras such as from the industrial age, although these are more commonly displayed in photography and videos by Urban Explorers (Urbexers) who now litter the listings on youtube. Urbex, it seems, has no limits, any buildings that stood with purpose that stand closed, unused, unwanted even and neglected will be explored, admired and documented. Whilst some portray important architectural movements or features others seem more mundane, regular and perhaps arguably uninteresting. However, many believe it is important for all buildings withholding any history should be documented, explored and showcased; their inhabitants long gone but their story told through the construction or arrangement of the buildings themselves. 

Due to the extensive range within this topic it seems wise to split it into separate chapters; different building types or purposes for each section of this topic. Firstly, a personal favourite in urbex are abandoned theme parks. Places in which our dreams and greatest wishes are supposed to come true fallen into disrepair, the dreams long gone and the happiness penetrated by a growing dystopian world in which our greatest fears can be realised. Characters created fir entertainment and enjoyment now stand with piercing eyes and peeling paint leaving eyes ‘bleeding’ and their bright clothes hanging in rags over their robotic bodies. 

Abandoned theme parks are a totally different universe to when they were created with such joy and happiness envisaged. Now expanses of dystopian worlds far apart from what they once were. Despite this, the memories they once gave never die, stories told from generation to generation; especially the local small scale theme parks that were the anchors within small communities. Regardless of whether the downfall was gradual or rapid the impact remains the same, a dystopian world left behind until the day it is demolished; although the terrifying story of their dystopian abandonment is not to be forgotten; immortilised through film and photography. 

Is there anything more frightening than an abandoned theme park? Tell me which is your favourite abandoned theme park.. How does it speak to you in its haunting manner?

Historical Architecture conservation and preservation

A building is never truly complete until it is demolished - a point of demolition is to define the end of a building’s life. Interestingly then if one uses this concept what is the story for a collection of ruins? This supports the theory that a building is not a static element, and that it is one that is dynamic and continually changing, evolving and growing. So, this then begs the question about architectural ruins, where do they lie within this concept. Around the world there are 100s of ruins, both ancient and modern ruins; both nationally and internationally recognised, but lets not forget about those at the local level. All equally telling a historical story, of construction, habitation and especially previous human behavior. Examining various ruins around the UK, there are many churches and other like religious establishments that have been forgotten in time, so does their purpose. 

Looking at ruins in the UK there are many churches and buildings of religious importance that have sadly been left behind although their beauty remains and so does their purpose. Their purpose now pertains to telling their story (happiness in architecture book reference), many ruins are sites of interest for exploring and photography and whilst not every visitor may appreciate them for their historical architecture, it is all there to be seen and admired. Their story can be told through the remaining architectural fabric. 

English Heritage along with other organizations exist to maintain both functional buildings of historical significance. This is what has driven the need for grade listings for buildings of historical significance; to preserve buildings of exemplary standard of a certain design or feature. This is critical in the teaching of architecture, now and for future generations as architectural styles and technologies get left behind for new. It is important that these are not forgotten and that architecture students and professors as a culture learn from these and encourage these designs in the future. 

Some of the internationally recognised buildings … or indeed ruins are arguably still holding a purpose although it is far from their original purpose, their built purpose shall we say. The completion of a building not only refers to the completion of its use but more so the completion of its life. A building’s life only reaches completion at the point of a demolition; ruins of a building can stand under careful protection and conservation for many years to come. 

Whilst many ruins, or restored ruins such as castles are tourist hot spots, which are a positive for the national economy but it is important not to forget ruins within the local context. For example, buildings that lay within rural towns/villages that are valued by many of the local community often as a hiking/walking location. The Cotswolds for example, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) has numerous ruins that lay within the rich countryside which are enjoyed by local communities, for example Minster Lovell Hall and Dovecote and the Roman Villa located in the small village of North Leigh. Having grown up in the Cotswold area both of these sites were of regular visitation by myself, friends and family. Their history is told by information boards at the site whilst the remaining architectural fabric tells its own story, you can see where stairs used to be located, fireplaces and of course openings for windows. The story of the buildings and the communities that built and used them can still be explored, the historical importance of these buildings/sites in general has often shaped the growth of the surrounding area. 

