News from Building Beauty
Pattern recognition of living systems in mapping, master planning and ecology informs Good Materials and climate based architecture, with Kathryn Langstaff
The Nature of Order Webinar, April 23, 2006
Kathryn will discuss the principles of ecological design, wholeness and her design process, including Good materials (pattern 207), and generative processes in place-making from architectural details to a bioregional pattern language and her recent attempt to write a pattern language for a biodiversity master plan. Discussion includes generating wholeness and living structure through the 10,000 steps & iterative and adaptive design processes and emergence.
Earthen plaster tokonoma laundry chute, Fruehauf House & Hai Shan Clinic, 2004
“For if each living center is but a reflection of a single unity, has the same origin in its being, then the whole, the living work is animated by this same being behind the scenes - and we experience the same living fire in every part of the whole.” NoO, p. 245 The Goal of Tears
Kathryn Langstaff, Sonoma Coast, seaweed harvest
Kathryn Langstaff is an ecological designer. She co-founded Autopoiesis, LLC thirty years ago. Kathryn has been working at the intersection of culture, ecology, wellness and transformation. Complexity literacy and design thinking are at the heart of her work and teaching. See www.autopoiesis.life/design-thinking.html.
Currently, she is designing with bioregional materials that sequester carbon and support living systems. The act of making is deeply spiritual and when practiced in harmony is reciprocal with life itself.
Working and teaching with Christopher Alexander has been a life-changing opportunity to find truth, beauty and wholeness in her life, in each other and in the world around her. “I value my colleagues and students, all of whom inspire and teach me.”
To participate in this Nature of Order Webinar session, write to natureoforder@buildingbeauty.org.
To view the recording after this session, visit www.buildingbeauty.org/nature-of-order-lecture-series.
Christopher Alexander: Pioneer of the Second Renaissance with Rufus Pollock
The Nature of Order Webinar, April 16, 2026
In this talk we present Alexander as a pioneering second renaissance (aka integral, metamodern etc.) thinker and practitioner. Specifically in:
(Re) Introducing value and beauty as real - specifically in a domain of architecture and aesthetics dominated by modern/post-modern relativism
Providing a rigorous evidencing for this claim — one that includes and uses reason
Whilst … transcending reason and including the transrational, mystical element (see luminous ground etc)
Providing practical techniques for applying this in building - pattern language, nature of order etc.
Rufus Pollock is an entrepreneur, activist and author as well as a long-term zen practitioner. He is passionate about finding wiser, weller ways to live together.
He has founded a variety of initiatives including Life Itself, Open Knowledge Foundation, and Datopian which have had global impact. His 2018 book Open Revolution is about making a radically freer and fairer information age and has been translated into multiple languages. His next book "Wiser Societies" is about the cultural dark matter that enables societies to be wiser (and weller). Previously he has been the Mead Fellow in Economics at the University of Cambridge as well as a Shuttleworth and Ashoka Fellow. A recognized global expert on the information society, he has worked with G7 governments, IGOs like the UN, Fortune 500 companies as well as many civil society organizations. He holds a PhD in Economics and a double first in Mathematics from the University of Cambridge.
For anyone interested to learn more about the Second Renaissance, there is a short course starting tomorrow. See the details here: https://secondrenaissance.net/course
Duo Dickinson and Yodan Rofè discuss Urban Planning
For Duo’s Design Now podcast on Cultural Collisions, he interviewed Building Beauty Course Director Yodan Rofè about his experience with urban design and planning. They explored these questions:
The framing of our social aesthetics is so complicated in realization that its easy to lose the essential vision of why some of us want to design a future – versus simply accept cultural evolution without design: What do we value? What do we want? Do we encourage? discourage? prohibit? require? Listen here.
The Nature of Order Webinar, Book 3: A Vision of A Living World Guest Speakers
We invite practitioners, who have been students and/or colleagues of Christopher Alexander, or have been influenced by his work, or whose work shows parallel thinking to that of Alexander. We ask them to present their work in relation to the different chapters of the book which describe typical and recurring issues in the built environment. The focus of the discussion is on the implementation of wholeness and beauty in today's world, and how to go about it.
For this semester we have a great lineup of speakers.
On February 5 we'll have Architect Saman Moien talk about Positive Space and its Dependance on Materials and Construction Methods. Saman was our student in the first year of BB at Sorrento, and went on to obtain a Master's in Architecture at University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. He works as a craftsperson in the New England area of the United States, specializing in structural masonry, timber framing, and woodworking.
