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Review
Dialogues on Design
INTERNAL: Developing Informed
Architectural Languages
Tom Diehl
Applied Research and Design
Publishing, 2021
INTERNAL
D E V E L O P I N G
I N F O R M E D
ARCHITECTURAL
L A N G U A G E S
Tod Williams
Billie Tsien
Tom Diehl
Tom Kundig
Enrique Norten
Thom Mayne
Brian Mackay-Lyons
Neil Denari
Eric Owen Moss
John and
Patricia Patkau
COVER PHOTO COURTESY APPLIED RESEARCH AND DESIGN PUBLISHING; BOTTOM PHOTO BY BENNY CHAN
by Alex Lahti
“INTERNAL: Developing Informed Architectural Languages” by Tom Diehl, an associate
professor at the University of Houston Gerald D.
Hines College of Architecture and Design, is the
author’s 昀椀rst book and the result of a 10-year dialogue between himself and 11 architects at eight
notable architecture 昀椀rms in North America.
It is a deliberate attempt to ferret out the use
and value of language-based approaches to the
architectural design process and is a resource for
anyone interested in the relationship between
architectural intention, the design process, and
realized architectural work. Structured as a
collection of eight interviews, the work includes
discussions with John and Patricia Patkau, Hon.
FAIAs, Tod Williams, FAIA, and Billie Tsien,
AIA, Tom Kundig, FAIA, Enrique Norten, Hon.
FAIA, Thom Mayne, FAIA, Brian MackayLyons, Hon. FAIA, Niel Denari, FAIA, and Eric
Owen Moss, FAIA. Each architect was asked the
same questions, a format that provides readers
with an objective view of and opportunity to
assess each designer’s approach to languagebased design strategies for themselves.
“INTERNAL” does not attempt to classify speci昀椀c design approaches; instead, Diehl
asks the architects questions that help elucidate
their unique approach to internal, rather than
external, design motivators for each project. This
strategy distinguishes itself from typical architectural journalism or theory publications wherein
the respondent can shape the inquiry or use
the interview to promote his or her own portfolio. “INTERNAL” is distinctly di昀昀erent from
architect-approved monographs, such as “S, M,
L, XL” by Rem Koolhaas and Bruce Mau, which
include interviews that act as an extension of the
architects’ self-promotional activities.
Diehl notes that the book can be read in
multiple modes. For those interested in a speci昀椀c
line of inquiry, he invites them to read each
architect’s response to a singular question. This
provides a horizontal or landscape view of a
single concept of architectural intention. Each
interview could also be read in a separate sitting
to provide the reader with an informative or
entertaining view of a single architect’s approach
to a single project. Or, for those interested in
Diehl’s larger interest in architectural intention and the attitudes and approaches of varied
architectural practitioners, one could comfortably read the entire book over a single weekend.
As with most architectural theory, there are
moments in the interviews where language itself
hinders the transfer of meaning; in such cases,
the author is careful to ask the architect followup questions that help frame the discussion
around more tangible concepts.
Of all the architects interviewed, Thom
Mayne may be the most aware of Diehl’s
audience of design students. To one follow-up
question, he responds, “Not only do design decisions have to make sense, but they have to lead to
some payo昀昀s.” Mayne seems to understand that
students of architecture are part of the book’s
intended audience, and he uses this fact as an
opportunity to share some of his core values with
future practitioners. Eric Owen Moss takes a
more idiosyncratic approach to Diehl’s inquiry.
For him, design is more personal. “Authenticity
comes from the ability for one to not accept it
as a rule, but in a manner that makes it belong
to the architect,” says Moss. His work, as well as
the project discussed, demonstrate the personal
nature of Moss’ own architectural process.
When I interviewed Diehl about “INTERNAL,” he relayed to me that he had begun the
book project because he found that at the design
lectures he attended, design processes and intentions were taking a back seat to conversations on
document production and gestural references.
He became concerned that students or junior
practitioners were missing a vital component of
the discussion regarding the generation of architectural organizational strategies and the verbal
approach to design development. While working
on the project, he speci昀椀cally had students in
mind as the primary audience; however, we discussed how the objective approach of this book
could be equally valuable for experienced professionals who wish to hone their own approach to
design intentions. Ultimately, Diehl hopes that
the reader gains a richer understanding of the
multitude of strategies that may be employed to
add meaningful complexity and richer architectural design inquiry to the design process.
Alan-Voo Residence addition in Los Angeles by
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9/10 2023
Texas Architect 23