Context & Building ( part2 )

Is context today more important, less importance, or of the same importance as it was a century ago? Compare one contemporary case study and one case study from roughly a century ago.

In architecture, context is the important keys that being used through the architecture in the past and architecture today. Context been a very important factor and have been consider as inseparable when it comes to architecture design. Building itself form and function can be change but the context cannot be change as we said, context is simply an external element that influences the building and site both.

Contextual factors include the nature of the surroundings that is natural and built elements. Basically the context determines the architectural style, building material selection and site layout, which is very important in creating an effective design. All these promote continuity between the building and local circumstances which any features and characteristic of site should be determine and analysed as well as consideration in design.

Above is showing the importance of context that already exist since the pre-modern era , which how pre-modern people built their cities and zone out the lands, is written by Marcus Vitruvius. The things he wrote is the principle and strategy how pre-modern humans form out their city.Approach to be done under carefully observation to the surrounding elements and climatic condition. “to understand history is essential for the formation of the architect, since he must be able to insert his own work into the preesistenze ambientali and to take it, dialectically, into account.”

In architecture today, building designers tend to ignore the consideration of context when forming the building, this result claiming that a building is not fit to the site and lack of relationship between building and the space they used. It still use of the idea of context but is in the other way. “contemporary architecture” as a popular trend of architectural which carrying some value.

An example of past century:

Fallingwater , by Frank Lloyd Wright

Great example to highlight organic architecture within a natural context and to show the modern and local perspectives of the organic architect. Wright wanted to create harmony between man and nature, and his integration of the house with the waterfall . In past, context of architecture is an important factor that allows the building to somehow blends in to its surrounding by having similar characteristics that are implemented architecturally into the design of a building.

Idea of direct the eye horizontally to look outside which the connection with nature by use of glass and also done by long cantilevered terraces.

Which make the house seem like weightless over the waterfall and complete harmony with the nature.

The house has no walls facing the falls, only a central stone core for the fireplaces and stone columns which interior arrangement of building is placed according to the inner core which is the stone wall growing out of the site and the building is shaped according to the main organic concept. It also shown that it is creating an architecture in a whole piece with environment and also respect to the context and material in the past.

An example of contemporary architecture:

Mesiniaga, by Ken

Another contemporary architecture example to highlight contextual architecture within a natural context and to show the modern. The building itself is build follow by context which are those environment factors.

Building itself come across those factor which the building design in each façade have different usage, those aluminium louvers and sun shadding device are put to follow the sunpath to low down the heat and sunlight enter the building.

Roof top have a solar panel to absorb the sunlight which the building is a standalone structure. The building floor is totally match with the landscape around , which the roof of the basement carpark is cover by green to just mix around with the landscape aside.

In conclusion, both of era shows the important contexts are to each of the building. We can also see the different types of contexts that the architects take note to in 2 different era and use idea of context in different ways, which in climatic, historical, architectural type or maybe some others context issue. Context also plays an important role of solving issues that the building may concern and help create solution.

I think context have always and will forever be as important as it has been no matter past or present. Even when times went by, even if the importance of the context to architecture have changed it will only differ in the types of context that the architect uses compared to the past, while the value of importance.