In Gottfried Semper’s treatise on The Four Elements of Architecture, Semper insisted that the threading, twisting and knotting of linear fibers were among the most ancient of human arts, from which all else was derived. ‘The beginning of building’, he declared, ‘coincides with the beginning of textiles.’ And that the most fundamental element of both building and textiles was the knot.

The Germanic words for joint (Naht) and knot (Knoten), both share the Indo-European root noc (hence nexus and necessity). The affiliation of knots and joints is not just a relation in the genealogy of techniques. In their similarities, Semper realized it brings on a much more fundamental question of what it means to make things.       

The form of a thing emerges from the process itself, within a field of forces (both tensile and frictional) established through the engagement of the practitioner with materials that have their own inclinations and vitality. No matter the discipline or scale, the outcome of a craft is based on process. The meaning created depends on the steps taken in the process. 

With the intent of melding my interest in interdisciplinary design, this investigation seeked to contribute to the built environment by using the processes of creation found in fashion and applying them to architecture in the attempt to derive new meaning. The project is set in the dense urban fabric of the Gothic Quarter of Barcelona. Through the vessel of creating a design foundation for Spanish Prêt-À-Couture house Delpozo,  I explored how architecture can be fashioned. The process of garment making informed the process of designing a built space with elements such as pleats, volume and silhouette.