On February 12 Architect and Planner Dr. Yaara Rosner-Manor will discuss her research and professional work with the Bedouin community in Israel's Negev Desert - Bedouin Villages in the Negev: from collective vision to an adaptive plan and parametric model. Yaara has an architecture degree from Bezalel: School of Art and Design in Jerusalem, and a Ph.D in Desert Studies from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. She's a practicing planner and lecturer at the School of Architecture at the Shamoon College of Engineering in Beer-Sheva, Israel.
On February 19 we'll host architect and teacher James Givens whose talk is titled: In a true unfolding process – The result will be surprising. James is a practicing architect and professor at the University of Oregon. Although he didn't study with Alexander, he's worked with some of his colleagues at Jacobson, Silverstien and Winslow Architects. His work has been featured in their book Patterns of Home, among other publications.
On February 26 Architect and teacher Ioana Barac will return for another lecture on Geometry and Emotion: a case study of unfolding ornament in 21st century architecture. Ioana was a student and collaborator of the late Kent Bloomer at Yale University. Currently she's principal of her own studio Atelier Cue, and teaching architecture at the University of Hartford, Connecticut.
On March 5, we'll conclude the series of lectures relating to Book 3 with Architect Saul Pichardo's lecture on: Making Centers in Construction. Saul received his Master's of Architecture degree with Alexander and Neis at University of California Berkeley, worked at the Center for Environmental Structure for many years, and is now principal of his own firm The Art of Building in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The webinar's sessions begin at 16:00 UTC, and are 90 minutes long. The lectures are usually between 40-50 minutes long leaving much time for Q&A and discussion. We look forward to you joining us.
If you would like to receive weekly announcements and the link to the sessions, please write to natureoforder@buildingbeauty.org.
For access to earlier sessions of the Webinar, visit https://www.buildingbeauty.org/nature-of-order-lecture-series.
2025 Year End Message from Building Beauty
As 2025 comes to a close, we at Building Beauty can report our 2025-26 academic year is well underway and thriving with an exceptional class. We have made progress with spreading the word about what the program offers, and how people can get involved. Old and new collaborations with other institutions are taking shape to expand our reach into architecture education.
Our cooperation with the University of Hartford in Connecticut is going strong. We had 11 students from the architecture department take The Nature of Order course this semester. We are establishing a Study Abroad program in Sorrento with Hartford for Spring term 2027.
We signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Bin Jiang’s LivableCityLab at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou campus).
We participated in the International Making Cities Liveable (IMCL) conference 2025 in Potsdam, Germany, with a workshop allowing people to encounter and work with the concepts of Centers and Structure Preserving Transformations.
Isabel Potworowski, Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati, presented a paper about the Building Beauty Studio at the Architecture Media Politics Society (AMPS) conference on Pedagogy 2025 (www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oh_5fPyvts).
Posted to our new BB Youtube channel (www.youtube.com/@BuildingBeautyArchitecture) is a tour of the Medlock-Graham House, which now has 120,000 views. Also posted there are two videos with graduates of the program describing what the experience meant to them. We are developing more videos to show how the program works and plan to post them in January 2026.
We are collaborating with Angus Stocking and his Everything is Somewhere podcast on a series of in depth discussions about Building Beauty’s program with more to come. These episodes are now available:
#23 - Yodan Rofe on teaching The Nature of Order,
#22 - Susan Ingham on our Studio course,
#19 - James Maguire, on how Christopher Alexander’s ideas helped him bridge architecture, philosophy, mathematics and art.
#17 - Maggie Moore Alexander and Yodan Rofe on the mission of Building Beauty.
#14 - Jenny Quillien, architecture and anthropology, focusing on Alexander’s ideas about living structures.
If you’d like to be advised of new podcasts coming up, subscribe to the podcast and give Angus feedback here. It would also help both him and Building Beauty if you share these podcasts with your friends and colleagues.
We wrote to you earlier this year about Nico Lofredo-Rota, our student in Ecuador, and his plan to develop a “forest neighborhood” on his family’s land in Quito. His Studio project to design and build the first permanent structure is underway with the House for Oneself Project, and will continue into the Spring term’s Independent Project. Your support of our Scholarship fund makes this possible.
How can you help?
