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A professor-emeritus (the University of California, Berkeley) and licensed contractor as well as architect, Christopher Alexander (born October 4, 1936 in Vienna, Austria) is noted for his design of building complexes in California, Japan, and Mexico. However, he may be most famous for his popular appeal and his theoretical contributions. With Sarah Ishikawa and Murray Silverstein, he produced and validated an architectural system, a pattern language designed to empower any human being to design and build quite well at any scale. He began the project because he believes that users know more about the buildings they need than any architect could. Based in England, he continues to practice architecture and consult in planning.
Life
Alexander grew up in England. His education started in sciences. He was awarded the top open scholarship to Trinity College, Cambridge University in 1954, in chemistry and physics and went on to read mathematics. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Architecture and a Master's degree in Mathematics. He took his doctorate in Harvard (the first Ph.D. in Architecture ever awarded at Harvard University), and was elected fellow at Harvard. During the same period he worked at MIT in transportation theory and in computer science, and worked at Harvard in cognition and cognitive studies. He became professor of Architecture at Berkeley in 1963, taught there continuously for 38 years, and is now Professor Emeritus at the University of California. He is widely recognized as the father of the pattern language movement in computer science. He was elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1996 for his contributions to architecture.
Work
Writings
More on [ Christopher Alexander ]
Inside Beijing's National Swimming Center
Wed, 02 Jul 2008 13:56:00 -0400
A multidisciplinary design team employed an innovative digital process to produce a surprising, highly integrated envelope-and-structure combination
Battersea Power Station's Sustainable Makeover
Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:26:00 -0400
Rafael Viñoly, the architect behind a plan to build a 1,000-foot chimney on the site of the south London icon, defends the controversial proposal
Going Green Is Good for Your Wallet
Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:34:00 -0400
Two recent studies show that green building standards not only are effective, but also escalate property values
MIT News: Architecture
MIT architect Sass puts up a prefab at MoMA
Thu, 03 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Larry Sass, assistant professor of computation in the MIT Department of Architecture, is one of five architects featured in a major show this summer at the Museum of Modern Art titled "Home Delivery: Fabricating the Modern Dwelling."
Making a splash in Zaragoza
Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500
An MIT-designed building featuring water walls that can be programmed to display patterns and images is being unveiled this week at the opening of the Zaragoza World Expo in Spain.
Interview with the dean: Adele Santos
Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500
An interview with Dean Adele Santos, dean of the MIT School of Architecture and Planning, in which Santos discusses the school's goals and challenges and the role it can play in the future of sustainable cities across the world.
A Generative Sequence for Building a Residential College - Applying Alexander's ideas on architectural patterns and sequences to the creation of strong academic and social communities within large universities.
Meta Description: [ A generative sequence (in Christopher Alexander’s ‘pattern language’ style) for the establishment of residential colleges within large universities. ]
Alexander, Christopher - Dr. Nikos A. Salingaros provides a biography of the Professor of Architecture at the University of California at Berkeley, with a list of his major publications and sources for his buildings.
An Introduction for Object-Oriented Designers - A review of Christopher Alexander's major texts, interspersed with remarks about the architect's methodological and pragmatic concerns and software design. By Doug Lea.
Pattern Language - Official web site of the architect. Attempts to put his theory into practice via the web, users can design buildings online using Alexander's principles. Extensive excerpts from the architect's texts and reviews.
The Nature of Order - Official site of Christopher Alexander's four-volume series, The Nature of Order
Meta Description: [ The Nature of Order, a new series by Christopher Alexander ]
| Brunson, Ben Affleck, Phil Hellmuth jr., Jason Alexander, Montell Williams, Joe Hachem, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Jennifer Harman, Ray Romano | |
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