科林罗-透明性-英文版-Transparency

Transparency:LiteralandPhenomenalColinRowe;RobertSlutzkyPerspecta,Vol.8.(1963),pp.45-54.StableURL:=0079-0958%281963%298%3C45%3ATLAP%3E2.0.CO%3B2-UPerspectaiscurrentlypublishedbyYaleSchoolofArchitecture.YouruseoftheJSTORarchiveindicatesyouracceptanceofJSTOR'sTermsandConditionsofUse,availableat://@jstor.org.:232007ColinRoweandRobertSlutzkyTransparency:LiteralandPhenomenal'Transparency,''space-time,''simultane-ity,''interpenetration,''superimposition,''ambivalence':intheliteratureofcontem-poraryarchitecturethesewords,andotherslikethem,areoftenusedassyn-onyms.Wearefamiliarwiththeiruseandrarelyseektoanalyzetheirapplication.Toattempttomakeefficientcriticalinstru-mentsofsuchapproximatedefinitionsisperhapspedantic.Nevertheless,inthisar-ticlepedantrywillberiskedinanattempttoexposethelevelsofmeaningwithwhichtheconceptoftransparencyhasbecomeendowed.Accordingtothedictionarydefinition,thequality,orstate,ofbeingtransparentisbothamaterialcondition-thatofbeingpervioustolightandair-andtheresultofanintellectualimperative,ofourinher-entdemandforthatwhichshouldbeeasilydetected,perfectlyevident,andfreeofdissimulation.Thustheadjectivetrans-parent,bydefiningapurelyphysicalsig-nificance,byfunctioningasacriticalhonorific,andinbeingdignifiedwithfarfromdisagreeablemoralovertones,be-comesawordwhichfromthefirstisrichlyloadedwiththepossibilitiesofbothmean-ingandmisunderstanding.Afurtherlevelofinterpretation-thatoftransparencyasaconditiontobedis-coveredinaworkofart-isadmirablydefinedbyGyorgyKepesinhisLanguageofVision:'Ifoneseestwoormorefiguresoverlappingoneanother,andeachofthemclaimsforitselfthecommonoverlappedpart,thenoneisconfrontedwithacon-tradictionofspatialdimensions.Toresolvethiscontradictiononemustassumethepresenceofanewopticalquality.Thefiguresareendowedwithtransparency;thatistheyareabletointerpenetratewith-outanopticaldestructionofeachother.Transparencyhoweverimpliesmorethananopticalcharacteristic,itimpliesabroaderspatialorder.Transparencymeansasimultaneousperceptionofdif-ferentspatiallocations.Spacenotonlyrecedesbutfluctuatesinacontinuousactivity.Thepositionofthetransparentfigureshasequivocalmeaningasoneseeseachfigurenowastheclosernowasthefurtherone'(1).Bythisdefinition,thetransparentceasestobethatwhichisperfectlyclearandbecomesinsteadthatwhichisclearlyam-biguous.Noristhismeaninganentirelyesotericone;whenweread(aswesooftendo)of'transparentoverlappingplanes,'weconstantlysensethatrathermorethanasimplephysicaltransparencyisinvolved.Forinstance,whileMoholy-NagyinhisVisioninMotioncontinuallyrefersto'transparentcellophaneplastic,''transpar-encyandmovinglight,'and'Rubens'sra-dianttransparentshadows'(2),acarefulreadingofthebookmightsuggestthatforhimsuchliteraltransparencyisoftenfur-nishedwithcertainallegoricalqualities.Somesuperimpositionsofform,Moholytellsus,'overcomespaceandtimefixa-tions.Theytransposeinsignificantsingu-laritiesintomeaningfulcomplexities...Thetransparentqualityofthesuperimpositionsoftensuggesttransparencyofcontextaswell,revealingunnoticedstructuralquali-tiesintheobject'(3).Andagain,incom-mentingonwhathecalls'themanifoldwordagglutinations'ofJamesJoyce,ortheJoyceanpun,Moholyfindsthattheseare'theapproachtothepracticaltaskofbuildingupacompletenessfrominter-lockedunitsbyaningenioustransparencyofrelationships'(4).Inotherwords,heseemstohavefeltthat,byaprocessofdistortion,recomposition,anddouble-entendre,alinguistictransparency-theliteraryequivalentofKepes''interpene-trationwithoutopticaldestruction'-mightbeeffected,andthatwhoeverexperiencesoneoftheseJoycean'agglutinations'willenjoythesensationoflookingthroughafirstplaneofsignificancetootherslyingbehindit.Therefore,attheverybeginningofany1CBzanne:MontSeinte-Vicfoireenquiryintotransparency,abasicdistinc-frontalviewpointofthewholescene,ationmustbeestablished.Transparencysuppressionofthemoreobviouselementsmaybeaninherentqualityofsubstance,suggestiveofdepth,andaresultantcon-asinaglasscurtainwall;oritmaybeantractingofforeground,middleground,andinherentqualityoforganization.Onecan,backgroundintoadistin