Structuralism (architecture)


Structuralism is a movement in architecture and urban planning evolved around the middle of the 20th century. It was a reaction to Rationalism's perceived lifeless expression of urban planning that ignored the identity of the inhabitants and urban forms.
Structuralism in a general sense is a mode of thought of the 20th century, which originated in linguistics. Other disciplines like anthropology, psychology, economy, philosophy and also art took on structuralist ideas and developed them further. An important role in the development of structuralism played Russian Formalism, also the School of Prague. Roland Barthes, a key figure of structuralist thought, argued that there was no complete structuralist philosophy but only a structuralist method.
Dutch architects of structuralism did studies in a similar way as Claude Lévi-Strauss and were interested in the principle "langue et parole" by Ferdinand de Saussure, especially for the theme participation.
At the beginning of the general article Structuralism, the following explanations are noted: "Structuralism is a theoretical paradigm emphasizing that elements of culture must be understood in terms of their relationship to a larger, overarching system or structure." – Alternately, as summarized by philosopher Simon Blackburn: "Structuralism is the belief that phenomena of human life are not intelligible except through their interrelations. These relations constitute a structure, and behind local variations in the surface phenomena there are constant laws of abstract culture."

Structuralism and Postmodernism

In Europe, structuralism had a strong influence on the theoretical debate up to the end of the late 1960s. In its endeavor to offer an alternative to classical modern architecture, it was paralleled by New Brutalism. By 1975, structuralist philosophy lost its predominant position in the humanities due to important social and political changes. In architecture, its position was undermined by the increasing popularity of postmodern architecture promoted by authors such as Charles Jencks, Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown. Structuralist ideas kept up to inform the work of important architects during and after the postmodern era, which is estimated to have ended by 1995.
, Primary structure: two towers, secondary elements: capsules, 1972
, Prototype of an interpretable, adaptable and expandable architecture, 1967
, in 1960 Kenzo Tange designed the structuralist Tokyo Bay Plan
The theoretical concepts of structuralism in architecture were developed mainly in Europe and Japan, with important contributions of the United States and Canada. Contributions in architectural magazines by Arnulf Lüchinger and his compilation of structuralist projects published in 1980 introduced structuralism to a wider audience. Important assessments concerning structuralist theory in architecture have been made by Kenneth Frampton and Jürgen Joedicke.
In the 2010s, a new interest in structuralism in architecture can be detected, although it can be established that it is not paralleled by a revival of structuralism in the humanities. In 2011, a comprehensive scientific compilation of "structuralist activity" appeared in a publication called Structuralism Reloaded. In this extensive book, articles by 47 international authors were published about philosophical, historical, artistic and other relevant aspects. The following parts of this article are based on the current state of the publication Structuralism Reloaded.
A few months after publishing this book, the RIBA Institute in London discussed the new candidates for the RIBA Gold Medal in 2012. An actual question was: "Should the Venturis be given this year's RIBA Gold Medal?" Surprisingly enough, the RIBA-committee did not award the Venturis with their postmodernist view, and instead, gave Herman Hertzberger the prize for his structuralist architecture and theoretical contributions. The times had changed and a shift in emphasis had occurred. The comment of the former RIBA president Jack Pringle was: "The Royal Gold Medal, Britain's most prestigious award, should go to an architect that has taken us forward, not backwards." Today, postmodern architecture can be compared, to some degree with the architectural movement, Traditionalismus, in Europe.

Various movements and directions

The anthropologist, Claude Lévi-Strauss, remarked: "I do not believe that we can still speak of one structuralism. There were a lot of movements that claimed to be structuralist." This diversity can also be found in architecture. However, architectural structuralism has an autonomy that does not comply with all the principles of structuralism in human sciences. In architecture, the different directions have created different images. In this article two directions are discussed. Sometimes these occur in combination.
On the one hand, there is the Aesthetics of Number which was formulated by Aldo van Eyck in 1959. This concept can be compared to cellular tissue. The most influential prototype of this direction is the orphanage in Amsterdam by Aldo van Eyck, completed in 1960. The "Aesthetics of Number" can also be described as "Spatial Configurations in Architecture" or "Mat-Building".
On the other hand, there is the Architecture of Lively Variety which was formulated for user participation in housing by John Habraken in 1961. Also, in the 1960s, many well-known utopian projects were based on the principle of "Structure and infill". An influential prototype of this direction is the Yamanashi Culture Chamber in Kofu by Kenzo Tange, completed in 1967.
In relation to housing projects with participation Herman Hertzberger used the terms "Architecture as half-product" or "Open structures" and Alejandro Aravena the terms "Participatory design process", "Incremental housing" and "Half-houses".

