Sociology of architecture
Encyclopedia
Sociology of architecture is a term that describes the sociological study of either:
Architecture is basically constituted of the aesthetic, the engineering and the social aspects. The built environment which is made up of designed spaces and the activities of people are inter-related and inseparable. It is for us to understand this intrelationship and put it down appropriately on paper.
Social institutions are many and these social institutions sometimes need functional spaces to allow the people using the building to benefit from all aspects of both the purpose of what inhabits the building and by the vary structure and organized flow of said structure. The way the buildings are designed to fulfil the needs of these social institutions /social requirements can be said to be the comliance of social aspects in architecture.
of architecture can be found in the classic authors of sociology (but only implicit!): in Marcel Mauss
, Walter Benjamin
, Norbert Elias
, Michel Foucault
, Ernst Bloch
, Siegfried Kracauer
, Pierre Bourdieu
, Maurice Halbwachs
, Karel Teige
and others.
" is used by Pierre Bourdieu
and others (in contrast to architecture or built environment) in a more abstract sense: as social constituted spatial structures. Georg Simmel
founded such a sociology of space
and always watched the architecture of society.
Simmel unfolded also an urban sociology
(his articles were read in Chicago school
): in his question of the specific ways of life in big cities ( "Big cities and life of spirit", 1903). Urban sociology primarily deals with social structures within the city: their points are for instance processes of segregation, urbanization and the decline of cities. Recently, there is a research focus on "differences of cities", which will be more associated with a sociology of architecture.
- the built environmentBuilt environmentThe term built environment refers to the human-made surroundings that provide the setting for human activity, ranging in scale from personal shelter and buildings to neighborhoods and cities that can often include their supporting infrastructure, such as water supply or energy networks.The built...
or - the role and occupation of architects in (modern) societies
Architecture is basically constituted of the aesthetic, the engineering and the social aspects. The built environment which is made up of designed spaces and the activities of people are inter-related and inseparable. It is for us to understand this intrelationship and put it down appropriately on paper.
Social institutions are many and these social institutions sometimes need functional spaces to allow the people using the building to benefit from all aspects of both the purpose of what inhabits the building and by the vary structure and organized flow of said structure. The way the buildings are designed to fulfil the needs of these social institutions /social requirements can be said to be the comliance of social aspects in architecture.
Cultural sociology
Architecture is the visual shape ("Gestalt") of society. And within that, all the various building types (architecture of consumption, of mobility, of the political and religious, as well as factories, prisons, cinema buildings, etc.) could become objects of architectural sociology. For example: how a specific architecture 'expresses' the structure and principles of a given society.Classical sociology of architecture
Such sociological analysisSocial research
Social research refers to research conducted by social scientists. Social research methods may be divided into two broad categories:* Quantitative designs approach social phenomena through quantifiable evidence, and often rely on statistical analysis of many cases to create valid and reliable...
of architecture can be found in the classic authors of sociology (but only implicit!): in Marcel Mauss
Marcel Mauss
Marcel Mauss was a French sociologist. The nephew of Émile Durkheim, Mauss' academic work traversed the boundaries between sociology and anthropology...
, Walter Benjamin
Walter Benjamin
Walter Bendix Schönflies Benjamin was a German-Jewish intellectual, who functioned variously as a literary critic, philosopher, sociologist, translator, radio broadcaster and essayist...
, Norbert Elias
Norbert Elias
Norbert Elias was a German sociologist of Jewish descent, who later became a British citizen.-Biography:...
, Michel Foucault
Michel Foucault
Michel Foucault , born Paul-Michel Foucault , was a French philosopher, social theorist and historian of ideas...
, Ernst Bloch
Ernst Bloch
Ernst Bloch was a German Marxist philosopher.Bloch was influenced by both Hegel and Marx and, as he always confessed, by novelist Karl May. He was also interested in music and art . He established friendships with Georg Lukács, Bertolt Brecht, Kurt Weill and Theodor W. Adorno...
, Siegfried Kracauer
Siegfried Kracauer
Siegfried Kracauer was a German-Jewish writer, journalist, sociologist, cultural critic, and film theorist...
, Pierre Bourdieu
Pierre Bourdieu
Pierre Bourdieu was a French sociologist, anthropologist, and philosopher.Starting from the role of economic capital for social positioning, Bourdieu pioneered investigative frameworks and terminologies such as cultural, social, and symbolic capital, and the concepts of habitus, field or location,...
, Maurice Halbwachs
Maurice Halbwachs
Maurice Halbwachs was a French philosopher and sociologist known for developing the concept of collective memory.Born in Reims, Halbwachs attended the École Normale Supérieure in Paris. There he studied philosophy with Henri Bergson, who influenced him greatly. He aggregated in Philosophy in 1901...
, Karel Teige
Karel Teige
Karel Teige was the major figure of the Czech avant-garde movement Devětsil in the 1920s, a graphic artist, photographer, and typographer...
and others.
Sociology of architectonic artefacts
The sociology of technology offers approaches to a sociology of (architectonic) artifacts. Initially, this sociology is interested in technical matters. While buildings (as art and technic) are not in the core of this discipline. The perspective of architecture as artifact would be the question of 'interactions' between architecture and subject: how a very specific architecture suggests certain ways, movements, perceptions.Urban sociology and sociology of space
The term "social spaceSocial space
A social space is physical or virtual space such as a social center, Facebook, or other gathering place where people gather and interact. Some social spaces such as town squares or parks are public places; others such as pubs, websites...
" is used by Pierre Bourdieu
Pierre Bourdieu
Pierre Bourdieu was a French sociologist, anthropologist, and philosopher.Starting from the role of economic capital for social positioning, Bourdieu pioneered investigative frameworks and terminologies such as cultural, social, and symbolic capital, and the concepts of habitus, field or location,...
and others (in contrast to architecture or built environment) in a more abstract sense: as social constituted spatial structures. Georg Simmel
Georg Simmel
Georg Simmel was a major German sociologist, philosopher, and critic.Simmel was one of the first generation of German sociologists: his neo-Kantian approach laid the foundations for sociological antipositivism, asking 'What is society?' in a direct allusion to Kant's question 'What is nature?',...
founded such a sociology of space
Sociology of space
The sociology of space is a sub-discipline of sociology that is concerned with the spatiality of society. It examines the constitution of spaces through action, as well as the dependence of action on spatial structures.- History of the sociology of space :...
and always watched the architecture of society.
Simmel unfolded also an urban sociology
Urban sociology
Urban sociology is the sociological study of social life and human interaction in metropolitan areas. It is a normative discipline of sociology seeking to study the structures, processes, changes and problems of an urban area and by doing so providing inputs for planning and policy making. Like...
(his articles were read in Chicago school
Chicago school
Chicago school may refer to:* Chicago school * Chicago school * Chicago school * Chicago school * Chicago school * Chicago School of Professional Psychology...
): in his question of the specific ways of life in big cities ( "Big cities and life of spirit", 1903). Urban sociology primarily deals with social structures within the city: their points are for instance processes of segregation, urbanization and the decline of cities. Recently, there is a research focus on "differences of cities", which will be more associated with a sociology of architecture.