Monumentality and dominance in Louis Kahn’s architecture

Abstract

Dominance in architecture is defined as the superiority and predominance of an element or group of elements over the rest in the composition, which causes its attractiveness to the recipient/viewer. The dominant elements often include the basic idea of the architectural work and carry a set of design characteristics. The research assumes that the monumentality in the works of the architect (Louis Kahn) is achieved through the realization of certain values in the characteristics of dominance. Thus, the aim was to reveal the presence of these characteristics in some of his selected projects practically and through the relationship extracted from the literature that the presence of dominance characteristics in designs is a reason for their monumentality. The research adopted a descriptive approach by using a questionnaire for architects. The results showed the presence of dominance on both whole and partial levels of design in his projects due to the types of basic shapes, because of their constant presence in the mind and their large size. At the partial level, the dominance was achieved by the complete repetition of the elements and their important functions.