Organic architecture

Organic architecture is a philosophy of architecture which promotes harmony between human habitation and the natural world. This is achieved through design approaches that aim to be sympathetic and well-integrated with a site, so buildings, furnishings, and surroundings become part of a unified, interrelated composition.

The architecture of architecture combines directions of architecture since the turn of the twentieth century, aiming at the harmony of buildings and landscape, a form that is “functionally” developed according to building materials, and a biological, psychological and social utility of architecture. More recently, there has been added the concept of ecological construction and organic color , which is in part in harmony with concepts of organic architecture.

Stylistically, organic architecture is heterogeneous and not committed to a particular aesthetic – the basic idea that it is not the function of submitting form and style to materials and purposes but letting the form grow from these conditions produced very different results – it enables both strict forms corresponding to classical modernism , as well as plastic and biomorphic , which are more frequently represented. There are no given exterior styling devices. Means are the architectural and artistic laws themselves, d. H. Proportions, sculptural variety of forms, spatial gestures, colors, material characters, etc. These rules were weighted or defined very differently by the representatives of an organic architectural language. Above all, the approach of the holistic view has, in contrast to its own claim, led to differentiated results by facing architects like Gaudí , Frank Lloyd Wright or Hugo Häring .

Organ Concept
In Greek, organ (organon) means as much as tool . The beginning of a limitation of the concept to what is generally described today (functionally and physiologically delimitable but integral part of a (living) being / body) can be found in Aristotle . Organon refers to parts / body parts of living beings. At the same time, Aristotle asserts a purpose-basedness of organs: “Nature created the organs to perform, not the organs to perform.” The organs are the parts of a superordinate whole ( organism , body), which in turn is the organ of the soul as the cause of the living existence of the body. Subsequently, the concept of the organ is taken over in ancient medicine and the function-oriented nature of the organs is formulated within medico-physiological cause-effect considerations. After indistinct demarcation of the term in the Middle Ages , the importance formed in ancient times z. In Thomas Aquinas , for example, the Latin instrumentum is used expressly for parts / aids / tools outside the (human) body, but organum is used for tools (eg the hand) associated with the body (and hence the soul) ). The purpose-relatedness of organs in Thomas Aquinas is extended in the context of theological investigations to the resurrection in the sense that the organs are there as necessary elements of a bodily (form-like) perfection, even if their function is no longer present (in the state of resurrection).

Philosophical conceptualization
With the 18th century , the concept of organ becomes a frequent subject of definition. Philosophers as well as naturalists deal with him. Kant (end of the 18th century) deals with the organisms, “organized beings” as natural objects: “In such a product of nature will each part (…) exist for the sake of the other and of the whole, ie as a tool ( Organ) (…) as an organ producing the other parts, which can not be a tool of art, but only of (…) nature: and only then and therefore is such a product, as an organized and self-organizing being, called a natural end can be “. Thus, in so far as the organs appear subordinate to the whole, the organism as the purpose of nature, they are directed to purposes. Schelling ‘s approach is to form, claiming that “the life process itself is the cause of the mixture as well as the form of the organs” and that “in the organization the figure of each part depends on its property”.

In the nineteenth century, after the organ has passed into everyday vocabulary, the adjective organically dissolves from the narrower definition of the substantive. “Organic” is given a rubber meaning by referring to living, natural and its manifestations in general, e.g. B. in the sense of organic chemistry ( Justus Liebig et al.). In the course of the emergence of a modern natural science from the 19th to the 20th century organ is solidified as a biological-medical term in the usual meaning today (see Organ transplantation ).

Origins of the concept of organic architecture
According to Joseph Rykwert , the Italian monk and architect Carlo Lodoli was the first to speak of organic architecture around 1750 (narrated by Lodoli student Andrea Memmo in Elementi d’Architettura Lodoliana around 1786 ). Lodolis ideas are concretized in furniture that externally conforms to the contour of the human body through concave shaping. The theoretical framework was formulated in the mid-19th century by the American sculptor Horatio Greenough : “My theory of building is as follows: A scientific arrangement of spaces and forms in adaptation to function and location; Stressing the elements in proportion to their importance in terms of function; Color ( organic colourfulness ) and ornament must be applied and varied according to strictly organic laws, with every decision justifiable. ”

In appreciation of Greenough, Louis H. Sullivan formulated his thesis: “It is the law of all organic and inorganic, of all physical and metaphysical, of all human and superhuman things, of all real manifestations of the head, heart and soul that life is in its expression is recognizable that the form always follows the function. ” The pointed summary Form Follows Function is still an elementary component of functionalist architectural theory.

