Defining Quality

De Carlo critiques the school of architecture as an “ambiguous coupling of art and technology”. As he vehemently opposes the inorganic coexistence of the two, I recall Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance- an Inquiry into Quality. Pirsig spends the 400+ page fictional autobiography trying to define quality, which (spoiler alert) he comes to the conclusion that the metaphysical characteristic lies not polemically between art and technology (romantic and classic as he refers) but in between, where they coexist equally. The successful architect will be able to marry both methods of design and process instead of following one down a rabbit hole.

Sagrada Familia- A building designed in a very technical way that also captures the soul.

Central Park- Function and form bpth marry to bring life into an urban context.