Vernacular in Modern times
In order to achieve complete balance and harmony in our designs, we as architects have become ignorant to what has been there for centuries and which took a lot of time to develop. Things which seemingly appear to have no value to us are discarded without considering why it came there in the first place. Our focus on utilitarian purposes have blinded us from the emotional, psychological and metaphorical aspects of design. Since the advent of modernism we have tried to develop an international language of design which can be adopted to suit different conditions. But we have failed to achieve such utopian concept of a universal design strategy, because we human beings might have the same physical appearance but the way we look at things, how we respond to our surroundings, our inner feelings and our prejudices keep changing as we move across different regions. Moreover our planet is very diverse having different climate zones which forces our design to act according to the need of that place, with the materials that they produce locally. People across the world have different living patterns and their notion of family life differ from our set criteria, so their housing will definitely reflect it in the spaces they require and the form it acquires.
There are certain elements which have been established in our subconscious as symbols for various properties, e.g, A pitched roof over a house for security, a fence or any other feature showing territorial distribution gives us a sense of possession and so on. Apart from these visible and purposeful features of the house there are things which might not have any utility but are there because we value them as part of our cultural identities. They can be to enhance our experience of the space, give a sense of ownership or just to please the eye and reflect the status.
In these times we have a lot of choices at our disposal, folk art or the cultural aspects of design have merely become an option for us. But there is more to it, there's a need to study them deeply and get to the roots of it in order to understand it fully and use it for our benefit. There is no need to waste our time reinventing the wheel, we must learn from the examples available to us which are a result of synthesis of many factors which might not be visible on the surface but are present there to support the overall framework. We need to develop a style which changes to comply with the contingent human nature and suits our ever changing needs.
There are certain elements which have been established in our subconscious as symbols for various properties, e.g, A pitched roof over a house for security, a fence or any other feature showing territorial distribution gives us a sense of possession and so on. Apart from these visible and purposeful features of the house there are things which might not have any utility but are there because we value them as part of our cultural identities. They can be to enhance our experience of the space, give a sense of ownership or just to please the eye and reflect the status.
In these times we have a lot of choices at our disposal, folk art or the cultural aspects of design have merely become an option for us. But there is more to it, there's a need to study them deeply and get to the roots of it in order to understand it fully and use it for our benefit. There is no need to waste our time reinventing the wheel, we must learn from the examples available to us which are a result of synthesis of many factors which might not be visible on the surface but are present there to support the overall framework. We need to develop a style which changes to comply with the contingent human nature and suits our ever changing needs.
Syed Muhammad Hasan
B0998086
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