FOUNDATIONS REVIEW

In the FOUNDATIONS unit, we learned about the basic components needed for every successful design…Commodity, Firmness and Delight. Commodity describes the functionality of a design; firmness refers to how it is built and the structural integrity, while delight considers the appeal of the design.

We began the foundations unit by learning about commodity. At the birth of human innovation, structures were built strictly to meet the needs of the people. For example, some of the earliest human structures were composed of animal skins stretched over bones. These simple design ideas soon evolved into the use of circles, lines, artificial mountains, and rounded elements. This was evident in structures such as Stonehenge, which used roughly carved stones in post and lintel format arranged to form a collection of concentric circles.

We also studied the evolution from rough forms through the Egyptian and Mesopotamian culture. We learned that these peoples built innovative structures such as temples, tombs, pyramids, and ziggurats. Many of the structures built during the time of the Mesopotamian and Egyptians served a symbolic purpose. The pharos and others of royal power in ancient Egypt had intricate tombs built to represent their wealth in human life. This is the point at which social hierarchy began.
The Egyptians changed little throughout their rule in terms of architecture allowing their buildings to serve as foundations for the developing Greek culture. The Greeks used Egyptian architecture as a catalyst to new design advances which further developed the Greek style of design. One such innovation is the order of columns.

The Greek form of architecture then served as a foundation for Roman architecture. Romans used Greek ideas and made them more functional and elaborate in terms of design. For example: they used all of the Greek orders to adorn the Roman Colosseum. Yet the Romans began to innovate with forms such as the arch, derived from the post and lintel construction.

Studying the foundations unit allowed us to see that each culture needs it predecessor to develop their own unique form of architecture. Overall, I learned that progress is not possible without looking back at successful precedents.