Morteza Mirgholami, Minou Gharehbaglou, Paria Parsa,
Volume 6, Issue 3 (12-2018)
Abstract
Considering request, need and welfare of children has a long record in West and gets back to 19th century. The idea of child friendly city was adopted in 1996 to make cities liveable for all and its goal was to put the children on top. This is how countries distant themselves from mere concept and utilize CFC principles today. On the other hand, paying attention to child proper spaces has no long record in Iran. Most children`s spaces are external copies of other countries experiences with no regarding to social and cultural context.The research is decided to compare the way in which a child intercommunicates with city environment from two Islamic(Philosophy, Religion and Gnosticism) and Western perspectives, by deduction in qualitative research, studying Islamic and Western theories toward children and compiling effective environmental factors in child and environment interactions. Comparative study includes similarities and differences in two scales: major (child environments) and minor (environmental factors) both in Western and Islamic documents. In major scale, Islamic instructions focus on the environment as a channel to transfer concepts and religious ethics. In minor scale Islamic instructions emphasize on 4 subjects that can`t be seen in western`s: teaching rituals via playing, limiting girls playing outside, limiting girls playing with boys and preventing children from entering infidelital environments. While CFC of west is summarized in participation, equal right with other citizens, mental and physical health; a proper environment for children in Islamic documents, besides proving children`s rights, relief and health as necessities of child growth, emphasizes on values and norms in functional environment. In addition, it advises that a child ought to grow in a place which her temperament does not get hurt to come to relative perfection. Here, an Islamic-Iranian model named “child preceptor city” takes form.
The research in theoretical part, using the analytical-descriptive method, has presented a theoretical framework. In the first stage (study of relevant texts and identification of the defining components of research), a comparative method has been used. The methods of collecting information and the subject history in this research, in addition to documentary and library studies, will also include field studies that are used to compile the subject literature review and to find the thematic framework. At this stage, by expressing the perceptual concept, the architectural porosity elements as well as the study of its theories, criteria, rules and components are explained. In the second stage, using the criteria and components obtained in the previous one, the classification of porosity elements, the selection of criteria and the facades' porosity effective variables, as well as structured questionnaires to find the relationship between these variables and their impact on each other and the amount of facades' porosity a quantitative method for obtaining it will be presented. In the third stage and in the case study section, the theoretical framework and the porosity assessment method are carried out in relation to the 30 facades of historical houses of Tabriz city and the research data are analyzed based on descriptive statistics.
Based on the findings of the research, the facades have a special feature called porosity number that is unique to it. The structure of the forming elements and the porosity changes of the facades also follow a particular pattern. The research also shows that the main trait of porosity is openness which the space is inside it. Air circulation, light and the connection of internal and external spaces are the major physical achievements of porosity and its spiritual achievement is the space and the raised meaning in architecture. Empty, in spite of the lack of material has an equal value, and sometimes more than full, and how it is created and placed not only increases the physical and spatial quality but also can have an impact in evaluations. Porosity is one of the basic visual qualities, which over time has found a more significant role in the facade. Porosity has a hidden and mysterious pattern that can be the result of aesthetic feedback from architects, observers/residents, and environmental conditions of the region. A certain evident percentage of porosity and a Specific pattern and alignment of porous space arrangement in this study indicate that, at least in Tabriz's environmental conditions, a specific pattern of porosity is a part of the aesthetic preferences of the architects and the residential-historical architectural users of Tabriz city. This pattern and alignment can at least be considered by contemporary architects in this cultural-climatic area as an aesthetic factor. Of course, the generalization of these features to other cities in Iran and beyond requires more and wider research.
Mehdi Momtahen, Masoud Narighomi,
Volume 6, Issue 4 (3-2019)
Abstract
This article is about value-based foundations of internalizing of geometry in young students of architecture. Training of geometry has long been an important part of architectural education that can be pursued back up to ancient Egypt and Babylon. But in modernity it has passed a radical change from a sacred one to a value-free job. But more precise look will show that this value-free claim has not been of real truth. Here via interpretative-historical analyze it has been shown that four basic values are historically attached to the geometric facts of architecture that all of them have affected architectural education. The four value-giving areas of human life are the transcendental, the individual, the social and the materialistic ones. Putting emphasize on every of the four as canon of value makes a different type of architectural training system of geometry. In this study five types of geometrical approaches towards architecture upon value structures are introduced: 1. the absolute geometry: this approach refers to mathematical view of geometry and could be traced back to Platonic academy. But in its relationship to architecture the absolute geometry is linked to Aristotle’s conception of geometry and its Islamic followers such as Avicenna and Farabi where he considered form as a production of the mind upon given information of the object. He sees form of no value-based content or meaning. This aspect of form could be realized in contemporary paradigm of parametric design while it has its counterparts in 19th century model of education of architects i.e. the tradition of polytechnics; 2. Geometry as a mirror of the transcendent: it has been the main stream of geometrical thought in Islamic world as well as some other traditional civilizations. But in the contemporary time it was modern movement that put such a heavy value on form a distinct platonic view of le Corbusier. It has its base in enlightment thinking of Ledoux and Bulee. In the field of education this was crystallized in Bauhaus style where Platonic volumes had their transcendental place as highest reference of creation; 3. Geometry as manifestation of the subject: this trend can be linked to Romantic thought. In Romanticism the hidden part of Kantian self was perceived to be emerged in artistic work of hand. So the hand drawings and sketch found a special attention from artistic architects. This view has been extended into current educational content of architecture. But it has its counterparts in primitive architectural analysis. The homology of body, home and the universe that Eliade among others presented is a semi-subjective theory of geometry for vernacular architecture. Presentation of self via hand sketch has a symbolic use in architectural education today; 4. Geometry as the manifestation of nature of the materiality: it is another product of Aristotle’s geometric thought that was manifested in his conception of the term of “form” but in contemporary architecture formalist movement of deconstruction and other critical theories is based on self-referring formal composition of either absolute formal components or synthetic collage. Architectural education of some Avant-grade schools such as AA school of London follows this current of geometric bias; 5. Geometry as united nature of the world: ancient view of Pythagoras about numerical order of the world has been an examplary vision for some traditions of architecture. Molla Sadra’s theory of existence presents a different unity concept between human and nature. In currnt times some other theories claim this role of geometric order that unites world of subject with nature. Christopher Alexander’s view in “Nature of Order” proposes such a vision to geometric value of artifacts that can make them like living beings. In terms of architectural education apart from vernacular tools of cultural transmission could be traced in works of Alexander’s followers.