Architectural Vocabulary 101

As practicing architects we use a specific vocabulary that allows us to have pointed conversations with other in construction fields.  Without that, communication among professionals would be would be more cumbersome, time consuming, and less precise.  In fact, one major role of any professional education is to learn the vocabulary.  On the other hand, all professionals have an obligation, when addressing non-professionals, to limit the use of that vocabulary, or it becomes jargon.

We thought it would be fun to post a series of blogs that defines some of the terms you may have heard architects using.  Some of these are current terms that are used almost daily in the practice of architecture while others are more obscure or historical and are less frequently used in contemporary practice.  This begins a series of blogs that we are calling Architectural Vocabulary 101.  This is by no means intended to be a complete dictionary of architectural terms, but hopefully it is fun and we all learn something new.  Please enjoy.

Balusters: small closely spaced vertical posts.

• Balusters are the vertical members used to fill the space below handrails. They are often referred to as Spindles.
• Balusters add physical and visual support to your handrails and are often necessary for safety.

Balustrade: a railing with supporting balusters.

• A balustrade is a row of repeating balusters – small posts that support the upper rail of a railing. Staircases and porches often have balustrades.
• A decorative railing together with its supporting balusters, often used at the front of a parapet or gallery.

Parapet:  a parapet is a low stone or brick wall at the top of a building.  A crenellated parapet has rhythmic breaks in the wall to create a pattern of battlements.

• In contemporary architecture a parapet is a low wall, that may be made of materials other than stone or brick, at the edges or in the field of a low sloping roof that terminates the roofing membrane.
• A low protective wall built where there is a sudden dangerous drop, e.g. along the edge of a balcony, roof, or bridge. Some parapets are battlemented, especially on castles, and many are built as ornamental features.
• A bank of soil, rubble, or sandbags piled up along the edge of a military trench for protection from enemy fire.

Crenelated:  Having battlements.

• Indented; notched: a crenelated wall.
• Probably from French créneler, to furnish with battlements, from Old French crenel, crenelation, diminutive of cren, notch; see cranny
• Of a moulding, etc; having square indentations

Battlement:  Indentations on parapet

• A series of indentations forming a defensive or decorative parapet
• Often, battlements. a parapet or cresting, originally defensive but later usually decorative, consisting of a regular alternation of merlons and crenels; crenelation.
• On a castle or fort, a battlement or crenellation is a parapet with open spaces for shooting.

Merlon: The raised portions of a battlement are called merlons, and the openings are called embrasures.

• Masonry buildings in the Gothic Revival style may have architectural decoration which resembles battlements.
• A merlon forms the vertical solid parts of a battlement or crenallated parapet — in Medieval architecture of fortifications for millennia.
• Merlons are sometimes narrowly pierced by vertical embrasure ‘slits’ to view and fire through. When a wider space is between two merlons it is called a crenel, and a series of many merlon—crenels creates crenallation.  Crenels designed in later eras, for use by cannons, were called embrasures.
• Not to be confused with Merlin, a wizard – or with Merlin, a falcon.

DAF CAL: Lessons in Teamwork and Architectural Awareness, Part 2 of 2

Working with the students this semester has led me to reflect a bit on my work.  As a public architecture firm we hire Structural Engineers, as well as many other engineers and consultants to help make our buildings come to fruition.  We then rely on a General Contractor to take the documents (drawings and specifications) we create and turn them into buildings.  Teamwork is absolutely critical in this type of architecture and construction in general.

Just last week in Ms. Klemm’s class I witnessed what can happen when a team works well together and when one fails.  Our plan for the class was a small group exercise.  Teams were to determine a building type (tower, mansion and school were some of the options selected in this class) and then build the structure using nothing but paper and masking tape.  In the following class period students would attach a skin to the structures turning them into building models.

One group of four girls in the class was working really well as a team.  They decided quickly that they wanted to build a mansion.  The whole team bought in to the process.  Roles were defined and they continued to discuss openly as there mansion took shape.

Another team of four boys started out well.  They were the first to announce the type of building they wanted to make, a tower.  They broke into two teams.  Each worked on a single cube that they would later stack to make the first two stories of their tower.  However, as they worked on their individual cubes they did not continue to talk as a team.  When they came back together as a group to combine the two cubes, their differing visions caused the project to fail altogether.  When one of the boys decided he did not like the direction of the group he smashed the model.

At the end of the 30 minute working period the girls had a sturdy two story frame with a roof that was beginning to look like a model of a mansion.  The groups next to the girls saw the success they were having and worked hard to match the results of their neighbors.  On the other hand, by the time the class period ended, the group of boys had only a pile of paper tubes.  Their group and some of the members of the groups next to them were engaging in paper tube sword fights with the remnants of their tower.

The real world of construction may not be quite as exaggerated, but it is not wholly different either.  Teams that work well together can achieve projects that act as a positive influence on the communities around them, while teams that fail to communicate finish projects in disarray, or worse.  At a small scale it was a valuable reminder of how important teamwork and good communication are in today’s complex construction projects.

DAF CAL: Lessons in Teamwork and Architectural Awareness, Part 1 of 2

As practicing architects, we find it all too common that the public does not fully appreciate the role that we play in the built environment.  Not only do we help to ensure the safety of the built environment, we also act as project leaders to ensure the aspirations of our clients and the community are realized in the built environment.  The work we do as Architects shapes not only streets, neighborhoods, and cities – but also the way we live.

As part of our firm’s community outreach, we have been working to educate the general public about Architects and the importance of good design.  One way we do this is by participating in the Denver Architectural Foundation’s Cleworth Architectural Legacy program.  As participants we go into elementary schools in the Denver Public School system to educate the students about architecture.

This year we have been working with Sheri Klemm’s 4^th and 5^th grade students at Valverde Elementary school.  The focus this year is on building structures.  We have a lot of fun with the students building straw and paper clip structures, newspaper tube geodesic domes, and paper buildings complete with structural frames and exterior skins.  Hopefully, in the process we have taught them a bit about design, teamwork, and the role of architects in the built environment.

“The Future of Buildings” at the Creation Care Conference

On the second day of the conference, it was my turn to present and the topic was “The Future of Buildings.”  I don’t know exactly how this title came about, but it was a result of our discussion with COIPL Executive Director Betty Goebel.  We wanted to talk about buildings in the most global fashion, and to include religious facilities, residences, and other building types.  I asked myself “what do I wish everybody know about buildings and energy performance?”

The first key point was that buildings consume more energy, and produce more greenhouse gases, than either of the other two major economic activities in our modern world – transportation and industry.  In fact, buildings account for approximately 48% of energy use.  In short, buildings, and how we design them, really matter.

The second point was that all the religious facilities in the United Stated comprise approximately 4% of the non-residential building stock, but use only 2% of the non-residential building energy.  So, although we earnestly desire that every religious building be as energy efficient as possible, and contribute the minimum amount of greenhouse gas, doing so will not substantially alter the environmental problems we face.

Rather, faith based communities should do all they can to conserve energy for two other reasons.

1. Conserving energy frees financial resources that can be dedicated to mission.
2. Exercising stewardship in our own houses of worship sets an example for others to follow in other arenas of their lives.