project
[ Home ] [ Up ]

Dr. David M. Breiner                                 Visual Analysis and Research Project

Art and architectural styles of the past have always provided challenges and sources of ideas to later designers and architects. The best "reinterpretations" of earlier styles do not merely copy their sources, but select and adapt certain features or elements to create a new design that fulfills the functions and meets the aesthetic criteria of a later time. In each of the following buildings (see below) the architect reinterprets some aspect from (at least) one of the styles we are studying this semester to create a design for his/her age. Choose one of these buildings as your project topic, and complete the following steps:

1. PROJECT CHOICE – Due SEPT 7

Submit a typed sheet with your name, date, course name/number, and three project choices in order of preference (#1 = first choice, #3 = third choice). You will be notified during the following class which choice you have received.

Possible Project Topics

Bracketed numbers refer to designation in Philadelphia Architecture, A Guide to the City, 2nd ed. (1994).

Georgian

Christ Church (1727-44, Dr. John Kearsley, supervisor), 2nd and Market streets [107]

Cliveden (1763-67, attrib. to Benjamin Chew et al.), 6401 Germantown Avenue [120]

Elfreth's Alley, Houses from 1720, Front and 2nd, Arch and Race streets [One interior open, 106]

Woodford (c.1756-59, 1772; restored 1927-30, J.P.B. Sinkler), 33rd and Dauphin streets, Fairmount

Park East [na]

The Highlands (1795-1801 with later additions, attributed to Timothy or Josiah Matlack; Chrisitian

Loeser, builder; 7001 Sheaff Lane, Fort Washington [na]

Stenton (1727-30), 4601 North 18th Street at Courtland Street [108]

Powel House (1765), 244 South 3^rd Street [122]

Deshler-Morris House (1750-73), 5442 Germantown Avenue [126]

Federal

Hill-Physick-Keith House (1786), 321 South 4th Street [128]

Lemon Hill (1799-1800; restored 1925-26 Fiske Kimball), Lemon Hill Drive, Fairmount Park East [138]

First Bank of the United States (1795-97, Samuel Blodgett; 1901, James Windrim), 120 South 3rd

Street [134]

Greek Revival

Second Bank of the United States (1818-24, William Strickland), 420 Chestnut Street [145]

Franklin Institute / now Atwater Kent Museum (1825, John Haviland), 15 South 7th Street [149]

Pennsylvania Institution for the Deaf and Dumb / now University of the Arts (1824-26, John

Haviland), 320 South Broad Street [148]

Gothic Revival

St. Mark's Church (1848-51, John Notman), 1625 Locust Street [208]

St. Stephen's Protestant Episcopal Church (1822-23, William Strickland; 1878-79, Frank Furness;

1888, George C. Mason) 19 South 10th Street [146]

 

Italianate/ Renaissance Revival

Academy of Music (1855-57, Napoleon LeBrun and Gustave Runge), 232-46 South Broad Street [220]

Burholme (Ryerss Mansion) (1859), Burholme Park, 7300 Central Avenue at Cottman Avenue [227]

Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul (1846-64, Napoleon LeBrun and John Notman), 18th and Race

streets [206]

Second Empire / neo-Baroque

Union League of Philadelphia (1864-65, John Fraser), 140 South Broad Street wing [234]

St. Rita of Cascia Church (1907), 1164 South Broad Street [na]

Romanesque Revival

Church of the Holy Trinity (1856-59, John Notman), Walnut Street on Rittenhouse Square [225]

Mother Bethel African Methodist Church (1889-90, Hazelhurst & Huckel), 419 South 6th Street [271]

High Victorian Gothic and Victorian Eclectic

Second Presbyterian Church (1869-72, Henry Sims; 1900, Frank Furness), 2036 Walnut Street [238]

Museum of American Art of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (1872-76, Furness

and Hewitt; restored 1976, Day & Zimmerman), Broad and Cherry streets [241]

Maxwell Mansion (c.1859, attrib. to Joseph C. Hoxie), 200 W. Tulpehocken Street [228]

Beaux-Arts

Memorial Hall (1874-76, Hermann Schwarzmann), West Fairmount Park [246]

 

2. PRELIMINARY BIBLIOGRAPHY - Due SEPT 21

Submit a typed sheet with your name, date, course name/number, and preliminary bibiliography of seven or eight published sources. Use the bibliographic format listed below. If using the Internet for additional sources, give the electronic address and date you visited the site.

