Materiality & Immateriality in Architecture

Role of Materiality Today

The meaning of materiality in architecture today mostly describe the physical material such as stone, rock and so on which enables a complete and sound structure built for purpose rather than aesthetical appreciation.

In the past decade, materiality has claimed centre stage in architectural discourse and practice, yet its critical meaning is ever receding. Tropes like digital materiality, material responsiveness, trans-materiality and dematerialisation mark out an interdisciplinary field where scientific fact and artistic experimentation interact.

The materiality in architecture today mostly similar to the Alberti's interpretation. People start to understand the materials and focus on the knowledge of materials. The materiality nowadays brings the architecture towards to the using of raw materials.

There is a example found from the internet which is Naked House in Mexico. From the interpretation of Albertis that using the local materials for the local building. This narrow family house in Mexico showcases the beauty of natural building materials from the local.

The architects used natural, common and readily available materials to accentuate the home's simplicity and intrinsic beauty. A green wall to the west reinforced the thermal barrier, while permaculture planters prevent the overheating of the access area. The material palette is largely determined by the construction and structural elements, which are mostly exposed.

From the exterior of the building, the walls constructed by the raw material and less of decoration. There is only simple cement plaster on the wall and the tree provided the good privacy zone and greenery spaces for the residents.

Role of Immateriality Today

The immateriality in architecture basically based on the feeling, nothing which sense are provoked and which are intangible.

From the " Immaterial Architecture" written by Professor Jonathan Hill, we know he is arguing that the immaterial is as important as the material in architecture. From his interpretation, we know that each person will have different interpretation of a structure.

He also said a building is structured for different functions and promotes different actions through theoretical, historical and philosophical factors. This affects how senses triggered, and notes that the building is the material.

The role of immateriality of architecture today is going more far from the building materials. The immaterially of architecture with the 5 senses which is sense taste, sight, touch, smell, and hearing. All of this senses can happen or present by using the different of material.

Nowadays we can easily found lots of conceptual building design from the internet. Most of them not really can be done in the reality. Some of the building using the new materials and try to hide in the environment by using the glass.

Here is the building design that found from the internet which is Music Hall and House in Algueña by Cor & Asociados.

Shimmering porcelain tiles clad the multi-purpose auditorium, which adjoins converted civil guards quarters to comprise the new two-storey music centre.

The shimmering porcelain ties clad reflected the sky and cloud. The image of the sky is totally shown in the each side of the walls.

It looks the building turn to invisible by having the refection to the sky.

They are using the materials to bring the visual of architecture and the building seem hiding in the sky.

This is the immateriality of architecture that we have today. We playing with the materials to create the different feelings and sense.

The layered screen create overlapping fins on the interior walls of auditorium, which are backlit in stripes.

The Materiality and Immateriality

I am agreed that the materiality and immateriality predominantly about the expression of material properties. The expression of material give the impressions of hardness and softness, of heaviness and lightness, are connected with the surface character of material.

A building can be made to appear heavier than it actually is, and it can also be made to appear lighter than it is. This can be achieved with the material expression, pattern, form and colour.

For the example from the expression of the material materials, the famous architect which is Frank Gehry looks for an architecture more and more free, with virtuous lines and complex forms, in which the light and its reflection is a principal matter.

Furthermore, he is unique in the election of materials, each one more and more unusual giving his works an artistic quality unequalled. But all these characteristics don’t shade the usefulness of his sculptural buildings as he always does a meticulous architectural work, thousand times supervised and noticeable in his famous sketches and miniatures.

The argument about today's architecture in relation to materiality and immateriality

For the forth article that I will discussing the symbiosis of the materiality and immateriality. Both of the theories should be working together can get a better result in the future day.

Despite the immateriality of architecture telling more on the feeling and sense but not in the construction part. It seem like the immateriality will not happen in reality, from the other perspective, if the materiality cooperate and getting the idea from the immateriality, our technology will improve because of exploring the new technique.

To achieve the better environment or life through the architecture, the philosophical and theoretical of immateriality would provide lots of ideas and assists in the future design. The ideas can transfer to the materiality way by having the right material and workable construction plan.

The immateriality is no more just an idea on paper and materiality will not just creating a space for the function but the good appearance.