The Evolution of Architecture. 341 



ABSTRACT OF THE DISCUSSION. 



MR. ALBERT L. BROCKWAY : 



I must beg to differ with Mr. Chadwick in the idea that archi- 

 tecture has been the field of an evolution similar to that in the or- 

 ganic world and in the scientifio^sense. In the organic world evolution 

 has resulted from the^aetion of inherent forces. Architecture has 

 been created by an external power. It is the work of men's hands 

 and minds. Any evolution in architecture using this term in the 

 sense of growth or development has been the result of man's mental 

 activity. The growth, therefore, is not inherent. The combination 

 of arch and column was not an inherent product in the Greek temple. 

 We now can see the possibility of the combination. The so-called 

 Romanesque vault did not imply the Gothic vault. Evolution or un- 

 folding we can find in any architectural style from its inception to its 

 decline, but as we advance from style to style we do not necessarily go 

 on from perfect to more perfect with occasional backward steps, as we 

 do in the organic world. It may be admitted that there is evolution 

 backward as well as forward, but the grand general trend is onward. 

 Who can presume to say that the most perfect Gothic cathedral is 

 more perfect than the Greek Parthenon! Yet from the evolution 

 point of view it should be so. Each is a growth, in its style depending 

 upon considerations of climate, customs of people, and material at 

 hand. 



Architecture is essentially a product of the people. It grew as they 

 grew. Painting and sculpture were allied arts, and decorative rather 

 than substantial and useful. From the first necessity to protect and 

 cover himself, to making a fit place for showing his love and reverence 

 for a Divine being, the building has grown. When the Communes 

 were established in France, but more particularly in Flanders and the 

 Low Countries, we see the beautiful town hall spring up to meet the 

 want. The church of the middle ages may resemble the Roman 

 basilica, but constructively it differs widely therefrom. The very rise 

 in power of the bishops by associating with the kingly power against 

 the abbots, who were generally powerful barons, is a very potent fac- 

 tor in the springing up all over France in particular and Europe in 

 general of the vast cathedral churches. Here again it was the growth 

 in the people that induced the growth in the art. 



The plan is the essential feature of an architectural production. 



