In this blog post, we will consider the relationship between architecture and architectural engineering and the need for integration at the point where human-centered spatial design and scientific structural design meet.
There is a legend that has been passed down from ancient times. According to the legend, the one who unties a tightly knotted rope can rule the world. “Alexander” is said to have cut the rope with a sword and declared, ‘I have untied the rope, so I shall rule the world!’ The tightly twisted rope in this anecdote is a symbol of the complexly intertwined problems, which is similar to the problem of the relationship between architecture and architectural engineering. In the ancient and medieval periods, the boundaries between these two disciplines were not clear, and they were intertwined as a single problem. However, in modern times, the problem of architecture has become more complex, and there is now a tendency to separate the problem into architectural and architectural engineering problems, as if cutting a rope with a knife.
Architecture mainly deals with the relationship between space and people in architecture, and studies the problem of creating the form and space of buildings. Although architecture is a science and engineering discipline, its essence is closer to the humanities or the arts. This is because architecture creates space and form through humanistic, social, and philosophical thinking. The Sumiyoshi House by Tadao Ando is a prime example of a design based on such humanistic and philosophical thinking. This house has a central garden to provide its residents with a sense of nature. However, this has resulted in a narrow living space and the inconvenience of having to walk between the kitchen and the bathroom with an umbrella on a rainy day. Despite these inefficiencies, the Sumiyoshi House embodies the philosophical idea that what humans need is nature, rather than the efficiency and convenience that are valued in modern society. In this way, architecture in architecture is created based on the understanding of humans and space through humanistic and philosophical thinking.
On the other hand, architectural engineering deals with the engineering aspects of architecture. Based on numerical and scientific experiments, architectural engineers calculate the number of steel bars to be used in a column and determine the shape of the columns and beams. In addition, architectural engineering deals with the problem of determining the appropriate lighting, ventilation system, and air conditioning to create a pleasant light, air, and temperature environment. Architectural engineering designs and plans buildings based on an engineering paradigm, and scientific methodology plays an important role in this process.
As such, architecture consists of humanities-based architecture and engineering-based architectural engineering. However, no building contains only architectural content, nor does any building contain only architectural engineering content. This is because buildings that are biased toward one side cannot perform their proper functions. However, as the field of architecture has become more specialized, experts who specialize in either architecture or architectural engineering are being trained. As a result, people who have studied architecture often lack engineering knowledge, and people who have majored in architectural engineering often fail to embrace the humanities and philosophy required by architecture. As a result, buildings that are biased toward architectural content or architectural engineering content are created.
The recently controversial ultra-luxury government office buildings and district office buildings in Korea are examples of buildings that are biased toward architectural content. These buildings have glass exterior finishes to express the transparency of government offices, but this has resulted in them being hotter in the summer and colder in the winter. The increased heating and cooling loads have prevented the buildings from properly performing their basic shelter functions. If engineering technology is not considered when designing buildings like this, they can lose their original functions.
However, just as a soulless body is nothing more than a corpse, a building that is devoid of humanistic and philosophical content and consists only of technology is no different from a corpse that has lost its vitality. The Pruitt-Igoe housing complex in St. Louis, designed by Minoru Yamasaki, was highly praised at the time of its design as a model for 21st-century housing complexes, but it eventually fell into the heart of a slum. The housing complex was demolished in 1972 as a measure to reduce crime. The failure of Pruitt-Igoe shows that buildings need not only engineering efficiency but also a spirit that takes into account human sensibilities and social context.
Architecture is essentially a question that cannot distinguish between engineering and the humanities. Architecture that is balanced without leaning toward one side can be called a great building. Architecture and architectural engineering are like ropes that are intertwined. Architecture is not about splitting these tangled ropes in two, but about unraveling them into a single, complete result. As the saying goes, the one who unties the ropes of an ancient temple will rule the world, and the one who unties the tightly knotted ropes of architecture and architectural engineering into a single, complete rope will truly rule architecture. Unraveling these tangled ropes into a single, complete result is the problem that architecture must address.