Bibliography and Research

the Free Library of Philadelphia

hours: Mon. through Wed., 9-9; Thurs. and Fri., 9-6; Sat., 9-5; and Sun. 1-5

the Fine Arts Library of the University of Pennsylvania

Furness Building, 34th and Locust; available during the day, on weekdays only, with valid photo ID; special arrangement for weekend access may be made with the Reference Department on a one-time basis

the Athenaeum of Philadelphia

219 South 6th Street; located on the east side of Independence Square; admission free

open for research Tues. through Fri., 9-4, with a photo ID; appointments with Bruce Laverty, curator of architecture (215-925-2688), required at least 24 hours in advance; an orientation session is required in advance of using this collection and will be organized after students' schedules are submitted; the online catalogue and other resources may be found at http://www.libertynet.org/athena/

and the Philadelphia Museum of Art

located at 26th and the Parkway; hours: Tues. through Sun., 10-5 and until 9 pm on Wednesday; free admission with a valid student ID.

 

III. EXTENDED OUTLINE -- DUE OCT. 21

A. Part I: Visual analysis.

Find out when your building is open, then visit it with sketchbook and other students researching the building, and, if possible, bring a camera. If you've already found published plans, elevations, or photographs of the building, take copies along and annotate them as you examine the site.

Organize your description and visual analysis of the structure. Deal with each point listed under Architecture in the handout "Visual Analysis of Works of Art," though not necessarily in the same order. Submit this in extended outline form as the first part of your outline.

Be sure to begin preparing hand drawings of plans and elevations, an axonometric showing the shapes and relationships of interior volumes, and the massing of the building, sections and analysis diagrams, in addition to drawings of any architectural details or furniture that may be pertinent.

Your written analysis should eventually be coordinated with your diagrams and drawings.

 

B. Part 2: Research the building, the architect, and the style.

The second part of your extended outline addresses the following questions:

What materials was the building constructed of? Where did they come from and how did they arrive?

How did the building relate to the historic landscape/greenery around it? To other buildings around it, at the time it was built?

Historically, how did the building receive and discharge water, receive fresh air, discharge solid waste? How was it heated, cooled, and illuminated? How was electricity introduced into the building and how has it changed the building?

Historically, what functions were housed in the building? Have the functions changed? If so, did the design of the building allow for changes over time?

From where and how did the architect drawn upon a style from the past in this building?

What specific building or building type was used as a model? How did the building differ from the past and reflect the values of its own time?

Compare the style of this building to painting, sculpture, or furniture design from the same period. Examine visual and conceptual similarities or differences. Include a photograph or hand-drawing of the work you are using for comparison. This may be an object in the building, or in a local museum.

 

C. Part 3: How might this building be a source for a contemporary design?

For the last part of the outline, choose a distinguishing feature of this building (i.e., proportion, use and relationship of spaces, experience of space, relationship to site, use of light, processional path). Use this design concept as a source for your own design.

Describe your goals in writing (i.e., What design element are you choosing and why? How are you integrating this feature into your own work?) Also, discuss plan configuration and organization, structure, site relationship, experience of space, and related ideas of your design.

Expect to eventually produce a visual presentation, include a groundplan of the entire building, detailed drawings of the main facade, at least one of the main interior spaces, and an axonometric.

Unless you've been earning "A"s on history assignments in previous semesters, make an appointment at the Learning Center to have someone review your outline and help you improve it before submitting it. The Learning Center will notify me of your visit(s).

 

Example of an extended outline (for a project on the Gutman Library):

Student Name, date, course number/name

Name of project

I. Visual Analysis of Gutman Library

A. Tripartite plan

1. series of rectangles, corresponds to different uses (illustrated in diagram)

2. use-space varies from floor to floor

a. vertical circulation concentrated around central volume (and diagram)

B. Structure

1. concrete foundation

2. steel post-and-lintel, clad in brick on exterior

3. metal-framed pitched roof, clad in metal

C. Elevations

1. exterior facade

a. brick exterior veneer punctured by arched openings

b. central large openings vs. linear side openings (with diagram)

c. significance of terra-cotta details

2. interiors

a. significant interior elevations

b. use of glazing

D. Sections and axonometrics

1. entrance sequence: visibility and "skylight"

2. continuous skylight at top story

E. Site

1. physical site: School House Lane, open quad and its slope, natural daylight

2. historical site: relationship to heart of campus, etc.

