Architecture in Virtual Worlds: A Panel Discussion
I was sitting on the edge of my seat throughout the entire video posted here: State of Play III : Scroll to Architecture in Virtual Worlds
via Kanker Greenacre [today: 17:51]
Why are comprehensive symposiums with discussions about virtual architecture happening at law schools (4 years in a row), and not at architecture schools? If there have been, please send links to video/blog!
"State of Play III: Social Revolutions was the third annual State of Play conference on the future of cyberspace convened by the Institute for Information Law & Policy at New York Law School, the Information Society Project at Yale Law School, and the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School."
posted by Unknown @ 7:52 PM
1 Comments:
It is great to hear the stories of those who are trying to bring the digital/physical exploration into architecture schools! I would be interested in learning more about your process/ideas/projects, etc. Please drop me an IM, I would love to talk more about your ideas.
I agree that it is time for the architectural profession to begin taking advantage of the opportunities the metaverse holds. SL is indeed a perfect medium.
You raise an interesting point about remaining responsible to our profession. I hope architects will begin to play a more integral role in defining the shape of the metaverse in the years ahead. The way I see it, virtual design requires that we return to the fundamentals of design that are a core ingredient in an architect's education. Form, space, order, hierarchy, proportion, wayfinding, rhythm, etc. are as important as ever in a virtual build. RL architects have the opportunity and arguably the responsibility to bring quality architecture to the rapidly expanding metaverse.
This is not to say that there aren't phenomenal 'indigenous' builds by non-trained architects in SL. But just like in RL, a good architect can add a great deal of value to a project by introducing new ideas, finding hidden opportunities and adding functionality to a project. In all, I am looking forward to seeing qualified architects assume a stronger role in providing their specialized knowledge in the virtual world as it evolves.
I would also like to see RL architects providing educational services to residents as well. The idea that everyone in SL can be an architect is a powerful concept, and I think residents would embrace a school of virtual architecture where they can learn the fundamentals of design if they don’t already understand them. The methodology of teaching those fundamentals is also an incredible opportunity. I can imagine a ‘Form Space and Order’ sim, with a path following each of the chapters in Dr. Ching’s book. Instead of flipping through the pages, residents can immerse themselves in each concept, fully illustrated with 3D interactive demonstrations.
But your point about the rules being different is incredibly important. While the fundamentals of design remain relatively unchanged in SL, the context is completely different. Virtual architecture is much more like a liquid than a physical artifact. Designing to fit in with context makes less sense when the context can change from one minute to the next. However, I think it is important to realize that this is not a world of 'no rules' as I've heard some designers characterize it. There are several boundaries that all good virtual architecture must respond to. For example, the very fact that there is a horizontal ground plane has a tremendous impact on how we approach a project. All of the nuances of an avatar’s perception (user interface, camera control, etc.) are important to understand as well. The social and collaborative phenomenon is also very different in SL than it is in RL (although some aspects remain unchanged). As Prokofy Neva once observed, avatars like to 'perch' in SL. Most seem to spend more time perching than they do traveling and exploring. This simple behavioral observation, as an example, has profound implications for the creation of meaningful and truly useful architecture in SL. These kinds of precepts have a profound impact on the requirements of quality architecture in SL, and good architects would do well to internalize these contextual requirements and opportunities.
So, while the fundamentals of good design remain constant, there are huge differences between RL and virtual architecture. I think this is an opportunity every builder and designer has to deal with, but I personally believe the training and background of RL architects are ideally suited to contributing and making meaningful strides in this conversation.
I hope this blog can help facilitate this discussion.
Post a Comment
<< Home