Detail 01/1961 - Editorial statement.
Architecture and construction Detail today.
Preliminary remark: This introductory discussion is intended to clarify which core tasks the work on building details will have to solve in the future. At the same time, what is said in it can be considered programmatic for the magazine "Detail." Further contributions will follow in the next issue.
In discussions about the general importance of the building detail and the current questions that arise, - by architects and construction technicians, by architectural critics and school people, by industry experts and craftsmen - often the following, sometimes contradictory opinions are expressed:
1. It is usually agreed that a building, as a whole as in all its details, should be determined by the same spirit and by the same factual consequence. Accordingly, it is also agreed that the formal character of the details cannot only be an ingredient, but must result from the essence of the matter. The detail is therefore never to be decided according to fashion, but always according to what is permanently necessary and best possible.
2. However, there is disagreement on how to strive for and achieve internal and external agreement between the whole and the details on a case-by-case basis. Some believe that they can be secured most reliably by using all the details of an object to the last exclusively by planning or Scheme and in it Others point out that the details of the forces involved in detail in the architectural office are often by no means comprehensive and reliable enough. In particular, daily experience teaches that in the training as an architectural and construction technician profession, one apparently cannot deal in detail enough with the almost unmistakably diverse foundations and possibilities of detail today. This is also clearly evident in countless buildings and in many rooms, the details of which were apparently either taken from a mere schema catalog or semi-dilettantically determined.
3. In the dilemma, which often arises from the discrepancy between the demand for consistent unit of work on the one hand and insufficient mastery of the detailed requirements on the other hand, one often seeks to avoid risks by relying on type systems of the industry or demanding schematic repetitions of Ublichem during manual work. Rarely, on the other hand, experts from industry or crafts are used from the outset to develop and fix details. This is particularly difficult if the objects have to be precisely defined financially in advance. Thus, according to many, one must necessarily start from the complete preliminary calculation Go, even with all the details. In addition, only a few employees and contractors are able to carry out detailed work out high quality, with repeated adaptation to the special conditions and possibilities of the various objects. Therefore, it is best to adhere to the safest possible working schemes and form canons.
4. "Dead" is, the less in and in it, beyond the functional in the narrower sense, parts of directly personal performance are added, i.e. the less the striking things - construction, technology, material and form - the "Track of man." Most post-war buildings proved that without the activation of personal forces, only a world poor in positive experiential contacts could arise. At best, there is prosperity developed according to certain abstract, aesthetic-fish maxims of so-called "Good form, which, however, remains low-effective to the decisive needs of full-human existence. It corresponds to this, even in architectural terms, always looking for "new" methods, directions or even effects in order to be at the forefront of the competition or ahead of time. At the moment, the new ones will soon be overtaken again because when thinking and doing things, the grip often does not aim at the lasting.
5. In view of the remarkable deviations from the mere routine and the scheme, as a whole as well as in detail, that can be found here and there, it remains to be asked which forces were realized in it. Often you come to the following conclusion: once some architects or individual employees themselves have a preference for certain constructions or materials in general (stone, concrete, iron, wood, etc.) or differentiated detailing; they then already adapt the designs to the special requirements in the design. Also, occasionally a formal force comes into play from crafts or industry, whose level is higher than that of mere assembly performance. There and then Again, under the leadership of the responsible architect, a real working team is also forming, which not only strives for timely and cost-oriented planning and processing but also actively promotes and develops the detailed maturation in the various specialist divisions. The more thoroughly you then work together on the individual, under the breeding of a clear whole, the more convincing the details become.
6. In principle, most agree that buildings in which diverse talented forces in the discipline of intellectual clarity worked on their own, occupy the highest rank. Experience has shown that there is a great lack of such interaction in everyday life. If you ask architects, you often hear the answer that today only a few performers are sufficiently sure of form; you must therefore eliminate all arbitrariness from this side through complete planning. If, on the other hand, you ask e.g. B. experienced craftsmen, they often complain that the details would usually be determined by people who have never seriously dealt with such work themselves and who therefore hardly really know what is not only necessary but also possible. - In addition, some who are weak in design can play very routinely with superficial effects. In such skill, he puts on the corset of a sham style from the outset, which is supposed to hide the inner weakness in a sense. There would be a lot else to discuss to write down the detail. The above fixations only give a few clues to clarify the situation. Generally, radical changes for the better can only be expected anyway if one accepts that the details are by no means secondary, but - if the whole thing is to be good - require the same seriousness in the efforts as the plan, which is subject to everything. In particular, it remains to be asked whether and how it will be possible to give the detail more really creative strength in the future than is usually the case today.
Redaktion Detail
P.S.: translation from Deutsch to English through scan to text and auto-translation. The original is provided. I am not a german native, although I lived a few years and can understand some basic german, I leave this as it is. Will accept any help on the correction of the translation if provided. Thank you for your understanding.