· Become a member and pay your annual dues. The Annual membership fee is 25 Euros. If you’ve taken one of our classes you’re already a member. All you have to do is to renew your membership by paying the dues. If you’re not a member and would like to be one, write to hello@buildingbeauty.org to receive a membership application form.
· Support Building Beauty by contributing to the Scholarship fund that allows us to work with students who are committed to making change in the world.
· Support Building Beauty with donations to help with the production of videos that promote our message.
Donations can be made here.
· Spread the word about Building Beauty on your social media channels, and with your friends and colleagues.
As always, we appreciate your support.
Wishing you the joys of the season and a happy, healthy New Year.
Collaboration with Angus Stocking and the Everything Is Somewhere Podcast
Building Beauty is collaborating with Angus Stocking and his Everything is Somewhere podcast on a series of in depth discussions about Building Beauty’s program and Christopher Alexander’s work. Episodes with Building Beauty staff and colleagues are now available:
#23 - Yodan Rofe on teaching The Nature of Order,
#22 - Susan Ingham on our Studio course,
#19 - James Maguire, on how Christopher Alexander’s ideas helped him bridge architecture, philosophy, mathematics and art.
#17 - Maggie Moore Alexander and Yodan Rofe’ on the mission of Building Beauty.
#14 - Jenny Quillien, architecture and anthropology, focusing on Alexander’s ideas about living structures
These podcasts are available on the ITunes podcast page and Spotify as well. They can also be accessed here.
To be advised of new podcasts coming up, subscribe to the podcast, and give Angus feedback here. It would also help both him and us if you share these podcasts with your friends and colleagues.
Enjoy, and thanks for listening.
Collaboration with the LivableCityLAB at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Guangzhou
Building Beauty announces a new collaboration with the LivableCityLAB at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Guangzhou, led by Bin Jiang, Professor of Urban Informatics. This coincides with the publication of the Chinese edition of The Nature Of Order, Christopher Alexander’s magnum opus.
Building Beauty, through its international postgraduate program and network of affiliated initiatives, has been committed to advancing awareness of “living structure” and implementing the “living process” in the built environment. LivableCityLAB at HKUST (GZ) is dedicated to research and education in living structure and AI-assisted design. Both institutions share a common mission: to foster wholeness, beauty and life in human-centered and sustainable environments.
In recognition of these shared values, these two programs have agreed to work together to establish offerings that make The Nature of Order and jointly sponsored courses with schedules that accommodate East Asian and Pacific time zones.
The Memorandum of Understanding was signed at the recent 62nd International Making Cities Liveable conference in Potsdam, Germany.
Jim Brainard, Leslie Barrett, Michael Mehaffy, Yodan Rofe’, Marina Marino, and Bin Jiang. Photo by Ann Daigle
Nature of Order Webinar: The Contribution of Christopher Alexander to the Psychology of Place, Maria Lewicka
This will be presented on May 8, 2025 at 15:00 UTC.
Christopher Alexander is probably the most “psychological” architect I know, which is one reason why his views are a permanent part of my psychology courses. A pattern language appeals to human affordances and basic human needs: privacy and community, control and ownership, and belonging to a place. The organic building that Alexander posits, in contrast to the mechanistic vision of construction based on master plans that are independent of the context and history of a place, provides people with a sense of continuity – the foundation of identity. The principles of natural order, largely rooted in human biophilia, represent our evolutionary heritage, which explains their intuitive acceptance. Finally, in the last volume of "The Nature of Order," Alexander ventures into areas that have been the subject of psychological reflection since the beginning of the discipline – namely, the nature of the human self. In the fourth volume, we also find reflections on human consciousness, and motivational psychologists will easily recognize the phenomenological descriptions of the experiences that accompany people in a “flow” state.
However, I do not want to discuss all these references to psychology at this meeting. Psychology is an empirical science, so it is not surprising that a psychologist fascinated by Alexander's theory is attempting to transform it into a research program. This is particularly interesting because Alexander posits the universality of human aesthetic judgments and preferences, which is an empirical thesis. An additional reason for trying to translate Alexander's claims into the language of measurable indicators is the strong entanglement of his theory in the philosophical debate about the essential versus anti-essential nature of reality and human cognition. This also explains the frequent criticism of his views. Since this dichotomy has been the foundation of the research I have been developing for some time, in this paper I will present several studies conducted by our team, in which we investigate how individual principles of natural order are perceived by average respondents, whether and what overarching clusters they create, and how these relate to our criteria for assessing meaningful places. During the webinar, I will also share the challenges we encounter, welcoming ideas from the meeting participants.
