Transience and the Flexible Habitat

8/13/2019 Transience and the Flexible Habitat

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T r a n s i e n c e

and the

F l e x i b l eH a b i t a tan enquiry into systems, transient times and the flexible habitat antitypea n j a l i k a b o s e S I D 0 2 9 8


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The following study is hereby approved as creditable work on the approved subject, carried out and presented in amanner sufficiently satisfactory to warrant its acceptance as a pre-requisite to the Degree for which it has been submit-ted (B.Int.Des) . It is understood by this approval that the undersigned does not necessarily endorse or approve any

statement made, opinion expressed or conclusion drawn therein, but approves the study only for the purpose for whichit is submitted and has satisfied the requirements laid down by the thesis committee.

Name of Guide

Prof. Mrs.Krishna Shastri

March 2005

Name of Student

Ms. Anjalika BoseSID 0298

Thesis Title : TRANSIENCE AND THE FLEXIBLE HABITAT: an enquiry into systems, transient times and theflexible habitat antitype


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fora

superfurry


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a brief enquiry into

the world of systems

High transience as a phenomena inour life today

And its response in the habitat inthe form offlexibility in its spatialsystem


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THE FLEXIBLEH A B I T A T

A NOTE ON SYSTEMS THE PHENOMENA OFT R A N S I E N C E

DEFINITION

TYPESCHARACTERISTICS

SYSTEMIC THINKINGSYSTEM DYNAMICS

THE SPATIAL SYSTEMSPECIFIC TO THE HABITATTHE EVENT SYSTEMTHE FUNCTIONAL SYSTEMTHE PHYSICAL SYSTEM

REPERCUSSIONSOF TRANSIENCE

ONLIFE AND THE FAMILY

UNDERSTANDINGTRANSIENCE

AS A STATE OF FLUX

globalization

glocalization

diversity

novelty

delocalization

disintegration

eventual fluxand

functional fluxin the system

REPERCUSSIONON THE BUILT FORM

evolution ofSpatial Junk

the need forSustainability

the need forRe-configuration and

Relocation

the solution :

Flexibility

FLEXIBILITYDEFINITIONCHARACTERISTICS

TYPES

EARLY VISIONS

TransformabilityPortability

THE TRANSFORMABLE HABITATTHE PORTABLE HABITAT

The Archigram GroupRogers and Piano

The Metabolist movementand Kisho Kurokava


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0introduction

1a note on systems

1.1 Insight into systemic thinkingCharacteristics of a systemTypes of existing systems

Origin and need of Systemic Thinking1.2 The interior spatial system and the system of a habitat

Manifestation of systemic approach in space makingLayers of Systems in the spatial matrix

Components of each layerTransition of past built space from the ephemeral to the

permanent

2anote on high transience and emerging

global scenarios2.1 Understanding transienceLow transience and high transience

Dynamics of transience : cause and effect2.2 Repercussions of high transience on the user systems:

event and functionthe onset of glocalization and the birth of the antitype2.3 Repercussions of high transience on User-systems

pertaining to a Habitatdiversity novelty delocalization and disintegration

2.4 Physical Spatial Manifestation of built form in a state ofhigh transience and the emergence of the Flexible Habitat

evolution of spatial junkneed for sustainability

the glo-cal habitat of todaythe future habitat : a possible scenario

3a note on flexibility and

flexible habitats

3.1 Flexibilitydefinitions and essence

3.2 Early examples and benchmarks of the concept of partsemergent types of flexibility

3.3 Types of Flexibility and the flexible habitattypes of spatial flexibility

transformable habitats and portable habitats

Tw12elve habitatsanalyses

conclusion

glossary of terms

bibliography

contents

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Necessity is the mother of Invention-Jim Carrey in The Cable Guy


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introduction


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With the rise ofscience came rapid

advancement intechnology and thisadvancement in technologyled to an excessive ease ofknowledge acquisition and a

high state of globalconnectivity.With tremendousglobal connectivity emerged thebusiness class and the death ofmonopoly thereby giving rise to a state ofrapid obsolescence of things, jobs, and spatialstructures accommodating a certain function.

Transienceis a relative term used as a measure ofthe rate of situation flow within a system of relations.

Modern man today tends to live in a state of hightransience where the rate of replacement of ourrelationship with things, people, places, organizations andsituations is relatively very high. Thepace of life is increasingwith each passing day and the human beings capacity toadapt seems to be escalating indefinitely, matching upunfailingly, with this pace of life. Kinesis has set into our

lives, with patterns of logical arrangements and associationsevolving and changing at very high speeds.

High transience thus has its repercussions in altering the rate ofchange of association of man with his immediate environment(the event) thus forcing him to be a in a permanent state of flux,embracing and cursing change and kinesis at the same time.

The concept of permanence is diminishing or dead. Mansrelationship with things is becoming more and more temporaryeveryday.

In the words of Buckminister Fuller: Cities have turned into acontinual evolutionary process of evacuations, demolitions,removals, temporary vacant lots and installations.


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Life and society today is giving birth to a genre of globalurban nomads who live in a constant state of hightransience and flux.

We have thus come to survive in a throw away society where thespatial system that accommodates a function needs to constantlybe disposed of , be changed or replaced.

High transience has its outcome even in the approach to creatinghis immediate environment, the spatial system thataccommodates the eventual and functional systems.

The only way built environment is attempting to synchronize wihhigh transience , is by addition or subtraction of its parts, and ifthis carries on, the process will soon begin to wreak havoc oneconomy and resource.

Lack of permanence of the functional organization of a system,be it commercial, professional or residential, results in the needfor spatial containers or systems to posses the ability to constantlyadapt and transform to the changes in an organization.

Responding to this constant state of flux, we observe new formsof spatial systems that have emerged and are still emerging toembrace this state of transience.

Spatial systems that have no beginning or end, no fixed site orrooting, and that represent triviality, movement, fluidity, exhaustionof the object in a project

Spatial systems that represent a cultural phenomenaof a global scenario yet attuned to the interests to theparticular, the singular and the individual

Spatial systems not based on context or tradition thus leading to

other types of arrangements based on new forms of uninhibited

logic rather than orthodox configurations.

Spatial systems based on revaluation of situations and creation

of strategies, capable of encompassing complexity rather than

formulation of constructions.

Thusemerges the representation of the transience in our lives,in the kinetic matrix of our living and working environments.

We are today, on to a new definition of monumentality of a spacethat no longer is defined by its relative permanence or staticity,but by its ability to adapt to radical eventual andfunctional flux.

We thus observe high transience sweeping the global communitytoday, manifested in the form of emerging spatial systems thatrespond to this phenomena of high transience.

Thus emerges the flexible spatial system.

Flexible spatial systems that are represented in various forms asa result of sociocultural, economic, technological and environ-mental forces unleashed in the age of high transience.


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The thesis aspires to briefly and clearly understand these forcesin any organizational system in the age of high transience thatmanifest itself in various forms of spatial flexibility. Here itspecifically intends to address the issue of the living space, thehabitat, and the effect that high transience has on this.

The house is no longer a space which can be built and maintained

for generations , with each successive generation following thesame pattern of life-style.

Patterns of functioning within a familys or individuals livingenvironment, are changing as we speak, and the only solution,that design has been providing in the past is to dispose of theexisting spatial matrix and build a new one.

With increasing rates of situation flows, this is obviously not thebest solution to a habitat, as it disregards sustainability and is aterrible waste of resource and time.

The new emerging habitat responds to the varying anddiverse needs of individuals within a family or a singleperson over a period of time. It responds to theuncertainty of siting and location. It responds to thediverse cross cultural value systems of each individual inthe construct of a habitat. It responds to the phenomenaof delocalization that a family faces in modern life. Itresponds to the desire for minimum responsibility andmaximum asset.

The new emerging habitat sets the human being free.


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1a note onsystems

1.1 Insight into systemic thinkingDefinitionof a system Characteristics of a systemTypes of existing systems Origin and need ofSystemic Thinking 1.2 The interior spatialsystem and the system of a habitatManifestation of systemic approach in space

making Layers of Systems in the spatialmatrix Components of each layer Tansitionof past built space from the ephemeral to thepermanent


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1.1An insight into systems

And yet Relation appears, a small Relation expanding

like the shade of a cloud on the sand, a shape on the sideof a hill. 1

- William Stevens Connoisseur of Chaos

The world is changing from being a world of objects tobeing a world of relations.

