Is architecture dancing about engineering?

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― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:12 (twenty-three years ago)

In the good old days there was very little distinction between artist, scientist, engineer and architect. Look at da Vinci. Evn Bruenal had a bit of all four in him. The distinctions are arbitrary and ought to be torn down.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:17 (twenty-three years ago)

are RJG and fletrejet reading this?

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:20 (twenty-three years ago)

In the good old days there was plague, buildings falling down all the time and great fires. Not to mention slums, syphillis and some really shit portraits. And no drum and bass music.

― Pete (Pete), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:23 (twenty-three years ago)

architects do plenty of engineering.

― RJG (RJG), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:24 (twenty-three years ago)

Engineers need more artistic sensibility. Architects are more rounded in their education anyway. Designers need engineering skills. Science and art are both lenses on the world. Engineering and architecture are both about creating the world.

Can I change my degree to an MRenaisance in polymath?

― Ed (dali), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:25 (twenty-three years ago)

And they do plenty of engineers.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:25 (twenty-three years ago)

I thought this was a dead-cert to be a Gareth thread!

― jel -- (jel), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:26 (twenty-three years ago)

I have never knowingly done an engineer.

― RJG (RJG), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:28 (twenty-three years ago)

>In the good old days there was very little distinction between
> artist, scientist, engineer and architect. Look at da Vinci. Evn
> Bruenal had a bit of all four in him. The distinctions are
> arbitrary and ought to be torn down.

There is too much specialized technical knowledge to do this. I work in bridges. Even just on the engineering side, their are geotechnical engineers who specialize in soils and foundations, roadway engineers who lay out the roads and grades and drainage, structural guys like myself who design the actual bridges, sign structures, etc. No one has time to learn all this, hence specialization.

I am not blind to aesthetics. I think a well-designed bridge can be inherently beautiful. I just find contempory architecture often to be ugly, unfunctional, or both. On the few occasions when an architect has been assigned to work with us on a bridge, they usually make very pointless changes to the design that don't make sense structurally, economically, or aesthetically. Just this weekend I visited a newly-built building that had obviously been designed by an arhcitect given a free-hand to design as he pleased, and it had several design "flaws" that I couldn't bleieve anyone would have let him get away with. And the proposals for the new world trade center buildings are all just pug-fugly.

― fletrejet, Monday, 24 February 2003 17:52 (twenty-three years ago)

it used to be boring to hear engineers say that architects don't know anything.

― RJG (RJG), Monday, 24 February 2003 17:59 (twenty-three years ago)

>it used to be boring to hear engineers say that architects don't know anything.

I'm glad it isn't very boring now.

― fletrejet, Monday, 24 February 2003 18:05 (twenty-three years ago)

in the good old days there was no such thing as scientists. the profession "scientist" didn't exist before about 1880.

― Alan (Alan), Monday, 24 February 2003 18:10 (twenty-three years ago)

I'm glad it isn't very boring now.

sorry.

― RJG (RJG), Monday, 24 February 2003 18:13 (twenty-three years ago)

>in the good old days there was no such thing as scientists. the
> profession "scientist" didn't exist before about 1880.

The problem is specilization. No one has time to be an expert in every field of science, in additon to literature, the arts, etc. etc. There is too much stuff to know.

― fletrejet, Monday, 24 February 2003 18:21 (twenty-three years ago)

that's why architects design buildings and get other people to help/check that everything's OK.

― RJG (RJG), Monday, 24 February 2003 18:26 (twenty-three years ago)

Ok so there are specialisatioons but an architect with no concept of what will stand up or and engineer with no concept of beauty are not fully competent to be called as such. There is far too much sneering between architect, engineers designers and the like when in reality all of our professions are intrinsically linked. Sure you have to specialise but that doesn't mean you have sneer at someone else's specialisation. I hope to work with many people across many fields as an Industrial designer, I hope one day to contribute to building design.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 24 February 2003 18:41 (twenty-three years ago)

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