Chapter 6. Positive Space in Engineering Structure and Geometry, 5 / The Three-Dimensional Formation of Positive and Negative

“A Vision of a Living World”, the third volume of “The Nature of Order” series, presents, for the first time, a full spectrum of Alexander’s and CES built and unbuilt works. The book describes hundreds of buildings, plans, neighborhoods, drawings, ...

Focusing primarily on the pure beauty of the geometric order, which comes, above all, from the building structure (columns, walls, beams, vaults and so forth), specifically from the aperiodic grids which form the abstract underpinning of the building structure.

The Central Hall is located at the end of the homebase street. Α student gathering area with four-foot-thick concrete base walls and arched openings, with built-in benches, which double as entrances to the building. Arches and seats form alcoves, and ...

Longitudinal X-truss on the long direction exterior wall of the building below the roof, connected to the interior curved truss of the building with moment connections. .

Douglas fir horse-shoe-shaped truss, a pure compression truss, with no interior bracing, but with a longitudinal exterior X-truss. The truss is connected to the massive concrete piers at the base with moment connections.

Four-feet thick concrete base walls with arched openings create an alternating repetition between massive piers and deep openings, with positive space and good shape both on the piers and the arches. Arches and seats form alcoves, and the piers support ...