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Conceptualization
Techniques of
Architectural Design
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Design Concept
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• late 1800s - search for an
explanation for an origin
for life that did not
require God as the
designer.
• status of the creative
designer was elevated by
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formalising the
architectural profession.
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Design Concepts
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Concept = initial idea, plan or intention, or design
approach based on
- perception of the design problem
- response to the design situation
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Conceptualization Techniques
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Architectural Concepts -- the means
for translating the non-physical problem
statement into the physical building
product.
• Every project has within it what might be
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described as PRIME ORGANIZERS, CENTRAL
THEMES, CRITICAL ISSUES OR PROBLEM
ESSENCES.
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Conceptualization Techniques
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CONCEPTS Sometimes called the ‘Big Idea’, ‘Basic
Framework’ or ‘Primary Organizer’
May be process or product oriented,
takes place at any stage in the design
process, occur at any scale, be generated
from several sources, have a hierarchal
nature, and may be plural in number and
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concern in any building.
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Conceptualization Techniques
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General categories under w/c concerns &
issues of a building may be listed and
addressed in design are:
• Functional zoning
• Architectural space
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• Circulation & building form
• Response to context
• Building envelope
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Design Concepts
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ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS
The designer’s way of responding to the
design situation presented in the program.
They are the means for translating the non-
physical problem into the physical building
product.
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Design Concepts
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ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS
Program -- a statement prepared by or for an
owner, with or without an architect’s assistance
• Setting forth the conditions and objectives
for a building project including general
purpose and detail requirements such as
complete listing of the rooms, required sizes,
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special facilities, etc.
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Design Concepts
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ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS
Functional zoning
• a term used to describe the phenomenon when
buildings of the same function cluster together in an
area of a city or town.
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Design Concepts
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ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS
Architectural space
• Concepts are sometimes seen in the use of spaces.
It demonstrates the relationship of each space to
another.
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Design Concepts
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ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS
Circulation and building
form
• Building forms have
been studied in terms
of their circulation
characteristics with
respect to occupancy.
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• Design concepts may
also be expressed in
the physical form of
the building.
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Design Concepts
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ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS
Response to Context
• It is composed of the solution related to the site of the
project.
• How they respond to the context and the issues given
in the problem
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Design Concepts
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ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS
Building Envelope
• This facilitates climate control, how they design the
project internally and externally to add to the
structural integrity, moisture control, temperature
control and control of air pressure boundaries.
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Design Concepts
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DESIGN CONCEPT
VISUALIZATION
Perception
• Interpretation of sensory
information by the brain,
e.g. Visual, auditory,
olfactory, gustatory,
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tactile of proprioceptive,
with the aim of
developing
understanding prior to
action
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Design Concepts
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DESIGN CONCEPT
VISUALIZATION
Intuition
• A mode of
understanding,
characterized as being
direct, immediate and
occurring without
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conscious thought or
judgment, which is a
response to subtle
cues and relationships
known implicitly
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Conceptualization Techniques
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Context for Concept Getting
1. General philosophy and life values of the
Designer -- some psychological categories
that combine to influence the formation of a
design philosophy & w/c affect the making of
design decisions are:
a. Motivation and interest
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b. Enhancement of self-image
c. Dependence or non-dependence of outside
reinforcement of self-worth
d. Expansion of one’s sphere of influence.
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Conceptualization Techniques
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Context for Concept Getting
2. Design philosophy of the designer -- The
designer thru his training and experience, has
usually developed a design philosophy, a set of
posture or values about design which he relies
upon for making form in building design.
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Conceptualization Techniques
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Context for Concept Getting
3. View of the problem by the designer -- the
way that the designer perceives, understands
and describes that project occurs within the
framework of his life values and design views.
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The Haines Shoe House located on Shoe House Road between the Lincoln Highway
(state route 462) and U.S. Route 30 (Architect: Mahlon Haines)
Shoe House, Mpumalanga, South Africa (Designed by Ron Van Zyl)
The High Heel Wedding Church, Budai
township, Chiayi County, Taiwan
100 people capacity, holds a Guinness World
Record as the largest high-heel shoe-shaped
structure.
Design Concepts
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Design approaches:
• Functional - function first?
• Contextual - site-congruent or the opposite
• Formal - proportion, scale, form
• Conceptual - thought-provoking, exploratory
• Collaborative - co-operative designing
• Material - site or history based
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Functional Concept
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Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Hollywood
Functional Concept
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Ferrari World, Abu Dhabi (Benoy Architects)
Functional Concept
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Villa Savoye, Paris, France (Architects: Le Corbusier & Pierre Jeanneret)
Functional Concept
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Queensland State Library, Australia (Architect: James Stapleton)
Contextual Concept
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Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Maine, USA
Architect: Edward Larrabee Barnes
Contextual Concept
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National Library of Sejong City, Korea (Samoo Architects & Engineers)
Contextual Concept
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Panguipulli Hotel, Chile (De La Huerta & Gleixner Arquitectos)
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Contextual Concept
Formal Concept
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House in Kosai (Shuhei Gota Architects)
Formal Concept
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Villa Savoye, Paris, France (Architects: Le Corbusier & Pierre Jeanneret)
Formal Concept
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Rainier Tower, Seattle
Architect: Minoru Yamasaki
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Norway
Formal Concept
Conceptual
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Freedom Memorial Museum, UP Diliman
Conceptual
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Yokohama International Passenger Terminal
Architects: Alejandro Zaera Polo and Farshid Moussav
Conceptual
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The Turning Torso
Architect: Calatrava
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Conceptual
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BBC Music Center (Foreign Office Architects)
Material Concept
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Reynolds Metals Building, Southfield MI,
Minoru Yamasaki & Associates, 1967.
Material Concept
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Proposed MMDA Building
Material Concept
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Proposed MMDA Building
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Material Concept
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Beijing National Stadium
Architects: Herzog de Meuron & Chinese Architect Li Xinggang
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Material Concept