-Paul Virilio

The universe is composed of infinite relations. Theserelations form the system. The universe itself is asystem in a state of perpetual stable chaos. Withinthis stable chaos, there is unpredictably and cyclicity,

rhythms and non-rhythms, but somehow in thiscomplexity, there is an overall state of equilibriumwith a definite balance in the totalitarian exchangeof energy. Chaos in the universe gives rise to asystem to hold it, to organize it, to order it. Thissystem is self sustaining, self organizing and selfevolving. It is able to adapt, reconfigure, evolve. Itis thus intrinsically, as an entity, flexible.

Definition

2

So what exactly is a system?In one line, a System is a group of

INTERACTING, INTERRELATED andINTERDEPENDENT components, which forma complex and unified whole.It is a construct of components that are linked bycommunication links that enable the components tointeract within themselves, by facilitating the flowof feedback between the its parts and the whole,hence making them related and dependent on eachother to make the system function in totality.Take the human body for instance. The human bodyis a complex system of components. Each componentis linked to, and communicates with the other,

enabling the totalitarian functioning of the humanbody.

1 Gleick,James CHAOS Vintage 1998 Page 812 internet reference http\\:www pegasus.com

system : interacting, interrelated,

interdependent components com-

ing together to form a whole

Problem Solving by W.Heath-Robinson , fromAbsurdities (1934)


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System Properties

1 We are all part of various larger systemsand there are various systems containedwithin us.Systems are innumerable; each with many morewithin them and all of them part of much larger

systems. The earth itself is an ecological, economical,technological, virtual, sociocultural system, and ispart of larger systems of the universe . A built formis a system of parts, the conscious and intuitive effortto impose meaningful order. The human body notonly is a system by itself, but is a part of a muchlarger ecological system, taking from it, dependingon it and giving back to it.

2 Every system has a purpose within a largersystemThe numbers of systems that exist within each otherare infinite. But each one is dependent on the other

and on the whole. All systems and hence allcomponents within each system are related to eachother, but this affect on each other is relative. Henceone may affect a second system more than it effectsa third one. But they all have a role to play withinthe larger matrix. Every component within a systemalso has a role to play in the totalitarian functioningof the system.

3 A systems parts must be arranged in aspecific logical way for the system to carryout its functions optimally

The structure of a system evolves as a result of thelinks / interaction between its various components.The configuration of interaction links are based onthe communication and feedback flow between onecomponent of a system and another component .Thisarrangement of interaction links, this communication,this give and take, within the system is what isrequired for the system to perform and function.Going back to the human body it is the arrangementof the components within it that allows for theprocesses within to be optimal. If the human bodyshead was turned backward, or if its arms werelocated only on one side, it would not fulfill thepurpose of its function. The optimal functioning ofany system hence depends in a big way on the waythe components are arranged. In any spatialconfiguration, its parts must be arranged in a logicalsystemic order for space to fulfill its function.

4 All of the systems parts must be presentfor the system to carry out its purposeoptimally.What makes a system function optimally is the factthat it is an organization of interdependentcommunicating components. Each one of these

components has a role to play in the optimalfunctioning of the system. The absence of one ormore than one will only result in the systemfunctioning less optimally than it was originally


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intended to. It may continue to exist but itsfundamental purpose will diminish. A human beingwithout one eye for example will continue to live asa body of parts, but the impairment of his vision willonly diminish his ability to function completely.

Systems can be open or closed. Closed

systems are complete systems, that do notadapt to change or grow. The above propertiesapply to open as well as closed systems.However, what differentiates closed fromopen systems are the next three systemproperties. The following three properties onlypertain to systems which have the capacityto adapt, transform or grow. The followingproperties are applicable only to opensystems.

1 Open Systems change in response tofeedback open systems may change in the natureof the organization within, based on feedback.

2 Open Systems maintain their stability bymaking adjustments based on feedback.Systems are a inflicted by forces all the time. Forcesthat cause it to change resulting in flux. However,systems adjust. The fundamental nature of an opensystem lies in its ability to be flexible. An opensystem adapts and reorganizes its constructingcomponents to adapt and attain stability. A humanbeing walking on a road, reacts to an obstacle whichhe sees with his eyes, and hence reacts by changing

the course, and taking a detour around it. In extremewarm temperatures, the human body adapts byproducing sweat and keeping it cool. Open systemsthus maintain stability by adjusting, adapting,transforming, to the forces of change.

3 In an open system a change in one part ofthe system will cause a change in theconnecting parts, on the system as a wholeand on connected systems.When an external force affects a part of a system,the rest of the parts of the system are affected as

well. As a result there is an overall change in theoverall system and on connected systems.

open and closed system proper-

ties:

1 we are all part of larger systems

and there are various systems

contained within us

2 every system has a purpose within

a larger system

3 systemss parts must be arranged

in a logical way based on the levels

of interaction and interdependence

between its components

4 All of the systems parts must be

present for optimal functioning of the

system

specific differentiating proper-

ties for an open system:

1 open systems change in response

to feedback, closed systems cannot

respond by transforming or growing

or reconfiguring

2 open systems maintain equilibrium

by adapting based on feedback,

closed systems cannot adapt or

transform

3 In an open system a change inone part of the system will cause achange in the connecting parts andon the system as a whole. A closedsystem will simply get destroyed by

this kind of change


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Systemic Thinking

Systemic Thinking is a method of analysis thathas its roots in understanding social systems.

It has its foundation in the field of SystemDynamics, founded in 1956 by MIT professor Jay

Forrester. Professor Forrester recognized the needfor a better way of testing new ideas about socialsystems; in the same way we can test ideas inengineering. Systems thinking allows people to maketheir understanding of social systems explicit andimprove them in the same way that people can useengineering principles to make explicit and improvetheir understanding of mechanical systems.

System dynamics as a field,has a long history,and has drawn from other fields as diverse asmechanical engineering, biology, and the

social sciences.

System dynamics focuses onThe flow of feedback (information that is transmittedand returned) that occurs throughout the parts of asystem

And the system behaviors that result from thoseflows.

System dynamists studyReinforcing processes: feedback flows that generateexponential growth or collapse

Balancing processes: feedback flows that help asystem maintain stability.These reinforcing and balancing processes areall around us and within us:The world population explosionThe U.S. Stock market crash of the 1930sThe sudden onset of disease when foreign microbesproliferate in our bodiesOur bodies ability to maintain a basic temperatureof 98.6 degrees FahrenheitThe stability that occurs in predator/prey systemsThe difficulty we often face when we try to change

the way our organization does things are allexamples of balancing cycles.

System dynamists study the impact of DELAYon systemic behaviorWhat are the implications when a cause takes a longtime to exert its effect, and when cause and effectare physically far apart? For instance, from the timeof a buildings conception as an idea, to its finalconstruction on site, what are the various forces tobe analyzed, that may imply a need for change withinits spatial framework, and how must that beapproached in its design? And what scenarios ofchange must be kept in mind when one designs aspace for long term use?

Systems Thinking:

method of analysis with

its roots in understanding

social systems

Systems Thinking:

founded in 1956 by MIT

professor Jay Forrestor

Systems dynamists

study

flow of feedback betweenparts of system and the

system behaviours that

result from the flows

reinforcing processes

balancing processes

impact of delay o systemic

behaviour


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Systemic Thinking can been defined in the followingways:

It is a powerful new perspective used in theunderstanding a pattern of eventsSystemic thinking is a new method of understandingan organization, where it is looked at as being made

up of various parts and the relationship betweenthese parts and the whole , rather than viewing itas a singlualr whole entity.Systems thinking thus deals with1 listing the components of a system2 segregating the parts based on a logical structuring( for example the parts of a space can be segregatedfrom each other based on their relative life spans:how temporary or permanent they are)3 Establishing the level of interaction between thegroups of components4 Organizing the components within each group andorganizing all the groups of components in relationto each other.

It is a specialized language that can aid incommunicating a problem and its solutionusing interconnectionsWhen systemic thinking is applied to any organizationof parts, it evolves its own language for definingand grouping the constituent parts and therelationships between them.

