ROOTS OR ROUTES?
A Global Itinerary of Design: Mobilising Thinking about Landscapes + Architecture across Time and Space
Preamble
In Changing Ideals of Modern Architecture: 1750-1950 (1998), Peter Collins reflects on diverse attitudes towards the past, not
least, “the attitude of those idealists who, passionately espousing one particular period of architectural history, whether Roman,
Greek, Renaissance or Gothic, claimed that it was only by returning to this pure source of inspiration [the root of inspiration] that
a good contemporary architecture could be created.1 In De architectura (On Architecture), for example, the Roman architect
and engineer, Vitruvius (writing in the first century BCE), sought to preserve the classical tradition and he expressed pessimistic
remarks about contemporary [Roman] architecture [if it departed from the classical tradition] in the prefaces to his separate
books.2 Moreover, De architectura (the only complete treatise on architecture to survive from antiquity) was held in increasingly
high regard during diverse periods of antique revival — Renaissance, Baroque, Neoclassicism — for its representation of the
classical architectural and urban traditions; of classical roots.
Such idealistic attitudes prevailed in the nineteenth century and they shaped the representation of architectural history and the
careful classification and categorisation of different architectural styles; influential surveys were prepared by Fisher von Erlach,
James Fergusson, Edward Freeman and Banister Fletcher.3 Increasingly, these surveys sought to encompass a global history
of architecture. Further, inspired by ethnography, historians sought to emphasise the difference of each style. For example, in
Objects of Translation: Material Culture and Medieval ‘Hindu-Muslim’ Encounter, Finbarr B. Flood remarks that both ethnology
and architectural history “were dependent on the ability to read visual signs of (cultural, racial, and/or sectarian) difference”.4
Moreover, Flood identifies “a demonstrable relationship between the incipient disciplines of colonial ethnology and architectural
history in nineteenth century South Asia.”5 As such, architectural historians were often at pains to emphasise difference and
“the absence of ‘the disturbing element of crossing’ in the objects and subjects of their study”.6 Accordingly, hybrid architectures
or landscapes, or sites that were shaped by ‘crossing’ (of culture, race or otherwise), did not fit desirable, differentiated
categories and this often led to pejorative attitudes. Commenting on the architecture of the Nawabs in Lucknow, for example,
James Fergusson states “the unintelligent vulgarity with which the [Classical] ‘Orders’ are there used, by a people who were
capable of such noble things in their own styles, is one of the most startling phenomena in the history of architecture.”7 Similarly,
“Führer decries the copies from ‘debased European models’, and the ‘mongrel vulgarities’, particularly of the later Nawabi
period”.8 For Flood, these attitudes stem from biological metaphors of hybridity which “presuppose (if not produce) ‘pure’ original
or parent cultures, betraying their roots in nineteenth-century scientific discourses on race”.9
1 Peter Collins, Changing Ideals in Modern Architecture: 1750-1950 (Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1998), 117. My italics. 2 The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. Vitruvius, Roman Architect. Encyclopaedia Britannica, accessed August 4, 2019. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vitruvius.
Georgia Clarke debates the provenance of Vitruvian manuscripts in the dynamic context of manuscript production and ownership in fifteenth century Italy. Georgia Clarke,
“Vitruvian Paradigms,” Papers of the British School at Rome 70 (2002): 319-346, accessed August 4, 2019. https://www.jstor.org/stable/40311052. For a translation, see
Public Domain. William P. Thayer, trans., Marcus Vitruvius Pollio: de Architectura, Book I. Chapter 3.2., accessed August 5, 2019.
