Architect and Architecture: A Reflection

Architect and Architecture: A Reflection Undoubtedly, architect as a profession is inseparable from the history of civilization on earth. Subsequent development of the profession is the specialization of builders to highly specialized professionals of modern planners and designers. Specialties are likely such consequence that the society’s demand and expectations of the architect is not limited to its role as a building designer, but an expert of design matters, from artifact to event. Challenges of Indonesian development call on people who had been trained in the discipline of architecture to re‐recognize and repositioning their role and function in society that their discipline is the mother of expertise and knowledge for the design and construction of things and events. Since the publication of his work: de Architettura, 46‐36 BC1, Marcus Vitruvius Pollio introduced the role and function of architect based on his interpretation of building works of Classical Greek Art Building. He summed up the doctrine of architectural work into the Credo: Firmitas, Utilities, venustas. Since then, the architectural scope of work was established in writing. This dictum provides basic professional competence of architectural artist and builder that such person is the originator of the idea of building and building in the community. In the Roman tradition such profession was known as profeteri that has an expertise in delineating architectural matters and announcement of building projects and developments to public audience. Architectural profession did not in existence as an independent profession from this tradition; it was declared itself as part of the public service as an expert in designing and building. The concept of profeteri has a root in the word fateri meaning a self‐declaration of a person for his/her ability and ready for being responsible for his/her actions. Practically speaking, profeteri needs a field or position that is always preceded with vocare or call for duty. In response to the call, young people of the 15th Century Europe went to learn from the masters of certain fields. They learnt the knowledge and skills of production process in various aspects of making. To provide skills and knowledge based on training is called experiri. This experience has been evolving for centuries that has established the relationship between profession and expertise. People now call the link between both as the legal basis for the establishment of educational institution, professional association and contractual agreement of professional service. Architect act, designer act, and planning act are established to establish and conserve the quality and ethics of professional services and its sustainability. An expert,‐including building expert‐, in the sense of community Vitruv nothing more than a student whose life is called to have the knowledge and skills through training and work experience. Even what is called the Architect has not come to the surface, but the scope of duties and in particular are well known expertise intact. At the time of his Roman Vitruv, there is no difference between the engineer (civil & military) and artists of the building. Bagoes Wiryomartono/ Architect and Architecture

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In the Renaissance, the repositioning of the role and function of the architect was going to reinforce what is inherited from the Vitruvian tradition. Florence Italy in society,‐as a center of civilization of the Renaissance‐, is well‐known place of refinement and diversification as well as redefinition of the scope of the architectural expertise. The concept of architect emerged as a profession for the first time in terms of capomaestro2. However, the term architect came to light in 1480 when Giulino da Maiano expressed as Principalis Architectus Duomo in Florence. Profession referred to the level of competence as Capomaestro; this profession is characterized with a special role in designing the shape, structure of the building and oversee construction of the main church, palace, and other public building. Earlier in Italy, such designation was identical with the function of capomaestro ingegnerius; such as designated for the Duomo in Milan and Ferrara. Accordingly, architectus was not in the sense of chief designer of modern architecture; its role and function more as director or project manager of building construction. A person can be assigned as principalis capo maestro and architectus, if you have a special expertise as a mason. Carpenter can rarely be capo maestro. Indication of job capo maestro award is not paid in return services daily, or weekly as builders, but paid annually by the City. Often capo maestro or project architectus of the Urban Development Advisory Council (Opera) accompanied the mayor as development adviser. In his capacity of this city who sits in the city council, achitectus could play an active role as a capo maestro designare. This role is not in the sense of making design but closer to make normal sketches or drawings that lay out the physical form of buildings and the built environment. Images only in order to facilitate members of Opera with tangible form for their deliberations concerning the development, rather than in the reference design of a building. From 15th until the early 20th century, as professionals, architects in Europe began to find their specific task and function in society concerning the design of public buildings. In France School Ecole des Beaux‐Arts (from 1819‐ to present) and Ecole Polytechnique under Jean‐Nicolas‐Louis Durrand (1800‐1834) confirmed the role and function of architect as building designer and building engineer. Formal education in both French educational institutions established and reinforced the function and role of the architect in French society. Since the 19th century, the architectural profession as designer of builder falls into the category of special skills that stand for the vanguard of a new community cultural renewal. Traditionally, Ecole des Beaux Arts educated and trained people to be architects with artists with comprehensive knowledge of arts and the humanities (literature, poetry, drama, philosophy). Meanwhile, at the Ecole Polytechnique, people are trained and educated as professionals in terms of building engineers with the strong knowledge on fundamentals of geometry, statics and physics. Strong influence on both the French institution is growing rapidly worldwide with the establishment of the architecture department in various Engineering Colleges College of Arts and Education. At the university is very rarely found in Northern Europe. But in southern Europe, is integrated into the Department of Architecture and Engineering Bagoes Wiryomartono/ Architect and Architecture

