Versioning | Evolving Architecture

"Designing through versioning questions rather than consolidates architecture as a representation, as a linear progressing design process that traditionally was often erroneously presumed to begin as an idea/concept that would successively and adequately be translated into built form. Versioning suggests instead a nonlinear process. Desing - far from being a mimetical representation of a priori ideas/concepts or prototypes - may, through versioning, be comprehended as a differential process that tirelessly allows forms to evolve and dissolve out of the 'nothing', or, more precisely, out of the 'medium' - the fugitive and hence incomprehensible remaining differentiation."


This arcticle striked me with the suggestion of losing the design concept. In my previous training in architecture, whether a project is successful or not is always judged by whether one can carry the concept through the design process. It is better to have the final design more true to the original concept. But versioning suggests a design process that is never based on priori concepts. Forms are allowed to evolve and dissolve out of the 'nothing' in the differential process of versioning. Design parameters (or information, using the term in the arcticle) control the versioning process so that every version is a clear development of the previous version. Concept becomes only a variable in the design process instead of the driving force. The final design can be deviated from previous concepts through the versioning process. I found it quite difficult to fit in to many architectural education, at least from the final review stand point.