Reaction paper-01 a

1. BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONOURS) IN ARCHITECTURE
THERIES OF ARCHITECTURE & URBANISM (ARC/61303/ARC2224)
SYNOPSIS: REACTION PAPER (MARCH 2017) [10 MARKS]
NAME: RYAN KERRY JEE JIN YIING ID: 0318715
LECTURER: MR NICHOLAS NG TUTORIAL TIME: 10AM-1PM
SYNOPSIS NO: 1 READER TITLE: LEARNING FROM LAS VEGAS
AUTHOR: ROBERT VENTURI, DENISE SCOTT BROWN, STEVEN IZENOUR
‘Learning from Las Vegas’ highlights the vernacular language implemented within the context of
the commercial strip in Las Vegas. Its existence is known to be anti-architecture which eventually
become known to be a representational iconology that symbolizes the identity of the city. The author
justifies that modernistic and post-modernistic style are perceive as an architectural expression which
stimulates insights from symbols and images in the most possible direct way. The traits of the city;
vast spaces surrounded with street networks passing at a heightened speed, which provide almost no
sense of orientation and direction to acknowledge the place, hence the occurrence of representational
iconology is indeed an important element within the city as it has become an essential key element
that evoke a sense of imagery and identity within the commercial strip of the city.
In my opinion, I certainly feel that the stance provided by the author stating that symbolism is
important to our sense of civilization in a certain context is a point to agree on. Within the context of
Las Vegas, symbols create the place as a communication system and whereby this is manifested
through its spatial continuity, where it relies solely on physical patterns and property boundaries of the
building. In the city, the buildings vary according to its functions and where the architectural style
contradicts between the interior and the exterior. This is proven where the spatial relationship within
the buildings of Las Vegas are portrayed through symbols more than form within a particular space.
Despite the importance of the presence of symbolic architecture occurring within the context of Las
Vegas, however in my opinion, the direct translation of form of a building in order to provoke a sense
of symbolism and imagery for the acknowledgement of its presence along with its non-relatable context
within its spaces, has failed to embody and represent the ‘social’ and ‘public’ relationship as a whole.
This occurrence is just another example where buildings show fragmentation and the mix and
matching of styles that has literally no co-relation with each other and with the spaces within it. As the
author had mention where this particular phenomena imprints the idea where ‘symbols and spaces’
dominates the idea of ‘form and spaces’.
Despite the occurrence of representation iconology, still, this particular architectural movement is
no more right than it is wrong as this style is also greatly dependent, influenced and morphed by its
surrounding context.
WORD COUNT : 403 MARK: GRADE:
ACCESSED BY : DATE: 07/06/2017 PAGE NO. : 1