Preface: Living Process Repeated Ten Million Times, 4 / Examples of Life-Creating Processes from our Era

Scientific Research

The Sequence of Unfolding - Generative Codes for the Design Process

Areas of focus:

Design and Building Process

Guiding idea:

Structure Preserving Transformations

In architecture, as in other things, the "right" sequence is of vital importance. It is a generative sequence of progressive differentiations, which allow space to unfold in the right order. Each differentiation acts on the product of the previous ...

Projects

Low Cost Houses for Mexicali 1975 to 1977

Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico

Low Cost Housing, Realized , Construction completed in 1977

Client:

Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Mexicali - Mr. Jorge Nunez, Director of the School of Architecture

C.E.S. staff:

Christopher Alexander, Julio Martinez, Howard Davis, Donald Corner, students and families

Contractor:

Built by the families and local subcontractors under the management of the Center for Environmental Structure

Sponsor:

University of Baja California

Project cost:

$70,000

Project stages:

Pattern language for the project by C.E.S. Layout on the ground by clients and C.E.S. Preliminary Design drawings done after layout Direct Construction management along with on-site design decisions Budget and subcontractors under C.E.S. control Users in

A cluster of houses for large families, with a builders yard, built by the families themselves with the help of students from the Universidad Autonoma of Mexico, and a team of builders from the Center for Environmental Structure. Each house ...
Emoto Apartment Building 1986 to 1989

Tokyo, Japan

Residential, Realized , Construction completed in 1989

Client:

Mrs. Sugiko Emoto

C.E.S. staff:

Christopher Alexander, Hansjoachim Neis, Ingrid Fiksdahl-King, Miyoko Tsutsui

Contractor:

Kibe Construction Company, with subsidiary management by Center for Environmental Structure, Japan

Project cost:

$1,500,000

Project stages:

Use of full scale mock-ups Preliminary Design and Design Development drawings Direct Construction management along with on-site design decisions Subcontractors under C.E.S. control

An apartment building laid out to enhance the two streets of the Komagone neighborhood, not far from downtown Tokyo. The site is surrounded with large buildings, and a local neighborhood behind, with lower buildings and much narrower streets. It is ...
Civic Center & Town Hall for Mountain View 1986

Mountain View, CA, U.S.A.

Civic, Designed , Invited Competition, Not built

Client:

City of Mountain View - Mr. Michael Freedman, c/o ROMA, urban design consultant to the city

C.E.S. staff:

Christopher Alexander, Artemis Anninou, Hansjoachim Neis, Ingrid Fiksdahl-King, Gary Black

Project cost:

Expected construction cost: $17,000,000

Project stages:

Design Development

Invited design competition entry. One of five invited entries and winner of first round selection process. The project with 100,000 square feet of total area of construction included: a) the new City Hall building 65,000 sq.ft.; b) Community Theater with ...
West Dean College Gardens Visitor's Center 1994 to 1996

Near Chichester, West Sussex, U.K.

Civic, Realized , Construction completed in Nov. 1995

Client:

Edward James Foundation

C.E.S. staff:

Christopher Alexander, John Hewitt, students from "The Prince of Wales's Institute of Architecture", students from Portsmouth University

Contractor:

Center for Environmetal Structure, as Management Contractor and General Contractor of record, with John Hewitt as Project Manager

Project stages:

Layout on the site by clients and C.E.S. Use of full scale mock-ups Design Development and Building Permit drawings done after layout Direct construction management and on-site design decisions Budget and subcontractors under C.E.S. control Innovativ

The West Dean Center is a simple one-story masonry building with a large red-tiled roof and intricate brickwork for its thick walls. The building is surrounded by gardens, and its south facing wall has large arched windows overlooking the garden ...

SEE ALL Projects

Works of Art

Series of drinking glasses for Dutch Glassworks 1997

Personal Work of Art, Glasswork

Created by:

Christopher Alexander, Katalin Bende, Henk Werveg

Series of drinking glasses commissioned by Stichting Glasmanifestatie at Leerdam in The Netherlands in 1996, following an international glass event focused on the drinking glass.