Time and architecture: Problems of duration and sequence in architectural design

The outlook to and value man places on time affects every aspect of human activity, including architecture. The current heightened sense of time-awareness can be witnessed in the emergence of such practices as fast-tracking. Such unconventional methods associated with speed have been the subject of much criticism and controversy on the assumption that they adversely affect the quality of architectural design. Yet the ties between time and architecture are multifold, and go much deeper than their being a problem of speed alone. They involve the interrelationship of such issues as the notion of time of an entire age, as well as the specific architectural parameters of sequence and duration. The understanding and evaluation of current architectural practices can only be achieved in view of a broader historical perspective. The intricacies of this relationship are examined by tracing the major historical developments in time conception and tying them to architectural practices of the time. Duration and sequence are themselves functions of broader influences of technology, economic conditions, weather, myth, magic, custom and tradition and human values. Through the study of specific buildings as well as general principles of architectural design and construction the impact of the temporal aspects of duration and sequence on the ensuing design, tempered by the aforementioned influences are identified and analyzed. Several fast-track designs, representative of short duration and overlapped sequence in current practice are investigated. By tying the historical analysis to contemporary practice key aspects of the intricate interrelationship between time and architecture are uncovered. It becomes apparent that duration (long and short) and sequence (linear or overlapped) affect architectural design in precise ways, some beneficial and some adverse. Ultimately, the study also reveals that the current and much maligned practice of fast-tracking, rather than being an invention of this century is simply a reversal to design and construction methods of pre-industrial eras, but under a new set of circumstances. Moreover, it becomes evident through historical and contemporary example that each of the sequential and overlapped processes has its possibilities and limitations and that by understanding the innate qualities of each system, creative design is attainable using either method.