Maria Lewicka is a professor of social and environmental psychology at the Institute of Psychology, Nicolaus University in Toruń. Initially her research interests were in cognitive psychology (human rationality, cognitive biases and errors), currently they are in social and environmental psychology. At present her studies concern: (1) Place attachment and place identity; (2) Theories of place, place meaning, and their implications for people’s attitudes and behaviors; (3) Collective memory of places in Central-Eastern Europe, with particular focus on Poland, Ukraine, and Lithuania. Her book Psychologia miejsca (Psychology of place) published in 2012 initiated research in people-place relations in Poland. In 2023 she was awarded the FNP (Foundation for Polish Science) Prize for her research on place attachment and place memory. The FNP Prize is awarded for significant advancements and scientific discoveries that shift cognitive boundaries and open new perspectives for research.
Place preferences: Which of these three places are the most liked and the least liked by study participants?
Nature of Order Webinar: Urban Beauty as a Total Experience: Beyond What Can Be Designed, Stefano Cozzolino
This will be presented on May 1, 2025 at 15:00 UTC.
The topic of urban beauty is often addressed superficially; it is certainly under-discussed. Today, a long architectural and compositional tradition still heavily influences the perspectives and value judgments of experts, leading to a tendency to believe that the experience of beauty is confined to the physical, visual, and compositional characteristics of the built environment. In contrast, based on recent cognitive studies and progress in complexity theories, urban beauty can be better understood as a ‘total experience’ that includes both tangible, material elements and emerging social and cultural stimuli and structures that, by definition, transcend intentional urban design operations.
On the one hand, this implies the need to revisit mainstream contemporary concepts of urban beauty, broadening its scope to include the ‘social’. On the other hand, it is necessary to reflect more consciously on its production and generative processes. This talk will highlight the three peculiarities of urban beauty that distinguish it from other types of beauty and propose planning and regulatory approaches to support its generation.
Stefano Cozzolino is a Senior Researcher at the ILS – Research Institute for Regional and Urban Development (Dortmund) and a Lecturer at RWTH Aachen University. Born in Bergamo, Italy (1988), he earned his PhD from the Polytechnic University of Milan (2017). Besides Germany, he has gained additional international experience, having studied in Bristol and conducted research visits in New York City and various cities in the Netherlands. He coordinates AESOP's thematic group on “Ethics, Values, and Planning” (Association of the European School of Planning). He recently co-authored the book “Action, Property and Beauty. Planning With and For Emergent Urban Complexity” (Routledge, 2024). He gave a TED Talk in Berlin on “Building Beauty Humanising Urban Planning” (October 2024).
Dortmund 2021
Nature of Order Webinar: Spirituality in architecture and phenomenological design processes in the work of Peter Zumthor and Christopher Alexander, Isabel Potworowski
This will be presented on April 24, 2025 at 15:00 UTC by Isabel Potworowski.
1:1 model of the Bruder Klaus Chapel, composed of black plastic sanitary tubes and ropes, set up in the courtyard of Atelier Zumthor. Source: slideshow at the 2024 exhibition “Architectural Models from the Atelier Peter Zumthor” at the Werkraum Bregenzerwald. Courtesy Atelier Peter Zumthor.
Christopher Alexander and contemporary Swiss architect Peter Zumthor have both spoken of their work in terms of strengthening and connecting to the life and wholeness of a place, aspects that they have at times described in spiritual terms. Alexander elaborates on this spiritual dimension in Book 4 of The Nature of Order, The Luminous Ground, where he proposes that there is a relatedness between one’s self and the “eternal vastness” of the cosmos, or “luminous ground,” and that “living centres” in the built environment are a window onto this vastness, ultimately connecting us with God. Zumthor has spoken in A Feeling of History of the capacity of buildings and landscapes to connect us with the history of the lives that came before us, giving a sense of being part of larger historical and biological processes, which he also describes as an awareness of the “larger whole.” He speaks of the “sacred” qualities of places in which one can become aware of this connection on an emotional and intuitive level.
What implications does this spiritual dimension of the physical environment, understood as its potential to connect us with a greater whole, have for how we build? Five aspects emerge from the two architects’ approaches:
1. A way of observing place: Identifying qualities of the site that express a connection to a larger spatial or temporal whole, which can be strengthened through the built intervention.