It is a set of tools that are used in this problemsolving process

These tools facilitate inGraphically depicting analysis of a particular systemsstructure and behaviorCommunicating this analysisDesigning high-leverage interventions forproblematic system behaviorEach system of organization comes with its own setof tools (shaping elements) that help inunderstanding the nature of flux that effects it.

Systemic Thinking is the application of the

principles of systemic behavior that systemdynamics discovered in practical ways toresolve common problems in anyorganizational configuration or setup.

Systems Thinking:

1 a powerful new perspective

2 a specialized language

3 a set of tools


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Like any other system, the laws of systemicbehaviour are applicable to architectural space aswell.

1 Architectural space has various systems within itselfand is part of larger systems as well.

2 Every system within this architectural space hasits own purpose within the larger spatial system.

3 The parts of the architectural space must becomposed in a specific logical way to carry out itsfunctions optimally

4 All the parts of the architectural system must bepresent for the space to carry out its functionoptimally.

The three laws of systems that are NOTapplicable to ALL architectural space are thetwo additional properties of open systems.

1 Open Systems change in response to feedbackArchitectural space is not built to respond to feedback

always. It may or may not fulfil l the act of reaction.

2 Open Systems maintain their equilibrium by makingadjustments based on feedback

Architecture that is built for permanence cannotmaintain stability when the phenomena of changestrikes it. Spatial systems are controlled by humanbeings. Hence unlike natural systems, they are notbiological, self organizing, self evolving or selfsustaining. They do not have an inherent capacityto adapt to change. Only the inevitability of witheringor eroding with change or destroyed by defunctity.Hence only flexible architecture ( open system

architecture ) is able to perform this task, becauseof the adaptability of its constituent parts in thedesign process that respond to change and therebyreconfigure.

ARCHITECTURAL SPACE

IS A SYSTEM OF INTERACTING,INTERDEPENDENT ,INTER-RELATED PARTS

WHICH COME TOGETHER TO FORMA WHOLE SYSTEM


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3 In an open system a change in one part of thesystem will cause a change in the connecting parts,on the system as a whole and on connected systems.

When an external force affects a part of an open-system built form, the rest of the parts of the systemundergo an engineered change as well. As a result

there is an total resultant change in the overallsystem and on connected systems.

Thus systemic thinking applied toarchitectural space is a process of defining thevarious layers that construct it, and analysingthe level of interaction/feedback flowsbetween the layers, and applying this analysisto create spatial models.

It is about1 listing the various parts and components that willmake the space2 segregating these components in architecturalspace into groups of logical interrelated, interactingand interdependent parts based on the definition ofgrouping ( like drawing a time-line to define the mostpermanent to the most temporary ) or (in case of avisual segregation, the most lit areas to the mostdimly lit areas)3 defining the levels of interaction between the parts4 and thus organizing all these parts into a whole

In this way, systemic thinking becomes apowerful new perspective to spatial design.

When systemic thinking is applied to designingspace,it also brings with it its own specializedlanguage or grammarof grouping the constituentparts and defining the links between these parts.The tools available to construct this spatialmatrix are the analyses of various fluxes in theuser system whihc are directly afected by:technology, society, economy and environment thatdefine the eventual system and the functionalsystem. These fluxes are used to develop the spatialconstruct to hold the event system. The rate of flux

in the cyclicity of events and the meaning of theevent (functional response) determines howpermanent or temporary the spatial matrix needs tobe.


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1 LISTING THE SYSTEMS AND SUB PARTS OF THE SYSTEM2 SEGREGATING PARTS BASED ON LAID DOWN CRITERIA


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3 DERIVING THE LEVELS OF INTERACTION AND INTERDEPENDENCY BETWEENEXISTING SYSTEMS


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4 ASSEMBLING ALL THE SYSTEMS INTO A WHOLE


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Lets take a look at this point at the variousexisting systems that construct a spatialsystem specific to the systems in a habitat.

1 the eventual systemic matrix2 the functional systemic matrix3 the physical and perceptual systemic matrix

The eventual system and the functionalsystem compose the intangible USERSYSTEM , which in turn gives rise to thePHYSICAL SPATIAL SYSTEM.

1 the eventual systemic matrix isthe intangiblebut most fundamental system in the spatial matrix.It is the system which defines the very basic premisewhich physical and functional space is built around.

The event system is what occurs within the spacewithin a given time-frame. For example a space mayhave to hold the event of eating. Thus the event isthe occurrence within a user system.

The event in a space also has a certain rhythmto it.It is cyclical in nature. A church fills up withpeople at every Sunday mass. A sleeping area isoccupied every night to sleep. The dining area isoccupied by the event of eating, at regular intervals,every day.

The cyclicity however gradually evolves into newercycles due to various states of flux.

socio cultural fluxeconomic fluxenvironmental fluxtechnological flux

These different types of flux, affect and change thecyclicity of the event, thus causing a change in theuser-system.

The basic event system of a habitat has not changedover eons of time, but the pattern and cyclicity has.What is a house? As we have seen, through the

evolution of man, and across different functionalinterpretations by diverse cultures and peoples, theevents in a house have remained the same:LivingSleepingCookingEatingWashing/bathingWorkingStoringReligious needs

These events are assume the form of activity zones

in a space. The relationship between the events andthe meaning of the event is determined in the nextsection in their manifestation in the functionalsystem.


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FORMULATING THE EVENT SYSTEM : LISTING DOWN THEEVENTS THAT WILL CONSTRUCT THE SPACE WITHOUT

DEFINING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THEM


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2 the functional systemic matrix is that systemin the spatial matrix that which arises in responseto the eventual systemic matrix. The functionalsystem permits the events to assume the shape ofinteracting zones.

Every system of events that takes place in the spatial

system gives a function to that space, a purposethat it is supposed to be enable to fulfill.The functional matrix is thus the meaning of theevent.

In any space thus,the functional matrix is composed of

1 links between events / feedback flowsbetween events2 meaning of events

The function-system therefore, by means of itsvarious layers of event-meanings and event-links,is able to respond to the event-system in a space.

Thus, a change in the meaning of the event or thelink between two events will result in a differentfunctional response. This difference in functionalresponses to a single act, arises as a result ofevolution of the functional response itselfwithin a community. Or as a result of culturaldiversity.

In a habitat within the same community, the event

of eating, for instance, may have evolved in meaningfrom praying around a cooked animal, to sittingaround a table following rules and etiquette to simplypopping a food pill. Thus the event of eating mayremain the same but its process and meaningmay change, or in other words its functional responsein terms of process and configuration of zones maychange.

Let us also examine how this difference ininterpretation of the event and its manifestation inthe functional matrix differs across cultures.

A traditional Japanese family may eat seated in theground on Tatami mats, centred around a perfectsquare table. The same event of eating for a typical

American family responds in the functional matrixas grabbing a ready to eat meal from the refrigerator.Hence the zone of sitting around a table is notrequired anymore. The dining space has changed inmeaning and configuration.This evolving functional response (as a result of thechange in meaning of activities and links) thus veryclearly occurs due to1technological advancementor 2 cross cultural confluence.

TWO INTERPRETATIONSIN THE ACT OF EATING

VARIATION IN MEANINGOF THE SAME EVENT

RESULTING INVARYING FUNCTIONAL RESPONSE

IN DIFFERENT HABITATS

VARIATION IN CLUSTERINGOF EVENTS

RESULTING INVARYING FUNCTIONAL RESPONSE

IN DIFFERENT HABITATS

THE FUNCTIONAL SYSTEMIS CONSTRUCTED OUT OF

THE MEANING OF THE EVENTAND

THE LINKS BETWEEN THE EVENTS


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Thus the functional system of a space isarrived at in the following two steps

1 the event zones themselves are configuredor arranged by linking them or relating themto each other by

proximityisolationoverlapbetween one activity and another.(dwgs on opposite page)

2 The ergonomics and anthropometricdimensions required for each event in thespace is determined on the basis of themeaning of the activity in the event

The first part deals with the arrangement andinteraction between these activity or eventzones.

Thus in analysing and drawing the function-systemdiagram of a habitat one must hence address thefollowing questions.

Which activities must be closely related?Which activities can be isolated ?What is the required degree of accessibility betweentwo activity zones?