Origins

Structuralism in architecture and urban planning had its origins in the Congrès International d'Architecture Moderne after World War II. Between 1928 and 1959, the CIAM was an important platform for the discussion of architecture and urbanism. Various groups with often conflicting views were active in this organization; for example, members with a scientific approach to architecture without aesthetic premises, members who regarded architecture as an art form, members who were proponents of high- or low-rise building, members supporting a course of reform after World War II, members of the old guard and so on.
Individual members of the small splinter group Team 10 laid the foundations for Structuralism. The influence of this team was later interpreted by second generation protagonist Herman Hertzberger when he said: "I am a product of Team 10." As a group of avant-garde architects, Team 10 was active from 1953 to 1981, and two different movements emerged from it: the New Brutalism of the English members and the Structuralism of the Dutch members.
, "Dutch Structuralism", 1960
, 1973
, 1985
office building in Apeldoorn, 1972
Outside Team 10, other ideas developed that furthered the Structuralist movement - influenced by the concepts of Louis Kahn in the United States, Kenzo Tange in Japan and John Habraken in the Netherlands. Herman Hertzberger, Lucien Kroll and Alejandro Aravena made important architectural contributions in the field of participation.
In 1960, the Japanese architect Kenzo Tange designed his well-known Tokyo Bay Plan. Reflecting later on the initial phase of that project, he said: "It was, I believe, around 1959 or at the beginning of the sixties that I began to think about what I was later to call Structuralism." Tange also wrote the article "Function, Structure and Symbol, 1966", in which he describes the transition from a functional to a structural approach in thinking. Tange considers the period from 1920 to 1960 under the heading of "Functionalism" and the time from 1960 onwards under the heading of "Structuralism".
Le Corbusier created several early projects and built prototypes in a Structuralist mode, some of them dating back to the 1920s. Although he was criticized by the members of Team 10 in the 1950s for certain aspects of his work, they nevertheless acknowledged him as a great model and creative personality in architecture and art.

Manifesto

One of the most influential manifestos for the Structuralist movement was compiled by Aldo van Eyck in the architectural magazine Forum 7/1959. It was drawn up as the programme for the International Congress of Architects in Otterlo in 1959. The central aspect of this issue of Forum was a frontal attack on the Dutch representatives of CIAM-Rationalism who were responsible for the reconstruction work after World War II,. The magazine contains many examples of and statements in favour of a more human form of urban planning. This congress in 1959 marks the official start of Structuralism, although earlier projects and buildings did exist. Only since 1969 has the term "Structuralism" been used in publications in relation to architecture.
Another influential manifesto is published by John Habraken in 1961. His book Supports: An Alternative to Mass Housing is the beginning of participation in architecture, as part of the structuralist movement. This manifesto is published in the languages Dutch, English, Italian, Spanish and German.

Otterlo Congress – participants

Some presentations and discussions that took place during the Otterlo Congress in 1959 are seen as the beginning of Structuralism in architecture and urbanism. These presentations had an international influence. In the book CIAM '59 in Otterlo the names of the 43 participating architects are listed. While the term structuralism in architecture was published for the first time in 1969.
L. Miquel, Alger / Aldo van Eyck, Amsterdam / Josep Antoni Coderch, Barcelona / Wendell Lovett, Bellevue-Washington / Werner Rausch, Berlin /, Bruxelles / Ch. Polonyi, Budapest / M. Siegler, Genf / P. Waltenspuhl, Genf /, Graz / Chr. Fahrenholz, Hamburg / Alison Smithson, London / Peter Smithson, London / Giancarlo de Carlo, Milan / Ignazio Gardella, Milan / Vico Magistretti, Milan / Ernesto Nathan Rogers, Milan / Blanche Lemco van Ginkel, Montreal / Sandy van Ginkel, Montreal /, Nieuwpoort / Geir Grung, Oslo / Arne Korsmo, Oslo / Georges Candilis, Paris / Aljoša Josić, Paris / André Wogenscky, Paris / Shadrach Woods, Paris / Louis Kahn, Philadelphia /, Porto / F. Tavora, Porto / Jacob B. Bakema, Rotterdam / Herman Haan, Rotterdam / J.M. Stokla, Rotterdam / John Voelcker, Staplehurst / Ralph Erskine, Stockholm / Kenzo Tange, Tokyo / Terje Moe, Trondheim / Oskar Hansen, Warszawa /, Warszawa / Jerzy Sołtan, Warszawa /, Wien / Eduard F. Sekler, Wien /, Zagreb /, Zurich.

