Design Medium — Design Object

Abstract

The impact of computing on architecture receives little reflective judgment, its role either being negated or over-emphasized. To one group of architects, it is not desirable that the machine should influence the object. Another, mostly younger group, takes the impact for granted, without much reflection on its underlying reasons. The smallest group --- mostly in academia --- is interested in actively defining the impact of computing on design and in defining a new kind of architecture. The paper will explore the relation between computer and architecture on three levels, in which the machine has the role of an instrument, a medium, and a partner. It will demonstrate a serious deficit in education regarding the new roles of computing in design.