Parametric representation of modulor scale

Born in the town of La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland; known for its production in Art- Nouveau style; on October 6, 1887; Charles-Edouard Jeanneret, better known with his pseudo name Le Corbusier, was a son to a watch maker father and a music teacher mother. Le Corbusier is world famous with his identities as an artist, sculptor, architect, urban planner, researcher, and theoretician. Coming from an origin of a fine arts education; Le Corbusier, who started his career in watch graving; designed his first house in 1907 at the age of 20. After building his first work, he visited many cities in Europe and the Mediterranean including Rome, Vienna, Munich, Paris, Athens and Istanbul. Through these travels he had the chance to visit and study historical buildings and examine the classical proportions of the Renaissance architecture by which he was higly influenced. These trips also gave him the opportunity to work as an apprentice to famous names such as Auguste Perret and Peter Behrens. All these experiences seem to develop Le Corbusier's architectural practice and helped him to construct a conceptual framework with his practice. In the years under the influence of the Second World War, he revealed Modulor; a human figure scaled on the basis of golden ratio. According to Le Corbusier, architectural practice based on this system proposal can proceed in a much faster and accurate way, and the system can help the construction process get ahead without mistakes. All projects of the architect after 1945 are based on this proportional system. For the Modulor sycale, which can be defined as one of the "ideal" quests that can be found in many examples in architectural theory; Le Corbusier, studies Vitrivius and Leon Batista Alberti's work of proportions in classical architecture. According to Vitruvius, the concept of timeless beauty can be learned from nature; the designs of nature are based on universal proportions and symmetry laws. Body proportions, involving natural proportions as being a part of a natural design in the same way, can also be used as a model and ruler for excellence. Vitrivius shows that the ideal human body can fit both on a knot and a square exactly, thus proving the link between the perfect geometrical forms and the perfect body. Alberti's ratios on human scale are based on Vitrivius. Beauty is based on balance, symmetry and harmony. Le Corbusier, in the same way in search of balance, symmetry and harmony in architecture; improves the system of measuring and regulating the proportions in architecture, which he calls the "regular lines" that he has carried out before, and compiles the most appropriate measures for the average human body, transforming it into a "gauge of scale" which can be used especially in architecture and other areas of design. It is in an effort to establish universal norms in accordance with the spirit of the time it belongs. According to Le Corbusier, an architectural practice based on standards will result in much faster and "right" results. The reality of this situation and the possibility of reaching such an ideal has been debated and criticized many times; but these discussions are beyond the scope of this work. Modulor, created by Le Corbusier; who is an important figure in the modern architecture era as an architect, urban planner, painter, sculptor, researcher and a theoretician, is defined as "A Harmonious Measure to the Human Scale Universally Applicable to Architecture and Mechanics" by himself on his first book published on the subject. Modulor is basically a search for the "ideal" which many examples can be found in architectural theory. This "measure scale" study, is based on the work of Vitrivius and his predecessor Leon Batista Alberti's publishings on the ratios in classical period of architecture. Modulor can also be perceived as an extension of Le Corbusier's earlier research on "regulating lines", a system to understand and organise the ratios of the elements of a building facade or plan. Le Corbusier was aiming for a standardisation of the measurements to be used in architecture, mechanics, and all branches of design to be brief. This "system" was also supposed to solve the mismatch between the metric system and feet-inches system by uniting them in specific units. According to Le Corbusier, in-line with his periods needs and circumstances, an architecture practice based on this standardisation would give much efficient and "correct" results. Validation of this theory, to claim an opinion on how realistic this search for "ideal" would be, is out of the scope of this thesis. Main focus of this study, is to represent the Modulor scale in the parametric environment and trying to adapt this "scale" to the "digital architecture" era; in a way "updating" the Modulor as once Le Corbusier devised in the end section of his first book "The Modulor 1". As for the methodology, Modulor based algorithms are developed; by using 3d modelling software Rhinoceros, its parametric interface Grasshopper and its evolutionary algorithmic extension Galapagos, in order to allow the users to integrate Modulor easily to their design process and experimenting its visual effect on the results. The architectural compositions in various scales, produced by means of these algorithms are submitted for consideration of the reader. In the first chapter, a brief introduction on Le Corbusier and Modulor is given; along with the aim, scope and the methodology of the study. On the following chapter; analytical researches on the "ratio" in history of architecture is prospected and some current studies on ratios in digital age are examined. A short example of a parametric representation of a complex geometry, based on an applied architectural example is presented at the final stage of the chapter. The third chapter is about calculating the Modulor values in a parametric way in a parallel approach with Le Corbusier's method. Information on the creation process of the Modulor by Le Corbusier, can be found in this chapter. The fourth chapter, as the main chapter of the study, contains the parametric applications developed for different areas of utilisation in architecture, being in-line with Le Corbusier's providences. The chapter ends with an attempt to represent the design approach with Modulor, on a specific panelisation of an existing building by Le Corbusier and Iannis Xenakis. After the development of the algorithms and production of the composition alternative examples; a workshop was coordinated by the attendance of architectural students, to get a feedback on user experience. The visual results composed in the workshop are presented and the encountered problems are explained along with the possible solutions by means of improvement suggestions in the first stage of the fifth chapter. The fifth chapter continues with a small questionnaire, conducted to understand the perceptibility of the effect of Modulor on visual results by different attendant groups. The results, inferences and the questionnaire itself is shared with the reader, to provide the same experience as the attendants on understanding the visual effect of the Modulor. On the rising "digital" era in architecture, the significant developments in technological areas such as artificial intelligence, evolutionary algorithms, building information modelling and many others; has transformed the design approach and the building process with relevant speed. Many complex design problems; considered to be unsolvable by only human mind earlier, can now be solved by algorithms in very limited time periods. Along with all these developments in technology, utilisation of the digital tools is creating its own visual language in architecture and other fields of design. It's a well- accepted opinion that, it's more beneficial if each period is fed by the previous ones instead of ignoring them. Based on this argument, in this study; topic of the "scale" in architecture, is tried to be adapted to the contemporary digital age with the "Modulor" example.