F. Spatial effect

1. daytime: passage up steps, change in materials, room shapes, light conditions ...

2. nighttime: (in addition to above) use of artificial light to direct visitor

 

II. History and Designer of Gutman Library

A. [Don't forget questions about materials, context, utilities, and functions!]

B. PCT&S, commission

1. big expansion of programs offered 1980s

2. Shepley, Bulfinch hired

3. library completed 1992

C. Design by Shepley, Bulfinch et al.

1. abstracted version of an ancient basilica, exterior and interior

2. attempt to use history for

a. better relationship to other campus buildings nearby

b. more inviting, comfortable character

3. differs from historical model

a. modern structural system and materials, esp. glass

b. enter on short axis, appropriate to site and program

c. terra-cotta masks of everyday people

D. Comparison between Library and oil painting Nedick's (1969-70, Richard Estes)

1. reliance on historical forms

2. transformation, based on reflection/transparency of glass

III. Contemporary Design

A. Distinguishing feature is use of light

1.different effects in day and night

B. My design for a new student center (near the Library)

1. also needs different atmospheres, day and night

2. achieved through skylights running north-south ...

3. directs visitors to different functions ...

 

Plagiarism

Plagiarism will result in a grade of "F" for the project; therefore, read this section carefully.

Plagiarism is the use of another person's ideas or words in your writing without giving proper credit to your source. Keep careful record of your sources and distinguish between your own ideas, another person's ideas, and an exact quote from another person. If you note where you found some information (all the information needed for a complete footnote or endnote), you won't get stuck when completing your project.

 

Avoiding Plagiarism: Format for Citations

The following standards are taken from the Learning Center handouts entitled "MLA Documentation Guidelines" and "Guide to Citing Electronic Information." You may refer to them directly, or locate a book -- such as Jean Johnson's The Bedford Guide to the Research Process, which is on reserve under my name -- explaining standard formats in greater depth.

 

A. No citation needed

a. when using your own ideas;

b. when using someone else's ideas which seem to be common knowledge -- that is, several sources have the same information or interpretation.

 

B. Citation in text (parenthetical reference) needed

1. when giving information or an interpretation based on a source and which is in some way controversial or apparently not common knowledge. Use the format indicated below; when you have more than one source by the same author, use an abbreviated title as well in the parenthetical note. When using a direct quote, see below.

Example: The Philadelphia City Hall is the largest masonry building in the world (Greenberger, City Hall 7). But it is more significant for its exemplary expression of the Second Empire style and its exhaustive decorative program.

2. when incorporating a direct quote. If the quote is shorter than three typed lines, you must use quotation marks around the quote and put the text note immediately after the quote.

Example: Smith considers the design to be "derivative" (Smith 20), an opinion which can be substantiated through a careful examination of other buildings.

If the quote is longer than three typed lines, instead of quotation marks, indent the quote on both sides, single space it, and then add the text note. Use quotes when your source expresses an idea in such an unusual or eloquent way that you couldn't possibly express the idea in your own words. Try to avoid long quotes, because it means you're relying too much on your sources and not making the material your own.

Example: The anthropomorphic character of architecture is discussed by Perrault:

The ancients rightly believed that the proportional rules that give buildings their beauty were based on the proportions of the human body and that just as nature has suited a massive build to bodies made for physical labor whle giving a slighter one to those requiring adroitness and agility, so in the art of building, different rules are determined by the different intentions to make a building more massive or more delicate (Perrault 47).

This statement clearly reveals its author's bias, putting him in the tradition of ....

3. when using graphic images which you have not drawn yourself. Put the citation in a caption, with the name of the image.

 

C. Endnote or footnote needed

when you must explain something which will interrupt the flow of the text.

a. For footnotes, use a superscript numeral in the text and the note format given below. Footnotes appear at the bottom of the page where the text they refer to appears.

Example: There is a very easy way to document your research.1 The first citation is numbered "1" and subsequent notes usually are numbered sequentially.

