Module 1 Response
Many of the initial lessons in Arch 585 have discussed the
process of designing successful urban spaces. As I took notes on the PowerPoints
and read the assigned readings I remembered a paper I wrote freshman year of
college regarding successful design. I stopped the powerpoint and re-read that
paper. It fit with the ideas I had begun to formulate for writing this post. I
fixed my interest upon what creates successful design. Designing is no small
task. Designing an urban environment is the pinnacle of all design problems in
complexity as well as impact. So I asked myself what is “good” design?
Good design is not linear. Good design is case specific.
Good design is unique. There is not a set, correct linear progression within
effective design. The process of design is unique for each problem, for every
rendition, for every designer. The world is, “comprised of and largely shaped
by unpredictable forces, flows, interactions, collisions, and transformations.”[1] The world is naturally
disordered. The problems we strive to solve are far too intricate, too complex
to be bounded by a set of design rules, a “how to design” step by step manual.
Bruce Mau proposes that successful design should, “Capture accidents. The wrong answer is the right answer in search
of a different question. Collect wrong answers as part of the process. Ask
different questions.”[2] The key to successful
design begins with the acceptance of the disorder presented by the world’s
problems and the recognition that there is no one right answer but that there
is always a better answer.
An example of mankind’s linear tendencies is the way in
which lumber is produced. It used to be that a person in need of lumber would
seek out a tree that fit their needs. Now human technology has allowed for all
trees to be cut down and processed into homogenous building blocks, rather than
unique fits for unique problems.
We seek out answers
like the one proposed in Le Corbusier’s Dom-ino house, an open plan, mass
produced residential structure. Corbusier hoped to manufacture the structures
much like the Ford assembly line. The structures would be erected side by side
for massive housing developments. This solution disregards all context of existing
communities. Rather it is a linear solution to a far more intricate and vast
problem.
Design should be approached differently for each project. There cannot be a set in stone process that outlines the steps to design. Instead, each problem is as unique in its answer as it is unique in its complexity. When form is created by a designer to truly create something that is effectual, the designer must be, “in tune”, with the medium in which he or she is operating. “When you want to give something presence, you have to consult its nature. And there is where design comes in.”[3] To design well we must begin with the basics of necessity and carefully asses the best avenues for meeting the given needs. Care must be taken to avoid falling into linear thinking which presents standardized answers rather than answers that are tailored to the distinct problem. Answers must be pertinent to the factors that define the problem. Why does the problem exist and which “tree” is the best fit for creating the best solution. Only through careful investigation and case specific solutions can more effective solutions be found.
One of key challenges in urban design is that we are designing unfinished product in the dynamic process of many forces for changes to urban environment.
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