2. A phenomenological design approach: Privileging observation and ‘deep’ feeling as a guide for making design decisions, affirming that our deepest feelings and intuitions are also the most shared.
3. Project intentions and experience before form: Starting the design process by articulating the intended experience, atmosphere, and relation to its place and purpose, from which the form will eventually emerge.
4. Representation and models: A phenomenological approach is based on first-person sensory experience, which in the design process is privileged by working with large-scale and full-scale on-side models.
5. Testing and construction: Ultimately, a spiritual dimension is manifest through how a building is materialized, a process involving prototyping to develop details, and continual adjustment.
Isabel Potworowski is an Assistant Professor of Architecture at the University of Cincinnati, where she teaches undergraduate design studio and drawing. She recently defended her PhD at Carleton University in Ottawa, titled “Discovering Spiritual Atmospheres: Representation practices in Atelier Zumthor’s process of designing buildings that amplify spiritual atmospheres.” She completed her Bachelor’s in Architecture at McGill University, her professional Master’s in Architecture at TU Delft and obtained a Master’s in Architectural History and Theory at McGill. In the Netherlands, she worked at Barcode Architects, the International New Town Institute, and Mecanoo Architecten. Her research interests include the spiritual dimension of architecture, embodied and experiential qualities of space, the design process, and design pedagogy.
Nature of Order Webinar: AI large-language models confirm Alexander's insights, Prof. Nikos Salingaros
In our next webinar on April 17, 2025 at 15:00 UTC, we host Prof. Nikos Salingaros:
Recent research using AI large-language models confirms the original insights of Christopher Alexander, such as his 15 fundamental properties. By going around the dominant architectural narrative to ask about specifically adaptive environments, the results coincide with what we expect from The Nature of Order. Visual prompts such as "design an environment that boosts creativity" and "design an environment that increases intelligence" produce images that satisfy the 15 properties. This fact is in turn verified by the same software, which checks for how many of the 15 properties are present in what it generated, and to what degree. AI opens up a paradigm-changing opportunity to verify Alexander's results by drawing upon massive amounts of collective scientific data.
Dr. Nikos A. Salingaros, MA, PhD, is Professor of Mathematics and Architecture at the University of Texas at San Antonio. He won the 2019 Stockholm Cultural Award for Architecture and shared the 2018 Clem Labine Traditional Building Award with Michael Mehaffy. He is a member of the US President’s Council on Improving Federal Civic Architecture. An internationally recognized Architectural Theorist and Urbanist, his publications include seven books on architecture and design, two of them co-authored with Michael Mehaffy. Salingaros collaborated with the visionary architect and software pioneer Christopher Alexander over more than twenty years in editing Alexander’s monumental four-volume book The Nature of Order. Salingaros holds a doctorate in Mathematical Physics from Stony Brook University, New York.
Design for an environment that boosts creativity in mathematical thought
Nature of Order Webinar: Links between Alexander's theory of architecture, complexity theories of cities and Bohm's theory of orders, Juval Portugali
In our next webinar on April 10, 2025 at 15:00 UTC, we host Prof. Juval Portugali:
As the title indicates, three theories form the focus of this talk: Alexander's theory of architecture, complexity theories of cities, and Bohm's theory of orders. As the title further indicates, the aim of this talk is to explore the links between the three. Given that the audiences are already familiar with Alexander's theory, this talk will evolve in three steps: First, an introduction to complexity theory and its application to cities. Next, an introduction to Bohm's theory of orders. Finally, the interrelations between the three and the prospects for a unified urban theory.
Juval Portugali, Professor of Human Geography at the Department of Geography and the Human Environment Tel Aviv University. Head of the Environmental Simulation Laboratory (ESLab) and Head of City Center –Tel Aviv University center for cities and urbanism. He received his BA degree from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, did his MA studies at the Technion Haifa, and received a London University PhD from The London School of Economics and Political sciences. His research integrates complexity and self-organization theories, environmental-spatial cognition, urban dynamics and planning in modern and ancient periods. His publications include some 100 research articles and 20 scientific books.
Nature of Order Webinar: The Eishin Campus in Japan: Enhanced Design and Construction Process, Hajo Neis
This session will be on Thursday, March 20, 2025 at 16:00 UTC. Write to natureoforder@buildingbeauty.org to be included.
