The large-scale form a l o n e is nothing – the detail decides

摘要

I will demonstrate with the help of just a few significant buildings, two bridges, one ensemble of halls, one historical building, that the detail is the essential factor for the architectural perception. It can either amplify or weaken the effect up to the point of indifference. It can even sabotage the initial design intent. It appears that the large-scale form alone is not a sufficient criterion for the architectural quality of a structure. The impression that a structure makes is created by a property that you might call “power of expression”, “vitality”, “intensity of life that it enables”. Such a structure heightens the place and the surrounding in which it stands. The deciding factor is not the “big picture” alone but foremost it is the detail, the way a structure appears from up close. This is what we have to realize and what we have to build our actions on.