Chameleon Conspiracy
Chameleon Conspiracy
The built environment is comprised of many different ideas and theories meshed together in a web of in between spaces that formally produce what we now call urbanism. This potluck of design determines how we interpret the environments we are experiencing. There is a sense of destination when most are experiencing the architecture that stands out the most to us but what about the architecture that surrounds the "architecture"? The infamous fluffy stuff that encases the sweet and gooey inside like that candies we enjoyed as kids.
Design as I know is mostly reactionary. It is a result of something studied, some initiative, or a certain belief of what is needed for the inhabitants of the design. Responding to the things already established, for me, creates a cohesion that ultimately forms a totality of environments within the built world.
NHDRO: Shanghai, China
Some would argue that this limits the possibility of innovation for the profession, but innovation can and does happen between the existing without taking away from the total context of the environment. Taking ideas from the past, adapting them to the ideas of the now or the future, I believe, can create a sense of architectural understanding that blends.
Transforming something that was thought to be normal into what is perceived as unique, camouflaging the creativity into subtle gestures which compliment the bigger picture. Like the Chameleon, architectural design has become a leaf in a fully bloomed rainforest, full of other chameleons that are contributing to the overall fullness of the forest, not standing out on its own, but assisting in the overall beauty of its surrounding environment.
I really like this post. This idea of transforming and innovating is a prominent topic currently, and was brought up at the resilience by design conference earlier this semester. It is becoming a big trend to innovate and revitalize the existing while also designing buildings that can become completely adaptable. This, I believe, leads to designing architecture to become a 'chameleon' like you mentioned.
ReplyDeleteI think the idea of "fluffy architecture" is so important. A city has so many components that should have an interrelative quality. The exterior design should support the design of place, and the flow of its inhabitants. A holistic approach can breed health and well-being to a variety of parties, all through the built form.
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