The Coexistence of Opposites in Contemporary Architecture

Abstract

Critical and rhetorical studies that dealt with the concept of opposites have always dealt with the language of architecture and its texts in analysis and theorizing, as the texts multiplied and accumulated and their qualities changed and contradicted each other. Some of them were distinct, and others were complicated in their meaning. The study aims to understand the nature of opposites in architectural practice at the level of text production and reading by Shedding light on employing the concept of coexistence as a consensual strategy that can formulate and read contemporary architectural text based on a system of intellectual and formal perceptions (opposites) and pairing them to create a multi-level architectural text that is understandable, and conceptual and semantic systems governed by previous perceptions (collective memory), to preserve what is Inherited and allowing for what is contemporary. The research reached the importance of developing a conceptual or semantic model that facilitates the process of dialectical thinking, represented by knowing the levels and formulas for achieving coexistence between opposites at the level of text production and reading, and thus the immunity of architectural texts from unstudied contradictions. The study conducted in the research adopted a qualitative, descriptive and analytical approach, represented by collecting and analyzing data from previous studies to build a theoretical framework and apply it to the (Central Bank Tower) project in the city of Baghdad. A group of architectural designers surveyed it to arrive at results, conclusions and then recommendations.