In particular, when one is looking at ancient buildings one can learn a lot about historical communities that once resided there. At a time where transport was far more limited, the construction and growth of villages relied heavily upon the resources available locally. This includes but is not limited to availability of water sources and availability of materials. Architecture of that time was made up of the land, that is Vernacular Architecture. 

To truly comprehend the connection between buildings and the humans who inhabit them we need to explore the concepts of Human-Centric design and through this, the concept of experiencing architecture. First, we need to explore the comparisons between building and human anatomy. This particular section of the blog is not generally researched/discussed professionally; this is more a chapter that extracts elements of human language that personify buildings, giving them human body parts. This is generally led by common terms stated in common language within communities when they talk about buildings that exist within it. 

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Historical Ruins - Building Listings

No era of architecture should be prioritised over another, each has their own beauty and lessons to be explored. Whilst grade listing of building can provide an opportunity for support and grant schemes it can also cause complications for individuals or groups in possession of a listed building as they now have to follow certain rules to protect and reinstate the building to ‘modern’ use. Whilst some buildings lower on the grading system can be repurposed whilst only needing to maintain minimal aspects of the original building; others such as Grade 1 listing come along with strict rules on preservation limiting the way they can be reused. Often such listings require original methods of construction or decoration to reinstate buildings to their original beauty, this can be extremely costly and as well as time consuming. However, grants can be obtained to support these, although sadly many people in charge of such buildings will allow them to fall into disrepair and once beyond the point of recovery and they fall apart they can start anew; this is an awful attitude to have towards our precious architectural history but also sometimes the cost of maintaining or reinstating is too much and the grant system is not necessarily the most efficient therefore, people can sometimes be left without any choice. This is the true sadness facing some of our most valuable examples of architectural history.

Queen Mary First-Class Pool - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-29377549

The Queen Mary, first-class pool, is it a ruin within an architectural piece?

Whilst the rest of the ship has been converted to a hotel and continues to serve guests staying at the hotel as well as providing tours the first-class pool has become a ruin of its former self. The pool construction was unique (expand here) - therefore its conservation is inevitably convoluted. Arguably the restoration of this magnificent piece of architecture is challenging but predominantly the challenge relates to the costs regarding the restoration to bring it back to its former beauty. In terms of architectural challenge it has been argued as a straight forward project, however as it exists now, can it be considered a ruin even though the architecture that surrounds it is restored and fully functioning although as a new purpose. 

Whilst the cost is often the reason that a building or an element of one falls into disrepair, it is not the only reason; sadly it is common that a community or more often than not it is developers that move in to destroy a historic building for technological gain. Furthermore, developers seek to generate immense amounts of profit without considering how the loss of the space or the historic building that once stood there is of great value for generations to come. Commonly large spaces taken up by historic buildings are transitioned into modern buildings encasing multiple apartments. As a nation we should seek to preserve the architecture that has given us modern technology but equally shown us the true grandeur that architecture can be; this is often lost in super modern profit producing buildings. Ornate architecture is unique in that it shows that architecture can be and should be an art form and one that can be explored within the modern age and not just that of historical periods. However, valuable historical architecture is not only the ornate and detailed buildings but also those of the modern architecture era; as with many technologies and arts evolve over time.

Architectural ruin brought to life with architectural visualisation - history speaks through to new generations. Artwork - Nick Cassidy

Carl Gustav Carus - Tintern Abbey

Historical Ruin

Beauty in ruin, architectural ruins, remains and evidence of past architecture establishment is almost always visible in art. Art often includes elements of architecture as a display of historical elegance. Architectural design is often admired for its creativity and unique elements of elegance, this should not be forgotten upon a building falling into neglect, moreover sometimes the elegance of a building grows as it is reclaimed by nature; this sort of beauty and atmospheres are captured by numerous Urban Explorers (Urbexers) who now litter the listings on youtube. 

However, firstly to admire the beauty emanating from Tintern Abbey in Carl Gustav Carus’ painting. In this painting nature is reclaiming the ornate stonework founded in 1131, built in 1269, although it wasn’t until later that the lavish cloisters were added. However, by 1535 King Henry VIII’s English Reformation was well underway and a year later, Tintern surrendered in the first round of the dissolution of the monasteries and the great abbey fell victim to neglect and became a majestic ruin. Tintern Abbey, although in ruin still remains a highly regarded and well known national icon, therefore arguably proving that architecture is never complete until the point of demolition. The abbey is now maintained in its’ ruined state and admired by thousands of visitors every single year, although its preservation is to maintain it in its’ current state it remains a considerable admirable beauty and will do so for many years to come. 

