ANTHROPOMORPHIC ARCHITECTURE

Anthropomorphic Architecture



Acknowledgement

Writing this thesis has been very demanding, challenging and time-consuming, but also remarkable, informative and above all fun. Nevertheless, it feels great to have finally completed my bachelor's or master's thesis and I am now looking forward to a nice relaxing period for recovering. It has been both advantages and drawbacks with the limited amount of earlier research conducted within this area, even though I faced serious troubles but sometimes the advantages of this research luckily were in my favor and have made this research both challenging and interesting. I would like to thank my supervisor _____________, professor at _______________University, who has been great in guiding my through this thesis, helping me through the difficulties I faced during the entire process and motivated me to work hard. Furthermore, I would like to thank all my friends, for their contributions by sharing their perceptions and opinions with me. Above all I would like to thank my family and teachers that provided me with valuable and constructive criticism.

Declaration

I ______________, confirm that this work submitted for assessment is my own and is expressed in my own words. Any uses made within it of the works of other authors in any form (e.g. ideas, equations, figures, text, tables, programmes) are properly acknowledged at the point of their use. A full list of the references employed has been included.

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Date: __________________.



Anthropomorphic Architecture

Introduction

A metaphor is an artistic device, aimed at evoking certain feelings by creating some analogy between two dissimilar entities. Usually, therefore, in metaphoric architecture the designer's aim is to derive some association or symbol from the function of the building or from its context, which then in some way is reflected in the appearance of the building. The use of the metaphor in architecture, in fact, is not new. For example, Gothic cathedrals often evinced mysticism and pious devotion. A similar purpose motivated Le Corbusier in the design of the Ronchamps Chapel. A notable example of metaphoric building in recent times is the Sydney Opera House, architect: Jorn Utzon; structural engineers: Ove Arup and Partners (Dagens, 1994). This paper discusses anthropomorphic architecture in a concise and comprehensive way.

Anthropomorphic Architecture

Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human qualities—specifically, complex emotions, reasoning, and motives—to anything that is not human. Most religions describe the divine in human terms, even though divinity is defined as something inherently beyond the human. The tendency to put a human face on celestial bodies and on features of the topography dates to religious beliefs that deities had assumed those forms. Other deities were said to have assumed animal forms, and myths have reinforced totemic associations of certain animals with particular characteristics—for instance, owls with wisdom, foxes with cunning, and swans with elegance and thus anthropomorphic architecture refers to objects or structures that resemble or have human form, attributes, or personality. Usually applied to figurines or the representation of gods or animals.

Discussion

The location of the building at Sydney Harbour inspired the architect to choose a roof system consistin of reinforced ...