LECTURE 12 & 13 Flashcards
He is the other founder of semiotics saw signs as the basic unit of meaning and he defined two parts of signs.
Ferdinand de Saussure
Ferdinand de Saussure, the other founder of semiotics saw signs as the basic unit of meaning and he defined two parts of signs.
SIGNIFIER & SIGNIFIED
The form of a sign. The form might be a sound, a word, a photograph, a facial expression, a painting of a pipe, etc
SIGNIFIER
The concept or object that’s represented. The concept or object might be an actual pipe, the
command to stop, a warning of radioactivity.
SIGNIFIED
THREE MAIN TYPES OF SIGNS
- INDEXICAL SIGN OR INDEX
- ICONIC SIGNS
- SYMBOLIC SIGN
evidence of what’s being represented. A good example is using an image of smoke to indicate fire.
INDEXICAL SIGN OR INDEX
has a physical resemblance to the signified, the thing being represented. A photograph is a good example as it certainly resembles whatever it depicts.
ICONIC SIGNS
It has no resemblance between the signifier and the signified. The connection between them must be culturally learned. Numbers and alphabets are good examples. There’s nothing inherent in the number 9 to indicate what it represents. It must be culturally learned.
SYMBOLIC SIGN
For a human being, the meaning of an object in addition, appear instead of another meaning. as a symbol of the latter. The simplest way of understanding what this means is possibly to imagine that one is making a symbolical representation of a mechanical, electrical, circuit plan or plumbing device of a building. Every detail in this plan takes the place of the real detail. Fuse, range, refrigerator, water closet, lavatories, etc. are all symbols for the real things.
Symbols
assumes primary importance as the basic strategy of perception whereby learning and perhaps heredity establish what symbols define the important features of the sensory milieu. This facility has survival value since the rapid recognition of a mismatch in the world of the senses can mean the difference between life and death. The use of symbols is therefore something which is deeply embedded in the central nervous system, and which is by no means confined to man.
Symbolism
Both signals and· symbols must be
distinguished from a third kind of meaning. If a face has an angry expression, this does not imply that a person entertains an emotional complex for which he exhibits a symbol. The angry facial expression forms a part of the physical and mental totality which the angry person represents.
Expression
It forms a part as the semantic active component in the mental totality, which the experience of a consummate piece of architecture involves. Architectural expression, however, is not the same as the expression of an emotion
ARCHITECTURAL EXPRESSION
They affect architecture in a way on how things and spaces are perceived and experienced and on how it leaves a certain impression to the users.
Signs and symbols
It form an integral part of the field of architecture. The site selected as well as the nature of the surroundings, determine the building type, and choice of building material.
Building materials
The type and form of structure is determined
by the type of material used. The concept of this glorifies the endurance and visual aspects of design. Not only does it provide meaning but also enhances the aesthetic quality of a building—venustas (beauty) and firmitas (structure).
BUILDING MATERIALS
