In education a comparative critical analysis of sets

In education, a comparative critical analysis of sets of buildings that share a typology or nitric oxide synthase inhibitors represents an intellectual exercise for learners. The analysis may help in determining the rules of composition from visual or graphical representations. Examples of this are represented by precedent-based instruction (Akin, 2002) and example-based design processing (Sio and Kotovsky, 2015). In fact, the comparative visual analysis method has strong origins in art history instruction, which can be traced back to the early 20th century. An early example of this is represented by the scholarly writings of Wölfflin (1950). These writings explain how he applied this method through slide pairings of architecture and art image presentations. Despite its significance, the structured comparative analysis of the built form did not receive sufficient attention in recent architectural literature. Examples of related literature include a critical study of modern architecture (Frampton and Simone, 2015), a provocative reading of Palladio׳s plans (Eisenman and Roman, 2015), a collective procedural study of Palladio villa designs (Eilouti, 2008), and a comparative analysis of the design schemes of Palladio and Sinan buildings (Eilouti, 2012). Related studies in the area of PBD have also been conducted. An example is the study of Eilouti (2009) that focused on design approaches using knowledge recycling from precedent-based analysis and synthesis models. Although these few examples contribute to the architectural design literature, the area of scholarly comparative critical analysis of architectural designs is still under-researched. This study is based on the premise that architectural compositions convey a formal language that has a structure similar to that of natural languages. As such, architectural composition has a set of vocabulary elements (with semantics and semiotics) and syntax grammars (e.g., Natapov et al., 2016). The analogy between visual and verbal languages is well established (e.g., Summerson, 1966). The generation of complex structures using a set of primitive elements and a precisely formulated set of grammar rules is based on Noam Chomsky׳s generative grammars (Chomsky, 1956, 1965; Gandelzonas, 1983). Influenced by Chomsky, Peter Eisenman designed a series of residential designs, which he called “cardboard architecture.” In these designs, Eisenman embodied what he referred to as “deep structure,” through which he attempted to explore the concept of “visual syntax.” The complex nature of this approach stemmed from Eisenman׳s interest in language structure and semiotics, which he obtained through his study of Chomsky׳s works. In Eisenman׳s architecture, the design process is synchronized with the research process into formal structures and fractal geometric shapes (Eisenman, 1983; Gandelzonas, 1983). Following the same language-based approach, Eisenman and Roman (2015) graphically analyzed 20 of Palladio׳s villas and illustrated the evolution of Palladio׳s villas from those that exhibit earlier classical symmetrical volumetric structures. The present research focuses on the analysis of the morphology, geometry, and mathematics of some architectural designs of two influential architects that lived in nearly the same historical period (approximately 500 years ago) but in two different locations and representing two different cultures (that is, Western and Islamic cultures). The two prominent architects are Andrea Palladio who represents Western architecture and Sinān who represents Islamic architecture in the Renaissance period. Andrea Palladio is an Italian architect who lived from 1508 to 1580. He is widely considered one of the most influential architects in the history of Western architecture (Norwich, 1975). Sinān lived nearly in the same period (1489–1588). Similarly, he was considered as the chief Ottoman architect during his entire career and is universally classified as one of the most remarkable architects in the history of Islamic architecture. The study of key architectural precedents of the works of these two architects is expected to enhance the mapping and comparison of the design language structures and architectural composition principles of the two cultures during the same temporal framework.