Monday, March 10, 2008

Architecture: Real vs. Abstract

Although I have always been exposed to architecture (courtesy of my Dad), I never fully realized its connection to reality. Although buildings are made of tangible pieces of materials that, on their own, represent a form of reality, the actual finished work does not hold that same sense of the material. For me, walking into a cathedral, a skyscraper, a home, etc always holds an awareness of the abstract. I believe this sense of the intangible came from being exposed to the, one could say, “Blueprints” of architecture. In reality, an object under construction originates from an abstract idea that a man or woman forms and puts into reality only after touching a pen to paper.

Thus, I found it difficult to come to terms with Borgmann’s argument that architecture is a connection to reality through an ambiguous sign. I always viewed architecture as a representation of an ambiguous idea – intangible and rather awe-inspiring.

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