Definitions
Architecture can mean:
A general term to describe buildings and other physical structures. [9]
The art and science of designing buildings and (some) nonbuilding structures;
[9]
sometimes called "architectonics."[10]
The style of design and method of construction of buildings and other physical
structures.[9]
A unifying or coherent form or structure.[11]
The knowledge of art, science, technology, and humanity. [9]
The design activity of the architect,[9] from the macro-level (urban design, landscape
architecture) to the micro-level (construction details and furniture).
The practice of the architect where architecture means offering or rendering
professional services in connection with the design and construction of buildings or
built environments.[12]
Theory
Main articles: Architectural theory and Philosophy of architecture
Illustration of bracket arm clusters
containing cantilevers from Yingzao Fashi, a text on architecture by Li Jue (1065–1110)
Plan of the second floor (attic storey) of the Hôtel de
Brionne in Paris – 1734.
The philosophy of architecture is a branch of the philosophy of art, dealing with aesthetic
value of architecture, its semantics and its relation to the development of culture. Many
philosophers and theoreticians from Plato to Michel Foucault, Gilles Deleuze,[13] Robert
Venturi and Ludwig Wittgenstein have concerned themselves with the nature of architecture
and whether or not architecture is distinguished from building.