Andrea Gleiniger Book order

As models and paradigms, patterns have been helping to orient architects since the Middle Ages. But patterns are also the basis of the history of ornament, an aesthetic phenomenon that links all times and cultures at a fundamental level. Ornament – and hence pattern as well – was abolished by the avant-garde in the first half of the twentieth century, but the notion of pattern has taken on new meaning and importance since the 1960s. Complexity research has ultimately shown that even highly complex, dynamic patterns may be based on simple behavioral rules, and that has allowed the notions of pattern and pattern formation to take on new meanings, that are also central for architecture. Today the use of generative computerized methods is opening up new ways of talking about an idea that is becoming increasingly abstract and dynamic. Pattern explores the question: what are the notions of pattern that must be discussed in the context of contemporary architecture?

Digitalization has transformed the discourse of architecture: that discourse is now defined by a wealth of new terms and concepts that previously either had no meaning, or had different meanings, in the context of architectural theory and design. Its concepts and strategies are increasingly shaped by influences emerging at the intersection with scientific and cultural notions from modern information technology. The new series Context Architecture seeks to take a critical selection of concepts that play a vital role in the current discourse and put them up for discussion. In the context of discussions of the medial, the notion of simulation plays a central role in architecture as illusion and imitation. In dialogue with information technology and computer science, however, that notion has now taken on a new quality in architectural discourse. Today when we speak of simulation we primarily think of „computer simulation,“ the technical ability to simulate processes. Whereas simulation used to refer to a mode of presentation, it now connects architecture with the sciences and represents a strategic and methodological instrument, a tool of discovery. With the scientific principle of simulation the focus shifts to the idea of „modeling a dynamic system“ (Norbert Wiener), not just presenting finished products but going in search of solutions and developing systems!

Digitalization has reshaped architectural discourse, introducing a range of new terms and concepts that either lacked meaning or had different interpretations in architectural theory and design. These concepts and strategies are increasingly influenced by the intersection of scientific and cultural ideas stemming from modern information technology. The series Context Architecture aims to critically examine key concepts vital to contemporary discourse. Vitruvius's notion of the architect as a "uomo universale" fostered a self-image of architects as generalists navigating complex realities. However, the architectural understanding of complexity lagged behind industrial and social developments, becoming a superficial notion applicable to various contexts. In contrast, architectural modernism promoted simplification with the mantra "less is more." Robert Venturi reintroduced complexity into architectural discussions, aiming to not only restore the richness of architectural forms and their histories but also to engage with the concrete realities of the built environment. Today, complexity studies, rooted in physics, shape the contemporary understanding of complexity, forging new connections between natural sciences and information technology, and becoming a cornerstone of computer-based design approaches.

In 1997, the Zentrum fur Kunst und Medientechnologie moved into a former munitions factory, built in 1918. Hamburg architects, Schweger + Partner, were commissioned to convert this industrial structure. The result is unique, as a dialogue was initiated between the four-story factory with its extensive atria and its new users.

160 pages, with 262 illustrations, 131 in colour. Translated from the German by John Brownjohn. Bound in the publisher's original light grey cloth with the spine stamped in black. Text is in English, German, French, and Spanish.