http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/HELP/Copyright/home.html
3 Nalbantoglu offers a helpful discussion of the structural changes to the different editions of Fletcher’s History of Architecture over the course of the twentieth century and she questions “the boundaries that remain intact through certain exclusionary practices that remain unquestioned once the institutional structure of the discipline is establishedâ€. Gülsüm Baydar and Nalbantoḡlu, “Toward Postcolonial Openings: Rereading Sir Banister Fletcher’s ‘History of Architecture’,” Assemblage 35 (1998): 15. 4 Finbarr B. Flood Objects of Translation: Material Culture and Medieval ‘Hindu-Muslim’ Encounter (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2009), 151. 5 Finbarr B. Flood, “Signs of Violence: Colonial Ethnographies and Indo-Islamic Monuments,” Australia and New Zealand Journal of Art 5/2 (2004): 20-51. 6 Flood, “Signs of Violence,” 28-30. 7 See Elise Kamleh and Katharine Bartsch, “Karbala in Lucknow: An Itinerary of Architectural Mobility,” in Islamic Architecture on the Move (Bristol: Intellect, 2016), 35-36. 8 Kamleh and Bartsch, “Karbala in Lucknow,” 35-36. 9 Flood, Objects of Translation, 5, quoted in Kamleh and Bartsch, “Karbala in Lucknow,” 35.
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Today, such pejorative attitudes are antiquated. We take the global transfer of ideas and the familiarity of human mobility, for
granted. Television and the media, electronic communication, international air travel and the internet connect different parts of
the world in an instant contributing to the global diffusion of ideas and practices. Such connections have a longer history that
has been attributed to processes of colonisation, industrialisation or globalisation. In this context, it is unsurprising that there are
similarities between settlements (buildings, landscapes, cities) in different parts of the world. However, these processes have
often been perceived as dominating forces that level out the idiosyncrasies of a particular place and, thus, are often interpreted
as a threat to pre-colonial or pre-industrial settlements. Concerns are often raised (in popular and academic literature) that this
“new” condition of global interconnectivity (routes) ruptures the fabric of traditional settlements (settlements that are often
perceived to have been ‘rooted’ in place) or compromises the integrity or originality of such settlements that have remained
largely unchanged for hundreds of years.
In Travel, Space Architecture (2009), architectural historian Jilly Traganou claims the need to define a new theoretical territory
in architectural scholarship that studies space and architecture through the notion of travel … to reveal that spatio-architectural
practices in their conceptual and material dimensions are and have been multisited and have to be examined through the prism
of trajectories and networks rather than singular perceptions of place or essentialist notions of identity and culture.10 Even the
circulation of Vitruvian scrolls and manuscripts must be examined in the context of debates about provenance, transportation
and translation that transpired in the fifteenth century.11
Ching, Jarzombek and Prakash (the authors of A Global History of Architecture, 2011), also perceive a long history of
interconnectivity across time and space. They ask: What did one person know about the other? How did information travel?
How did architectural culture move or become “translated”?12 These questions build on exciting scholarship in the fields (not
least) of world history, geography, exploration, and commerce. Janet Abu-Lughod introduced the groundbreaking concept of
interconnected economic systems in Before European Hegemony: The World System, 1250-1350 (1991). In First Globalisation:
The Eurasian Exchange, 1500-1800 Geoffrey C. Gunn (who does not discuss architecture) argues for “the appearance of hybrid
forms and cultures across the Eurasian landscape”.13 These hybrids are attributed, not least, to human mobility, the transfer of
new materials and technologies, changing political situations, and changing aesthetic and religious ideals. In the design
disciplines (architecture, landscape architecture, urban design), hybrids can also be identified and one could argue that the
hybrid is the norm rather than the exception. Like Ching, Jarzombek and Prakash, Gunn also privileges connections in History
Without Borders: The Making of an Asian World Region, 1000-1800 (2011). Together, such studies draw attention to an exciting
world of architectural mobility. At the same time they destabilise Eurocentric architectural historiography that espouses the
