Recently I've been reading Joesph Cambell's
Hero with a Thousand Faces. He believes that the whole pantheon of human mythology, from every culture and era, can be distilled into a finite set of basic themes, often revolving around the journey of the hero who must undergo some kind of spiritual transformation in order to save the world.
Campell also suggests that these themes are tied to basic psychological needs. Although I completely agree that this must be the case, his psychology is a bit dated... a bit too Freudian. Nevertheless, it is fascinating.
From my point of view, myth --and art in general-- serve the function of communicating a sense of being, or orientating ones mind, in a way that cannot be articulated with fact. This is why, as an atheist, I find it hard to communicate the emotional depth of my being to someone who is religious. This is why
Atlas Shrugged and
The Fountainhead are so popular, they represent perhaps the first serious epic contribution to atheist mythology. The architect who fights off the world with his integrity as his only weapon. The railroad tycoon whose great joy is to feel the act of creative enterprise... etc.
Recently, it occurred to me that
Atlas Shrugged is simply a modern reinterpretation of the myth of the flood. The gods are angry with the misdeeds of humanity and release a flood upon mankind to purify the world of evil. In this case, the gods are the great producers, and their flood is to withdraw their own services from the economy. Noah builds an ark-- in this case, John Galt builds Galt's Gulch, to keep the good guys safe. When the flood passes-- when the economy has collapsed-- they return to the world to begin anew.
This says something about the universality of art. Art is not art unless it comes with meaning, and the meaning is what is universal, not the form. Campell's goal is to uncover the meaning from the infinite variations that humanity has produced.
So now, let's talk about architecture. I believe that just like mythology, monumental architecture from every era and culture uses basic, universal themes. While reading Campell, I was working on a design competition for an inter-faith chapel. So I thought-- why not apply this to temple architecture? Why not let a building, like myth, allow an occupant to relive the journey of the hero? Here's how I thought this might work:
From afar, one sees the temple as a distant,
symbolic mount, indicating the place where the gods life. When approached, the temple begins with the
threshold into the spirit world. The threshold is often foreboding, filled with symbols meant to ward off the evil spirits (gargoyles, sphinx, etc), and might be a dark entry that one cannot see through. Passing into the threshold, the hero must go through a series of
trials-- this could be interpreted as dark spaces, long corridors, impressive volumes or masses, large staircases, disorienting labyrinths... or (my favorite) a sacrificial fire.
Having defeated the trials, the hero enters into the place of
purification in which the hero must transform (experience death and rebirth) before entering the world of the gods. The purification often involves water, such as crossing a river, or washing oneself, or being submerged in water (baptism). Then the hero is then allowed to enter the world of the gods (the
sanctuary), a beautiful place wherein the hero is able to unlock the source of life, so that it can flow again out into the world. The altar is typically this life source, although it is often represented as a tree. Once unlocked, the hero returns to the world... which might be represented by a connection to flourishing nature, such as courtyard with a tree at the center.
Above: me, standing next to an awesome ancient tree in the middle of the courtyard of the San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo Mission in Carmel by the Sea, California.Many of the motifs I've just described are seen in temples of various religions. Maybe someday I will do an exhaustive analysis of world temples, to study reoccurring patterns and symbols.
Other important ideas not mentioned in my above sequence are the use of common mythological symbols such as fire (symbolic for desire, life, and often associated with ritual celebrations and sacrifice), and the sun, symbolic for divine energy, and the unattainable. There are also reoccurring geometric patterns in temples around the world. Cambell believes that the transition from round dome to square base, or the "quadrature of the circle" represents the transformation from the heavenly realm to the earthly realm.
If one were successful in designing a temple that could be used, and loved, by almost all world religions, that would be a great accomplishment. The Greek Parthenon is an example of this: it was used as a Greek temple, then as a mosque, then as a cathedral. It didn't come to ruin until an explosion that occurred while it was being used as an armory. Perhaps also, a temple that could appeal to all religions might also appeal to atheists, not as an unintentional consequence, but as a primary function.
Brett
My foot
Still life with book, scarf, and mug.
Exterior of a building at the University of Oregon
Peonies
This term I had the pleasure of taking a studio from some people at IDC Architects. The assignment was to create a R&D and Pilot Manufacturing facility which included both lab spaces and office spaces. The purpose of the building was the development of chargers for portable electronics that utilized solar cells in combination with lithium ion batteries. The site chosen was in downtown Portland, on the PSU campus.
Here is an image of the building with the facade removed. You are looking at the office spaces. The floor plates have been staggered to create many double-height spaces that would allow you to grow 30 ft tall trees indoors. There are a few scientifically proven rules for spaces that enhance cognition-- high ceilings, natural light, and views to nature. To achieve this in an urban context I created places for tree canopy on a cascading series of green roofs. This reminds me of how trees can grow out of older and bigger trees, even 50 or 100 feet above ground, their roots following the tree down into the soil below.
Here is a rendered interior of the office space. I was able to find the view out the window using Google Earth, and then drop that view behind the glass from the rendering. The model was built in Google Sketchup and then exported to 3D Studio Max.
And since mimicking photosynthesis is the future of solar cell technology, I also found this image showing chloroplasts inside a cell. I thought it was interesting how structures occur thorughout nature-- in this case hexagons are formed both by silicon lattices and organic cells.
You might be able to see it better from this perspective:
It was a fun and difficult project. If you want to see all the details, feel free to download the Poster. Hope you enjoyed seeing this project!
Above: me, standing next to an awesome ancient tree in the middle of the courtyard of the San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo Mission in Carmel by the Sea, California.
While working on the Zenith theater studio project for the Eugene downtown, I developed an idea for a cruciform plaza, below which was an art gallery with small sculpture courtyards on the corners. The outer walls of the courtyards would have "living walls," continuous walls of vegetation, to create an otherworldly feeling. You would walk into the gallery from the adjacent block, and look out to the small courtyards with sculptures against the wall of green.
This design, which I only had during midterm (and removed in the final version), is one of my favorite designs that I've done so far. There is a wonderful feeling that arises when a form is so simple that it could not be anything but what it is, it could not be changed in any way, since it fits its function so well.
best,
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