Architectural Design

1st ProofTitle: BA: Architectural Design

Job No: PD0710-67/4028

Chapter 2 final_.qxd:layouts to chapter one 7/24/10 9:01 AM Page 40

The design process

Problem solving

Making and reflecting

Nothing is genuinely fixed or real until the building is

constructed. Therefore, the design possibilities can seem

endless. The architect needs to find ways to simulate or

represent their ideas and proposals; such as drawing or

modelling, for example. The different tools that can be used

to communicate ideas have their own varying qualities. For

example, clay is mouldable and can be used to create fluid

external forms, but it is also heavy and unsuitable for creating

internal spaces or slender shells. Design decisions are being

made in a constant feedback loop while the drawing or

model is being crafted. These decisions are influenced by the

tool or media being used. Designers benefit from the creative

possibilities of craft and the act of making; ideas can be

sparked by ‘happy accidents’. It is important to have a broad

range of craft skills and to understand the limitations and

possibilities of each design tool.

Every architect follows an iterative cycle of making, followed

by reflecting, followed by making again. Making and

reflecting will enable you to acknowledge the possibilities

and limitations of your own design process – and therefore

become a better designer – and also to test out the

effectiveness of your proposed design solutions.

Diagram by Christian Gänshirt

Tools influence the process and

product of expression of an idea and

therefore our perception of it. The

designer will reflect upon the result

and be influenced by this to further

develop their ideas. Gänshirt

suggests that design is a complex

activity that is difficult to define but it

‘can also be approached and

described by means of the tools and

cultural techniques deployed in the

design process. Looking at it from

this point of view helps achieve an

appropriate degree of detachment

from personal working methods, and

makes it possible to see the

fundamental relations between

individual activities.’

thinking

perception

expression

visual verbal

tools

Text

1st ProofTitle: BA: Architectural Design

Job No: PD0710-67/4028

Chapter 2 final_.qxd:layouts to chapter one 7/24/10 9:02 AM Page 40