Definition of the structuralist form

Since structuralism has different directions, there is more than one definition. The theoretical contribution by Herman Hertzberger belongs to the most interesting versions. A recent and often cited statement by Hertzberger is: "In Structuralism, one differentiates between a structure with a long life cycle and infills with shorter life cycles."
A more detailed description by Hertzberger was published in 1973. It is a structuralist definition in a general sense, but also the basis concept for user participation: "The fact that we put 'form' in a central position with respect to such notions as 'space' or 'architecture', means in itself no more than a shifting of accent. What we are talking about is in fact another notion of form than that, which premises a formal and unchanging relationship between object and viewer, and maintains this. It is not an outward form wrapped around the object that matters to us, but form in the sense of inbuilt capacity and potential vehicle of significance. Form can be filled-in with significance, but can also be deprived of it again, depending on the use that's made of it, through the values we attach to, or add to it, or which we even deprive it of, - all this dependent on the way in which the users and the form react to, and play on each other. The case we want to put is, that it is this capacity to absorb, carry and convey significance that defines what form can bring about in the users - and conversely - what the users can bring about in the form. What matters is the interaction of form and users, what they convey to each other and bring about in each other, and how they mutually take possession of each other. What we have to aim for, is, to form the material in such a way that - as well as answering to the function in the narrower sense - it will be suitable for more purposes. And thus, it will be able to play as many roles as possible in the service of the various, individual users, - so that everyone will then be able to react to it for himself, interpreting it in his own way, annexing it to his familiar environment, to which it will then make a contribution." p. 56
in Zurich, "Structure and Infill by the architect", 1963-67
, 1961
, 1976
in Hannover
, Bern 2005
Compared to other directions of structuralism in architecture, the following clarifications are noted: "In the new architectural movement there is often a tendency to call everything Structuralist that resembles a woven texture and has a grid. This would be a superficial way of looking at things. By nature Structuralism is concerned with the configuration of conditioned and polyvalent units of form at all urban scales. Only when the users have taken possession of the structures through contact, interpretation or filling-in the details, do the structures achieve their full status. Any architecture that has a tendency to formalism is thus excluded. Flexible form, which has been much discussed, is also rejected as a neutral enclosing system, since it does not offer the appropriate solution for any spatial programme. In the architecture of Herman Hertzberger Structuralist form can be found from the smallest detail up to the most complicated structure, whether it is in terms of spatial, facade or environmental design." p. 5
The next quotation is a definition of structuralism in different fields. It also discusses the autonomy of the primary structure: "Many Structuralists would describe a structure roughly in the following terms: it is a complete set of relationships, in which the elements can change, but in such a way that these remain dependent on the whole and retain their meaning. The whole is independent of its relationship to the elements. The relationships between the elements are more important than the elements themselves. The elements are interchangeable, but not the relationships." p. 16

Theoretical origins, principles and aspects

The principle Structure and Infill remains relevant until now, both for housing schemes and urban planning. For housing schemes the following images were influential: the perspective drawing of the project "Fort l'Empereur" in Algiers by Le Corbusier, the isometric drawing of the housing scheme "Diagoon" in Delft by Herman Hertzberger and the realized social housing projects by Alejandro Aravena in the 21st century. At city level, important projects were: the Tokyo Bay Plan of Kenzo Tange and the fascinating images of the model of the Free University of Berlin by Candilis Josic & Woods. Also, worth mentioning are the utopias of Metabolism, Archigram and Yona Friedman. In general, instruments for urban structuring are: traffic lines, symmetries, squares, remarkable buildings, rivers, seashore, green areas, hills etc. These methods were also used in previous cities.
The principle Aesthetics of Number proved to be less useful for structuring an entire city. However, exemplary articulated configurations did arise, both in architecture and housing schemes. The first influential images for this direction Aldo van Eyck provided with aerial photos of his orphanage in Amsterdam. Later he built another inspiring configuration for the Space Centre Estec in Noordwijk. These two compositions can be counted among the most beautiful "icons" of structuralism.