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Arts education. Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge Massachusetts1865, is the first formal educational institution in the United States that has a Department of Architecture, followed by Cornell and Princeton. The development of the discipline of professional architects in the world to get fresh air when Gropius founded the Institute for Design Education in 1919 the German voice of many. Education is not specifically starting with the Department of Buildings and Urban (new 1928), but of fine art and product design. What is very interesting from these institutions is a strong vision in reading age of industrial engineering. Utilization of industrial production is able to produce a model with a reproduction of quantities and precision opens the realm of design as an important key to the process. Design by Bauhaus became the core of the training and skills to produce models of appropriate and efficient. Design to pursue the essence of every "the thing"; ranging from spoons, plates, chairs up to the housing and factories. Even on a quest to find the essence of the design and establishment bound by the tendency of re‐production of an uncontrollable, but Bauhaus contribution to the project of modernity is very large. Particularly in view the socio‐economic issues related to equipment and supplies reside,‐home‐work‐trade‐. The resulting models tend to be in the re‐production that it becomes expansionist without knowing the root cause and context of criticism and sharp reaction from the beginning of 1960 for the design of modern buildings. Apparently, industrial design should be carefully and reviewed, in order to establish the nature of the place does not exactly make mankind homeless. After a long professional architects and located in the community there, but the position and his claim cannot be separated from the interests of humanity to find its home on earth. The trend these days just do not see problems in terms of engineering design as a new world opening to give the public confidence in the architect. Business is flourishing and abundant property since the mid‐1970s until May 20, 1998 provide evidence that the architect and his work is nothing more than commodities consumerism; at least that's what stands out. Art and design‐building techniques have been reduced to 'goods' within the meaning of commodity transactions, rather than as 'the fruit of service' in return for gratitude. Often people think of romance, when viewing the work of architects designed the building as an offering to open up a world. Real for some people are building more is not merchandise that requires a transaction in the service of designing and development services. This is what people think is the real world. But is it so? In the tradition of the Old Javanese wastu building known in the concept of vastu in Sanskrit in Malay 'goods' (the thing). wastu save some understanding of the gathering of evidence or anything of the vision, knowledge, and influence, from nothing to the existing. Wastu provides certainty about the wisdom in a region boundary (boundary). Ancient Greeks understood the limits of understanding of this area as horismos (horizon) limit where things start to have intrinsically. Wastu we hear from these concepts: Amastu, winastu, kawastu, which means forming ideas, understanding, and Bagoes Wiryomartono/ Architect and Architecture

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building forms3. The building is none other than the wastu that has a reference to where the human being. Place in terms of the Javanese call wastu Loka. In terms of Loka, the people, the world and its incidence is on the spatiality and contextuality. Loka is a scene that has a different relationship with the world. Loka is created and established by men. Loka in Sanskrit had the same sense with his Greek topos. The sense of loka lies in its relationship to living space and human society; all this is depicted in the concepts: lokacara (local customs), lokadhatu (local form‐matter in relation to location and earth or physis), lokamaryada (adaptation to local conditions), lokaprakitri (local association with the world's praise, fame), lokasthiti (local dignity). Even in the Javanese community, or generally in the archipelago, architectural profession has been known as a well‐rounded expert in culture and tradition, as well as builder and artist of built environment. In practice, loka need people with specific expertise who are proficient and well‐experienced as an expert of building matter,‐ undahagi or mpu‐. The task of mpu or undahagi is not only knowledgeable of the methods and techniques concerning the construction of building, but also the astrology and rituals/ceremonies of the establishment of loka4. The built environment is not simply a thing, but a being that deserves regard and care from humankinds,‐ from its very beginning,‐from the birth to its fully presence‐. In the original sense of Javanese language, built environment is also called wanua loka or wanua: the world. It is the realm where the habitation takes place; both,‐loka and wanua‐, are inseparable from the function and role of expert engineering. The Javanese communities do not rely on drawing techniques for their buildings. All building principles and construction details have been well integrated in their mind through practical experience. The transformation of building from idea into form‐matter to detailed documentation of construction is the result of coaching profession since the Ecole des Beaux‐Arts until the 20th century. Ancient monuments,‐such as Borobudur and Prambanan complex‐, were probably erected without formal documentation; they were constructed with "trials & errors" in full scale for their erection. The way the ancient Javanese people built their monuments were neither recorded on stones nor on papers. Inscriptions only tell us the intention of such monuments and their main sponsors. Chief Master Builders in Javanese tradition did not work too much on the craftsmanship, but more concerned on the rituals and customary principles of building construction. To certain extent, the Master directs and guides the stone masons and carpenters for their treatments on form and material. Traditionally, the role and function of the architect is never perish as the expert of building and opening a new world on earth under the sky. The essential need to build entails the expertise of loka or habitation of the built environment. As long as people are still around for the architect's profession actually exist and function. The problem is the interpretation that never stops on the scope and expertise. Since the Modern Movement in Europe, architects and city planners began to separate both professions. Bauhaus became a classic example where Hannes Meyer and Hilberseimer begin to clarify areas Bagoes Wiryomartono/ Architect and Architecture

