The Poet-Engineer

At the present time, there is no obvious radical shift in our society which demands a corresponding revolution in architecture. In the past, new building materials and construction techniques had necessitated new architectural concepts and forms. Now we are lacking both novel materials and new techniques. From the architect’s point of view, there are no imminent crises calling for action. Today’s architect processes a profusion of seemingly unrelated information with an incoherent set of values. A lack of clarity permeates current architecture.

In 1920, Le Corbusier wrote, “The Engineer, inspired by the LAW OF ECONOMY and governed by MATHEMATICAL CALCULATION, puts us in accord with UNIVERSAL LAW. He achieves HARMONY.” The universal law to which Le Corbusier referred is the set of principles guiding physical forces and phenomena. It excludes social and political activity. We must heed Le Corbusier and learn to use the law of economy and mathematical calculation to strive against ENTROPY.

Entropy is the steady degradation or disorganization of a system or society. As hierarchy is reduced in our cities and our buildings, we drift towards a lack of legibility and ultimately into chaos. Through architecture, we can counteract entropy and increase order and structure. By ordering our environment, architecture can become a measuring stick which puts us back in touch with universal law.

ARCHITECTURE AND NATURE

This little object, a filament, has clarity. The engineer has selected the proper materials, dimensions, arrangements and configurations to transform a natural force—electricity—into a specific type of light with a specific intensity. This collection of wire, glass and a bit of ceramic, exemplifies how natural forces can be transformed according to our needs.

In a similar fashion, architecture transforms nature to satisfy our needs. A building modifies our relationship to the sun, terrain, and climate. The ingenuity and clarity with which we transform nature is one measure of the strength of architecture.

Architecture is the INTERFACE between Man and Nature. Nature, in this case, is the set of all physical conditions with which architecture must interact. It is comprised of both desirable elements—sunlight, fresh air, clean water, a beautiful vista; as well as undesirable elements—adverse weather conditions, such as wind and rain. Architecture should maximize our relationship to the desirable elements in nature while protecting us from the undesirable aspects of nature. Which natural elements to modify, how to, and to what extent they must be modified; these are the questions to carefully consider and answer according to well-formulated intentions. This is necessary for a strong architecture.

ARCHITECTURE AS DIDACTIC DEVICE

Architecture is not only the interface but it is also the conceptual interpreter between Man and Nature. Architecture derives it’s poetic quality from this interpretive function. As poetry is writing that formulates a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience in language, meaning, sound and rhythm; ARCHITECTURE is building that formulates a concentrated awareness of the physical environment in space, form, light, etc. This didactic aspect of architecture can explain simple, ordinary things as well as profound ones. The Poetic Building makes clear distinctions about the buildings and space around it: why the building is placed where it is, what people do in it, and what happens there when no people are present. The construction of the building, the structural principles involved, and the unique qualities of the materials are all easily read. These relationships not only speak of one particular situation, but about general principles: They speak of order and UNIVERSAL LAW.

Architecture must be used as a TOOL to make evident the relationships between human beings, the earth, our cities, public spaces, individual buildings, and the private domain. This is also necessary for a strong architecture.

THE POET-ENGINEER

Architecture must participate in two worlds: the engineer’s functional efficiency and poet’s interpretive communication. Entropy is at work in both of these worlds. OPPOSITION TO ENTROPY must be the architect’s goal.