City is not a tree

Christopher Alexander -1977

BOOK REVIEW 3

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Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings,
Constructionis a 1977 book on architecture. It was
authored by ChristopherAlexander, Sara Ishikawaand
Murray Silversteinof the of Berkeley, California

• “How to” rules.

•A PatternLanguage is nothing but rules,often
presented as commands, and given minimal support and
elaboration. 253 rules on towns,buildings &
construction

•Christopher Alexander presents a new way of reading

and interpreting language in architecture.

•The element of the languageis called pattern. Each

pattern describes a problem which occurs over and over
againin our environments.

•The second part describes the coreofsolution to that

problem, in such a way thatit can beusedmillions of
timeswithoutever doing itthesamewaytwice. 2
Origination:

•The work originatedfrom an observation thatmany medieval

cities are attractiveand harmonious.Theauthorssaidthat
this occursbecause they werebuilt tolocalregulations
that required specificfeatures, but freed thearchitect to
adapt them to particular situations.

•Thebook provides rulesand pictures, and leaves decisions

to betakenfrom the preciseenvironment of the project. It
describes exactmethods for constructing practical, safe
andattractive designs atevery scale, fromentire regions,
through cities, neighborhoods, gardens, buildings, rooms,
built-in furniture, and fixtures down to the level of
doorknobs.

•A notable valueis that the architectural system consists

only of classic patterns tested in the realworld and
reviewedby multiple architects forbeauty and practicality
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Patterns are ordered as follows

Towns – regions and towns

Buildings – neighborhoods, clusters of

buildings, building rooms

Constructions – doors, windows and

detailing

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There are many variations on Alexander's original definition of
pattern, but the main elements are these, as illustrated with a
superb example from Alexander.

Name: A name for the pattern

Example: Window Place

Context: A context for the design problem

Example: Design of a residential room

Forces: Forces which require resolution

Example: People want to sit and also be in daylight.

Problem: A problem growing from the forces

Example: If all seating is away from the windows, then these
forces are not resolved, and people will always be dissatisfied
in one way or the other.

Solution: A known solution, proven in practice

Example: Build seating into the window -- the traditional window
seat.

A pattern language is a collection of patterns that can solve all

the problems in a particular domain. It may include a method for
connecting patterns into whole "architectures" for the domain. (Less
ambitiously, a "pattern system" covers only parts of a domain.) 5
The entirecity hasto be read asalanguage,each
pattern islinkedwithother patterns– ‘larger’ that
comeabove itand ‘smaller’ that come after it.

For example,

the pattern of AccessibleGreen (60),is

connected firstwithcertainlarger
patterns: subculture boundaries(13),
identifiableneighborhoods(14), work
community (41) andquite backs(59)allof
which comes under towns andconnectedto
certain smallerpatterns:positive outdoor
spaces (107), Tree places(171) and Garden
wall (173) which comes under the building
section 6
• In shortno pattern is an isolatedentity.Each
pattern can exist intheworld onlytothe extent
that is supported byother patterns:the larger
patternsin which itis embedded, the patterns of
the same size that surround it, and the smaller
patterns which are embedded in it.

• In pattern languageeach solution is statedin

such a way that it gives essentialfieldof
relationships neededto solve the problem, in a
generaland abstractway –sothat theuser can
solve problem themselves

• The patterns are very much aliveand evolving. In

fact, if you like, each pattern may be looked upon
as hypotheseslikeone of the hypotheses of
science.

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• A patternlanguage has the structure of a network. The
patterns are to be used as a sequence.

• There is no one sequence that would capture the

essence.

• Pattern isalso a ‘base map' from which one can draw

one's won language.

• There are 253 patterns in total divided as follows:

1. Towns: 94 patterns (Larger component)

2. Buildings: 95 to 204 patterns ( Medium Component)
3. Construction: 205 to 253 patterns ( Smaller component)

Components of Pattern Langua8ge

thatpartofthelanguage which defines a town
orcommunity. These patternscannever be
"designed"or "built" in one fell swoop-
butpatientpiecemealgrowth,designedin such
a way thateveryindividual actis always
helping to create or generate these larger
global patterns, will, slowly and surely,
over the years, make a community that has
these global patterns in it.

94 patterns
(Larger component)