I have given several different lectures about the Eishin Campus and its Formation, including the ‘Eishin Campus as Japanese Park and Garden, or Temple Complex, as a Field of Centers, as a Building Process, and most often as Battle for the Life and Beauty of the Earth.’ As part of a Lecture series in a webinar that discusses ‘Book Three’ of the Nature of Order: A Vision of a Living World, it occurred to me to try something different that I have not done yet.
Since Nature of Order ‘Book Three’ contains many examples from the unfolding of the Eishin Campus in almost every category of the Table of Contents, it might be worth to match most of the topics with examples from the actual project. This becomes more exciting, when one considers that the Eishin Campus was the first and also largest project ever built by CES, that also served as a testing ground for the development and advancement of the theory itself. My attempt so far to capture this symmetry went rather well, still some parts are incomplete or insufficient, even incoherent.
I was asked to specifically emphasize Part 5 of the book which deals with construction, and fine construction, I will focus on this topic along the lines of ‘Construction Elements as Living Centers,’ ‘All Building as Making (allowing feeling),’ and ‘Continuous Invention of Materials and Techniques, encouraging new technology for living architecture.’ I will leave out ‘The Production of Giant Projects,’ because it might be more useful to discuss this point in the context of more relevant topics such as an ‘Amalgam of System A and System B, or the use of AI.
Overall, it was worth the experiment and I hope you all will still get something worthwhile out of it, like a hint or even an insight.
Hans Joachim (Hajo) Neis, is an emeritus Professor of Architecture at the University of Oregon. He directed the Architecture Program at the UO in Portland for more than seven years and has directed the Portland (or Pattern) Urban Architecture Research Laboratory (PUARL) since 2006. As a board member of the Center for Environmental Structure, he is involved in CES projects, mainly the Archives Project currently underway. He was a long-time colleague of Christopher Alexander, and was the executive architect on the award-winning Eishin College project in Tokyo, Japan. With Christopher and Maggie Moore Alexander, he is co-author of the book The Battle for the Life and Beauty of the Earth (2012), a case study of the Eishin project, and the book A New Theory of Urban Design (1987), that showed unusual innovations in urban theory, with Christopher Alexander, Artemis Anninou and Ingrid King. He was also intensely involved in development of The Nature of Order (2002-06), the four volume magnus opus of Alexander.
Dr. Neis previously taught at the University of California, the University of Frankfurt, Meiji University in Tokyo, as well as being awarded the DAAD visiting professorship at Technical University of Dresden. He was a tutor for the Prince of Wales Urban Design Task Force Program in Lebanon and Berlin. He is a founding member of the architectural organization ‘School of Seeing.’ His main interest in research focuses on the two vital issues ofthe question of quality and value in architecture and urban structure and, second, the question of process and processes, which have the capacity to create and generate quality in buildings and the urban environment. More recently he is also interested in the contribution of architecture and urban design to solve large and often world-wide problems including refugee research. Currently he is working on ‘The Sugar in the Milk – A Refugee Pattern Language (RPL). As a licensed architect and planner for over 40 years, he is practicing architecture, urban design and planning internationally, with projects in Germany, Japan and the US with Hajo Neis and Associates (HNA).
Mock-up for determining exact position of entrance gate and street with walls, openings and with or without bicycle stands, Photo: Hajo Neis
Nature of Order Webinar: Geometry and Emotion: A case study of unfolding ornament in modernist architecture, Ioana Barac
This session will be on Thursday, March 13, 2025 at 16:00 UTC. Write to natureoforder@buildingbeauty.org to be included.
The lecture will introduce the understanding of ornament as the geometrically structured visual language of energy and life. We will follow the making of the Slover Library ornament from concept to installation, a project approached and developed by the design team as the triad city-building-ornament. This renovation-and-addition project is a unique example of contemporary ornamented architecture that meets Alexander’s criteria: it is new and dramatic, while rooted in the traditional practices. The presentation will focus on the unfolding of the atrium ceiling, a process that combined current technologies and the handmade.
The Slover Library in Norfolk, VA , design team: Newman Architects; Urban Design Workshop; Bloomerstudio.
Overview of the architectural project from the Architect’s portfolio:
Ioana Barac is principal at Atelier Cue, an architectural art and place-making studio based in New Haven, CT. Ioana has taught at University of Hartford since 2015, from design studios and graduate thesis advising to ornament-focused seminars.