The answers to these questions vary by means ofthe differences in functional interpretations andevolution of the event itself, and thus give rise to aset of variables in the way the various zones in ahabitat are configured.

In the second step, the zones created by theevent are given their required anthropometricdimension depending on interpretation of theevent in the given context.This is arrived at onthe basis of analyzing the actions that go into makingthe event.

Illustrated in the following pages is an abstractdemonstration of the various events in a habitat andtheir how their functional interpretation varies dueto the difference in the answers to the abovequestions thus causing a variation in functionalresponse over time and across space or cultures.


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VARIATIONS IN CLUSTER PATTERNS (FUNCTIONAL GROUPING) OF EVENTS BASED ONCULTURAL DIFFERENCE WITHIN A SINGLE TIME SPAN

OR CHANGE IN MEANING OF EVENT WITHIN A CULTURE OVER TIME


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3 the physical systemic matrix is the tangiblemanifestation of event and function.

The events in the habitat and the functionalinterpretation together give rise to the variousphysical responses.

For example the roof of a habitat can take the formof a shed or a gable or a vaulted structure. Thisphysical diversity in the roof structure arises due tothe difference in functional responses.

The physical system is then achieved by means ofgeometric elements of point, line, plane, and volume,arranged to articulate and define space.

The geometric elements, assume the form of thefollowing basic spatial componentscolumnbeamwallfloorroof

These spatial elements are the constituentphysical elements in the followingfundamental physical spatial systems:

The foundation system forms the base of abuilding, anchors it firmly to the ground and supportsthe building elements and spaces above.

The building superstructure consists of structuralfloor systems, structural wall systems, structuralcolumn systems, and structural roof systems. Thesesystems must work together to support dead loads,live loads, and dynamic loads.

The building envelopeconsists of exterior walls,windows, doors and roof, which serve as a responsiveinterface between the interior space and the exteriorenvironment.

Non-structural defining elements, such as walls,

partitions and ceilings, subdivide an define interiorspace. They carry no loads apart from their ownweight.

Mechanical and electrical systemsprovide thenecessary environmental conditioning and make thespaces habitable. These include heating systems,ventilation systems, air conditioning systems,sanitary waste facilities, fresh water supply, electricpower


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The actual physical manifestations of coursecomes about as a result of the functional sys-

tem. Variations in the functional system thusgive rise to innumerable interpretations andconfigurations to give rise to the whole physi-cal system.

The following pages outline how and why the habi-tats evolved in its event, function and physicality,from temporary to permanent.


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From temporary to permanent: from nomadicto settled man : a brief overview of the shifts

in ways of living

Our cavemen ancestorsPrehistoric man found shelter in nature, in caves,which essentially were ready made homes for thiscurious and somewhat strange being, for whom theworld was a limitless wonder and his life revolvedaround hunting, eating, fornicating, praying andsleeping. The human being of prehistory succumbedto the forces of nature and resided within nature-made abodes : the cave. Even then man wasobsessed with retaining experience for posterity. Thewalls of the cave was his canvas for expression. Theonly means of sending information from one lifetimeto another was this cave wall where his artwork wasa representation of what he believed was a highercontrolling life force and his experience as a lifeform which he conveyed in his own evolvedlanguage. His only threat was other predators andwild animals which could consume him and for thathis only source of protection was fire. The only

things in this very basic abode were his tools : forhunting, shooting, chopping; firewood which he usedto light up darkness; and animal skin which he usedfor warmth. A vary basic survival kit.


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The Kibitka are a relatively new community of Nomads and arestill surviving. It is hence easy to study their lives to understand atypical nomadic lifestyle. The Kibitka is basically the name of the

tent structure habitat in which the tribes live. They are distrib-uted throughout the vast area extending from the Volga river andthe Anatolian Plateau in the west to the Khingan mountains in theeast.

A society of nomadsThe human being however cannot live alone, for heis part of a community of other similar beings. Thehuman being soon discovered the advantage of the

society . Thus was born the king and his servants,all part of the nomadic community. The nomadsderived a major portion of their subsistence fromlarge flocks of animals which cause them to followrecurring patterns of movement from season toseason in pursuit of suitable grazing and water. Theirtents were designed to shelter a single family- thefundamental economic unit - which is the social andpolitical level at which herd were owned. Five to tentents were grouped to form a herding unit for thepooling of labor for tasks that could be performedcooperatively, and for additional security from attack.The social, political and economic organization ofthe tribe did not need to extend beyond the herdingunit. The basic need for the nomadic communitywas portability or mobility of the habitat. Thisattribute was of course clubbed with disposabilityas the materials used at that time was entirely naturaland hence recyclable into natures own system. Thefollowing plates illustrate the lifestyle and the habitatof a typical nomadic community : the Kibitka ofCentral Asia


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ConstructionA Kibitka is essentially a limp covering draped over a light de-mountable wood frame. This frame comprises a low circular wall

about 4.6 to 6.1 m in diametre, and 1.2 to 1.5m high assembledfrom lengths of collapsible trellis, a wood roofing or wheel 1 to 2m in diametre supported some 3.1 m above the ground on aseries of radial roof ribs of struts spanning the gap between thetop of the wall and the rim of the roof ring.

The ends of the lattice wall are fitted to the posts of a door on thesouthern side of the tent. The lattice wall lengths consist of rect-angular slats held together by camel skin inserted into holes wherethe rods cross, and when extended they assume a rhomboid meshof about 30.5 cm.

The number of lattice hurdles vary from four for a small tent to sixfor a large Kibitka of about 6.1 m in diametre. Each 3.7 m longhurdle has approximately 15 heads formed by the V-shaped up-per ends of slats to which roof struts are attached. The lattice

hurdles are lapped and the slats tied by means of hair chords.

The roof ring is the most important distinguishing feature of theKibitka for it is not found in any other type. The roof ring is andingenious construction device which overcomes several deficien-cies of a typical conical tent. It eliminates the need for a founda-tion structure and avoids obstruction of the smoke hole by thecrowding of poles at the apex by distributing the upper ends ofthe poles around the circumference of the ring. Thus liberated theroof ring admits light and air to the interior, allows smoke from thecentral fire to escape, and also serves as a chronometer.It also reduces great differences of air pressure and so reducesthe wind load on the tent.

The Kibitka might have developed from the covered wagons (2000bc) which served as the early homes of the nomadic pastoralists.The Kibitka is confined to the Turkish and Mongolian peoples wholive on the Northern steppes of Central Asia.


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Interior arrangement of the Kibitka

The arrangement of the Kibitkas interior space expresses twoprinciples.

First, practical household and work activities are relegated to thefront of the tent in the vicinity of the door. Secondly, social, cer-emonial and symbolic functions take place towards the rear of thetent. The rear of the tent is divided into special areas. On the leftis the house master and is couch, while the right side in front of

the familys precious objects is reserved for honored guests. Inlarge Kibitkas the womans side is screened with reed partitionsand serves as a kitchen, although copper cauldrons, wooden plat-ters and leather vessels often lie around the fire pit.

In spite of their different orientation, the interior arrangement ofthe Kibitka is similar to that of the North American India Tepee.The explanation is probably physical, the disposition of living ar-eas coinciding with zones of thermal comfort. Other factors arealso involved : for example the area next to the door is mostconvenient for work activities which require materials to be broughtinto or taken out of the tent, and the rear of the tent is psycho-logically dominant since it faces the door. Felt rugs, and amongthe richer people, tapestry carpets from Persia and Turkestan wereused to cover the tent floor of beaten earth or cowdung.

The Kibitka is one of the most advanced prefabricated and de-mountable dwellings to evolve in a traditional culture. Its formand construction are dominated by the requirements of adapt-ability, portability and recyclability. The nomads were not flexiblepeople and lived and survived strictly within their community buttheir abodes were representative of highly flexible architecturalsolutions. Buckminister fuller used a Kibtika form for his WichitaHouse(1944-46), which is known was based on a standard typeof American Grain Bin. Beech Aircraft proposed to mass producethe design for housing, for the American-returned servicemen.The Kibitka frame is based on a standardized kit of parts whosesize and proportions are governed by the strength of thematerials used, the method of manufacture and systemof dimensions.