primacy of Europe in the early modern world.14
Other important studies in this regard include Deborah Howard’s Venice and the East (2000).15 Eminent architectural historian
Oleg Grabar identifies a shared visual language amongst Muslims, Christians and Jews in Iberia.16 Moreover, Miles Danby
explores the transmission of this visual language to South and Central America.17 In Objects of Translation, Finbarr B. Flood
extends anthropologist James Clifford’s dynamic thesis of ‘routes not roots’ to the field of architectural history to destabilize
monolithic or essentialist representations of “discrete ‘Hindu’ or ‘Muslim’ cultural forms”.18 Bianca Maria Alfieri also examines
10 Jilly Traganou, “Preface,” in Travel Space Architecture (Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate, 2009), 2. 11 Georgia Clarke debates the provenance of Vitruvian manuscripts in the dynamic context of manuscript production and ownership in fifteenth century Italy. Georgia Clarke,
“Vitruvian Paradigms,” Papers of the British School at Rome 70 (2002): 319-346, accessed August 4, 2019. https://www.jstor.org/stable/40311052. 12 Frank Ching, Mark Jarzombek and Vikramaditya Prakash, A Global History of Architecture, Second Edition (Hoboken: Wiley, 2011), xi. 13 Geoffrey C. Gunn. First Globalisation: The Eurasian Exchange, 1500-1800 (Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield, 2003), 8. 14 For a full discussion of this provocative idea see Andre Gunder Frank, ReOrient: Global Economy in the Asian Age (Berkeley: University of California, 1998). 15 Deborah Howard, Venice and the East: The Impact of the Islamic World on Venetian Architecture, 1100-1500 (New Haven; London: Yale University Press, 2000). 16 Oleg Grabar, “Two Paradoxes in the Islamic Art of the Spanish Peninsular,” in The Legacy of Muslim Spain, ed. Salma Khadra Jayyusi, 583-591 (Leiden: E.J.Brill, 1992). 17 Miles Danby, The Fires of Excellence: Spanish and Portuguese Oriental Architecture (Reading: Garnet Publishing, 1997). 18 Finbarr B. Flood, Objects of Translation: Material Culture and Medieval “Hindu-Muslim” Encounter (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2009), 3.
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dynamic hybrids in Islamic Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent (2000).19 Other encounters have shaped the built environment
too. The history of Australasia, for example, is contiguous with a rich history of travel. Long before European exploration,
settlement or mission, Macassan fishermen from the Indonesian archipelago established seasonal ties with the Yolngu people
in northern Australia, the Maori migrated to Aotearoa from different regions in the Pacific and Afghan cameleers20 founded new
settlements in central Australia. Such examples of human mobility (due to pilgrimage, trade, mission, warfare and conquest,
migration, voyages of discovery or otherwise), and the hybrid architecture they shape, can be multiplied throughout the world.
Essay Question:
Do routes compromise roots? Choose a specific site (architecture or landscape, prior to 1900) Discuss.
There are 3 Task s

1. Collage: The Evidence Bag (Formative) 5% Week 8 Tutorial
   Prepare a collage which pieces together the evidence which will assist you in your analysis of the site. Evidence is not just
   textual. You may need to refer to maps, objects, photos, drawings, postcards, travellers’ journals or watercolours etc. The ‘bag’
   plays on the notion of travel, itineraries and routes. What do you need to ‘pack’ in the bag?
   Format: mixed-media; which can be three-dimensional; < 500mm x 500mm x 500mm
   Bring your collage to your tutorial in Week 8. Take a photo(s) and submit to MyUni on the same day as your tutorial (19 Sept).
2. Detailed Essay Plan and Bibliography (Formative) 5%
   Due 11.59pm, Thursday 26th September, MyUni (Mid-semester Break)
   • Include your name and student #, and your tutor’s name at the top of the page.
   • Identify your site
   • Include a tentative title
   • State your argument
   • Outline the structure/plan of your essay
   http://www.adelaide.edu.au/writingcentre/learning_guides/learningGuide_writingEssays.pdf
   • Maximum 2 x A4 pages, Times New Roman, 12pt, single spacing, 2cm margins
   • Prepare a bibliography of relevant, credible sources (journal articles, academic texts, book chapters etc), at least 6
   sources. NB: Some sites are better represented than others.
3. Illustrated/Animated Critical Essay (Summative 40%)
   This is an assessment hurdle. Students must achieve a minimum of 50% to Pass the course.
   Due 11.59pm, Thurs 7th Nov, MyUni, HURDLE
   SUBMIT PPT AND A WORD DOCUMENT OF THE ESSAY TEXT.
