The Importance of Traditional Architecture and the Dangers of the Proliferation of Sameness
By definition, an Architect is a person who is involved in the planning, design and oversight of a building's construction. It is through the oversight and the planning by the Architect, that the various craftsmen associated with construction and decorative arts are brought together in the collaborative execution of the Architects design.
During the renaissance, architecture began to emerge as a distinct and separate profession from the Master Builder and Craftsman heritage. During this remarkable period of evolution in design, the emergence of architecture as a distinct profession was closely linked to the relatively new practice of preparing carefully scaled drawings by the Architect for the design of a project. These drawings served as the graphic directions for the craftsmen to follow. To this day, the evolution of architecture as a profession continues and remains closely linked to changes in societal needs and technology.
Several hundred years after the renaissance, the industrial revolution brought about large scale and convenient access to new building materials, manufacturing techniques and structural possibilities. The excitement and potential surrounding these products combined with the rapid increase in overall population and prosperity triggered a huge boom in construction and design. Despite this rapid change in technology and access to materials, the roles of the Architect, Master Builder and Craftsmen remained unchanged because society still perceived their value and continued to generate demand for the highest level of design and construction.
It is my opinion that the hereditary relationship between the Architect and Craftsman appears to have come to a rapid end soon after the conclusion of World War II. In a global setting, WWII served as the catalyst for the promotion and expansion of the concepts of mass production and uniformity to previously diverse and individual societies which had been focused on supporting regional and cultural vernacular traditions. This newly created desire for uniformity eroded the historical values, unique qualities and support for the traditional Craftsman and the role of the Architect, and the beginning of The Proliferation of Sameness.
Architects have traditionally relied on the readily available resource of locally skilled craftsmen to interpret a design through drawings. It was expected that the Craftsman would comprehend the design intent behind the drawings, and be skilled enough to construct them in a proper scale, proportion and appropriate construction techniques and materials. Even mass produced items would still bear the unique irregularities of each Craftsman’s hand or tool, and each individual had pride in their skill and the knowledge they had learned during their apprenticeship. However, in today’s world, despite a small resurgence in all things artisanal, the loss of the practice of apprenticeship has severely limited the available resource of craftsmen traditionally associated with the construction, building and decorative crafts. In general, because of the scarcity of formally trained craftsmen, the average Architect can no longer rely on construction workers to make informed interpretative design decisions on their own accord. With a few notable exceptions the traditional craftsmen associated with construction have simply become skilled laborers in the execution of the Architect’s will. In the past, with formally trained Craftsmen, the Architect could indicate their design intent through more generalized sketches and drawings, today if a detail or technique is not explicitly described and drawn, the Architect cannot be assured in the success of the final outcome. The modern Architect, through our drawings, now needs to ensure that even the smallest detail in every element conforms to appropriate scale, proportion and constructive techniques.
I recognize that the desire for the highest level of architectural design and construction occupies only a small niche of today’s society, and I am thankful to have clients and craftsmen who truly appreciate, comprehend and support Architecture and choose to reject the concept of Sameness. It is unfortunate that most people have decided that simple, small, or projects with a limited budget are undeserving of the same attention to detail as large or expensive projects. In making such a decision, countless opportunities are lost where sensitivity towards a design or selection of a product or material would benefit the end user and society as a whole far beyond the perceived ‘cost’ that the attention to the design might add to the project. Even in the simplest project, the old adage of ‘you get what you pay for’ rings especially true as people make choices about the design of a project and the materials that are used in the project. Buildings used to be designed and built to last generations, now they are part of society embracing designed obsolescence, and accepting substandard quality simply because it is cheap and it is the next person that will be the one who has to deal with the problems the cheap construction creates. It can be shocking to see how little time, effort or attention to detail is expended on what may be a person’s greatest single investment, and what few selections are made, they are made in the context of the mass produced sameness of what sits on the shelves of home improvement stores.
Philadelphia and its suburbs, as was true of many suburban areas during the late 19th and 20th centuries, grew and expanded rapidly because of the improvements and ease in access to regional transportation and urban dwellers seeking country retreats. As the members of high society secured their country properties, they built weekend and summer estates that were desire driven architectural projects, rather than purely functionally driven structures. New communities centered themselves around these pockets of development and the uniquely American pre-war suburban landscape began to emerge. This was the golden era of American house and property design and construction, and Philadelphia’s Main Line along with other communities around the United States are fortunate to have retained many of these original properties, and continue to support new homes of a similar heritage. It is because of this heritage, that people make conscious efforts to acquire older homes in order to renovate and add on to them, specifically because of the qualities that can be found in these homes or choose to live in a community that is an exception from the monotony of the contemporary development.
This sensitive approach to architecture and the value that has been placed on the unique and individual qualities of these neighborhoods and houses unfortunately is the exception rather than the rule in most cases. The vast majority of development since WWII has followed a new path where individuality and correct architectural scale and proportion has been abandoned in favor of mass produced uniformity. This boom in housing and construction was the beginning of The Proliferation of Sameness in Architecture, and parallels can be found in many other products and technologies.
The advent of large scale developments and repetitive details has evolved from the Sears ‘kit houses’ of the first half of the 20th century to the generic stucco boxes that now dominate the landscape in many areas of the country. The difference between these two approaches to produced housing are that the Sears houses were designed with attractive scale and proportion and the stucco boxes generally are not. Why is there a difference? I contend that it is because the general public still had a connection to the historical traditions and values of design when the Sears houses were being produced. As more and more poorly designed and constructed houses were built and occupied, the ability of the general public to discern the difference between something good versus bad was lost. As more and more examples of bad design are seen and experienced, the more people assume that these designs are correct, desirable and acceptable. The proliferation of these generic designs have dumbed down the expectations of the occupants, and misinformed people about what should be expected in good design.
It seems that the vast majority of people who are buying houses today no longer see the house as a lifetime purchase, and are more concerned about how it compares to their contemporaries in society, and care little for how the house will contribute to the future of the community and its future owners. Materials and finishes are selected with disposable obsolescence in mind, much in the same way cars are purchased today. The home buyer cares little for what it looks like and is more concerned about the options it contains. Newly constructed development houses are purchased and occupied like leased car vehicles, where after a relatively short period of time, the house is turned in for a newer model, and the repairs and failing materials of the house become the problem of the next owner. After a period of time, the combined repairs needed to maintain the house will exceed its value and it will be cheaper to knock it down and rebuild it rather than fix it.
In my opinion the modern Traditional Architect needs to be passionate about promoting excellence in design through appropriately scaled, proportioned and detailed buildings. Whether a project is rural or agricultural in nature, residential or commercial, urban or contemporary, the fundamentals of design remain the same. Scale and Proportion matter. Context and community matters. Climate and topography matters. Quality materials matter. Houses should be designed and built to last and not be a disposable commodity.
Architects, historical societies and communities can do more to educate the public about the suitability of design, and the value that longevity and quality materials can have on property values. We can also play an important role in promoting and supporting appropriate and sensitive designs. By recognizing, supporting and promoting unique and appropriate design in all aspects of our lives we can make incremental changes and positive impacts on our environment and slow the Proliferation of Sameness.