From Master-Builders to Concept-Makers

For centuries, architects were deeply connected to the materials and technologies they used, learning their craft from the ground up. The very word "architect" comes from the Greek "arkhi" (master) and "takton" (builder), highlighting this hands-on approach. In ancient Greece, aspiring architects began their careers in one of the building crafts, such as masonry, carpentry, or metalwork, before transitioning into building design. At the time, there was no radical division between drawing and building, as though the former was exclusively on the side of abstract design and the latter on the side of material execution; instead, both were integral to the creative process of the “building”. However, things changed. From the Enlightenment to the Digital Age, architects increasingly focused on abstract design, becoming "concept-makers" and "shape-designers", leaving construction and material-related concerns to others.

This shift has led to growing concerns: Are architects losing touch with the very essence of their craft? Are direct experiences with materials and building technologies still important in contemporary architectural processes?

Recent research in cognitive science can provide clues to these questions by explaining how cognition extends into the physical world. Theories of embodied, extended, and distributed cognition challenge the traditional view that cognitive processes are confined to the brain, suggesting that the mind, body, and environment are intertwined in mental activities.

Materials and Technologies as Thinking Partners

New research conducted by our Hybrid Pedagogy Lab at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design utilizes these cognitive models to explain how architectural and design knowledge is generated through material practice. We discovered that materials act as active actors in designer's cognitive processes: they store information by carrying graphical symbols and spatial relationships such as their elements’ size, location, and proportions; they offer embodied experiences that contribute to theoretical understanding; they contextualize information; they can elicit memories and emotions and lead to unexpected insights and ideas. Materials are dynamic actors - they can change their shapes and affordances during thinking processes. Since most material manipulations are executed using some kind of technology (whether manual or digital), it has become an essential mediator of material practice. Therefore, technology is also viewed as an active cognitive actor. When drawing or tinkering with models in exploratory ways, cognition is coevolved with the drawing or the models. Architects don't just create designs in their minds and then translate them into material form. The act of engaging with materials and technology shapes the design. Drawing and model-making aren't just tools for execution; they're tools for thinking.

Rethinking Architectural Education

This understanding changes how we view architectural education. Contrary to the traditional view, in which teachers are seen as the primary gatekeepers of knowledge and the main force controlling students’ learning processes, and to the current student-centered approach, in which students are at the center of the learning processes, our work proposes more collaborative dynamics and acknowledges the distributed nature of agency and cognition among a wide range of actors. Different kinds of actors take part in the process of architectural education. There are physical actors, digital actors, and hybrids of both. They encompass the students themselves as well as the components that comprise their physical, virtual, and social environments, the physical and the virtual spaces they occupy, the physical and virtual artifacts they iteratively create, the software and the hardware they use, and the physical and the virtual modes of communication they employ with their peers and instructors.

Teachers can guide students to reflect on how materials influence their thinking. For example, when using a CNC machine to carve wood, students can consider how the machine, the design of the digital code, the space, and the wood itself affect their design. Teachers can also design learning experiences that leverage the cognitive power of materials and technologies. They can create specific models, representations or coding tasks to encourage different types of thinking.

Conclusion: A Material Renaissance

The separation between design and material execution has created a gap that needs bridging. By acknowledging the cognitive role of materials, we can foster a more holistic and intuitive approach to architecture. This means:

• Encouraging hands-on learning and experimentation with materials and technologies.

• Integrating material exploration into the design process.

• Recognizing the value of sensory experience in architectural education.

In a world increasingly dominated by digital abstractions, reconnecting with the tangible world of materials is not just a nostalgic gesture; it's a vital step towards creating more meaningful and human-centered architecture. By embracing the cognitive power of both materials and technologies, we can empower architects to design with greater depth, understanding, and creativity.