modernity in tradition

8/17/2019 Modernity in Tradition

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Modernity in tradition: Reflections on building design andtechnology in the Asian vernacular

• Mamun Rashid a, 1, ,

• Dilshad Rahat Arab, ,

Received 19 May 2014, Revised 1 ovember 2014, Acce!ted " ovember 2014, Available online

" #ebruary 201$

Abstract

%ernacular buildings across the globe !rovide instructive e&am!les of sustainable

solutions to building !roblems' (et, these solutions are assumed to be ina!!licable to

modern buildings' Des!ite some vie)s to the contrary, there continues to be a tendency

to consider innovative building technology as the hallmar* of modern architecture

because tradition is commonly vie)ed as the antonym of modernity' +he !roblem is

addressed by !ractical e&ercises and field)or* studies in the a!!lication of vernacular

traditions to current !roblems' +his study investigates some as!ects of mainstream

modernist design solutions and conce!ts inherent in the vernacular of Asia, !articularly

that of the hittagong -ill +racts .-+/' +his )or* hinges on such ideas and !ractices

as ecological design, modular and incremental design, standardiation, and fle&ible and

tem!oral conce!ts in the design of s!aces' +he blurred edges bet)een the traditional

and modern technical as!ects of building design, as addressed by both vernacular

builders and modern architects, are e&!lored'

ey)ords

• uilding technology3

• +raditionmodernity3

• 5nnovation3

• %ernacular architecture

1' 5ntroduction

urrently building technology and sustainable design are considered as fundamental to

the gro)ing field of contem!orary architecture' 6racticing architects have a challenging

res!onsibility to design buildings that are environmentally sustainable )ith the change in

the global concern regarding the use of energy and resources .7ines and 8odidio,

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2000,o&, 2009 and #riedman, 2012/' +his ne) res!onsibility has !rom!ted a sensible

shift in trend from a biased !reference of eyecatching, institutionalied building forms to

more organic, humble, yet energyefficient vernacular forms' Additionally, the local forms

of construction ca!italie on the users *no)ledge of ho) buildings can be effectively

designed to !romote cultural conservation and traditional )isdom .liver,

200" and Ra!o!ort, 200$/'

A number of !ractitioners are also ins!ired by building traditions, given that the local

vernacular forms have !roven to be energy efficient and ;green,< honed by local

resources, geogra!hy, and climate .#athy et al', 19=>, urtis, 199> and ?e)is, 2014/'

-o)ever, given the diversity of vernacular architecture in the global conte&t, the

techni@ues or technologybased research on vernacular architecture remains

sur!risingly limited beyond !erformancebased e&am!les' +his limitation stems from

multi!le factors, one being fundamentally hinged on the conventional notions of

;traditional< and ;modern< in the discourse of architecture'

5n the discussion of vernacular architecture, ambiguities arise from the meanings of

certain terms and conce!ts' +he )ords ;modern< and ;traditional< are often considered

as being in fundamental o!!osition to each other' ne tends to su!!ose that vernacular

architecture is a *ind of traditional architecture, distinct from modern architecture' 5n this

dualist vie), the traditional is ta*en to be ine!t or technologically crude .ourdier and

+rinh, 199>/'2 +his vie) not only establishes the vernacular as a distinct category, but

also im!lies that it is nearly immutable and static, ;indeed unim!rovable, since it serves

its !ur!ose to !erfection< .+onis et al', 2001/'"

-o)ever, a fragmented volume ofem!irically grounded )or*s on Asian vernacular d)ellings suggests that sly details,

materiality, as )ell as ada!tive and smarts!ace solutions and techni@ues are de!loyed

ingeniously as much .or more so/ by the local un*no)n builders in a traditional setting

as by modern illustrious architects'

+hese findings are shunned by the limited develo!ment in research that e&!licitly

addresses the a!!lication and use of vernacular *no)ledge and s*ills in contem!orary

architectural e&am!les .%ellinga and As@uith, 200>/'

1'1' co!e and a!!roaches

Dra)ing u!on the limitations, this study e&amines a s!ecific ty!e of vernacular

architecture, )hich is sho)n to be consistent )ith contem!orary design thin*ing and

!ractice' +he findings are based on a !rimary field)or* 4 conducted in the hittagong -ill

+racts .-+/, the hilly border region in the southeastern !art of angladesh' #rom an

ethnolinguistic !ers!ective, -+ is the most com!le& region of angladesh,$ and this