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1 THE INVENTION THAT GOTEVERYTHING MOVING: THE

WHEEL

2 CLAY VESSEL DATING BACKFROM TE SECOND MILLENNIUMBC AND IS THE OLDEST REP-RESENTATION OF A CART

3 BRONZE WAS AN EASILYMOLDED MATERIAL THATLENT ITSELF TO ALL KINDS OFTOOLS

4 CERAMIC VESSEL FROMGREECE SHOWING MENPLOUGHING WITH AN AXE ANDA PLOUGH: THE BEGINNINGS

OF SETTLING DOWN

Society settles and develops. The plough wasthe invention that turned society on its head, because

people began to plant seeds and grow crops. Asearly farming economies became more establishedNeolithic societies became more stable and lessitinerant. This all seems to have begun in c.9000B.C in the Middle East, and over the next threethousand years agriculture spread across Asia,arriving in Northern Europe from the Balkans around1000 B.C. The Neolithics were responsible for thespread of domestic culture. The Neolithic farmersseem to have been the first to put down roots around6500 B.C, but ploughs probably started to come intouse in a big way around 3500 B.C.

With man settling down in one location came agesand empires of human advancement in the fields ofscience and art. Human society began to be boundby strict laws, rules and regulations. Patterns oforganization remained static for ages and humanadvancement was slow. The architecture thatevolved during this time was immensely large andvaried, but there is one commonality that canidentified in all the difference and sociocultural,geographic and climatic : Permanence.Architecture became a Closed System.Architecture was built to last as long as itcould.

1 2 3 4


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Systems to transienceUp till this point we have understood clearly the essence of aSystem and architectural space as a system of parts. We havebriefly followed up on the representation of architectural space asa response to the event (activity) zones and the relationship be-tween and meaning of the event zones that construct a space. Wehave thus come to realize that the physical response has been inthe past to embrace a permanent eventual and functional system.

Life has and will always have a certain sense of transience. Timeafter all does not stop to move. But human beings have grownused to a certain rhythm in the cyclicity of events, and a certainconstancy in the functional interpretation of an event.

So what happens when to space the cyclicity of the event be-comes erratic? What happens when the meaning of an event dif-fers within a community, within a single family? What happenswhen the flow of feedback between events is no longer static,

thus causing a need for frequent change in the links betweenevents? What happens when the flux in the events and the func-tional interpretations is so huge that architectural space needs toconstantly synchronize and reconfigure itself to the changing de-mands and the morphing relationships between human and hu-man, community and community, or head towards complete andutter disorder: spatial Junk?

What is transience and how does it effect humankind? What hap-pens when architecture fails to respond to this flux, and what typeof built form emerges as a result to adapt to this constant kinesis?


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2a note onhigh transienceandemerging

global scenarios2.1 Understanding transience Low transienceand high transience Dynamics of transience: cause and effect 2.2 Repercussions of hightransience in the functional and eventualsystems of lifeglobalization, glocalization andthe birth of the antitype 2.3 Repercussionsof high transience on User-systems pertainingto a Habitat diversity novelty delocalizationand disintegration 2.4 Physical SpatialManifestation of built form in a state of high

transience and the emergence of the FlexibleHabitat evolution of junk space need forsustainability the glo-cal habitat of todaythe future habitat : a possible scenario


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2.1Understanding transience

If the last 50000 years of mans existence weredivided into lifetimes of approximately 62 years each,there have been about 800 such lifetimes. Of these

800, fully 650 were spent in caves.Only in the last 70 lifetimes has it been possible tocommunicate effectively from one lifetime to another,as writing made it possible to do so. Only during thelast 6 lifetimes did masses of men ever see a printedword. Only during the last 4 has man been able tomeasure time with any precision. Only in the last 2has anyone anywhere used an electric motor.Andthe overwhelming majority of all materialgoods we use in daily life have been developedwithin the present, the 800thlifetime.

The 800 th lifetime is the age of super-industrialization and super-communicationand super-technology.

The most glaring certainty about the 800th lifetimeis that mans relationship with resources has reverseditself. U Thant, ex-secretary general of United Nationssummarized this most appropriately by stating: Thecentral stupendous truth about developed economiestoday is that they can have in anything but theshortest run the kind and scale of resources theydecide to have. It is no longer resources that limit

decisions. It is the decision that makes the resources.This is the most fundamental revolutionary change,perhaps the most revolutionary man has ever known.

The 800thlifetime is where all boundaries havedisintegrated.The consequences of contemporaryevents radiate instantaneously around the world.

The 800thlifetime is where we have radicallyaltered the scope of change.

A User-system can be said to be composed of:Event : the occurrence with a particular linear of

cyclical rhythmFunctional response: is the intangible construct of arelationships composed of an individual and hisinteraction with systems around him : (things, places,people, organizations, values and ideas) in a givenspan of time.Event and Functional Flux: the transition betweenone event and functional response to another interms of its cyclicity and levels of interaction.

The 800thlifetime is where we have radicallyaltered the rate of event and functional flux.

Which implies that not only the cyclicity of the eventhas become erratic and unpredictable, but thefunctional arrangement and functionalanthropometric response of the event zones have ahigh level of indeterminacy.


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definitions of spaceare boundless, freeand without rules

unpredictability ofsituation leads tothe need for a highstate of flexibilityto exist in allthings around

you, be it a house,a camera or aphone


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The tangible tendstowards the vir-tual: a mediumwhich is the em-bodiment of con-

stant change, ad-aptation andtransformability


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High transience and low transience

With radical event flux we have thus released acompletely new social force: namely acceleratedchange: and this social force influences our senseof time, revolutionizes the tempo of our daily life,and affects the way we experience the world around

us.

This accelerated change is what results in theimpermanence - the transience that radicallyaffects our interaction with other people, things,organizations, places, ideas, assets and values.

Accelerated change implies a relatively highrate of eventual flux and functional flux.Our association or relationship with things isbecoming more temporary every day. In other wordsthe flow of interaction from one person, thing,organization, place, idea, asset and value to anotheris very high in our life and times.

Transience is a measure of the rate of changeof interaction, between systems, in a givenspan of time.It is a term used to define the rate of interactionfrom one person, thing, organization, place,situation, idea, asset and value to another.It can thus also be defined as a measure of flux inthe User-system.

Low transience is a state of permanence.

High transience is a state of impermanence.We live in a high transience age.

Much of our theorizing about social and psychologicalchange presents a valid picture of man in relativelystatic societies, but a distorted and incomplete realityof the truly contemporary human being. It misses acritical difference between human beings in the pastor present and human beings of the future.

The difference is summed up in one word :

Transience

The concept of transience provides the missing linkbetween sociological theories of change and thepsychology of human beings. Integrating both, itpermits us to analyzethe dynamics of high speedchange or radical eventual flux in a new way.

It gives us a method to measureinferentially therate of eventual flux.

Transience is the temporariness in everyday life. Itresults in a feeling of impermanence. Philosophers

and theologians have always been aware that manis ephemeral. In this grand sense transience hasalways been a part of life. But today the feeling ofimpermanence is more acute and intimate.

All asset, informa-tion, communica-tion and contactcan fit into thepalm of your hand.


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The big idea isnothing but a con-sumer product.


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1Creative idea out ofhuman need

2Practical application

3Intentional diffusionthrough society, re-sponse and moreneeds leading to

more creative ideas

1knowledge acquisition is thefuel for technology (in this casethe basic phone resulted inbetter and faster communica-tion than before)

2Technology in turn leads toaccelerated change in humandevelopment (better commu-nication led to greater connec-tivity and growth)

3accelerated change thus leadsto newer, faster and bettermeans of knowledge acquisi-tion (this growth in develop-ment led to the need for evenfaster communication andthus more innovation leadingto converging technologies)

The Innovation Cycleand the Technological Cycledemonstrated using the evolution of a phone

Alexander Graham Bell in-vented the Centennial tele-phone in 1867 : a truly epochmaking invention

The American Candlestickstyle Epson telephone,1912. The dial system

prevailed until the pushbutton system in the 1970s.

This skeleton telephonewas made for the

Rothschilds by the Ericssoncompany

The classic 30s telephonedeveloped by Jean Heibergfor Ericsson of Sweden

... and computer technologycombined with the phone

has lead to the cellular

phone today which is acommunication device,

camera, imaging studio, aplanner, advertiser, gamingdevice, and personal planer,

all in the palm of yourhand.