Ioana started her studies in Architecture and Urbanism in Bucharest, Romania, and completed them in the U.S. She has a B.Sc. from University of Hartford and a Master of Architecture from Yale University, where she received the Moulton Andrus Award for Excellence in Art and Architecture.
Prior to Atelier Cue, Ioana has worked for over a decade as principal design associate at Bloomerstudio in New Haven, CT, leading and collaborating on national and local projects of architectural ornament and public art, and as senior designer at OakPark Architects, on institutional and commercial projects.
Ioana is a member of the Romanian Artist Connection and of the Architecture is Free Foundation.
Nature of Order Webinar: The Exquisite Humanity of Homes, Duo Dickinson, Architect
This session will be on Thursday, March 6, 2025 at 16:00 UTC. Write to natureoforder@buildingbeauty.org to be included.
Architects obsess about judging built products - including our most intimate buildings: Homes. In The Nature of Order, the full duality of the home - its singularity as a building and universality as a human characteristic is described as integral with each home's design.. Christopher Alexander describes how three homes were conceived and created with the site and the client fully integrated into designs. My 45 year practice has largely been based in homes: and I, in turn, describe a few first in process, then in outcome.
Graduating from Cornell in 1977, Duo Dickinson opened his own architectural practice in 1987. His work has received more than 60 awards and is a Fellow in the American Institute of Architects. He has built over 1,000 things. His design work has been published in more than 70 publications. He has written 8 books and is a staff columnist for several publications, including the Common Edge Collaborative as well as a writer for a variety of national and local publications. He is a creator and host of the “Our Buildings, Our Selves” podcast sponsored by the Connecticut Society of Architects. He also hosts the radio series “Home Page” on WPKN Radio and lectures widely.
Dickinson is an Adjunct Faculty Member at the University of Hartford and is on the faculty and board of the Building Beauty program where he is the co-chair of their American Advisor Board . He has also taught at Yale College and Roger Williams University.
Nature of Order Webinar: Professor Vikas Mehta, Architect as Player in Urban Design Game: Action, Reaction, Collaboration - URBAN INFILL in YBOR CITY
This session will be on Thursday, February 27, 2025 at 16:00 UTC. Write to natureoforder@buildingbeauty.org to be included.
Most cities around the world are a result of incremental growth that modifies the city with each increment. Good modification of the city fabric is a result of a thorough understanding of and response to the existing patterns of building typologies and spatial configurations. The Studio dealt with this aspect of incremental growth in an existing city fabric. Ybor City in Tampa is a unique neighborhood with a distinct character that provides a rich context with diverse opportunities for incremental growth and modification. Presently, Ybor City is undergoing a dramatic transformation as it attempts to become a desirable neighborhood in which to live, work, learn and play. This Studio took advantage of these possibilities and students participated in this growth. The project was played out as a real game of action, reaction, and collaboration.
Students in teams of four or five worked as a group. Each student was required to propose 1) a building design project and 2) design an urban artifact, a landscape or a folly. Each proposed project was reviewed and approved in concept by the other members of the team and the instructor. Once a student proposed a project a second student from the same group reacted to the existing context keeping in mind the new project proposed by the previous student. This continued until all students in the group had proposed one building design project and an urban artifact/landscape/folly each. Proposed projects had to keep in mind the urban context and the other proposals, and each new project was expected to add value to the neighborhood.
This Studio helped students to think of the design of individual sites, buildings, landscapes and artifacts in a larger context of the city. Students were expected to integrate their experiences from their study tour to Boston and Cambridge, MA, to inform their design decisions. Though each student undertook only two design projects - one building and one urban artifact/landscape/folly – s/he got an opportunity to understand the contribution each individual design gesture made to the larger urban design of the neighborhood and the city. By reacting to designs proposed by their colleagues, students also dealt with the problem of responding to the existing and ever-changing context in which they design. Above all, students learned the important lessons that not only buildings but other design gestures in the urbanscape are significant in creating a truly urban experience and a livable neighborhood. The Studio helped students develop design skills by conceptualizing and representing architectural ideas and making aesthetic judgments about building design especially as they relate to the context in which they are designed.
