Review: Proportional Systems in the History of Architecture: A Critical Reconsideration, edited by Matthew A. Cohen and Maarten Delbeke

Abstract

Book Review| December 01 2020 Review: Proportional Systems in the History of Architecture: A Critical Reconsideration, edited by Matthew A. Cohen and Maarten Delbeke Matthew A. Cohen and Maarten Delbeke, eds. Proportional Systems in the History of Architecture: A Critical Reconsideration Leiden: Leiden University Press, 2018, 600 pp., illus. $125/€102.50 (cloth), ISBN 9789087282776 Michela Rossi Michela Rossi Politecnico di Milano Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians (2020) 79 (4): 478–479. https://doi.org/10.1525/jsah.2020.79.4.478 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Michela Rossi; Review: Proportional Systems in the History of Architecture: A Critical Reconsideration, edited by Matthew A. Cohen and Maarten Delbeke. Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 1 December 2020; 79 (4): 478–479. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/jsah.2020.79.4.478 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentJournal of the Society of Architectural Historians Search The history of Western architecture is marked by ample attention to the concept of proportion, a concern that has affected both architectural theory (ever searching for aesthetic recipes for harmony) and architectural practice (seeking to balance loads and structure). In fact, the term proportion expresses a quantitative relationship between measurable elements and is therefore intrinsic to the geometric forms commonly employed in building designs. According to Western classical traditions, humans have always aspired to the perfection of natural forms; this helps to explain the enduring fascination with proportional systems in architectural design. For a long time, geometry and proportion represented secret and sacred tools that assured formal coherence and structural balance. Through them, early modern thinkers such as Galileo sought to establish the foundations of experimental science and to demonstrate thresholds of validity for structural principles. According to Goethe's famous aphorism, “Provision has been made to keep trees from growing... You do not currently have access to this content.