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DWG 10HUMANS IN THE AGE OF TRANSIENCE : THE WORLD IS AN OPEN SYSTEM OF MINDS WITH LIMITLESS CHOICE

AND POSSIBILITY


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2.2Repercussions of high transience on eventand function : the onset of Glocalization

and the birth of the Antitype.

Let us take a look at what happens when thisphenomena of transience hits theopen systemsof event and function. By open systems we aretalking about systems that can adapt to change byre-configuring its internal configurations to maintainequilibrium. Examples of this are most obviously allaround us : the society, the economy, the community,the family, the environment. All of these areillustrations of systems that respond to change andreact by re-configuring themselves.

The phenomena of transience shatters the cyclicity

of event. No longer is family dinner a ritual, and nolonger is going to office restricted within presettimings and place since most managerial work canactually be performed through internetconnectivity: and now through just a cellular phone.No longer is goingto the supermarket a regular affairbecause most shopping is being conducted over thephone or the internet. The cyclicity of a conventionalevent is now tending towards erratic and chaotic.

The phenomena of transience also alters themeaning of an event within a single group of people,who are supposed to have a common thread ofvalues. Rules and regulations as to how one mustsleep, eat, pray or work differs between variousmembers of a single community. No one has acommon definition yet everyone is heading towardstheir own personal definition of a life-style.

The boundaries of time and space have been crushedand folded leading to the creation of the ANTITYPE,that category of user-systems and spatial-systemsthat do not fall under any typology.

Yet we all want to be in a familiar place. Familiarity

defined by our initial roots, by conditioning and bynotions fed into out minds by this radical state ofconnectivity.

1 The world has thus evolved from globalizationtoglocalization. In a general way, the concept ofglobalization is best understood as expressingfundamental aspects of time-space distanciation.Globalization concerns the intersection of presenceand absence, the interlacing of social events andsocial relations at distance .

According to the Oxford dictionary of new words

(1991,134), the term glocal and the process nounglocalization are formed by telescoping global andlocal to make a blend. The terms glocal andglocalization became features of the business jargonduring the 1980s, but their major locus of origin

high transience

radically alters the

event system and the

functional system

beyond any typical

definition

the Antitype is born

globalization evolves

to become

glocal ization

1 Robertson, Roland Ed., Kathleen E.White Ed.Globalisation : Critical concepts in Sociology(Global membership and Participation)Routelouge 2003


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appears to have been Japan, where the idea ofglocalization was modelled on the Japanesedochakuka , originally the agricultural principle ofadopting ones farming techniques to localconditions. The idea of glocalization in its businesssenseis closely related to what in some contexts iscalled , in more straightforwardly economic terms,

micro-marketing : the tailoring and advertising ofgoods and services in a global or near global basisto increasingly differentiated local and particularmarkets. Almost needless to say, in the world ofcapitalistic production for increasingly globalmarkets, the adaptation to local and other particularconditions is not simply a case of business responsesto pre-existing global variety - to civilization, regional,societal, ethnic, gendered and still other sets ofconsumers, as if such variety or heterogeneityexisted simply in itself. To a considerable extent,micro-marketing - or in more comprehensive terms,glocalization - involves the construction ofincreasingly differentiated consumers, the inventionof consumer traditions (of which tourism, arguablythe biggest industry of the contemporary world, isundoubtedly the most clear cut example.) To put itvery simply diversity sells.

In one way or another, the issue of the relationshipbetween the local and the global has becomeincreasingly salient in a wide variety of intellectualand practical contexts. In some respects thisdevelopment hinges upon the increasing recognitionof the significance of space as opposed to time, in

many fields of academic and practical endeavour.The general interest in the idea of post-modernity,whatever its limitations, is probably the mostintellectually tangible manifestation of this. The mostwell known maxim - virtually a cliche - proclaimedin the diagnosis of the post-modern condition is ofcourse that grand narratives have come toan end and that we are now in a circumstanceof proliferating and sharply competingnarratives. (Lyotard 1984) In this perspective,there are no longer any stable accounts of dominantchange in the world. This view itself has

developed on the other hand, at precisely thesame time that there has crystallized anincreasing interest in the world as a whole asa single place.

It is appropriate a this point to say something morespecific about the role and function of media andmass communication in the process of glocalization.Undoubtedly, inanimately mediated communicationhas over the centuries been of increasingimportance. But it was the mid to late nineteenthcentury that seems to have been crucial with respectto the beginnings of international communication.

It was during that period that the initial technologiesof international communication (Fortner 1993,11)- such as the electronic telegraph, the telephone,the submarine cables and the wireless - emerged.

origin of the concept

or idea of

glocalization: Japan

glocalization and the

market

glocalization as a

salient feature in

various intellectual

and practical contexts

glocalization as aresult of mediaand communica-tion


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In this period and the first thirty years or so of thetwentieth century these and other such innovationswere increasingly institutionalized on an expandinginternational basis. From a different angle we cansay that the period since the 1830s has been one ofextensive mediasation. The mediasation of modernculture can thus be defined as the rapid proliferation

of institutions of mass communication and thegrowth of networks of transmission through whichcommodified symbolic forms have been madeavailable to an ever expanding domain of recipients.

2.3Repercussions of high transience onUser-systems pertaining to a Habitat

What are the by-products of the phenomena ofglocalization? What are the various sub-phenomenawe come across when we disintegrate glocalization,that affect man and his immediate surroundings ,his habitat? What exactly is this accelerated changein society? In other words, how does a high rate ofknowledge acquisit ion and technologicaladvancement affect the dynamics of society?

We go on further to understand four integralmanifestations of technological advancement andknowledge acquisition, discernible in communitystructure and family structure that have ledto the flux that exists within a community andwithin a family today.

1 Diversity2 Novelty3 Delocalization4 Disintegration

the by products of

glocalization that

affect the functional

patterns of the habitat


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2 NoveltyNovelty is a process that human beings adopt toacclimatize and adapt to diversity.Novelty is thus a new family or community born

out of new associations between seemingly diversepatterns, people, and places. Novelty is the offspringof the diversity that becomes apparent as a resultof cross cultural connectivity, and engineeredobsolescence. The new family thus has no commoncultural rooting but is a hybrid of the individual valuesystems of each of its members. This gives the familya new identity as a whole.

1 DiversityDiversity within families and communities, is a directoutcome of knowledge acquisition. The deluge ofknowledge has connected people across the world,and shaken the very foundations of their originalrespective value systems.Diversity is also the inevitable outcome of the

commercial side of technology. Diversity is what isgenerated by engineered obsolescence of things,places, people, organizations and information. It iswhat brings about continuous replacement ofproducts, places, people, things and jobs.Diversity implies new hybrid cross cultural valuesystems. It implies further need to connect andreach out .It implies that within a community or a family, anindividuals choice of profession, site, personal valuesystem, life-style, partners, becomes infinite. Henceleading to varied possible associations between thevarious living people in a community or within asingle family.

diversity :

the distorted value

system and the

new morphed

Individual identity

novelty :

the infinite new variations of family andcommunity identity

and the creation of new personal

lifestyle

1

2


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images 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 courtesy Academy of Art San Fransisco Prospectus

3 DelocalizationDelocalization is the phenomenon of not beingrestricted in movement to any particular place.

It is that process in the realm of transience thatoccurs in response to

1 diversity and novelty2 technological advancement that has enabled theease and the speed of travel

The phenomenon of delocalization was apparent inthe past with early nomadic communities. But thisdelocalization was a result of exhaustion of naturalresources in that particular area of their habitation.Moreover it was restricted within a particular regionand was an excessively gradual process.

Delocalization implies that no longer does anindividual in a family or a community sense apermanent rootedness to any particular place. Anindividuals experience of the world is now no longerrestricted to one culture, place, organization orenvironment. He is caught in this constant state offlux, a high level of transience.

