Letting Go of the Past

    If there is one thing my education has taught me, it's that architecture has certainly come a long way since the modern movement. As John Habraken describes in his article Questions That Will Not Go Away, "we come from a tradition of monument builders...the way we see ourselves is a product of the past and is becoming increasingly counter productive." To elaborate, our ways of design are now focused on the tactical practices of people's ordinary routines. From residential to business, architecture has taken the initiative of organizing both program and circulation around the everyday needs of the community.

    In comparison, the modern movement prioritized making monoliths out of shoe-box skyscrapers and one-size-fits-all office buildings. Habraken criticizes some of the modern architects and their visions. Essentially, their belief was that "good" architecture could not conflict with everyday activities. In other words, tactical necessity could not hinder efficient design. Habraken mentions Walter Gropius' "Bauhaus" as an example and how it was suppose to implement the everyday work environment (alas, it did not.)

    As mentioned earlier, the modern ideology has gotten in the way of how architects view themselves today. Many architects still struggle to look beyond the notion of strategies over tactics. It is not that architecture has to become Avant Garde (all though it is certainly heading in that direction) in order to break this cycle. All it takes is recognizing the needs of the community and using that as one's guide towards great design.