The “other” architecture is a proposal for a fragmented digital-based “history of architecture.” The goal is to challenge the construction of peripheries through the narrative of architectural history in  academia. The digital media seems to have enormous opportunities to replace the traditional grand narrative of architectural history with a multitude of narratives, which could challenge the dichotomy of the core and peripheries.

Introduction

History of Architecture survey courses are traditionally taught through a linear chronicle of monuments, which forges a sharply self-contained, progressive Western architecture. Contrasted to the mainstream, other traditions become marginal, ahistorical, primitive, deviated or derivative. The past few decades have witnessed many criticisms to the processes through which non-western architectural traditions have been classified as “others”. In response to the criticism, new trends have adopted an inclusive, global approach, which expands subjects on non-Western architecture and reconsiders the traditional structure of survey books and courses – one that either divides “Western” and “non-Western” architectures or sandwiches different non-Western traditions in intervals of the chronologically-ordered Western styles. However, as some critics have pointed out, these well-meaning attempts to empower the peripheries, at the same time, reaffirms the margin/center, self/other, West/non-West and similar hierarchical dualities. An important element of the traditional model, I would argue, is the structure of courses, taken directly from the printed book. In fact, a linear narrative imposed by the sequence of the classes in the lecture-based pedagogical model can hardly avoid reproducing an evolutionary core and consequently turning the rest into marginal “others.”

In this project, I want to work on an alternative, digital-based approach to teaching Histories of World Architectures with various historical, geographical and thematic layers. As the examples from a less formal institutions –the museum– suggest, (see my paper here) more successful than the attempts to increase inclusiveness, appreciate the other in his/her own terms and “give voice to the natives” have been those that reject grand narratives and/or focus on the problematization of cultural prejudices.

 

Interface  

wiki-format: entries are connected with tags; but there is no overall image

navigation:

Timeline·  Main monuments in zoom view·  Colored based on styles/themes
Interactive Map·  Highlighted in relation to timeline·  Main monuments in zoom view Colored based on Tags (types/styles/themes)
pop-up window·  On the map·  In the timeline·  With tags to themes
Navigation Bar·  Time·  Regions·  Monuments·  Themes

Cities / Regions/countries·  change by timeMonuments
Tags·  styles / periods / places-  related styles·  types·  themes
Colors·  chosen based on themes ® reflected on the geo-temporal map

 

Content 

see the draft  here

Source: The “Other” Architecture -draft