Shape as Memory A Geometric Theory of Architecture

How do buildings store information and experience in their shape and form? Michael Leyton has attracted considerable attention with his interpretation of geometrical form as a medium for the storage of information and memory. In this publication he draws

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Shape as Memory A Geometric Theory of Architecture

Birkhäuser – Publishers for Architecture Basel • Boston • Berlin

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress, Washington D.C., USA.

Deutsche Bibliothek Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bibliographic information published by Die Deutsche Bibliothek Die Deutsche Bibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data is available on the Internet at .

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, re-use of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in other ways, and storage in data banks. For any kind of use permission of the copyright owner must be obtained.

© 2006 Birkhäuser – Publishers for Architecture, P.O. Box 133, CH-4010 Basel, Switzerland. Part of Springer Science+Business Media Publishing Group. Printed on acid-free paper produced from chlorine-free pulp. TCF ∞ Printed in Germany ISBN-13: 978-3-7643-7690-1 ISBN-10: 3-7643-76902

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http://www.birkhauser.ch

Contents History

5

1. Geometry and Memory 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7

Introduction Conventional Geometry: Euclid to Einstein Special and General Relativity New Foundations to Geometry The Memory Roles of Symmetry and Asymmetry Basic Procedure for Recovering the Past Architecture

2. A Process-Grammar for Shape 2.1 Curvature as Memory Storage 2.2 General Symmetry Axes 2.3 Symmetry-Curvature Duality 2.4 The Interaction Principle 2.5 Undoing Curvature Variation 2.6 Extensive Application 2.7 A Grammatical Decomposition of the Asymmetry Principle 2.8 Process-Grammar and Asymmetry Principle 2.9 Scientific Applications of the Process-Grammar 2.10 Artistic Applications of the Process-Grammar 2.11 Architectural Applications of the Process-Grammar

3. Architecture as Maximal Memory Storage 3.1 Introduction 3.2 The Two Fundamental Principles 3.3 Groups 3.4 Generating a Shape by Transfer 3.5 Fiber and Control 3.6 Projection as Memory 3.7 Regularity in Classical Architecture 3.8 Breaking the Iso-Regularity 3.9 Reference Frames 3.10 New Theory of Symmetry-Breaking 3.11 Maximizing Memory Storage 3.12 Theory of Unfolding

4. Architecture and Computation 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5

Introduction New Foundations for Science New Foundations for Art New Foundations for Computation What is a Building?

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History by Antonino Saggio History, which we Italians are so interested in, and whose relation with design we have studied so intensely – just what relation does history have with computers? This is an apparently absurd question, but Michael Leyton answers it in this book. Let’s take things one step at a time. As you know, the great Italian architectural historian Bruno Zevi has always vehemently defended two theses. The first is that history is at the center of architectu