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com!le&ity is mirrored in the local hill settlements )ith distinctive, historically !erfected

features e&hibiting ecologically sound lessons for sustainable or green architecture'

Mainly dubbed as ;!rimitive< or ;indigenous< d)ellings, the aty!ical u!land e&am!les of

the Mru !eo!le are not seriously researched, remain outside architectural references,

and are limited to casual comments and !ictures@ue images . Ara and Rashid, 200"/'

+raditional hillethnic d)ellings in the hittagong -ills generally share stri*ing

similarities )ith some ty!ologies of outheast Asian traditional architecture rather than

outh Asian vernaculars .rauns and ?Bffler, 1990, >0/'

tarting )ith revie)s on the construction of modernism and its fuy boundaries in the

conte&t of architectural develo!ment, the follo)u! sections of this !a!er illustrate ho)

environmental issues and technology are manifested in Asian vernacular e&am!les'

Although the a!!roach is largely @ualitative, dra)ings and !hotos are used se@uentially

and analytically to ascertain the tem!oral dynamics of technology and s!aces .Crills,

199=, (in, 200", %an Maanen, 19=" and all and mith, 1992/' Analytical !oints are

grou!ed under themes and then discussed under thematic !arts' +he a!!roach avoids

argumentative !oints and leans on similarities rather than com!arative notes' elected

Asian vernacular e&am!les, aside from the -+, are dra)n into the discussion to

illustrate themes' +his )or* has t)o main obectives' #irst is to contribute to an

im!ortant debate on the relevance of any edge bet)een the traditional and modern

as!ects of design decisions and technology' +his !erceived ga! is a limiting factor in

a!!reciation of local forms and technology' econd is to highlight materiality, design

innovations, and ingenuity in local architecture, !articularly in Asian vernaculare&am!les, that are at !ar )ith or are more instructive than that in modern buildings' +his

conte&t o!ens u! !ossibilities for embracing vernacular as a model for technically honed

sustainable forms in the 21st century'

1'2' onte&t, material, innovation, and technology: !ath to modern architecture

+he conce!t of modernism in architecture is difficult to define des!ite being clearly

conceived in o!!osition to late 19th century historicism, and reecting historical

!recedents and traditional methods of building .hing et al', 2011 and urtis, 199>/'

Des!ite sho)ing strong !references for industrial building materials and !roduction, the

buildings of modern style have sim!le forms, visually e&!ressive structures, abstract

ornamentation, and functionality, in that there is a strong rational basis to the building

volumes' Modernism redefined the aesthetic a!!reciation of buildings to value clarity

and to highlight the !hiloso!hy ;less is more< in a!!earance and detail' 6arado&ically,

ho)ever, the early 20th century !ioneers of the movement also e&hibited strong

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!references for nature, environmental factors, structural !recision, and material integrity

E many of the features inherent in vernacular architecture' 7right tal*ed about organic

architecture in 190=, long before the term ;ecology< became fashionable' -e !ioneered

the ideas that buildings should be e&tensions of the environment and that their three

dimensional forms should de!end u!on the !ro!erties of materials .7ines and 8odidio,

2000, 22E2"/' Modern masters, such as orbusier and Aalto, aimed to build s!iritually

reviving environments in )hich man could live in harmony )ith nature . Menin and

amuel, 200", F",=1/' Aalto believed that the natural energy of light and air should filter

into the designed s!aces and thus develo!ed a variety of techni@ues to let natural light

into interior s!aces' ?e orbusier )as )ell *no)n for his dee! concern for ;sun, s!ace,

and greenery< in his designs' +he Australian architect and 6rit*er 6rie )inner Clenn

Murcutt is *no)n for designing earthfriendly structures .#igure 1/ that are

un!retentious, comfortable, and economical' -is design a!!roach res!onds to the site,

the )ind, and the sun, and he !rofesses to share the aboriginal !hiloso!hy ;touch the

earth lightly'< 5n another contem!orary e&am!le, 8eanMarie +ibaou ultural entre

.#igure 2/, Reno 6iano creates a seemingly im!ossible lin* bet)een the hightech and

the vernacular through a successful fusion of material, form, technology and !lanning

ideas borro)ed from the vernacular *no)ledge of the ana* tribe .7ines and 8odidio,

2000, 12>/'
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modernity in tradition

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