History
The term “organic architecture” was coined by Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959), though never well-articulated by his cryptic style of writing:

“So here I stand before you preaching organic architecture: declaring organic architecture to be the modern ideal and the teaching so much needed if we are to see the whole of life, and to now serve the whole of life, holding no traditions essential to the great TRADITION. Nor cherishing any preconceived form fixing upon us either past, present or future, but instead exalting the simple laws of common sense or of super-sense if you prefer determining form by way of the nature of materials …”

Organic architecture is also translated into the all inclusive nature of Wright’s design process. Materials, motifs, and basic ordering principles continue to repeat themselves throughout the building as a whole. The idea of organic architecture refers not only to the buildings’ literal relationship to the natural surroundings, but how the buildings’ design is carefully thought about as if it were a unified organism. Geometries throughout Wright’s buildings build a central mood and theme. Essentially organic architecture is also the literal design of every element of a building: From the windows, to the floors, to the individual chairs intended to fill the space. Everything relates to one another, reflecting the symbiotic ordering systems of nature.

Other modernist architects in the U.S., Europe, and elsewhere held complementary and often competing views of how architecture could best emulate nature. Key figures in the U.S. included Louis Sullivan, Claude Bragdon, Eugene Tsui and Paul Laffoley while among European modernists Hugo Häring and Hans Scharoun stand out. Following World War II, organic architecture often reflected cybernetic and informatic models of life, as is reflected in the later work of futurist architect Buckminster Fuller.

Development since the 20th century
Different practical approaches and theoretical statements on organic architecture emerged at the beginning of the 20th century with the liberation of historicizing architectural styles and forms. a. Neoclassicism , and various other stylistic traits generally characterized as eclecticism with the prefix Neo- Classical . In the search for new forms, the architectural philosophies ultimately tended towards two streams: one more rational-geometric and one more artistic-sculptural. Looking back, you can see two generations of designers moving within these directions.

The term “organic” is used by some architects to express the principle of “organically evolving from one thing” as opposed to mechanical additive. The term, which can be found within philosophy in the context of thought to the holistic , stands thereby, occasionally also under religious aspects, in contrast to strongly materialistic or analytical-scientific views. Thus, the practical formal expression within the architecture is diversified and integrated under the term organic tendencies that run parallel to (based on) Art Nouveau ( Antoni Gaudí ) and Expressionism ( Erich Mendelsohn ), but also lead to landscape related examples, such. B. in Hans Scharoun or in the house Fallingwater by Frank Lloyd Wright. In the use of the concept of organ, there are at the same time surprising superimpositions with the rather rationalistic functionalism . In that the tool-holder of the organic u. a. plays an important role in Hugo Häring , the intellectual parallel to functionalist modernity becomes visible. In both styles, the fulfillment of purpose is a superficial goal of formal education. The distinction then arises z. T. only from the very different interpretations of the “purposes” that would have to fulfill buildings or architectures. On the other hand, the contrast between the functionality of Mies van der Rohe and the pure creation of space for a specific, (superficially verbal) not further defined area requirement, and spatial sculptures by Rudolf Steiner for the aspects of soul health or health More commonly expressed, in each case, the psychological effects assumed by the designer, which are the motives for finding a form. In the 1980s, organic architecture was increasingly shaped by ecological, sustainable building and form finding from scientific studies of bionics.

Architect and planner David Pearson proposed a list of rules towards the design of organic architecture. These rules are known as the Gaia Charter for organic architecture and design. It reads:

“Let the design:

be inspired by nature and be sustainable, healthy, conserving, and diverse.
unfold, like an organism, from the seed within.
exist in the “continuous present” and “begin again and
follow the flows and be flexible and adaptable.
satisfy social, physical, and spiritual needs.
“grow out of the site” and be unique.
celebrate the spirit of youth, play and surprise.
express the rhythm of music and the power of dance.”
A well-known example of organic architecture is Fallingwater, the residence Wright designed for the Kaufmann family in rural Pennsylvania. Wright had many choices to locate a home on this large site, but chose to place the home directly over the waterfall and creek creating a close, yet noisy dialog with the rushing water and the steep site. The horizontal striations of stone masonry with daring cantilevers of colored beige concrete blend with native rock outcroppings and the wooded environment.

There are contemporary creations of organic architecture. The definition of ‘organic’ has dramatically changed during recent times. Avoiding materials of construction which requires more embodied energy to build and sustain it, when the building blends naturally and sits seamless to it surroundings, reflecting cultural continuity, it is ‘organic’ and is idealistic.

Architects
Antoni Gaudí and Louis Sullivan , creators of the thesis form follows function , are among the earliest representatives of organic architecture. Gaudí named as his example: “An upright tree; he carries his branches and these the branches and these the leaves. And every single part grows harmoniously, great, since the artist God created it. ”

Other important representatives of organic architecture are Frank Lloyd Wright , Eero Saarinen , Hugo Häring , Hans Scharoun , Chen Kuen Lee , Alvar Aalto and the developer of lightweight structures Frei Otto . Noteworthy are the representatives of Hungarian organic architecture, such as the anthroposophically oriented Imre Makovecz and the so-called Pécser group around György Csete .

The buildings of Santiago Calatrava use an organic futuristic design.

On the other hand, the buildings of the painter Friedensreich Hundertwasser in architectural circles are not considered to be works of organic architecture, since mainly conventional buildings or ground plans are enriched with decorative ornamentation.

Source From Wikipedia