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•establish a world government, with a thousand independent
regions, instead ofcountries
•worktoward thoseregional policies which will protect the
land and markthe limits of the cities.
•Through city policies,encourage the piecemeal formation of
those major structures which define the city.
•Build up theselarger citypatternsfrom the grass roots,
throughactionessentially controlledby two levels of self-
governing communities, whichexist asphysically
identifiable places.
•Connect communities to one another by encouraging the
growth ofnetworks.
•Establishcommunity and neighborhood policy to control the
character of the localenvironment according to the
following fundamentalprinciples.
•Both inthe neighborhoods and the communities,and in
between them,in the boundaries, encourage the formation of
local centers.
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•Around these centers,provide for the growth of housing in
the formof clusters, based on face-to-face humangroups.
•Between the houseclusters, around the centers, and
especially inthe boundaries betweenneighborhoods, encourage
the formationof work communities;
•Between the house clusters andwork communities,allow the
local road and pathnetwork to grow informally, piecemeal.
• In the communities and neighborhoods, provide public open
land where people can relax, run shoulders and renew
themselves.
•In eachhousecluster and work community, providethe
smaller bits ofcommon land, to provide forlocal versions of
the sameneeds.
•Within the frameworkof the common land,the clusters, and
the workcommunitiesencourage transformation ofthe smallest
independent social institutions: the families,workgroups,
and gathering places.the family, in all its forms.
•Theworkgroups, including all kinds of workshops and offices
and even children's learning groups.
• The local shops and gathering places 11
thatpart ofthe language which gives shape
to groups ofbuildings,and individual
buildings,on the land,inthree dimensions.
These arethe patterns which can be
"designed"or "built"- the patterns
whichdefinetheindividualbuildings and the
space between buildings; where we are
dealing for the first time with patterns
that are under the control of individuals
or small groups of individuals, who are
able to build the patterns all at once.

95 to 204 patterns
( Medium Component)

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Layoutthe overallarrangement of a group of buildings:the
heightand number of thesebuildings,theentrancesto the
site, main parkingareas, and lines of movement throughthe
complex.
Fix the position of individual buildings on the site, within
the complex, one by one, accordingto the natureofthe site,
the trees, thesun: this is one of themostimportant
moments inthe language.
Within the buildings'wings, lay out the entrances, the
gardens, courtyards, roofs, and terraces:shapeboth the
volume ofthe buildings and the volume ofthespace between
the buildings at the same time- remembering that indoor
space and outdoor space, yin and yang, must always get their
shape together.
When the majorparts of buildingsand theoutdoor areashave
been given their rough shape, it is the right timeto give
more detailed attentionto thepaths and squares betweenthe
buildings.
Now, with thepaths fixed,wecome back to the buildings:
within the various wingsof anyone building, work out the
fundamentalgradientsofspace,and decide how the movement13
will connectthe spaces in the gradients.
Withinthe frameworkofthewings andtheirinternal gradients
of space and movement,define the most important
areas and rooms. First,for a house.
Then the same for offices, workshops, and public buildings.
Add thosesmall outbuildings which must be slightly
independent fromthe main structure, andputintheaccess
fromthe upper stories to thestreetand gardens.
Preparetoknittheinside ofthe building to theoutside, by
treatingthe edge between the two as a place in its own
right, and making human details there.
Decide on the arrangement of the gardens, and the places in
the gardens.
Go back inside thebuilding and attach the necessary minor
rooms and alcoves to complete the main rooms.
Fine tune theshape andsize of rooms and alcoves to make
them precise and build able.
Give all the wallssome depth, wherever there are to be
alcoves, windows, shelves, closets or seats.
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tells howto makea buildable
building,directlyfromthis rough
schemeof space, andtellsyouhow to
build it, in detail.

205 to 253 patterns

( Smaller component)

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Before you lay out structural details, establish a philosphy
of structure which will let the structure grow directly from
your plans and your conception of the buildings.
Withinthisphilosphy ofstructure,on thebasis oftheplans
whichyouhavemade,work outthe complete strutural layout;
this isthe last thingyoudoon paper,before you actually
startto build.
Put the stakesin the groundto mark the columns on the site,
and start erectingthe main frame of the buildingaccording to
the layoutof thesestakes.
Within the main frame ofthe building,fix the exact positions
for openings- the doors and windows- and frame these openings.
As you build the mainframe and its openings,put in the
following subsidiary patterns where they are appropriate.
Put in the surfaces and indoor details
Build outdoor details to finish the outdoors as fully as the
indoorspaces.
Complete the buildings with ornament and light and color and
your own things. 16
Choosing a Language for your subject

1. Make a copy of master sequence on which you will tick off

patterns which will form the language for your projects.
2. Scandown the list, andfind the patterns whichdescribe
the best overall scope of theproject. This is the
starting pattern for your project.
3. Read the relevant pattern and tick off all the ‘smaller
patterns'listed,you don't haveto pick the ‘larger
pattern' unless and until you need them.
4. Now the list is longer, choosethe next highest pattern
and readthe content andpick othersmaller patterns
mentionedunder it.
5. Keep the listat moderate level. Don't include patterns
that you are doubtful of.
6. Keep going until you got all the patterns
7. Now, adjust the sequence by adding your own material.
8. You can alter and change a pattern based on your own
views.
9. Now your project is ready for execution.
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The poetry of Language

• Pattern as a component of any other language also

have to structured.
• Like‘English' thepattern inthis language also
can take form as a prose orpoetry.
• A sentence may have direct and simple meaning,
each andevery word in a sentence has specific
meaning andtogether makesa different sense or
meaning.
• In poem,the meaning is far more dense. Each word
carries several meanings;andthe sentenceas
whole carriesan enormousdensity of interlocking
meanings,whichtogether illuminates thewhole.
• Thesameistruein buildings, thecompressionof
patterns intoasinglespace is not apoeticor
exotic thingbut rather the mostordinary economy
of space. 18