“Deep Decoration,” 30/60/90 Architectural Journal, November 2006.

The essay “Deep Decoration,” focuses on projects, which embody what Rappaport calls, Deep Decoration. This is where the form of structure becomes decoration and the uses of mathematical algorithms and patterned structural systems are often based on forms in nature where the complexity is a synergistic architecture.

The use of overt patterning with structural systems blur the line between what is structural and what is decorative, and results in a decoration that is both below and in the surface, that creates new spatial effects and holistic atmospheres. It is to the synthesis of distributed forms that emphasize the essence of space, and adds harmony structure that forms a deep decoration. The structure makes space and different kinds of spaces, shaping it to new curvilinear forms modeling and molding it and is based on complexity and a common cultural interest in nonlinearity, nonlinear determination, and nature’s own organizational systems. The essay includes both historic and contemporary examples of where this occurs such as in Federation Square, the Serpentine Toyo Ito project, and the Watercube for the Olympics.

See www.306090.org