The Curve in Architecture

Those who dare defy conventions, must justify their actions. Constellations of straight lines and right angles enjoy an unprecedented level of implicitness. They are omnipresent and untouchable. Curvilinear forms on the other hand must defend themselves against a much higher degree of scrutiny, as they must elaborate the very fundamentals of their presence while holding up conceptually within the overall design of the structure. Criticism against such unconventional shapes is often very superficial, since merely declaring them as such is reason enough to dismiss them entirely. Founded on this frustration, this thesis attempts to explore wether or not the curve can justify its existence in the field of architecture beyond an expression of form though a stylistic device.

For this discourse, two fields are of particular interest: the functional-organic architecture at the beginning of the 20th century and the digital Avantgarde towards the end of the millennium. Both outline positions towards the fundamental formalities of architecture relevant to shaping building form. In early Modern architecture, the practicality of form is addressed though the study of organic shapes (nature) while the digital architecture pursues the principles of creating aesthetic shapes with highly complex curves and twists (hypersurfaces).

Opposing the terms "art" and "architecture" in order to understand their relation towards each other is a topic complex enough to warrant its very own discussion and thesis. Nevertheless, it is a topic of discussion which will inevitably appear here as well. The intention here is not to fully explore the dynamic and the circle of influence between these fields, but rather to understand the connections between theoretic-systematic and artistic-creative performances that lie inherently within architecture.

Supervision:
Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Jasper Cepl, Professorship Theory and History of Modern Architecture
Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Heike Büttner, Professorship Basics in Planning

Contact: inontepe[at]icloud.com
Phone: +49 176 315 247 56