[ECAL DESIGN READER 2014]

Title: A PATTERN LANGUAGE: TOWNS, BUILDINGS, CONSTRUCTION
Author: Christopher Alexander
Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1977

Abstract:
A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander is a book that theorizes a practical approach allowing anyone to address a design problem and come to a solution. In this book he lays out a method by which the user, be they experienced designer or a common layman, can approach a situation and find applicable design solutions to help using something of a design dictionary. He uses the metaphor of language as a means to humanize design, and asserts that just like the composition of a sentence a well formed design is made from a set group of design grammar. The metaphor aside, Alexander’s approach to design is an attempt to use one overarching method to address any design problem, he lays out several (274) examples of design situations which are quite specific, ie. Corner Grocery, Light on Two Sides of Every Room (one of his staples), and Different Chairs as examples. Maybe not the definitive volume for all solutions, but worth a look.

Selected by: ECAL / Thomas Burns