architecture; making the invisible visible

Architecture can be practiced as a form of applied science or applied art without penalty in the real world. But architecture can be practiced as a form of design as well. In this talk design will be presented as the favored form of praxis. The question asked is: what does the practice of architecture—as design—look like and how does it differ from art and science? It is believed that we understand a great deal about what technology is and what art is and how it applies to architecture. However, we do not understand what design is to the same degree.

Design as a third culture—a tertium quid (a third way)—is the fundamental postulate for this talk. From this stance a number of axioms are drawn that define design in a broad and deep way. An example of how this approach plays out in describing and explaining what design does—in this instance making the invisible visible—is used to explore the nature of design from a systemic perspective—i.e. deep design. The question is asked: assuming architecture is design what is being made visible that is invisible?