Architectural thinking and some aspects of technical creativity

Abstract

We are largely surrounded by and included in increasingly complex technical systems. These systems often border on the absurd even though they rely on logical and physical forms. This is because they move away from the logical ‘simplicity’ of natural forms. This paper approaches some specific aspects of technical products, i.e. those connected to their formative structure. M. Draganescu emphasized that the aesthetics and the functions of a product are determined by the consonance between the formative structure and the natural structure, and called this ‘architectural thinking’. As an example, consider the well-known ‘golden number’ found both in natural crystals and in artistic and technical products such as the Parthenon.

Two questions which this paper addresses are: What is a formative structure? How can the consonance, or harmony, between such a structure and that of a ‘natural’ one be approached?