Publication

Missing the point(y bits): The superior architecture of Roger Walker and B. W. Mountfort viewed from an evolutionary perspective

Date
2016-12
Type
Conference Contribution - published
Fields of Research
Abstract
A preoccupation with surfaces and a primary concern for the building as a solid object still clouds our understanding of architecture. This explains the almost pathological need to relocate a later movement back to an earlier one. In the context of New Zealand architecture, the 1970s is merely a gaudier colonial throwback to the woody colonial throwback that couldn’t get past the novelty of the Middle Ages. In this paper I argue that if there is a connection between these "styles" it is grounded in a sensibility that is driven not by whim. Instead, this sensibility is driven by human evolutionary requirements that have not changed greatly in approximately two million years. Using prospect-refuge-hazard theory, after Appleton (1996), and the Kaplans' (1984) complexity, coherence, mystery and legibility tetrad, I attempt to demonstrate that the architecture of both Roger Walker, technical design flaws notwithstanding, and Benjamin Woolfield Mountfort offer exemplars of superior design for human habitats. Emphasis is placed upon the "affordances" created by their works and their sense of space within space.
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Creative Commons Rights
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