Architecture of Complexity Context Boundaries and Agency The

Architecture of Complexity: Context, Boundaries and Agency The Architectural Research Centers’ Consortium Annual Meeting Salt Lake City 14 -17 June 2017 Steven A. Moore, Ph. D. , RA The University of Texas at Austin

overview 1. A postmodern ontology of complexity 2. The problem of context 3. How do we establish system boundaries? 4. Where is Agency within the system?

ontology of complexity the modern assumption: the postmodern assumption: Culture and nature are distinct and separate Nature is available as “standing reserve” (Heidegger) Science can establish certainty Culture and nature a single reality Not only is everything connected to everything else, but the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Systems of humans and non-humans are self-organizing and uncertain

ontology of complexity is a metaphor, but is always more than metaphor architectural complexity has little to do with complicated surfaces or forms Cambridge, UK Train Station (Atkins) Derived from John Conway’s “Game of Life” (but inaccurate) but very much to do with “ecological and social context, system boundaries, and social agency. ”

ontology of complexity in architecture? ARPANET 1960 s Origins: like the internet itself, the tools of complexity science became available to architecture as a “spill-over affect” from military science concerning flows, e. g. aerodynamic and information flows. Gehry’s used CATIA V 3, developed by Dassault Systems, first used it in 1977 to design the Mirage fighter jet Again, complexity can be successful metaphor in communication, but with unintended consequences. We make complicated forms and surfaces because we can, not because we……. . ? Bilbao Museum

ontology of complexity An observation: Technologies that emerge change faster than the reactive laws designed to regulate them. A big question: In such a dynamic world can, or should we regulate, or codify technological change?

ontology of complexity STS tells us that tools are appropriated by new social groups because they embody : 1) unforeseen novelty in the marketplace and 2) access to (economic) power

ontology of complexity About regulation: “The technological revolution … is disruptive in relation to both the enterprise of law and the project of moral community. " (26) … This reasoning is finally based on the existential problem of choice as the source of human morality. Making moral choices is the essence of human dignity. “ Brownsword, Roger. "What Does the World Need Now? Reflections on Regulating Technology. " In Regulating Technology, edited by Roger Brownsword and Karen Yeung. Oxford, UK: Hart Publishing, 2008. The problem of prudent judgment the Greeks called phroenesis

ontology of complexity Choosing a technology is not selecting convenient means toward achieving greater efficiency, it is …. “choosing a way of life. ” Langdon Winner Forty people in cars and on bikes

(last on ) the ontology of complexity the Alley Flat Initiative in Austin A proposal: true democracy is the selfconscious production of lifeenhancing technologies by geographic communities which brings us to the problem of context

2 the problem of context is social, ecological, and dynamic (time) Austin no two places or social groups are exactly the same San Antonio Edwards aquifer recharge zone Generally, our modeling tools are static and gross approximations of 1 or 2 dimensions of reality

2 the problem of context A Claim: Knowledge is empirical, experiential and place-based. Abstract information can be transported from place-to-place as a “best-practice, ” but it must be empirically tested in a particular context before it becomes useful knowledge

2 the problem of context another example: complexity is not about the importation of “best-practices”, it’s about constructing resilience, or constant eco-socio-technical adaptation to dynamic conditions over time. The problem is that we humans adapt at a much faster rate than everything else.

2 (the last) the problem of context Science is not universal, like science, the art of map-making is more about erasing context, or sequestering knowledge than producing it But the siences are situated in ecological and political context (…. . whether we know and admit it or not, which brings up the problem of system boundaries) Haraway. 1995. Situated Knowledge. Latour. 2004. Politics of Nature oil deposits ecological biomes

3 so, how do we define (CONTEXT) or system boundaries? Ecology E societal equity E E economy Triangulated model Campbell, Scott "Green Cities, Growing Cities, Just Cities: Urban Planning and the Contradictions of Sustainable Development. " APA Journal no. Summer (1996): 466 -82. Nested model How much context do we have to consider to get valid answers to our question? 1. 2. 3. 4. universal topical local practical

3 how do we define system boundaries? Ecology E societal equity E E economy How much context do we have to consider to get valid answers to our question? 1. 2. 3. 4. universal impossible topical local practical

3 how do we define system boundaries? Ecology E societal equity E E economy How much context do we have to consider to get valid answers to our question? 1. 2. 3. 4. universal topical the dominant method local practical

3 how do we define system boundaries? Ecology E societal equity E E economy Moore, Steven A. "Testing a Mature Hypothesis: Reflection on “Green Cities, Growing Cities, Just Cities: Urban Planning and the Contradiction of Sustainable Development”. " Journal of the American Planning Association 82, no. 4 (2016/10/01 2016): 385 -88. How much context do we have to consider to get valid answers to our question? 1. 2. 3. 4. universal topical local possible and uneven practical

3 how do we define system boundaries? Ecology E societal equity E E economy How much context do we have to consider to get valid answers to our question? 1. 2. 3. 4. universal topical local practical it depends on agency available in the system, it’s contextual

4 where is agency within the system? agency is the ability of an individual, or social group to act in the world and make a difference

4 where is agency within the system? mapping agency the example of The Alley Flat Initiative a complex three-way partnership created agency by triangulating “situated knowledge”

4 where is agency within the system? Agency can be DESIGNED: building agency in a complex system is both research and design work, social and material Yaneva, Albena. The Making of a Building: A Pragmatist Approach to Architecture. Oxford, UK: Peter Lang, 2009.

4 where is agency within the system? CLAIM: there is a dichotomy of Prescription / design art Subjective / ontological modern ontology and epistemology Analysis / research science Objective / epistemological agency in complex systems emerges thru objective research, design and action

4 where is agency within the system? If the modern opposition between design and research is a false dichotomy , how should we reconstruct inquiry and education for complexity? (1) get out of the lab and the studio (2) integrate metaphor with action

4 where is agency within the system? Another claim: Agency is place-based action enabled by the situated knowledge co-constructed by diverse partnerships agency in complex systems emerges thru objective research, design and action

Finally, there is no real conclusion but 4 claims 1. the ontology of complexity is to embrace uncertainty 2. the “problem of context” place is actually an asset—embrace 3. we should establish system boundaries practically—by taking on as much as we reasonably can 4. Agency within the system is where transdisciplinary teams build it

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