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of architecture and urban planning as a distinct discipline. Meanwhile the functions and roles between artists and engineers have long since parted ways Gustav Eifel 1889 establishing monumental steel tower in Paris. Whatever deep and wide the separation between designer and engineer, both have something in common concerning safe, healthy, and attractive built environment. Traditional architects and builders are experts that create and build the site of world in terms of loka. The main qualification for their expertise is their sensibility to align the man‐made and the natural environment as a whole; they are not only technically skillful, but also socio‐culturally proficient and respectable based on their wisdom and experience. Questions about how the authority will be back on "training" and "vocation" of the prospective architect. Necessary steps be taken to the disciplines related to science and engineering building is no longer loka disciplines disintegrate. Disciplines need to interact intensively in the Studio Architect candidates. College is not enough, we need a training‐intensive nature means "learning by doing". As an expert in the design problem, the so‐called architects should have a broad scope in the sense consists of a variety of specialties ranging from planning, designing, setting up construction to make the evaluation and supervision of construction to maintenance. Architects should refer to the expertise in science and engineering with the basics of building science and design expertise. Design as a core discipline of building is not new to building activity. Sketch or drawing is just a medium of communication. The Javanese mpu and undahagi do not have skills in the visualization and presenting models in terms of image, plan and design, but they are competence in building design in mind and full‐ scale construction. With the knowledge and leadership skills to build this design think it can be fostered. Leadership is important, because without this design will lose direction and orientation as well as discipline and profession5. Leadership is in practice held by educational institutions, not by the market. Why is that? Educational institution is a public institution of the most independent and able to see the future of human civilization through a discipline‐discipline and the specific domains. The problem is, where dialogue and discourse takes place. Higher education for specialization and faculty corps tradition often walk on their own and the only one in the system of administration and bureaucracy. What is the attitude and orientation of the engineering profession and discipline in the era of crisis such as in Indonesia today? As has happened before, the most valuable lessons in the world of design is not lost "confidence" 6 that the building through design expertise will never become extinct. Build through the design architect is the mother of the profession as a special expert in the community. Whether the profession will become extinct? As long as men still living on this earth as long as they continue to build it anyway. Because the building does not mean stop the construction but to set up workshops to make at home. Require services and business coaching. Besides rehabilitation, revitalization and redevelopment are domains which cannot be discharged. His struggle is not a philosophical level, but rather on the Praxis: How do Bagoes Wiryomartono/ Architect and Architecture

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the laws of Construction Services to provide system and network for professional legal and engineering disciplines. Concretely, engineering profession needs to define itself more clearly rooted in the common interest to build the world through workshops or the built environment is orderly and sustainable. Most acts of making need to regard human hand. Human hand is not simply the limb of body. Rather, it is the capacity of humankind to transform something to be things; this includes the transformation of natural site to be human settlement. In short, the world is built, developed and sustained by the human hand. The human hand as a whole is a resourceful gift of humanity. The hand of man in the Javanese tradition known as hasta (Sanskrit) has a wide range of idiomatic: Angasta (rule), ngasta (duty and profession), hastadhara (help, lend a hand). The hand of man is the one that allows humans to work, accomplish, and make that bring about and cultivate man‐made things and events to be culture and civilization. The work departs from the concept krya Sanskrit means business, action and work to make something with basic notices. Literally, the concept of krya is closely related to the perfection and care that bring about something from nothing to be things. Creativity of human hand is incorporated in many Javanese concepts: Anipta, cinipta, kacipta, panipta; all these refer to the focus and interest or concern that entails the inspired act from the tranquil mind. The twofold unity of hand and mind is necessarily achieved prior to any action. By default, creativity comes from the source of being in terms of inspiration; however, it can only be actualized as things by human hand. Classical Greeks knew this action based on inspired ideas and clues as poesis. Not surprising that the activity to create a masterpiece by many Javanese mpu done with tapa or meditation; in doing so the artist is in the search for alignment with the universe. In traditional way of thinking, inspiring ideas and clues are not at random; they are not accessible in noisy and rowdy mind. Achieving receptive mind is actually how to free oneself from his/her ego that enables one to listen to the silence. Tranquility is not a dead and quite realm, but an infinite resourceful ocean of possibilities. Hasta today is narrowly understood by modern society simply as techniques or ways of production. But what exactly is contained in the concept of hasta, remains hidden. Hasta contains twofold meaning namely astaguna (usefulness and functional) and anasta (command and control). In this dual capacity as the tendency of science and engineering hasta like a double‐edged sword. Hasta is kindness in the sense of appropriateness and fitting with what you need. While anasta is about directing and controlling; this is of course to deny the essence of listening. For sustainability, the hand of man is neither to control others and nature but to work together with care and responsibility according to the function and structure of ecosystem. Regarding human being is the one who is endowed with creative power, the hand of man should be utilized in terms of care and compassion based on respect to persons and regards to things and environment. Therefore, the choice is given to every human being is very clear, listening to his

