09
DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE,
1993
| Editorial
DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTUREAfter a series of
monographic volumes, we feel the need to present a miscellaneous
edition once more. The plurality of the world of design advises
gathering in the wide range of contributions emanating from the several
fields which make up the universe of the culture of de sign.
However, monographic editions are basic for an in-depth study of each of these fields. Therefore, Temes de Disseny will continue the policy of combining miscellaneous editions, to provide a general view, with monographic volumes, to provide a deeper vision of a particular aspect. Temes de Disseny has
always wished to incorporate views and opinions from the different
fields of culture, especially philosophy, sociology and economy, to the
culture of design. The intention of this multidisciplinary aperture is
a wish not only to
enrich the culture of design, but also to try to renew the theoric
bases of design which we believe need a profound modernization.
The Chicago Congress, reviewed by V. Margolin and R. Buchanan, does no more than confirm this line of extension of the contemporary dialogue about design among designers and professional of diverse disciplines. Design is one of the essential
practices of contemporary culture, as it constitutes an instrument of
the construction of reality: external reality, in a smuch as it
configures our world, and internal reality, in as much as it
contributes to give us the cognitive categories through which we
perceive the world.
This is the reason dial any controversy raised in the field of contemporary culture directly affects design, and we consider, therefore, that it is of prime importance to collect it. As we live in a cultural world of meanings which have become substitutes for objects, design no longer has as a referent natural reality, but rather, as in any language, speaks of another language. It is a world in which symbols have cultural forms as a referent. Formerly, drawing referred to natural reality; now, drawing has as a referent the drawing itself. It is evident, however, that architecture and design, as conformers of worlds, cannot avoid their links to material reality. These links demand the presence of methodological investigation. Given the complexity of the world, any action is more likely to lead to failure than to success. If we take this into account, we can understand the techniques used by mankind as a method to avoid its own failure. |
Contents
09
DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE,
1993
FRANCESC XAVIER RUIZ-COLLANTES The aesthetics of the line. Design within design 09 DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE, 1993 TOM HEATH On not getting it wrong: science and design in architecture 09 DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE, 1993 ANNA PAPIOL CONSTANTÍ Our daily postmodernity 09 DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE, 1993 DAVID BRETT On the interpretation of design 09 DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE, 1993 ANDRZEJ NIEZABIETOWSKI Some ideas on the evaluation of architectural work. Theoretical bases of architectural criticism 09 DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE, 1993 RICHARD BUCHANAN, VICTOR MARGOLIN Discovering design: a conference report 09 DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE, 1993 HENRY PETROSKI Design as obviating failure The systematic avoidance of failure is what characterizes rational design. Thus historical case studies of failures are full of important information for successful design, and the designer who is unfamiliar with the history of failures risks repeating old mistakes. Rather than being discussed merely in generalities in this paper, these ideas are explained in the context of the specific structural engineering example of bridges. [...]09 DESIGN, COMMUNICATION, CULTURE, 1993 J. LAWRENCE RODERICK An anthropological analysis of home interiors This paper examines theoretical and methodological principles for the analysis of home interiors. It begins with a criticism of recurrent approaches by architects, planners and housing administrators. Then it suggests and anthropological interpretation of the concepts of boundary, transition and spatial code, which are shown to be pertinent for the analysis of both the spatial and affective characteristics of home interiors. These concepts are used to analyse the transition between the inside and the outside of dwellings (notably the pragmatic and symbolic role people assign to the entrance hall); then it examines the relations between interior spaces and activities in terms of the structure of a privacy gradient and the interaction between space and household activities; finally, the location, meaning and use of household objects are discussed. These analyses show that home environments are like a web of affective and spatial characteristics, which cannot be abstracted one from the other. In this way, this study diversifies current research on home interiors. [...] |