UST COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE

THEORY OF ARCHITECTURE 2
Archt. Lorelei D.C de Viana

Introductory Module ARCHITECTURE AND THEORY

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WHAT IS A BUILDING?

A building provides man shelter from the elements, a space for a specific function or purpose.

IMPORTANCE OF ARCHITECTURE

• Architecture has been called the “Mother of all arts” — it provides the space and the venue for artistic
endeavors, whether it be painting, sculpture, dance, or theater

• People shape buildings, and later, buildings shape people.

• Culturally, architecture records the legacies of great civilizations and the progress of historical devel-
opment — aesthetic taste, social, political and cultural contexts, technologies

WHAT MAKES GOOD ARCHITECTURE?

According tot he Roman engineer Marcus Vitruvius Polio, there are three principles of good architecture:
Venustas - Beauty
Firmitas - Strength
Utilitas - Utility

ARCHITECTURE VS. ENGINEERING

Architecture is different from engineering because it goes beyond serving a functional purpose. Architec-
ture delights and pleases the eye because of the aesthetics and artistic creativity involved in its building.

WHERE DO ARCHITECTURAL IDEAS COME FROM?

They come from concepts influenced by philosophies, theories, social and cultural constructs, political
events, economics, and cross-cultural and transnational relationships and contexts. Therefore, architec-
ture is also a representation of all of these — of society, values, institutions, environments, culture, and
even politics.

WHAT IS THEORY OF ARCHITECTURE?

Theory of architecture is the basis by which the merits of architecture are judged or assessed. It is the
rationale behind architecture, the intellectual exercise involved in the process of creation and production.
The historical development of architecture has seen many theories materialized and represented, forming
the backbone or the soul of the building. Behind these theories are concepts or ideas that follow or fur-
ther previously held concepts or innovate and even deviate from them.

The study of the theory of architecture, and by itself the theory of architectural design, involves a study of
architecture’s historical development and the principles or concepts that were followed and innovated,
the parameters for good design, and the masters and their works that represented their generation or era,
the theories that they firmly held on to.