A permanent physical habitat in a single location isperceived as an excess responsibility or a monetaryasset or a holiday getaway. Their is no contextual,cultural or traditional tie that an individual establisheswith it apart from familiarity. Delocalization is whatgives rise to the need for ease of mobility.

delocalization :

the freedom of

movement in space

that leads to a

sense of being

uprooted with no

permanent ground

3

4 DisintegrationDiversity, novelty and delocalization directly manifestthemselves in the disintegration of common valuesand common needs of a community or a family,

which often results in fractured families in the realmof time and space. As a result of this disintegration,we find today an assortment of cross cultural valuesystems, a morphing of basic individuality, a pursuitfor new personal identity, and an emerging group amulti hybrid communities and individuals.

disintegration :

the

fractured family

and community

formed out of

experience andimagery, through

information and

connectivity

4


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2.4Spatial Manifestation of built form in a stateof high transience and the emergence ofthe Flexible Habitat

What happens to space as a result of hightransience? What are the repercussions ofdiversity, novelty, delocalization anddisintegration within a community and afamily, in the space?

What is space?Architectural Space or place, in convention isthe resting site for a composition of a pattern.Which means essentially that anyarchitectural space, in the past, was designedas a container intended to hold a relatively

permanent pattern.

This pattern is a matrix.

The matrix is composed of layers of variouscomplex systems as we have seen in thechapter on systems.

These systems as we have seen in the chapteron systems includeIntangible user systems:1 Event systems2 Function systems

Tangible spatial systems:3 Physical tangible elemental systems

Hence space or place is the resting site for acomposition of various physical systems builtto embrace a permanent pattern composedof layered matrices of events and functions.

High Transience however changes one tiny detail.

The pattern of events and functions today isno longer as permanent as before. As a result

of high transience this pattern is constantlyevolving, changing and altering. Thistransience gives rise to the cross cultural, evermorphing, incessantly regenerating globalhybridization of today. In short, flux intechnology, economy, socio cultural values,and the environment causes the eventual andfunctional flux rate to be very high.Thus resulting in a state of continuous changeor high transience.In this state of high transience constantlysynchronizing and re-synchronizing thephysical construct of a space with the rate ofeventual or functional flux that occurs withinit, will simply wreak havoc on the economyand resources.


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when the permanent

matrix cannot adapt to

transience : formation

of spatial junk

the need to prevent

spatial junk : an

aspect of

sustainability

Evolution of Spatial Junk: what happens whena space fails to adapt to high transience

The evolution of Spatial Junk takes place when aspatial system has not been built for growth ortransformation. In the past a single family had acommon value system, cultural and traditional meshthat they could adhere to. They had a sense ofpermanence of location, as the lack of connectivityand technological advancement, resulted in the lackof choice. The houses built in the past topermanence , thus fail to allow for the diversity withina single family or technological change. As a resultwe find new layers on the old house type, like theprocess of sedimentation, and hence the formationof junk which is a conglomeration of all the changesand individual needs within a family. Habitats todaythus tend to become this tangled mess of being 40%Indian, 20% Japanese , 18% Romanic, 12% Modernand 10% high tech, for instance, with physical Band-

aids to fix the unexpected and unresolved.

In our age today, as a result of diversity, novelty,delocalization and disintegration, we thus no longerfind the various members of a family or the variousfamilies in a community restricting themselves toone set sociocultural value system and life-style orone permanent location. The meaning of apermanent house thus diminishes .

This problem also arises because the boundaries oftime and space have disintegrated, thus allowing

the individual to free himself from the habitat topursue his way of living. The permanent house thusbecomes this container for people and things to passthrough it, and stash or storage area for things topile up without maintenance.

Spatial Junk thus forms, when a space is notplanned for future growth or transformationand not left open ended as a design solution.

And as a solution to spatial junk, the permanentspace is simply broken down, altered, rebuilt orrenovated. The result : mindless waste of earthsresources, financial waste and pollution.

The need of the day is not only to resourcefullyexploit technology but to allow resources tosustain themselves for future development.The world is getting eroded and consumed byconsumption itself . The world did not falter in astate of transience in the past as the process of fluxwas gradual and permitted resource to regenerateand renew itself. Today however, resource is beingused up with thoughtless candor.

We have come to an age where humankind has

started to look around and find ways of lessconsumption and wastage and better means ofdealing with prevention of spatial junk.


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DWG 11 : EVOLUTION OF SPATIAL JUNK : WHEN ARCHITECTURE CANNOT ADAPT TO CHANGE


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Understanding the big picture: Sustainability1

It is imperative that we keep in mind, that humanbeings are part of a system of limited resource. Tech-nological advancement exploits resource, and re-source in turn exploits technology. In the cycle ofinnovation, and consumer revolution, human be-ings in the past have seldom expressed the concernof expendability and exhaustion of resource and rarelyrealized the need to respect and value the naturalcycle and system. But this was because the flux inhuman development was not as apparent as it istoday. Today, the innovation and technological cyclesare moving at super fast speed resulting in a newglobal culture, and the GLOCAL village. The newemerging glocal scenario thus is a scenario of un-certainty of event, terminating the concept of rela-tive permanence of function. Cyclicity and patternhave become uncertain and result in a need for in-determinate and open ended built form and not per-

fect finite solutions that may become redundant withflux and high transience. The depletion is now star-ing us straight in our faces, and the concern is ex-pressed. The new built form antitype has emerged.

Globalism is both intimacy and distance at one andthe same time. New phenomena supplement the ex-isting, in a world where the equal value of every-thing has removed any sense of order. The digitizedsociety has disintegrated under the frameworks forthe importance of place and time, and no one isbound by their physical presence. Presence - being

present - is not a necessity but requires a consciouschoice.

Man forms part of a global community in a incon-stant relationship with the world. In all ages, manlives like a nomad, virtually and concretely. You movein space and time in a second and during a lifetime.The nomad lives off the place.

To the human being in transit, physical locations havea social identity creating value. Man understands him-self by virtue of his actions and through communica-tion with others, but the home is the sign, whichsignifies mans existence on Earth. It anchors us to aplace in the fluctuating global space. The glo-cal fixedpoint imbues the now , with meaning in the unfath-omable simultaneity of the global world.

Sustainability is about seeing each and every ele-ment in its wider context and assigning priority tothose parts of this context which has the greatestimportance to the largest possible number of fac-tors.In the complex global society the elucidation of cor-relations and connections is of great value to each

individual. Flexibility in a system, focuses attentionon our life-styles, the quantity and validity of ourconsumption. By realizing the consequences of ourconsumption, we understand our significance in theworld.

sustainabilty:

a generalized viewpoint

1 www.design.dk


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How does one define sustainability?1

The launching point for most is the followingstatement from Our Common Future, a report issuedin 1987 by the U. N. World Commission onEnvironment and Development, popularly known asthe Brundtland Commission:

Sustainable development is development that meetthe needs of the present without compromising theability of future generations to meet their needs.

As a new organization, Sustainable Sonoma Countyworked for about eighteen months to definesustainability and created the following threesentence definition:Sustainability secures peoples quality of life withinthe means of nature in a way that is fair and equitableto all humanity, other species and to futuregenerations.Sustainability recognizes the interrelatedness of theeconomy, society, and environment.It requires that we not consume resources fasterthan they can be renewed nor produce wastes fasterthan they can be absorbed.

Below are some other definitions of sustainability.Each one reflects a different perspective and foodfor thought.

Sustainability is equity over time. As a value, it refersto giving equal weight in your decisions to the futureas well as the present. You might think of it asextending the Golden Rule through time, so that

you do unto future generations (as well as to yourpresent fellow beings) as you would have them dounto you.Robert Gilman, DirectorContext Institute

Activities are sustainable whey they:1. use materials in continuing cycles2. use continuously reliable sources of energy3. come mainly from the potentials of beinghuman, i.e., communication, creativity,coordination, appreciation, and spiritual and

intellectual development.Activities are non-sustainable when they:1. require continual inputs of nonrenewableresources,2. use renewable resources faster than their rateof renewal3. cause cumulative degradation of theenvironment,4. require resources in quantities that couldnever be sustainable for all people,5. lead to the extinction of other life forms.