Carl Gustav Carus’ painting displays the inherent and majestic beauty of the abbey, the light falling through the open windows and archways; thus creating incredible formations of shadows surrounding the historic stone that once provided a building for many generations. Whilst the roof may be long gone and the continual rate of decay challenging the preservation of the abbey the beauty of this marvelous piece of architecture is undeniable evident. 

Tintern Abbey is depicted in endless pieces of artwork, each with their own style but showing the delicate way in which nature is gradually reclaiming this beautiful abbey. All show a relatively similar portrayal of light and shadow surrounding the remaining delicate stonework covered in crawling vegetation. There are endless buildings like this which are enjoyed in a similar way and similarly depicted in artwork, demonstrating our sheer fascination and almost obsession with historical architectural ruin.

References:  Tintern Abbey: https://cadw.gov.wales/visit/places-to-visit/tintern-abbey

Architectural Ruins

What defines a ruin? 

When does a building or element of architecture become a ruin? 

A ruin does not have one singular definition, even within the field of architecture there are multiple perspectives. `Art critic, Brian Dillon sums up architectural ruin quite comprehensively by stating “ruins embody a set of temporal and historical paradoxes” - Architectural Review, Reading the Ruins 

The Cambridge Dictionary [online] states that a ruin refers to the “process or state of being spoiled or destroyed’, most importantly we will consider the latter element of this definition for the sake of this discussion. In this perspective of the definition within architecture one would commonly say that the building (e.g church) has fallen into ruin. Other perspectives of the definition of ruin are as simple as “to damage irreparably” - Merriam Webster Dictionary [online], this definition is particularly interesting when placed for the argument of when does a building become a ruin, following this perspective it would be at the point where a building is considered no longer repairable; although arguably, with modern advancement and historical understanding can any building be repaired, that is to say, restored? 

Arguably, is the point at which a building becomes a ruin the point at which a building is now considered essentially dead? Consequently of this question, it demands an answer regarding the death of a building; when truly is a building dead. In terms of anatomical architecture that is, what is the point at which a building’s heart stops beating? 

“The stains of time and building ruins are crucial eyewitnesses to demonstrate aging in architecture”. 

John Ruskin in Ruskin and the ruins: the stain of time in architecture 

To be continued…

References:

Architectural Review - https://www.architectural-review.com/essays/reading-the-ruins

Merriam Webster Dictionary - https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ruin

Cambridge Dictionary - https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/ruin Gonzalo Munoz-vera, (papers) Ruskin and the ruins: the stain of time in architecture - https://gonzalomunozvera.com/papers-Ruskin-and-the-ruins-the-stain-of-time-in-architecture#:~:text=In%20this%20regard%2C%20the%20stains,passing%20of%20time%20for%20Ruskin.

Welcome to our architecture blog

This profile will now be managed by myself Maia and my architectural colleague and close friend Nick.

Firstly, welcome to our blog where we aim to talk about all things architecture! This blog will be produced on an ongoing basis by myself, Maia and Nick; we are both architectural professionals with various education and experiences within the vast topic of architecture and the built environment. The aim of this blog is enjoyment for all involved, that includes us as the writers and you as the readers so please do get involved in discussion and suggestions for future topics; additionally, we aim to educate and learn along the way. This blog will include a wide range of topics, many of which have not been identified as of yet; this will be a story of our architectural interests as well as a discussion on relevant upcoming architecture topics and projects. The blog will endeavor to include discussions and mentions of architectural philosophies, developments in architecture as well as upcoming projects or debates; therefore, there will be case studies explored within this blog. Some posts will be short and sweet, some long and in depth on a topic and many will be part of discussions between ourselves… there is only a vague plan so please get involved in the fun! 

This blog will propose questions that aim to provoke further questions rather than answers; the aim being to demand discussion and debate. There is to be no end to the discussion, with the ‘answers’ continuously evolving, much like how humans and architecture evolve together and as one.

Please watch this space for further instalments! There are a lot of exciting discussions and debates to be had.

