Week 9 Readings

In Carpo’s Versioning he explains the term that is controversial in the architectural community. Versioning explores the idea that it is beneficial to create an “open model of practice” where technology is used to show off skill and technique rather than pure imagery. Versioning enables architects to cross boundaries and explore other disciplines such as film, fashion, food and politics.

In this article it is clear that Carpo believes that technology has aided architecture, enabling them to rethink the design process and procedure of the outcome. Versioning is dependent on recombinant geometries so that if an external factor were to affect the structure it would not lose precision.

Versioning also includes the method of practice where architectural theory is adopted by other fields of discipline in a non-traditional sense.

In The Order of the Non-Standard, Frederic explores the ideas of rationalism technicism and engineering and more so the evolution and as he puts it “mutation” of the process of conception and production and how to adaption of software has led to morphogenesis and complex geometries. Frederic refers to many theorists such as Alan Badiou and Gilles Deleuze who theorised on mathematical ontology and algorithmic complexities.

He further begins to ask the question “Can one specify or define non-standard architecture?” Although his focus is centred on architecture, he also weaves in the non-standard or mathematics. It is evident that Federic believes that architecture is not exploring its bounds in terms of complex forms and challenging the tradition of architecture.

Readings:

Migayrou, Frédéric, “The Order of the Non-Standard: Towards a Critical Structualism,”* in Theories of the Digital in Architecture, edited by Rivka & Robert Oxman (2014)

SHop/Sharples Holden Pasquarelli (2002), “Versioning,”* “Eroding the Barriers,” in The Digital Turn in Architecture 19922012, edited by Mario Carpo (2013)