The Emergent Rules -Jencks

Upon reading The Emergent Rules, I found that I had a hard time connecting with what was being said. It was not until I reflected on a particular example that related to the text, that I was able to derive meaning. A few years ago, my father was part of the construction of a postmodern architectural addition to a local museum called The Royal Ontario Museum. The museum was originally built in 1933 and is gothic as it was representative of that time period. It was built with heavier materials so that the interior could be more insulated as there was no air conditioning or heating available. The added construction to the building that opened in 2007 is called “The Crystal” (you will be able to see in the photo below) and is entirely different from the gothic feel that the original architecture emanates. I think that this museum brings together the old and the new (dualism) in an eclectic manner. Both parts of the museum are equally striking as they are equally important to one another. As Jencks points out, this allows it to be available to “a wide and divergent audience-something necessary for a public art gallery” (283). There is a sense of double-coding, whereby the present and past although implying continuity are also separate within their own identities. Future generations will not only see what characterized architecture in the 1930’s but also what is considered ‘modern’ in our present day. With that said future generations will see this museum as reflection of who we are and how we have progressed as a society. As previously stated, the original architecture used heavier materials and resources as that was what was available then and served for purposes such as insulation. With today’s technology, the Crystal portion of the museum is of a lighter structure since there are now larger varieties of materials available that are more efficient. Thus, people can see how society has developed over time and how the two can co-exist together.

*The photo above shows the Crystal portion recently added on the right and the original architecture on the left.