Housing estates, buildings and projects

, 2006
, terminal 4
A characteristic of structuralism in architecture is the configuration with units of structure, in different variations. In the book Structuralism in Architecture and Urban Planning the buildings and projects are published under the following titles:

Aesthetics of number

The term "aesthetics of number" is introduced by Aldo van Eyck in the architectural magazine Forum 7/1959. In his article van Eyck showed two works of art: a structuralist painting by the contemporary artist Richard Paul Lohse and a Kuba textile by an African artist of the "primitive" culture. The combination of these two cultures has a symbolic meaning in the structuralist movement. The outward appearance of this architecture is unchangeable.

Structure and infill – two-components approach – participation

In the 1960s the Dutch structuralists criticised the narrowness of the functional principle "Form Follows Function". In historic cities they found solutions for a more relevant form principle: an interpretable, adaptable and expandable architecture. In the magazine Forum they developed ideas about "Polyvalent form and individual interpretations", "Reciprocity of form", "Structure and infill" and "Participation". Herman Hertzberger also used the terms "Architecture as half-product" and "Open structures".
The initiator of participation in architecture, as part of the structuralist movement, was John Habraken. In 1961 he published the book Supports: An Alternative to Mass Housing in different languages. In the 21st century architect Alejandro Aravena from Chile is working with similar principles of participation. In relation to his social housing projects Aravena is talking about "Participatory design process", "Half-houses for participation" and "Incremental housing". Although Aravena was awarded the Pritzker-Prize in 2016 for his architectural work, there are no photos on Wikipedia of his housing projects. In place of the missing photos, there are photos of the cities in this article. Illustrations of his housing projects can be found on Google with the added addresses. In 2008, for the Triennale in Milan Alejandro Aravena built a prototype of a "Half-house" in a similar way as the Pavillon de l'Esprit Nouveau in Paris by Le Corbusier in 1925.
Structure and infill – vertical and horizontal communication units
Participation in housing
Participation with "Half-houses", five social housing projects in Chile, Mexico and Italy, realized by Alejandro Aravena:

Other structures

Urban structuring – the art of town planning – overarching structures

Historic cities

Examples of urban planning and urban structuring. About the relation between historic and contemporary architecture Le Corbusier wrote: "I was labelled a revolutionary, whereas my greatest teacher was the Past. My so-called revolutionary ideas are straight out of the history of architecture itself." Quotation in No.2.

Historic cities – reciprocity of form

In Forum 2/1962 Jacob Bakema made a study on the principle "reciprocity of form" and "participation", especially on the Diocletian's Palace in Split. In Forum 3/1962 Herman Hertzberger did research on the Roman amphitheatres in Arles and Lucca. Later, in 1966 the idea of the amphitheatre in Arles was taken over by Aldo Rossi in his book The Architecture of the City. In 1976 Reyner Banham presented the Ponte Vecchio in Florence as one of the historic prototypes in his book Megastructure.

New cities

New cities in the twentieth century. The term "Urban Structuring" is introduced by Alison and Peter Smithson, the term "Articulations" by Herman Hertzberger. Both terms are used as a title of an architectural book.

Residential areas, large and small scale

Themes of Team 10

In 1957, Jacob Bakema and members of a re-organisationcommittee of CIAM called for the alteration of the name "CIAM: Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne" to "CIAM: Groupe de Recherches des Interrelations Sociales et Plastiques". Two years later, the themes for the new "Working group for the investigation of interrelationships between social and built structures" were published in the magazine Forum 7/1959. This magazine was also the program for the congress CIAM '59 in Otterlo.
Themes of Team 10 on the cover of Forum 7/1959:
"De Drie Hoven" for elderly people in Amsterdam-Slotervaart,1974

Literature and annotations

Literature – interpretations since 1959