hal box - the genius of the basics
Is a creative career worth the effort?
How do you see architectural design as a vehicle for lifting up others?
How does your personal experience affect the built environment and the community you work in?
Why do you feel a desire to solve problems and deliver solutions?
These are the burning questions, people! Personal expression, realizing potential, and an aesthetically pleasing building are a large part of what make this life satisfying for me. Equally so is witnessing creative expression of other designers.
Having a general knowledge of and appreciation for the basics of design and architectural elements was, for as long as I can remember, part of what I was always drawn to as a young person. Imparting the appreciation and depth of seeing to others is what makes architecture a fulfilling career and makes design a universal language.
Hal Box in his book "Think Like An Architect" does a beautiful thing by opening the concept of high architectural design to the amateur, lay-citizen, and anyone interested in form or an affinity for beauty in the built environment. This welcoming gesture is the beautiful root of the story that he tells in order to impart appreciation, knowledge, and discernment upon his reader.
Sometimes, going back to the basics even for professionals can serve as a quick but lasting reminder to why they started at the beginning. As follows are Hal's 26 basic rules and concepts of determining architectural form, analyzing and comprehending function, and developing a theoretical basis for a successful and personal project.
They can be broken down into many categories and "what-ifs" and cultural variations, but we'll start with the overview. At some point in the future, we'll break all of these topics down in further detail. Please like always let me know if you're interested in a particular topic or discussion and we can choose that road, first!
RULE 1
DECIDE WHERE NOT TO BUILD
RULE 2
SPACES THAT STICK MAKE A PLACE
RULE 3
FORM A SPACE USING WALLS, FLOORS, CEILINGS (OR THE LACK OF THEM TO GET CREATIVE)
RULE 4
LOCATE A BUILDING FOR THE PLEASURE OF ALL FIVE SENSES
RULE 5
ORIENT A BUILDING AND ITS ROOMS FOR ENERGY CONSERVATION
RULE 6
MAKE SHADE AND/ OR INVITE SUNLIGHT PER MICRO- AND MACRO-CLIMATE CONDITIONS
RULE 7
TREES AND LANDSCAPING ARE GREAT ASSETS THAT SHOULD NOT BE LEFT UNTIL THE "END"
RULE 8
ORGANIZE PLANS TO GIVE ALL OCCUPIED ROOMS NATURAL LIGHT
RULE 9
SHAPE A BUILDING IN RELATIONSHIP TO ITS EXISTING SURROUNDINGS
RULE 10
SHAPE A BUILDING BY ORGANIZING ITS FUNCTIONS (RELATED, UNRELATED, OR NEUTRAL)
RULE 11
A RECTANGLE IS THE MOST ECONOMICAL SHAPE, BUT IT IS NOT ALWAYS THE BEST SHAPE
RULE 12
DESIGN WHAT THE EYES WILL SEE. EVERYTHING THE EYES DON'T SEE SHOULD SUPPORT WHAT THEY DO SEE
RULE 13
EXPRESS CHARACTER AND SCALE IN A WAY THAT COMMUNICATES INTENTION
RULE 14
A RESIDENTIAL ROOF SHOULD BE DESIGNED TO PROVIDE SHELTER AND SHADE. LARGER NON-RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS SHOULD INCORPORATE BOTH SHELTER AND SHADE THROUGH OTHER ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS BUT NOT NECESSARILY ROOFS
RULE 15
GRAVITY WILL ALWAYS WORK BEST WITH A BUILDING, NOT WORKING AGAINST IT
RULE 16
EXPRESSING THE STRUCTURE OF A BUILDING HELPS TO EXPLAIN ITS ORGANIZATION AND THE DESIGN RESPONSE TO IT
RULE 17
MANIPULATE THE STRUCTURAL EXPRESSION TO EMPHASIZE CHARACTER AND STYLE
RULE 18
WALLS DO MOST OF THE WORK TO DEFINE WHAT ARCHITECTURE "IS"
RULE 19
FOUNDATIONS COME FIRST IN ANY RELIABLE BUILDING
RULE 20
CONSIDER FIRST MATERIALS INDIGENOUS AND NATURAL TO THE SURROUNDING ENVIRONMENT AND MICRO-CLIMATE
RULE 21
WATER GOES DOWNHILL. WATER GOES INTO AREAS BELOW GROUND
RULE 22
COMPOSITION AND PROPORTION ARE THE ELEMENTS THAT ELEVATE A CONCEPTUAL FORM FROM A PLAIN FACADE TO A CONSCIOUS DESIGN ELEMENT
RULE 23
WALLS AND FACADES DETERMINE COMPOSITION OF A WHOLE
RULE 24
SPATIAL COMPOSITION IN THREE DIMENSIONAL SOLID VOLUMES AND THE ABSENCE OF SOLID VOLUMES CREATE AN INTERNAL RELATIONSHIP TO AN ENCLOSING FORM
RULE 25
DETAILS DEFINE STYLE, INFLUENCES, AND BUILDING CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES
RULE 26
ALWAYS CONSIDER THE PERSONAL, THE CULTURAL, THE PASSING OF TRADITION, THE HABITUAL, THE ENTERTAINMENT, AND THE LIFESTYLE OF THOSE WHO WOULD INHABIT THE STRUCTURE
