Critical Regionalism - “Global and Local Details”

“Architecture is an art because it is interested not only in the original need for shelter but also in putting together spaces and materials, in the meaningful manner. This occurs through formal and actual joints. The joint, that is the fertile detail, is the place where both the construction and the construing of architecture takes place” - Kenneth Frampton

"Whatever the air spaces, areas and dimensions involved, it is the precise study and good

execution of details which confirm architectural greatness. The detail tells the tale” - Marco Frascari - “The Tell Tale Detail”

An architectural “detail” and its meaning has evolved over it’s lineage in regards to

architectural theory, drawings, and construction. I’m familiar with the Marco Frascari essay that Kenneth Frampton was referring to in his text. Frascari defines the detail as being related to the “constructing” and “construing” of architecture. The “construing” of a detail resides in the

theoretical side of architecture, while the constructing detail resides in the empirical side of architecture. A theoretical detail suggests a utilization of the understanding of a detail to further

an architect’s thinking about connections. An empirical detail defines the reality of that

architectural gesture and grounds it into the mathematics of materials, geometry, and form.

Frascari defines the detail as having the quintessential ability to possess architecture’s

innovation and inventiveness. In regards to critical regionalism, I believe the innovations of the architectural details reside in the architect’s careful consideration of place, people, and materials. The meshing of an architect’s understanding of global architectural ideologies and interweaving those ideologies with local identity is the foundation for effective, powerful regionalism.