Order & Proportion

These readings really got me thinking about the difference between order and proportion. Order can be seen as a prevailing course or arrangement of things and proportion as symmetry, harmony, or balance.
There are several different buildings that I think can compare these two aspects:

Michelangelo's Vatican Staircase

vs. 

Morphosis Cooper Union

One is very ordered and simple while the other appears more complicated and starts out wide and then becomes narrow.

Linder Athletic Center at the University of Cincinnati

vs.

Hearst Tower - Foster + Partners

One is made of concrete while the other has glass. Both have triangle windows.

Both of these of examples have a certain order to them and their proportions have to be just right for the building to work.

Review of Alberti

I really did enjoy reading Alberti's work. In his quote, "the whole matter of the building is composed of lineaments and structure. All the intent and purpose of lineaments lies in finding the correct, infallible way of joining and fitting together those lines and angles which define and enclose the surfaces of the buildings," I found myself reflecting back on these past four years and realizing how many times I did this in my drafting classes and even in my studios. Vitruvius even stated, "Arrangement includes the putting of things in their proper places and the elegance of effect which is due to adjustments appropriate to the character of the work." I think a lot of times people take for granite buildings themselves. They have been around for ages and have just become a normal part of life. One can even bring Natalini into this because he states, "Architecture is a complex system composed of infinite elements." There are so many things that make up a building but its lineaments and structure are its foundation.

Reading #2 - Vitruvius: On Architecture

Basically Vitruvius piece was on laying out a Roman city. What fascinates me about Vitruvius is his way of describing architecture. My way of describing architecture would have a lot of modern terms to it but also a technology side. While Vitruvius didn't have modern examples or even techniques. Everything was done completely by hand.
I do agree with Vitruvius in that one should have more of an expanded knowledge on different subjects but do you really need some of this knowledge to understand architecture? Like astronomy, Vitruvius states, "If one has no knowledge of these matters, he will not be able to have any comprehension of the theory of sundials." I can understand how in Vitrucius's time this would have been helpful but in ours I'm not quite sure.
Also, I do not think that knowing medicine is an extremely important thing. There are different ways in understanding the healthiness and unhealthiness of sites. A lot of the things stated in Vitruvius's book has to do with his time. I do think his book is very useful into understanding the philosophy side of architecture.

Reading #1 - Scruton: The Problem of Architecture

This whole piece that Scruton wrote is on the aesthetics of architecture. I like some of the topics that he compared architecture to. I do agree with him that you need to have a knowledge of a subject if you are to understand it better but also to put your knowledge into practice.
There is one paragraph on p. 7 that talks about Collingwood's view on expressionism. Now maybe I saw this paragraph all wrong or maybe I didn't read it right but i do believe architecture is a form of a craft and it is a skill. It is an expression of someone's ideas, beliefs, and likes. In order to have the expression, one must have the first craft it.
On p. 13 Scruton states that "the private arts require much of their expressive character from the personal manner in which we approach them, from the ability of such arts to address themselves to a specific, and perhaps highly specialized, audience." My first question is is there not a personal side to architecture too? I do believe architecture can have a personal side. The different materials used, the design of the project, etc. all lead to your personal choices.
These were some of the things that stuck out to me in this reading.