Guideposts for a Sustainable Future ProjectM. Nickerson

Sustainability is part of a trend to...consider thewhole instead of the specific. Sustainabilityemphasizes relationships rather than pieces in

sustainability

definitions

1 www.sustainablesonoma.org


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isolation...Sustainability is not all about regressingto primitive l iv ing condit ions. It is aboutunderstanding our situation, and developing ascommunities in ways that are equitable, and makesense ecologically and economically.Center for Sustainable Communities

Sustainable means being able to keep going or ableto endure; sustainability, then, is acting in such away that life on Earth endures on into the future,providing for the needs of all citizens and creatureswhile maintaining the natural functions, resources,and beauty of the planet...Sustainability is rooted inlooking to the inherent workings of nature as amodel, with the idea that the natural systems of theworld do work in balance to perpetuate life, and byworking in harmony with those natural systems, wecan sustain our own lives.Sustaining the EarthDebra Dadd-Redalia

SolarCyclicSafeEfficientSocial

Edwin Datschefski

Green Product Designer

1

Developed by Swedish oncologist Dr. Karl HenrikRobert in 1989, The Natural Step (TNS), is oftenreferred to the compass for sustainability helping toindicate the direction for sustainable action. Alongwith the Ecological Footprint, SSC uses the TNSFramework to define sustainability in its educationalworkshops (for example, MASH). A number ofbusinesses are in the process of redefining theiractivities within the TNS Framework and serve asmodels of how movement towards a moresustainable world may occur.

The framework consists of three parts:o the Four System Conditions

o the Funnelo Strategies for Action

System condition one addresses what we takefrom the Earths crust. It says that if we take metals,minerals and fossil fuels from the Earth faster thanthey can be recycled back into nature, thesesubstances will build-up in the environment inproblematic ways. We experience those problemsin the form of smog, ozone depletion, global warmingand poisoning from heavy metals like lead andmercury. Burning oil and coal faster than the trees

can absorb the carbon is an example of violatingthe first system condition.

System condition twolooks at the things we makeand how well and quickly they can be reintegrated

sustainabilitystrategies andmethods ofapplication

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into the natural environment. Too much of anything,like garbage in land fills or sewage compromisesthe health of the natural system. There are alsoproblems when we create synthetic chemicals naturecant break down quickly, like Styrofoam and plastics.Creating nuclear waste is an example of violatingsystem condition number two.

System condition threeis about maintaining thenatural systems that support life. Everything comesfrom and goes back to the natural environment. Alllife, including humans, depend on these naturalservices: clean water and air, building materials andfood. So system condition three says we need torestore and maintain these natural life supportsystems for our long term well-being.

System condition four is about fairness andmeeting the needs of all people and all species byusing the most resource-efficient methods possible.If we dont meet the basic needs of everyone,through fair and efficient use of resources, it will bedifficult or impossible to meet the other threeconditions. Bananas and coffee grown on tropicalplantations for sale in rich countries reflects problemswith local food systems, loss of habitat andexploitation of cheap labor and so is an example ofviolating number four.

Strategies for Action

In addition to being a conceptual tool, TNS is anorganization committed to helping other

organizations, individuals and communities takesteps towards sustainability. Widely used in Sweden,especially by business and government, TNS hasbegun to shape the vision of leaders throughout theworld including those in the United States.

TNSs Strategies for Action includes four elements referred to asABCD:o AwarenessDeveloping a common understanding ofthe situation within an organizationo Base-line mappingMapping current operations of anorganization in terms of the four system conditions.o Clear visionCreating a vision and identifying measuresthat take an organization from where it is now to where it can bein a sustainable futureo Down to Ear th acti onPrior itiz ing measures fo rachieving the organizations vision that move it towardsustainability.

To assist with this last step, TNS uses a technique calledbackcasting. Unlike forecasting, where one looks forward withprojections, backcasting starts with ones goal or vision and looksback at how one might get there.

TNS also recommends that initial steps toward sustainabilityaddress the low hanging fruit, meaning do the easy thingsfirst. In this way people are encouraged to get started and makeprogress where they can. The first step is often the mostimportant.Some of the companies that have embarked on this journey

toward sustainability using TNS include Interface Carpets,McDonalds Sweden, Nike, Ikea, and Scandic Hotels.

Thus understanding the larger picture of sustainability, we nowtake a look at its manifestation in the emerging habitat of today

and a possible future scenario.

The Funnel

TNS uses a funnel as a visual metaphor todescribe our current situation and the goalof sustainabili ty.The downward sloping line describes thedecline in the life support systems of theworld. This would include the loss of species,

the decline of many natural systems suchas forests, coral reefs, soil, etc. as well asthe build up of toxins that increasingly makeresources unavailable to us like the pollutionof fresh water.The other, upward sloping side of the funnelrepresents the increasing demands of humanactivity. This is driven by increasing numbersof people consuming greater amounts ofresources such as food, forests, land as wellas minerals, metals, fossil fuels, etc.Together these two trends show that humandemand is outstripping (and many would sayhas already outstripped) our supply ofnatural resources. In order to be sustainable,we must change the shape of this funnel.

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The emerging glo-cal habitat of todayGoing back now to the response observed in emerg-ing spatial systems, let us examine the glocal habi-tat of today.1

The dynamics of the new family is an outcome of

glocalization, the high transience life, the flux andkinesis in our interaction with the world around usand obviously has or is soon going to have an in-credible impact on the emerging habitat type ... orrather the habitat antitype, as we shall begin to callthis state of architecture now, as there is no fixedtypology we can attach it to.

Ideas, such as place, dwelling unit, habitat andfunctiondo not adequately represent the reality ofthe urban dwelling today.

Things are no longer as clear cut as they onceseemed. Observers often point out the loss today ofany fixed character of place, any clear definitionof dwelling unit and any firm concept of func-tion.

The unit called the family is no longer bound to-gether by self contained clearly hierarchical relation-ships. Individuals have much stronger statuseswithin their family.

Moreover family relationships undergo radical changewith time. Our idea of what constitutes a dwelling

unit is likely to become more ambiguous as rela-tionships within the family become more tenuousand unstable and unpredictable.

The boundaries of the dwelling unit are no longerwell defined. Moreover as relationships within thefamily become uncertain, the boundaries of the sub-spaces that comprise the house are also fated tobecome more ambiguous.

The hierarchical order that once prevailed inthe living room, the dining room, and the bed-

room is breaking down and the house itself islosing its centre.

This tendency is being reinforced by the fact thatthe activities taking place in the contemporary dwell-ing suggest no set or simple clear cut functions.

Contemporary families, and the individuals in thosefamilies lead diverse lives and take part in complexactivities. A house would have to have an infinitenumber of rooms with completely adjustable bound-aries to account for all those activities.

If ideas, dwelling unit and functionno longerprovide a sound basis for the design of contempo-rary houses, what is taking their place?


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The answer would beinformation and things.The biggest difference between houses of the pastand contemporary houses is in the volume of infor-mation and things. Contemporary dwelling spacesare flooded with enormous amounts of both.Infor-mation summons things and things in turnevoke information. The flood of information and

things is what invalidated the ideas of place, dwell-ing unit and function, in the first place. Infor-mation and things easily cross over boundaries ofdwelling units and rooms. They nullify the meaningof boundary. They themselves continue endlessly tochange in character.

In what direction are these contemporary housesruled by information and things heading? If bound-aries of dwelling units and rooms become even moreambiguous and eventually disappear, will houses dis-solve into and become indistinuishable from the ur-ban space?

We want to be able to move our lives and our be-longings to pursue our careers or our desires. Wealways want the latest rather than the last yearsmodel. And yet there is a sense of yearning that cutsthrough and is floating all around us.We want to be at home.

-Aaron Betsky

Our age is characterized by coordination, di-versity, uncertainty, synthesis, ambivalence.

Our era is marked by the blurry, the cloudy,the vaue associated with the logic of both/and. We must relinquish order, we must ac-cept that order arises out of chaos, so chaosand order are not mutually exclusive.

In the habitat of the future we will live alone andbewith others, work and recreate. We must be sustain-able and live in luxury. The dwelling of the futuremust be both accessible and inaccessible, both ex-trovert and introvert, both simple and complex.

Thus emerges the indeterminate. Thusemerges the open-ended, the irresolute, theuncertain. The built form that embraceschange, the spatial system that supports di-versity and flux. Thus emerges Flexibility.

1 Boase The Future Home - a prize competitionfocusing n sustainability and accessibility

Editors Claus Bech-Danielsen ,Merete Kjaer Christensen

Peder Duelund Mortensen, Karen ZahleKunstakademiets Arkitekt

Documents

Transience and the Flexible Habitat