Anne-apolis

  Humans appear to be naturally attracted to bilateral, or axial, symmetry, usually used in the floor plan to structure the main movement route, and on the entrance facade. Perhaps the inspiration for symmetry in buildings is an idealised conception of the human body, although if this were the case, one wonders why the depiction of humans in these cultures, in painting and sculpture, often show the body in movement, rather than the static face-on view or pose, as can be seen in the very energetic sculptures of the Parthenon. Reconstruction of the Parthenon from Ancient Greece Creative Commons licensed:  https://www.rawpixel.com/image/431804/columns-greece In Ancient China, the same dichotomy appears - in the example of the Forbidden City in Beijing the entire complex has all the major buildings lined up on a single axis, which takes on even more meaning, as only the emperor was permitted to walk on this central path. The narrow stairs on either side are for everyone else. Hall...

  Having spent the first 21 years of my life in a house that was designed by my parents, I have a special interest in the houses that architects design for themselves. Our home started off as a tiny two-bedroom, but had a quite large open-plan living and dining area and a huge kitchen, in anticipation of the house it would grow into. Every four or five years, the builders sand and piles of bricks would arrive, and we would know that the next phase was about to begin.  This incremental approach is one that I have seen many times, partly because architects invariably have dreams far larger than their wallets! On the other hand, one finds some architects designing a manifesto rather than a home - as I discovered in my first year as an architectural student. We were taken to the house of one of the iconic names of the Modern Movement in South Africa, one which remains very much in its original form from its construction in 1942. House Martienssen at the time of completion (South A...