Program, Site and Context
Each student was free to propose their own program for the building design as well as the urban artifact/landscape/folly. The program for the building had to include a mix of residential, retail, cultural, entertainment, and other uses. Similar to the conceptual design, the program required approval from the other members of the team and the instructor. As in the case of the physical design of the buildings and artifacts, the program, too, needed to respond to the existing land uses and programs of nearby buildings. The site was a 12-block area in Ybor City that is bound by Palm Ave. on the north, N. 15th Street on the east, E. 6th Ave. on the south, and Nuccio Parkway on the west. Parking requirements were based on the program for each proposed building or artifact, but the studio generally assumed a high dependency on existing and proposed public transportation.
Vikas Mehta, Ph.D., is the Fruth/Gemini Chair of Communication in the Urban Environment (CUE), the Ohio Eminent Scholar of Urban/Environmental Design and Professor of Urban Design in the School of Planning, College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP) at the University of Cincinnati.
Dr. Mehta is interested in various dimensions of urbanity through the exploration of place as a social and ecological setting and as a sensorial art. His work focuses on the role of design and planning in creating a more responsive, equitable, supportive, and communicative environment. This work emphasizes the sense of place and place distinctiveness, design and visualization of urban places and activities, and cities and regions as just, equitable, and sustainable living systems. He is the author/co-author and editor/co-editor of 7 books and over 50 articles, book chapters and encyclopedia entries on urban design pedagogy, public space, urban streets, neighborhoods, retail, signage and visual identity, public space in the Global south, and more. In 2014 and 2024, his books, The Street and Public Space received Book Awards from the Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA). Dr. Mehta has degrees in architecture, urban design, and city planning.
The context for the lecture are the following chapters in Book III: People forming a collective vision for their neighborhood; Reconstruction of an urban neighborhood, high density housing; further dynamics. Pp. 257-360.
Nature of Order Webinar: Ross Chapin, Architect and Author, Positive Space
This session will be on Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 16:00 UTC. Write to natureoforder@buildingbeauty.org to be included.
Positive Space is a fundamental principle in cultivating life within architectural design, encompassing buildings, outdoor spaces, structural geometry, and details. Ross Chapin will explore this concept through examples of his work, including Thomas Berry Hall, Aldermarsh House, and Greenwood Avenue Cottages. The talk will delve into the concept of a 'choreography' of movement, revealing how interlocking positive spaces can create meaningful and dynamic architectural experiences.
Ross Chapin
Ross is an architect and author based on Whidbey Island, north of Seattle, who has been deeply influenced by Chris Alexander's design principles since encountering early manuscripts of A Pattern Language. Early in his career, he worked closely with craftsman builders on custom homes, retreat centers, commercial buildings, and public spaces in his local community. In the mid-1990s, Chapin helped draft zoning codes enabling cottage court building clusters and partnered in developing seven "pocket neighborhoods" in the region.
Since then, he has collaborated with developers nationwide on projects ranging from small cottage clusters to comprehensive mixed-use neighborhoods. His acclaimed book, Pocket Neighborhoods: Creating Small Scale Community in a Large Scale World, continues to inspire policy makers, developers, architects, and community housing advocates. Currently, Chapin is focusing on neuro-inclusive design, multi-generational community development, and innovative approaches to housing affordability.
Thomas Berry Hall, Whidbey Island Institute, Arch. Ross Chapin
Nature of Order Webinar: James Maguire, Architect, The Design Process
This lecture aired on February 13, 2025. To access the recording, go to the Nature of Order Webinar page.
This lecture reviews the design process for three buildings: The College of Business and Economics at Boise State University; the Student Success Center at University of North Texas at Dallas; and the New Chancery Building for the Diocese of Boise. The lecture will illustrate how the Project Specific Pattern Language (PSPL) approach is integrated in the design and construction process here in the US and demonstrates the superior results achieved. I will also touch on how the PSPL approach as outlined supports the use of 15 properties from NoO to be utilized as guiding principles in the design implementation. In addition to presenting an overview of the process flow, the presentation will also highlight potential pitfalls and difficulties to be aware of, as well as pointing to methods of mitigating these difficulties.
After working with Christopher Alexander at CES (1988-94), I eventually became Campus Architect and Vice Chancellor of Facilities Planning Design and Construction at two different US campuses (Boise State University (BSU) and the University of North Texas (UNT) System). While in these positions overseeing the development of 5 separate campuses, I led projects based on the lessons learned from my time at UC Berkeley and CES.
View of New Chancery building for the Diocese of Boise