(At bottom of page:)

1Though most students would disagree with this statement, see Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers, 3rd ed. (Chicago: Univ.of Chicago Press, 1967) 4-10.

b. Endnotes are listed at the end of the text, under the subheading Endnotes, and are arranged numerically. They appear before the Works Cited and Bibliography.

 

D. Works Cited and Bibliography

1. To create your Works Cited page, arrange all sources cited alphabetically by author (or, for anonymous works, by title), according to the format below.

2. To create your Bibliography, arrange all sources consulted, whether cited or not, in researching the project. Bibiliographies are arranged (typically) in alphabetical order, by author's surname. Check to see how multiple authors, no author, subsequent editions or multiple volumes, etc. are handled. I expect you use this system, which is explained in more detail in the handouts mentioned above and books listed below

Example:

Author's last name, first name. Title of Book either in italics or underlined. Place of publication: Publisher, year.

Gibaldi, Joseph and Walter S. Achtert. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 3rd ed. New York: The Modern Language Association of America, 1988.

Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers. 3rd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1967.

The basic format for other kinds of sources, are:

Author's last name, first name. "Title of Article." Name of Encyclopedia. year ed.

Author's last name, first name. "Title of Article." Name of Periodical volume number (year in parentheses): page numbers.

Author's last name, first name. "Title of Newspaper Article." Name of Newspaper date. page. Name of Compact Disc (CD-ROM). CD-ROM. Source. year.

Author's last name, first name. "Title of Article from Lexis-Nexis." Name of Journal. Online. Lexis. date.

Author's last name, first name. "Title of Document." Title of Complete Work from the

World Wide Web or Telnet Site. Date of publication or last revision. <complete URL address in brackets> or telnet address with directions to access the publication (date of access).

Space for your own notes or questions:

 

IV. FINAL VERSION -- DUE NOV. 10 at noon

A. Requirements

Incorporate changes suggested by your professor or writing fellow, or improvements which may have occurred to you since the outline. Use this to create a coherent series of essays on the building and related issues.

Part 1 - Visual analysis: a minimum of four typed pages, double-spaced, plus diagrams

and drawings.

Part 2 - History of the building, its designer, and style : minimum of six typed pages,

double-spaced, plus drawings (if more are needed).

Part 3 - Discussion of your own, contemporary design: minimum of two typed pages,

double-spaced (plus drawings).

Your project should be presented in a hand-made book form, either accordion style or some comparable method and be no larger than 11 X 14 inches. You will be graded on the creativity and professionalism of your presentation.

 

B. Deadlines

You have been given ample time to begin working on this project. Preliminary submissions and the final submission must be no later than the deadlines given. Late submissions will be accepted only in documented cases of emergency.

 

C. Evaluation criteria

Demonstrated understanding of the visual elements and of the design principles of the work of art/architecture and their role in expressing the dominant underlying idea.

Ability to analyze the formal and spatial characteristics of a work of art/architecture.

Ability to see the relationship of the parts to each other and to the whole.

Logical organization and development of ideas supported by clear explanations and examples.

Clarity of sentence and paragraph structure. Correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

Appropriate citations.

Process AND completeness.

Ability to work independently AND confer with professor, as appropriate.

Craftsmanship.

See the attached Project Evaluation Sheets

 

 

PHILADELPHIA UNIVERSITY

SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN

A531 History of Architecture and Interiors III Project Evaluation

Dr. David M. Breiner                                                 Fall Semester 1999

Student: _________________________ Date: ____________

Process

Prelim Biblography Conference Learning Center

Extended Outline Final submission

 

Part I: Visual Analysis (4 pp text minimum)

A. issues

plan configuration/organization

structure

elevations/sections

axonometric(s)/site

spatial effect/experience

B. expression

writing clear?

ideas substantial?

good format?

 

Part II: History of the building, its architect, and style (6 pp minimum)

A. issues

materiality?

landscape and/or architectural context?

energy systems?

changing functions?

where/how drawing upon past?

reflect values of its time?

compared to another work?

 

B. expression

writing clear?

ideas substantial?

good format?

 

Part III: Contemporary design (2 pp)

A. issues

distinguishing feature

 

student's goals

 

visual presentation

 

 

B. expression

writing clear?

ideas substantial?

good format?

 

 

Bibliography

content

format

 

 

Presentation

creative and relevant to topic

 

professional/well crafted

 

complete

 

 

Additional comments