A different kind of discrimination

Let’s talk about discrimination for a minute … in particular, the discrimination those face for being educated when applying for jobs. As a recent Master’s graduate (2020) finding a job in the pandemic has been impossible (literally). Whilst I am lucky enough to have a safe home to live in and a supportive family… because of my degree, finding a meanwhile job has proven impossible. Forget architecture-related jobs for a second, that’s another battle. Unskilled work shall we say is what I want to talk about here. Whilst, I must say they have the manners to actually respond even if it’s a no they still bother to respond … unlike some professions. The fact is that they discriminate against me because I am educated. I need a job that’s the same as anyone else searching for work so why is it that because I went to university a reason that I don’t deserve that job like someone else. You just assume that I will not hang around … or is it because you’d feel intimidated (doubt it) fact is… I need a job and because of my education, you decline me of that. For those of you wondering I do have work various experience in unskilled jobs if we wish to call them such a thing. So, therefore, it is simply the degree that means I can’t get work. I never thought I would have to apologize for being educated...strange world we live in? Moving on to discussing other professions… aka architecture-related jobs… all I can really say is I am sorry that I wasn’t born perfect or born a genius and got A*'s from the day I was born … I am damn proud of what I have achieved in my life so far and even more so because I turned my life around when given the chance to prove my academic abilities and I deserve better than what you give me which is literally nothing, not even a reply that’s too much effort for scum like me right? I finished my first degree scraping through after so much hell from one tutor who yes did steal my work. And I worked hard as an architectural assistant doing tasks no different to that of an architect in training. Then I decided that this wasn’t good enough, that I wanted more, to learn more, to experience more and so I embarked upon my Master’s at Oxford Brookes University and I came out with a Merit and a good one at that. Yes, my GCSEs weren’t perfect, nor my a-levels, nor my first degree but flipping heck I did get there and I will be proud of that even if you might not think it’s worth much; to me, it’s worth the world and I won’t let you take that away from me. I’m not perfect but I am me and that’s more than enough. I am resilient and strong and your discrimination whatever it is will not be the end of me I will not let that happen. But just think how not sending that one little email might be the 100th job someone has applied to and heard nothing and that could literally end them; at least I will never be like that because I’m not you and I’m better than that to be so rude and inconsiderate. Even Cadburys world bothered to respond! How can you live with yourself? I wonder how many people you have put over the edge, their suffering and even death their blood is on your hands. Was that laziness really worth it? How can you be so heartless?

A note for a badly behaving tutor

Dear tutor You tried so hard to destroy me … you tried to take so much from me. You destroyed my mental health, you made me want the world to stop, for everything to stop… you tried so damn hard to make me feel worthless. You picked on me because I was shy and vulnerable, you knew I’d be an easy one to destroy. You disgust me… you pick on the vulnerable and you think it’s acceptable … clearly, the University didn’t think so since you aren’t running your own course anymore … karma is a bitch isn’t it. Destroying my mental health and confidence though wasn’t enough for you. You stole my work, you never helped me and you ignored my plight for help. You are the worst kind of person. You wanted to make sure I’d fail or get barely a pass … indeed you succeeded … what you didn’t account for was … That some very special very kind supportive people at Oxford Brookes University saw past that grade and saw my potential. They gave me a chance on a course I never thought I’d get close to and yet … I graduated with a Master’s degree because they gave me that chance and I proved you wrong! I proved to myself that I am indeed smart and amazing… you can’t touch me with your poison you are pathetic.

A note on changing my path

Having spent so long trying to apply for design related jobs on top of other jobs, I started to consider other ventures I think more out of protecting my own sanity more than anything else. I can tell you for sure that applying for jobs and putting what feels like a million ounces of effort outwards only to be ignored is absolutely soul-destroying. Whilst I believe there to be a value to me considering design writing related roles, I am continuously reminded that design appears to be my true powerful passion. Changing the path does not mean I have given up but simply haven’t got the energy mentally for more output when I get nothing in return. I know very well that I am good enough for the design roles that I apply for so I suppose that in itself is actually a positive and I am confident about my abilities which if you know me at all is a real change. My Master’s gave me the opportunity to prove myself and most importantly it gave me the confidence to know that I am talented and can do anything that I put my mind to. For now, I am not sure what my future will be career-wise but what I do know is I will try to remain positive. I have recently taken up a volunteering writing role which I am super excited about so I will enter this venture with the greatest positivity and passion; as I do with most things.