Architecture

Permanent URI for this community

http://hdl.handle.net/11660/92

Browse

Browsing Architecture by Author "Auret, Hendrik Andries"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Care, place and architecture: a critical reading of Christian Norberg-Schulz’s architectural interpretation of Martin Heidegger’s philosophy
    (University of the Free State, 2015-05) Auret, Hendrik Andries; Peters, Walter; Duvenage, Pieter
    English: This thesis questions the theoretical contribution of the renowned 20th century Norwegian architect and theorist, Christian Norberg-Schulz (1926-2000), by considering the cogency of his pioneering architectural ‘translation’ of the prominent German philosopher, Martin Heidegger’s (1889-1976) writings. It is argued that Norberg-Schulz neglected one of the key aspects of Heidegger’s philosophical contributions; the temporal nature of Dasein’s concerned being-in-the-world as care (Sorge). Heidegger’s concept of care simultaneously acknowledged the way human dwellers are ‘concerned about’ their mortal existence, and how they cultivate their world by ‘taking care’. Instead of referring to Heidegger’s formulation of lived temporality (as Norberg- Schulz did when describing the emplaced nature of lived spatiality), Norberg-Schulz relied on his mentor, the Swiss historian and architecture critic, Sigfried Giedion’s (1888-1968), understanding of time as ‘continuity and change’. Norberg-Schulz’s failure to develop the temporal implications of Heidegger’s ontological concept of care, constitutes the principal omission that prevents the fruition of Norberg-Schulz’s ultimate aim; transforming his “art of place” (stedskunst) into the “art of the experience of living” (2000b: 356) (livskunst). As an alternative, it is proposed that Norberg-Schulz’s art of place be elaborated upon (and re-interpreted) in terms of a new approach grounded in Heidegger’s understanding of concerned being-in-the-world; the art of care. The main contribution of this thesis consists in composing the art of care as the phenomenological ‘ground’ enabling the architectural poiesis of Dasein’s concerned (ecstatic) temporality. By grafting the art of care into the art of place, new possibilities are revealed within Norberg-Schulz’s oeuvre. In the marriage of the art of care and the art of place dwells the potential for appreciating and designing works of architecture as livskunst. Livskunst celebrates building as the care-full poiesis of human being-in-the-world. Secondary aims include formulating a comprehensive understanding of Norberg-Schulz’s theoretical contribution and describing the difficulties that ensue from engaging with time as continuity and change. The conceptual development of the art of care calls for a form of critical reading based on Heidegger’s account of the hermeneutic “circle”. Since Heidegger believed that Dasein is a “circular being”, grounded in the circular “structure of care” (1927a: 315), this hermeneutic approach offers the most appropriate way to engage with Dasein's emplaced existence within regions of concern.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    The poetics of architecture: a house of culture for the Khomani San
    (University of the Free State, 2006) Auret, Hendrik Andries
    The Poetics of Architecture serves as a theoretical basis in an attempt to understand and interpret the poetic qualities of san life in a contemporary investigation of an ancient culture- a society oscillating between formal (scientific/modern) and informal (traditional) knowledge- thought and feeling. The most comprehensive effort to preserve the cultures and traditions of the San resulted from a remarkable tale revolving around two families: on the one hand there lived a German immigrant and Philologist, Doctor Wilhelm Bleek, his wife Jemima and their four daughters, and Jemima’s unmarried sister, Lucy Lloyd. On the other hand were an extended family of /Xam San from the North Western Cape (Skotnes 1996: 93). The Bleek and Lloyd archive is a 13,000 page record documenting this relationship. The organization of this archive will serve as base for the ordering and structure of this thesis. The Bleek and Lloyd records seem to maintain a linear progression with a /Xamtext in the right hand column and an English translation on the left. The stories and the method to measure the timeframe of their occurrence were, however, not linear. To accommodate this, a parallel text was used on the left hand page. The story was hereby made multi-dimensional and the process of reading was made an active and mobile process (ibid: 23). In this sense the depth and richness of the world surrounding the stories was revealed. This method will serve as instrument to uncover the many hidden strands of thought that run through this text on a parallel plane. San thoughts and ideas (narratives), illustrations, related subjects, poems or precedents accompany the main text as a thread- tying together and uniting a wealth of ideas and resources. Another method used to “unconceal” the deep-rooted nature of these ideas is found within an analogy with the bow. The bow has been a constant companion in the pursuit to relate architectural investigations with San ideas. It is a touchstone that closely follows John Ruskin’s (Selections from the writings of John Ruskin: 384-385) ideas regarding poetics of the first order: a place of fiery subjective passion accompanied by a steady, logical mind that can unwaveringly convey the rational truth. The bow oscillates between these poles. The bow is held in place by the string. The string constantly struggles against the forces of the branch. When the string is broken, tension fades and all is lost within the complacency and cold, unfeeling gaze of the poet of the second order (no light or heat). The bow-in constant tension- is a call towards the poetic. The string can not remain broken...