Polite architecture
Encyclopedia
Polite architecture, or "the Polite" refers to buildings designed to include the artifice of non-local styles for decorative effect by professional architects. The term can be used to describe any number of non-vernacular architectural styles. The opposite in architectural terms being vernacular architecture
.
for affectation. A building of polite design is conceived to make a stylistic statement which goes beyond its functional requirements. Its design is deferential to national or international architectural fashions, styles, and conventions; paying little or no regard to the conventional building practices and materials particular to a locality.
'The polite' is also a concept of architectural theory used to differentiate from 'the vernacular'.
, which refers to buildings which are constructed for the use of materials and building conventions particular to their locality.
The architectural historian
Ronald Brunskill
has offered the following definition:
As a theoretical term, the differences between "the polite" and "the vernacular" can be a matter of degree and subjective analysis. Between the extremes of the wholly vernacular and the completely polite, there are buildings which illustrate vernacular and polite content.
buildings characterised by elements of 'the polite' have become prevalent throughout the building stock of developed countries. The rise in the number of buildings reflecting polite architectural features has been influenced by the expansion of the profession of architecture
, the invention and production of man-made building materials, and the availability of transport networks capable of delivering materials produced outside of a building's immediate locality. The growth of these elements in the late 18th and 19th centuries, led to an expansion in the proportion of buildings which are of polite design. This trend has continued into the 20th and 21st centuries.
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
.
Description
Polite architecture is characterised by stylistic and romantic features which have been intentionally incorporated by an architectArchitect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
for affectation. A building of polite design is conceived to make a stylistic statement which goes beyond its functional requirements. Its design is deferential to national or international architectural fashions, styles, and conventions; paying little or no regard to the conventional building practices and materials particular to a locality.
'The polite' is also a concept of architectural theory used to differentiate from 'the vernacular'.
Architectural theory
The term is used by architectural historians to contrast with vernacular architectureVernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
, which refers to buildings which are constructed for the use of materials and building conventions particular to their locality.
The architectural historian
Architectural History
Architectural History is the main journal of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain .The journal is published each autumn. The architecture of the British Isles is a major theme of the journal, although it includes more general papers on the history of architecture. Member of...
Ronald Brunskill
Ronald Brunskill
Dr. Ronald William Brunskill is an academic who was Reader in Architecture at the University of Manchester. He is an authority on the history of architecture and particularly on British vernacular architecture....
has offered the following definition:
The ultimate in polite architecture will have been designed by a professional architect or one who has acted as such through some other title, such as surveyor or master mason; it will have been designed to follow a national or even an international fashion, style, or set of conventions, towards an aesthetically satisfying result; and aesthetic considerations will have dominated the designer's thought rather than functional demands.
As a theoretical term, the differences between "the polite" and "the vernacular" can be a matter of degree and subjective analysis. Between the extremes of the wholly vernacular and the completely polite, there are buildings which illustrate vernacular and polite content.
The growth of polite architecture
Although originally only accessible to wealthy individuals and institutions, since the developed world's industrialisationIndustrialisation
Industrialization is the process of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial one...
buildings characterised by elements of 'the polite' have become prevalent throughout the building stock of developed countries. The rise in the number of buildings reflecting polite architectural features has been influenced by the expansion of the profession of architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
, the invention and production of man-made building materials, and the availability of transport networks capable of delivering materials produced outside of a building's immediate locality. The growth of these elements in the late 18th and 19th centuries, led to an expansion in the proportion of buildings which are of polite design. This trend has continued into the 20th and 21st centuries.