Project 1:Form and Function
Architectural Design II- ARC257

The relationship of form and function has been a central theme in architecture since the enlightenment. The core issue is whether a building's form should truthfully express its function or should it be independent of its function. The outcome of this issue provides a rationale for architectural design. 17th century architect Claude Perrault was one of the first architectural theorists to separate the issue in this thesis of positive beauty and arbitrary beauty. According to Perrault, positive beauty plays a normative role of standardization and perfection in design that typically is expressed through the classical rules and language of architecture. Arbitrary beauty on the other hand is subjective and culturally constructed. The late Nineteenth Century architect Louis Sullivan coined the contemporary phrase, "form follows function… It’s the Law." Sullivan was talking about all things living and how their shape was based on function. This is the concept as we know it today.

This project examines the relationship of form and function in architectural design. It encourages the awareness of truth, whatever position the designer takes, and promotes the arbitrary aesthetic of “functional” beauty.

Span Prototype

Name: Glienicke Bridge

Type: Truss bridge

Location: Potsdam, Germany

Name: Forth Bridge

Type: Cantilever

Location: Scotland

Name: Tyne Bridge

Type: Through arch bridge

Location: Gateshead, England

Movement Analogies

We had to find five items that have two or more hinges in a mechanical sense and choose three of the items that we want to use for the bridge opening. The three items that I choose to use are vice grips, a corkscrew and a car jack. We then took each item and 3-D modeled them and diagramed the functions of each item for a better understanding of their mechanics before incorporating them into our prototype bridges.