Identify the variety of resources available to obtain reliable architectural information and research.

PLAN AND CULTURE As Louis Kahn’s thesis of “served” and “servant” spaces suggests, plan

configurations can also reflect social and cultural hierarchies. We look briefly

at two other examples of recognizable plan typologies with embedded social

or cultural structures driving their design: the courtyard house and the church.

Courtyard houses

Many cultures around the world hold some form of vernacular courtyard

house typology—historic Islamic, Italian, English, Incan, Greek, Roman

civilizations, to name a few. The “siheyuan” was a residential structure type

found throughout Beijing and many regions in China.

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In siheyuan, the Confucian principles of social and family hierarchy were

expressed in the arrangement of spaces within the housing compound, and

their relationship to the sequence of entry, sunlight, and view to the courtyard.

 

 

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Image and plan analysis of traditional Chinese courtyard house

As shown in the diagram above, the most important rooms were located along

the central axis, receiving the most light and overlooking the different

courtyards—the main guest-receiving hall at the center in front of the main

public courtyard, and the master bedroom to the rear facing the private

courtyard. The rooms along the sides of the courtyard, off-axis, smaller, and

with less light, were delegated to lower members of the household. The front

courtyard block, closest to the public street and receiving little to no direct

light, housed the servants and utility spaces.

This hierarchy influenced the configuration of many vernacular courtyard

residences throughout China, including the imperial palace design of the

Forbidden City in Beijing.

Western Ecclesiastical Architecture

Another very commonly known plan typology would be that of the Christian

church—the Latin or Greek cross plans. Early church buildings were actually

inspired by Roman basilicas, which were public buildings used as meeting

places, markets and even to hold court. The central meeting space called the

nave was flanked by side aisles housing market stalls. At either end were

small apses, often semi-circular in nature, that housed court chambers and

legislative meetings.

 

 

Diagram of the Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine in the Roman Forum, 1st Century AD

As churches developed, the nave became not just a central common meeting

space but directional, syncopating the formal movement of religious

processions towards one principal end, which was the location of the altar.

That principal end grew in significance and size, and sometimes were

extended into two arms perpendicular to the nave that flanked either side of

the altar space, called the transept.

This T-shaped cross configuration continued to dominate church plan-making

for many centuries and through many architectural styles.

Plan of the Florence Cathedral “Santa Maria del Fiore”

In both examples of the courtyard and the church, it is clear how the cultural

and spatial practices of their times influenced the making of the plan.

CONCLUSION In this module, we reviewed good research practices by which to conduct your

own search for information on your case study, and reminders and guidelines

for citing sources in your writing. We also outlined the steps by which to draft

the required orthogonal projections of your case study, and how to build a

drawing through layers of information.

Readings ● Francis Ching, Design Drawing, Chapter 6: Pictorial Systems, 146–161

Architectural Graphics, Francis Ching – Plans (PDF, 2218.9 kb)

Module Coursework Complete all items in any Graded Coursework, Other Activities, and Quizzes

and Exams areas included in this module.