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ISSN 2309-0103 www.archidoct.net
Vol. 7 (2) / February 2020
Regarding the Importance of the Pre- in the Post-
In recent decades, interest in parametric projects has undoubtedly grown. Their strat- egies are customary, and based on this, creative and research horizons have increased, and outstanding works have been designed.
We, convinced of the importance of the parametric in architecture, are interested in a different matter from the opportunities provided by the digital tools: the hypothetical consideration of a rich pre-digital parametric theory and historythat has been barely explored.So,we call for a review of everything that is “aside what is well known, and yet constitutes tradition, and also the substance for progress” (Unamuno, 1895/1916).
Parametric thinking in architecture precedes software. This is explained by Mellaartin relation to housing in the first city in history, Çatalhöyük (Mellaart, 1967), or by Gage in relation to Ancient Greek architecture (Gage, 2012). We might also consider Cache on the theme of machines in Vitruvian treatises (Cache, 2003), or Soler when he defines Gaudí as one of the first parametric architects, showing that the traditions underpin- ning parametric design are veryold (Soler, 2013),and Kontovourkis who confirms that “computational form-finding techniques follow the pioneering work on physical mod- els conducted by Gaudi” (Kontovourkis, 2019).
And for thestarting-point of our exploration, it is important to observe the evolution- ary nature of the systemic character. This shall be the focus of this paper:reviewing the process for the preparation of system thinking,which will lead to the contemporary parametric and systemic architecture, to clarify its changing notions and influence on our view of the world and our view of architecture.
We shall start from the moment in which the reductionist models of science defined by Galileo, Descartes orNewton were no longer sufficient, and other forms of comple- mentary thinking were required.
Methodologically, we propose a review of a selection of texts on the evolution of phil- osophical trends regarding the system. We shall consider the Foucauldian approach, based on two techniques: archaeology and genealogy. The archaeologist is the archi- vist who builds the memory of previous testimonies with symptoms of present, whilst the genealogist raises questions, seeking to show the conditions (more than just the origin) that madepossible the new discourses(Foucault, 1988).
Our purpose will be to build a new interpretation, aside computers, because without the critical reflections it provides, processes become just another exercise in techno- logical skill.We trust that this awareness will help to place the parametric question within a broader context, to gain a better perspective of the future.
The Meta-systemic Approach
First of all, we must explain what we mean by a “meta-systemic approach”.
Unlike the scientific method, which only perceives parts of the world in a decontextu- alizedmanner, systemic thinking is based on the perception of totalities, to express the
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Systemic Considerations. Regarding the Importance of the Pre- in the Post- on the Path Towards the Meta-system
Adolfo Jordán