Article 2, Everyone should know, “The First Law of Architecture” Presented by a future educator. Jan. 15, 2014

Watching this video is optional but very cool....

Here it is, my second Architect Denied article, trying to improve architecture and people’s understanding of it. So, how exciting to read about what you already may know, amazing stuff but yes that is exactly what I’m going to talk about, the obvious. For those who know it all this is the time to stop reading, for the rest of you please continue to read about the astounding and obvious facts I am about to reveal.

So to start our exploration of architecture I think it is important to know what architecture is. Curiously, this will explain why you live in the house you live in, so even if you are not an architect or care not to know about architecture, what the hell, keep reading. As I mentioned in my first article, I answer the question with my “first fundamental law of architecture”. It all starts here or right after here, drum roll please; we all need shelter –fact!!! All humans need shelter to exist –don’t believe me? I know right now you are trying to think of examples where this is not true but go ahead keep thinking, I would love to know what human lives exposed to the elements and survives for very long. So this is fascinating isn’t it? We all need shelter! Shelter is good a basic necessity that keeps us alive safe and comfortable through our journey in life. We associate only good things with shelter because it’s there to help us.
But is shelter architecture? A big resounding NO! is in order-I know some of you are at this very moment looking for examples where this is not true. A cave is shelter, a cardboard box is shelter for some, a sleeping bag is shelter for some (please don’t tell me you think a sleeping bag is considered architecture, that is a bit embarrassing) a stone out cropping makes for a cozy roof over your head but not architecture, shelter.

So where does architecture begin? This is so exciting, architecture begins when we take what is shelter and develop it beyond the mere function of shelter. Does this make any sense, because that’s it! No you say? Example please, let me think here, ok, so we have a makeshift lean-to crudely built structure say from found logs, built  solely to keep the rain off your head and the warmth of the fire in but hey I am thinking I need to add a window because I need some light and ventilation and maybe a chimney to get the smoke out of here  maybe a door would help and a flower box to jazz up the place.-viola you just made architecture (but not an architect –funny isn’t it?). Damn it, I didn’t say it was great architecture. It’s very, very crude architecture but non-the-less a form of it. Settle down! Go get your blood pressure medication, breathe deeply, or go meditate come back and read the rest of this. This I will admit is a bad example but serves to make my point. For one it raises heated debates as to what constitutes architecture but it’s really not that complicated. You may disagree (note, I’m directing this at my esteemed colleagues) however my very astute observation does begin to answer a very complex question we all ask ourselves, or at least I ask myself: why in the hell do people choose to live in crappy homes, cookie cutter neighborhoods, sprawl etc.?

Here is my answer to that question. We all need shelter to survive as I have mentioned above but not architecture. Shelter is needed, welcomed and liked even loved, architecture is and is not. I believe if I made a graph which I won’t, or rated the structures we find in our built environment with shelter rating as “zero” architecture and the Empire State Building rated as the best as architecture gets say a “5” then it should be no surprise that the landscape is littered with one’s and two’s which don’t rate too high as great architecture. So why should you not be surprised by the preponderance of 1’s and 2’s found throughout the world? Simple, shelter is needed and liked even loved I say a second time. Give someone a home lacking in creativity, built of sub-standard materials qualify it as low grade architecture but it is home (a step up from shelter) to someone, (violins please) and home is where the heart is, ah.  So don’t be surprised that people live in cookie cutter neighborhoods with model home repeated over and over again even when they have the money to do better. It’s not odd to me that people don’t mind their home is identical in design and color to their neighbor a few doors down. (more embarrassed are we when we go to an event or to work and you find your friend is wearing the same outfit down to the exact color, AWKWARD, but when it comes to the homes we buy (some say the most expensive purchase of our lives) we have no such qualms.  How do we fix this problem? Well don’t deny the architect to plan-I know of no architect who desires to develop cookie cutter neighborhoods from a purely architectural point of view. Oh is that simple? Of course not other simple little factors such as, education, awareness, economics, geography, culture, politics play a part in the built world. Read my next 500 articles to learn how we fix the problem. Or just read Architect Denied for semi-witty reportage.            



Disclaimer: I am not a professional writer, so bravo if you caught a grammatical error, spelling mistake etc. Your gold star is in the mail. Opinions in this article are strictly my own and in no way represent me or those that sponsor me.   Lewis Portal is a practicing architect in the Hamptons (whoop dee doo) writer of this Bi-monthly blog, ArchitectDenied, author of the book, The Intuitive Architect, and told by someone he was from the future. 

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