   19 Bianca Maria Alfieri, Islamic Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent (Te Neues Publishing Company, 2000). 20 This topic is central to the current research undertaken as part of an ARC Linkage project, “The Architecture of Australia’s Muslim Pioneers” (2013-2016) led by Dr Peter
   Scriver and Dr Katharine Bartsch, University of Adelaide, with research partners at MuseumSA and IIUM (International Islamic University of Malaysia).
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   Essay Question
   Do routes compromise roots? Choose a specific site (architecture or landscape) Discuss.
   Maximum 2500 words (excluding reference list and list of sources of images).
   Format
   The presentation format for this essay is an animated powerpoint (< 20 slides). [or prezi]
   Think carefully about the use of relevant images (evidence: diagrams, drawings, models, images, photos).
   Design the sequence of slides and images carefully to convey your ideas and support your argument.
   The layout, the style and size of font are up to you. Powerpoint will enable students to exploit custom animations and layers to
   communicate their argument. The powerpoint is intended to be read on screen rather than as a projection. Therefore, the font
   can be smaller than that used in a conventional powerpoint presentation. The critical analysis will unfold with the progression of
   the powerpoint. The illustrated and animated slides and your text/argument must reinforce each other.
   Slide 1: Include a provocative title and image for the essay, your student number, and your full name.
   Slide 2: Introduction
   Slide 3-17: Body of Essay
   Slide 18: Conclusion
   Slide 19: Reference List according to Chicago Manual of Style 16th Edition (Author-Date format). Any ideas or quotes cited
   from other sources must have an in-text citation which also indicates the page number. The reference list must identify all the
   sources of your research.
   Slide 20: Image Sources according to Chicago Manual of Style 16th Edition (Author-Date format). All images should be
   numbered and captioned (no arbitrary images please) and the reference list for images should be treated the same as a list of
   references for ideas and quotations. Don’t just provide a list of URLs.
   Assessment Criteria
   Depth of research
   Clarity of argument in the introduction (and perhaps the title of the essay)
   Systematic provision of evidence for argument, demonstrating a logical progression and demonstrating analytical and
   evaluative skills (Ensure your essay is critical rather than descriptive; Pay attention to cohesion between sentences and
   paragraphs)
   Ability to compare and contrast the opinions of different scholars
   Quality of written expression
   Efficacy of graphic presentation (Appropriate relay between text and image to communicate argument)
   Appropriate referencing (Format: Chicago Manual of Style 16th Edition) Use Author-Date
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   Learning Outcomes
4. Students will gain a contextualised overview of a key site, and related ideas and designers.
5. Students will be able to apply independent research skills to interpret a specific design.
6. Students will be able to interpret, analyse, evaluate and synthesise information from a wide variety of sources to form
   and express a qualified critique of a design in text and image.
7. Students will be able to write clear and concise analytical texts and short essays which structure evidence for and
   against (a point of view) with appropriate referencing.
   Recommended Resources
   Start with Ching, F., Jarzombek, M. and Prakash, V. A Global History of Architecture, Hoboken: Wiley (Various Editions).
   Identify further sources and evidence for formative Tasks 1 and 2.
   Tutorial Exercises
   Week 7 Definition and Discussion of key terms and ideas for Assignment 2. Identify your site and sources.
   Week 8 Collage: The Evidence Bag
   Week 9 Tutorial Task: Analytical Writing (Compare and Contrast)
   Week 10 Tutorial Task: Analytical Writing (Cohesive Writing / Critical Voice)
   Week 11 Tutorial Task: Analytical Writing (Referencing and Bibliography)
   Week 12 Tutorial Task: Troubleshoot Essay
   Referencing: Chicago Manual of Style 16th Edition (Online):
   http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-2.html
   Bibliography and Essay Planning:
   http://www.adelaide.edu.au/writingcentre/learning_guides/learningGuide_writingEssays.pdf
   Sample illustrated powerpoint presentations will be included in this assignment folder on MyUni (NB: Different Topics)
   Sample sites will be discussed in the lecture series.
   Students are encouraged to discuss each stage of their work with their tutors.

Sample Solution