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conscience to establish harmony with nature through the world or the master of nature to exploit its resources. The most problematic in the practical world of architecture is the alienation of man from his own work. The source of this alienation is the forgetfulness of the difference between being and beings. Assertive mind claims everything on earth is the object of humanity because of its objectivity. Unlike the traditional way of thinking which is receptive in dealing with nature and fellow humankinds. Traditional people respect people as person, and others as beings that are present as part of the whole. Traditional people do not divide the reality into “us versus them´. The alienation of modernity arises from the facts that the building or built environment as an object of production and transaction. With this view, the world is the totality of objects of the assertively thinking subject. In other words, the world does not happen, but simply the system of objects. That man and his work is not an entity within the meaning of "souvenir". This phrase is often considered abstract and jargon. In fact, the actual reality of man's creation is for man in the whole world. Architect and society are not separate things in fostering its buana and loka. Profession and discipline is currently accepting the uncertain situation and condition of global economy. These kind circumstances are not new. Whatever the settings are, traditional way to hold professional manner is within the concept of spiritual responsibility. Several religions taught people to hold profession as dharma and ibadah; the concept holds work and faith in indivisible mind‐set and action. The root of this spiritual responsibility lies in the sense of gratitude to being that it is a gift. Only one who is grateful to being has the need to response to the call of being. Gratitude leads man to do proper decision and action, because he/she has the faith that there is a holistic system of transformation in the universe working for beings as a whole. This provided the impetus to keep going that the profession is a call of duty based on spiritual thankfulness. In the German speaking culture, we hear the word Beruf that is related to Berufung, vocation. Profession is the call of being in the world. Eventually, please allow the author to deliver a quote from the legendary architect Louis Khan in 1984: ....... architecture does not exist. Only the work of architecture. Architecture does not exist in the mind. A man WHO does a work of architecture does it as offering to the spirit of architecture ....... a spirit which knows no style, knows no technique, no method. It just waits for that which presents itself. There is architecture, and it is the embodiment of unmeasurable 7.

Acknowledgment * Working Paper revised from the author of the Indonesian Institute of Architects Seminar in Bandung West Java, May 15, 1999

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End Notes 1.

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A. Vitruvius Pollio, M: The Ten Books on Architecture (de Architettura) translation MH Morgan, 1914, New York, Dover 1987. See also Allsopp, B: Patronage and Professionalism, in Farmer, B & Hentie Louw, Companion to Contemporary Architectural Though, London, Routledge, 1993, pp. 35‐8. Mary Hollingsworth: The Architect in Fifteen‐Century Florence, Art History Vol 7 No 4 December 1984, London p. 385‐406. Zoetmoelder, Dictionary Volume 2 Old Javanese Indonesia, Jakarta, Scholastic, 1996.h. 1400‐1. The concept of Loka as topos is where the world is and there is essentially a Pancamahabutha exposure (earth), divinity and humanity in unity Vastu or Wastu. In the unity of the harmony manifest themselves because each element has a freedom in accordance with khitahnya. Loka do not allow domination and violence because he was always tied to the custom or desadrasta or village has its own customs and traditions. Stanford Anderson (MIT Prof.), points out the basics of the difference between profession and discipline of architecture as follows. Professional architects associated with the special needs of the assignor and the piece of the project boundaries. While the discipline of architecture is a collective body of knowledge unique in scope and not bound by the requirements of the contract assignment. See further Anderson, S: Themes for a Symposium on Ph.D. Education in Architecture, in Post Professional and Doctoral Education in Architecture. Ann Arbor, Michigan, Architecture and Planning Research Laboratories, 1991p.8. The Greatness of an artist is more in the faith of his tradition than in the arrogance of his revolt. Abdel Wahed El‐vice in the Paul‐Alan Johnson: The Theory of Architecture 1993, h.281. Louis I Khan in Latour, Alexandra ed: Louis I Khan, Writings, Lectures, Interviews. New York: Rizzoli Int. 1991

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