Critique This!
Critique This is about. . .
It is tough for anyone to define a thing, it is generally much easier to describe how you feel about said thing than actually creating a line of logic describing what it is you are trying to define. Critique This at the most general level is simply about architecture, but more importantly it is about change. Our mission is to change how the architectural community discusses and views architecture. Too often architects say “I don’t like that building.” Then when asked why they can not reply with a logical argument as to why they feel that way.
There is one thing that every great architect has in common, and that is being a great critic. In order to become a great critic, one must master the art of the critique. The word critique derives its meaning from the Greek term kritik (κριτική), meaning “discerning judgment”, this is a skill that has long been lost in the United States¹. You might now be able to say that to discern judgement is merely an act of passing judgement based on one’s own opinions or personal beliefs as to what is architecture and what is not.
It seems that there are fewer and fewer critics in the architectural profession. Often the ‘critics’ I encounter are incapable of critiquing a project or building without interjecting their own beliefs or opinions. . . (more to come)
Footnotes:
1. Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critique
