Architecture: The Natural and the Manmade

Rating:
Summary: Not natural and not man made
Review: Another chronological review of construction starting with Greece, Rome, heavily slanted towards the French and Italian Renaissance, the text deals very little or nothing with architecture, and drags around on a grandiose egocentric and anthropocentric style and view of the "world" that we mere mortals are supposed to regard as marvelous, the text is dull, boring, pretentious and selserving, with very few architectonic layouts and sections, more of an historical account of construction, forts, wars, churches, generals, emperors, kings, deities, their motives and caprices thrown in the mix, the natural here is the by-standing surrounding forest, ocasional mountain or bay, the natural environment and its relation to man is never mentioned, the text tone has the characteristic self preserving arrogance of architects and designers thru times, no account of bizantine, north-african, or chinese architecture or the way the last two integrate beautifully with the natural at times, very few mentions to pre-european invasion architecture of the americas, the man-made here is the huge piling up of dirt and rocks for whatever artistic ulterior reasons, an ultimately superior view of the "world" meaning only the "world" of man and his buildings, the author does not yet realize that man cannot really make anything, a blind arrogance oozes everywhere thru a heavy pretentious layer of scholarly tone, no single mention on how, where and why this devastating architecture has systematically obliterated and destroyed the natural, other than a quick quote by Levi-Strauss (pg. 356), man can only use things, man can pile rocks to no end, trees, timber, iron, man cannot make any of those, not even plastics, the author ignores that in spite of its enourmous arrogance and pretentious accomplishments, man owes his existence to a fragile top layer of six inches of soil, air, rain, and a few sun rays - the author deals with none - this text is not worth the much nicer trees it has been printed on

Rating:
Summary: Architecture and its Meaning
Review: This book is an obvious labor of love. Exapnding on his thesis that man attempts to recreate the nature's forms - particularly mountains - we are given a tour of the ages. Starting with earlier (rather than primitive) civilizations, he shows how Mayans, Greeks, Egyptians and Aztecs attempted to replicate the mountains. This almost obsessive need to reach to the heavens is evident in our city skyscrapers.

Of course there was a religious, animist aspect to all this and indeed, one can trace the evolution of buildings in this book. First there are religious edifices, whether for a single God (as in the case of the Israelites and their initial worship of the sacred mountain), multiple gods (Mayans) or a combination of the two -Greece, Egypt. Then there are structures for rulers whether nobility or military. Only toward modern times do we dwell on private homes for the average (rich) citizen.

Symbolism was paramount for the Gothic ages and in modern times, through gardens and onramentation, we have attempted to recreate the untamed world beyond. The final chapters on formal gardens leads to a study of modern architects and their attempt to "merge" or reunite with nature - Frank Lloyd Wright being the prime example. The book is richly illustrated with both black and white and color photographs,

Rating:
Summary: Architecture and its Meaning
Review: This book is an obvious labor of love. Exapnding on his thesis that man attempts to recreate the nature's forms - particularly mountains - we are given a tour of the ages. Starting with earlier (rather than primitive) civilizations, he shows how Mayans, Greeks, Egyptians and Aztecs attempted to replicate the mountains. This almost obsessive need to reach to the heavens is evident in our city skyscrapers.

Of course there was a religious, animist aspect to all this and indeed, one can trace the evolution of buildings in this book. First there are religious edifices, whether for a single God (as in the case of the Israelites and their initial worship of the sacred mountain), multiple gods (Mayans) or a combination of the two -Greece, Egypt. Then there are structures for rulers whether nobility or military. Only toward modern times do we dwell on private homes for the average (rich) citizen.

Symbolism was paramount for the Gothic ages and in modern times, through gardens and onramentation, we have attempted to recreate the untamed world beyond. The final chapters on formal gardens leads to a study of modern architects and their attempt to "merge" or reunite with nature - Frank Lloyd Wright being the prime example. The book is richly illustrated with both black and white and color photographs,

Rating:
Summary: dazzling essays on meanings of architecture thru the ages
Review: This is an absolutely fascinating book on what architecture meant and what its builders were trying to accomplish from the beginnings of advanced civilisations (in Mesopotamia and pre-Columbian America) through the innovations of the Greeks, into the symbolism of the Middle Ages and finally modern industrial societies. Throughout, the approach is eclectic and ranges over an unusually wide range of subjects, including anthropology and psychology, history, technical engineering, and political science.

In a nutshell that oversimplifies, Scully argues that before the Greeks (and in the Americas to today), architecture emphasized man's links to the earth, reflecting natural forms and consciously forming a part of a landscape/environment larger and more powerful than themselves. The Greeks, with their temples and the anthropomorphic sculpture that were an integral part of them, glorified the view of man as a actor of accomplishment and greater power, though still in thrall to nature. THe Romans refined this vision, but with Christianity began to build temples that were walls against the encroaching world and the barbarian chaos that was approaching. THen, with the Gothic era, the power of kings was brought to the fore, which continued in the French gardens of the (Baroque) absolutism period and symboloised the belief that nature could be controlled by strong central authority. Meanwhile, the Renaissance architects and in particular Palladio re-introduced the individual as an actor within (and aesthetically designed to fit into) an urban context, leading directly to the development of private homes and eventually suburbia. Later, the internationalist/modernists broke these molds, producing huge buildings that fit neither the landscape nor the human context in which they were build, e.g. the faceless skyscrapers that destroy neighborhoods and disregard their impact on others. This, in Scully's view was hubris that was dangerous and ugly. FInally, Scully concludes that there are signs of a movement back to nature that will incorporate many of these ideals.

The level at which this book is written is quite high, perhaps at the graduate level. I believe that to truly appreciate the book, the reader must know - or independently acquire while reading it - a great deal of historical knowledge, including the history of architecture. That makes much of the book hard going, and there were sections that lost me. I did not always agree with his interpretations, but they were always stimulating as a new way to view things.

While there are too many holes in my own knowledge to judge what Scully has done here in any scholarly way, the book is a truly vast synthesis of knowledge, a life's work of interpretation and visits to great monuments all over the world. Personally, as I live in Europe, it was a fantastic pleasure as I have visited many of the scenes he chose (Lindos, Versailles, Bomarzo, for example) and wondered about many of the issues Scully discusses - hence, his essays solved many mysteries for me while making me hungry to learn much much more. Architecture will never appear the same to me again: I now have gained a wonderful reference point from which to depart and it was this book that gave it to me.

Finally, Scully's writing style is truly superb. His book is not at all pedantic, but exudes a love for his life's work that I found charming and modest. He must have been a great teacher. Nonetheless, the quality of many of the photos left much to be desired.

Warmly recommended, but expect to work to get through this.