Reading Tectonics

1. The readings refer to tectonics in a variety of settings; tectonic/stereotomic, tectonic/atectonic, topos/typos/tectonic, representation/ontological, rhythm, corporeal metaphor, ethnography, and technology. Briefly define each term and provide an architectural example that embodies the condition.

Tectonic/sterrotomic - light frame construction/earth-nature based construction – structure is straightforward and easily distinguishable i.e. architectural framework

Tectonic/atectonic - structure that falsifies the true structural meanings. Usually just astetically pleasing. i.e. The English building on campus

Topos/typos/tectonic - 3 components  of the built envrionment i.e. site/type/structure

Ontological/representation – technical and structural aspects of the building/ symbolic aspects of the construction  i.e. earthwork, frame, roof/hearth and infill walls

Rhythm- a patterned movement i.e. a colonnade

Corporeal metaphor - the bodily experience of a building i.e. Saynatsalo Town Hall

Ethnography – how culture is incorporated into architecture i.e. tepee

Technology – alters how one sees the world around them 

2. Kenneth Frampton writes that this study of tectonics "seeks to mediate and enrich the priority given to space", what is a dominant trend in Western architecture of today and how does tectonics relate to this trend?  

The trend that is prevalent throughout the west is the exemplification of atectonics as a method of communicating themes and representations. Where many classical buildings were designed with columns and arches that were structurally load bearing, the use of columns and arches today take on a more visually appealing aspect, rather than structural.

3. "Greek in origin, the term tectonic derives from the work tekton, signifying carpenter or builder". How has the the impact of Albert Einstein's theory of relativity and other space-time models altered tectonic etymology?  

Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity makes the human question and realize their existence in space. This questioning of relativity directly correlates to tectonic etymology in how the carpenter can construct a space that can demand a human to respect and understand their relationship to the space.

4. Vittorio Gregotti states in 1983, "(t)he worst enemy of modern architecture is the idea of space considered solely in terms of its economic and technical exigencies indifferent to the ideas of the site". If the intention of site is to situate human in the cosmos, how then does site infer from a contemporary landscape that has been graded, conditioned, tamed, treated, sculpted, mapped, engineered, essentially re-created by humans?

The site is just a minuscule aspect of the larger scale of the cosmos. Though it is altered to accommodate the human’s needs and desires, it is still situated within the cosmos. 

5. Is architectural tectonics applicable or relevant in a world of global mobilization? State and explain your position.

Architectural tectonics takes advantage of technology today and illustrates how the world is evolving with all kinds of information. In architecture architectural tectonics is relevent in today's word by the use of technology and space.