Future Visions vs. Fundamental Human Values: What Archigram Ignored.

I found interesting, Archigram’s underlying focus on the shift from a classical ‘principle unity’ of architecture to a socially determined programme and it’s consequent result of a deliberate questioning of the power an architect should hold to dictate social activity through fixed spaces. They describe traditional architecture as freezing social will in the program of a building therefore see it as restricting. They seem to become obsessed by this concept to the point where they skim over the fact that there are many historical buildings which prove that an architect does not have this ‘almighty power’ to dictate social activity and that regardless of a buildings ‘fixed’ nature it almost always has the potential to adapt with human needs or desires. Obvious example of ‘traditional’ buildings which have provided flexibility throughout significant social change in history include: Hagia Sophia, the Louvre; or more locally, Brisbane Powerhouse, The Barracks (Petrie Terrace) etc.

I agree that there is some onus on the architect to seek out the existing structure of the community and allow this structure to develop in positive directions, but I believe in failing to credit humans inate ability to adapt, retrofit and renovate that Archigram stray into the danger of planning to far into the future; consequently ignoring the key role of an architect to design with consideration of fundamental human values. Most concerning, I found, was their willingness to neglect principles such as a humans deep spiritual connection to the haptic realm, nostalgia, place (or country), and familiarity. Their ideas of flexibility, modularity, mass production etc are useful (particularly in the context of environmental sustainability) but only if one can find a way to keep them grounded in these fundamentals of human psych. To me, site will always be important. Whether or not the future takes us to travelling buildings, or the possibility of entirely virtual life, I believe we can never ignore these fundamentals; we will always be human.

Sadler, S., 2005. Beyond Architecture. In. Archigram: Architecture Without Architecture, Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press. pp90-138.