The Golden Section in Architectural Theory

The never-ending—but always young—discussion about the Golden Section in architecture never lacks a hint at Luca Pacioli and architectural theory. But what it always lacks is a thorough study of the Golden Section in architectural theory. This paper aims to present this analysis. Marcus Frings traces the Golden Section from the mathematical and rather theoretical character of Pacioli’s concept, the the treatises of Alberti, Serlio, and Palladio, to Adolf Zeising in the nineteenth century. and to theorist Matila Ghyka and the practitioners Ernst Neufert and Le Corbusier in the twentieth. In the latter’s writings and designs the Golden Section seems to play the role of a scholarly element which shows the master’s theoretical erudition, leading to contemporary architects such as Ricardo Bofill.     

The Young Experimentalists

Experimental architecture in Italy began to take a new form in the 1990s when young architects, who were embracing new digital technologies, also began to go abroad to study and practise in greater numbers. Anna Baldini outlines a fecund strand in Italian architecture which, while no longer wholly new or youthful, retains its vitality. She highlights, in particular, the contributions of: Avatar Architettura, Gianluca Brini, Elastico spa+3, Exposure Architects, Giuliano Fausti, Luisa Fontana, Giorgio Goffi, ian+, Iotti+Pavarani Architetti, Fabrizio Leoni, ma0/emmeazero, Antonella Mari, Metrogramma, Open Building Research (OBR), RoccAtelier, studio.eu and Vulcanica Achitettura. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Confronting the Contemporary: Stefano Boeri

Diego Caramma describes Stefano Boeri's pervasive influence on architectural thought in recent years as editor of Domus, exhibition curator and founder of the Multiplicity urban research platform. As he explains, Boeri's significance lies in his ability to confront contemporary conditions for architecture rather than just the dissemination of current trends and ideas. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Metrogramma

Luigi Prestinenza Puglisi describes how the two principals of Metrogramma, an emerging office in Milan, drew on their postgraduate experiences in New York and the Netherlands to inform the dynamic manner in which they practise. Building up their practice through strategic urban planning, they are now setting their sights on major architectural schemes. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Renaissance, Geometry and Architecture

Students at the Istituto statale d’arte in Monza were asked to consider the Renaissance man as a model for interdisciplinary studies in a project in which they analyzed works of architecture and geometry texts of the Renaissance.     

Emerging Technologies and Drawings: The Futures of Images in Architectural Design

Mark Garcia , Senior Lecturer in History and Theory in the Department of Architecture, University of Greenwich, explores the technologically mediated future of drawings in architecture ‘without hands’. He highlights how multiple technological innovations are putting us on the brink of an exploding spectrum of possibilities for the image, and looks at three distinct areas of potential: new media and materials; emerging and future technologies; and theory embodied in fiction and art.     

Experiences in a Modeling Laboratory: Didactic Exhibit curated by the Istituto Statale d’Arte di Monza in collaboration with the Liceo Artistico di Busto Arsizio

The model-building laboratory, more than just a place for building models, is a place of study, research, thought processes, and ideation; the place where the acquisition and transmission of knowledge constitutes a fundamental method for growth both for the students as well as the instructors; the place where disciplines are not always considered akin can meet and be compared. Architecture and mathematics come together in this exhibit for Nexus 2000 at the Museum of Architecture (MusArc) in Ferrara, Italy.     

The Golden Section

To Renaissance mathematician Luca Pacioli, it was the Divine Proportion. To German astronomer Johannes Kepler, it was a precious jewel. The only proportion to increase simultaneously by geometric progression and by simple addition, the Golden Section achieves unity among diverse elements in remarkably efficient ways. We explore the Golden Ratio 1: ϕ , also known as the Golden Mean, and its appearance in the regular pentagon and other geometric constructions.     

Leonardo and Theoretical Mathematics

Leonardo’s mathematical notes bear witness to a work in progress and allow us to look directly into the mind of the writer. In Leonardo we find two of the three fundamental classical geometric problems: the duplication of the cube and the quadrature of the circle. While Leonardo is extremely familiar with two-dimensional geometry problems, and proposes playful graphic exercises of adding and subtracting polygonal surfaces of all kinds, he is still unable to solve the problem of the duplication of the cube. Numerous pages testify of the attempt to rise above planar geometry and reach the realm of the third dimension, but Leonardo always bumps against the limits of quantity calculation possibilities of his age.     

In the Palm of Leonardo’s Hand: Modeling Polyhedra

George W. Hart presents three examples of new computer-based “3D printing” techniques for recreating the historically important polyhedral models of Leonardo da Vinci and Luca Pacioli. It is hoped that such models will inspire students and the public to appreciate the history and beauty of polyhedra for architectural and other applications.