RE PE TI TI ON
We tend to group elements in a random composition according to:
The principle of repetition utilizes both of these concepts of visual perception to order recurring
elements in a composition.
The simplest form of repetition is a linear pattern of redundant elements. Elements need not be perfectly identical,
however, to be grouped in a repetitive fashion. They may merely share a common trait or a common denominator,
allowing each element to be individually unique, yet belong to the same family.
Size
Shape
Detail Characteristics
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R E P ET ITIO N
Distyle in Antis
Prostyle
Peripteral
Amphiprostyle
Dipteral
Reims Cathedral, England, 1211–1290
Pseudodipteral The Smitheum
Classification of Temples according to the arrangements of the colonnades.
From Book III, Chapter II of Vitruvius’ Ten Books on Architecture.
Structural patterns often incorporate the repetition of vertical supports
at regular or harmonious intervals which define modular bays or divisions
of space. Within such repetitive patterns, the importance of a space can
be emphasized by its size and placement.
Salisbury Cathedral, England, 1220–1260
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RE P ET IT IO N
Jami Masjid, Gulbarga, India, 1367
Unité d’Habitation, Marseilles, 1946–1952, Le Corbusier
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R E P ET IT ION
Rajarajeshwara Temple, Thanjavur, India, 11th century
Bakong Temple, near Siem Reap, Cambodia, c. A.D. 881
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REP ET I TI ON
Katsura Imperial Villa, Kyoto, Japan, 17th century
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Dilwara Jain Temples, Mt. Abu, India, 11th–16th centuries Germigny-des-Prés, France, A.D. 806–811, Oton Matsaetsi
As in music, a rhythmic pattern may be legato, continuous, and flowing, or staccato and abrupt in its pace or cadence.
Capitol Complex (Project), Islamabad, Pakistan, 1965, Louis Kahn
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RE PE TI TI ON
Siedlung Halen, near Bern, Switzerland, 1961, Atelier 5
Pompeii
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R EP ET ITIO N
Section through main prayer hall: Jami Masjid, Ahmedabad, India, 1423
Olympic Arena, Tokyo, Japan, 1961–1964, Kenzo Tange
Rhythmic patterns provide continuity and lead us to anticipate what comes next. Any break in Külliye of Beyazid II, Bursa, Turkey, 1398–1403
the pattern announces and emphasizes the importance of the interrupting element or interval.
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RE P ET IT IO N
View of Spanish hill town of Mojácar
View of Villa Hermosa, Spain
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RE P E T ITI ON
Rhythm created by connecting points in space Contrasting rhythms
Horizontal and vertical rhythms
Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon, USA, 10th–13th centuries
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RE P ET IT ION
Himeji Castle, Himeji, Japan, begun 1577
Temple of the Inscriptions, Palenque, Mexico, c. A.D. 550
Abbey Church, Alpirsbach, Germany, c. 1000
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RE P ET IT ION
Victorian Facades fronting a San Francisco street Multiple rhythms can be laid over one another in the facade of a building.
Studies of Internal Facade of a Basilica by Francesco Borromini
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RE PE TI T ION
Roq Housing Project
More complex rhythmic patterns can be created by introducing points of emphasis or exceptional
intervals into a sequence. These accents or beats help differentiate between the major and minor
themes in a composition.
Bedford Park, London, 1875, Maurice Adams, E.W. Goodwin, E.J. May, Norman Shaw
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RE P ET IT ION
Westendinhelmi Housing
Social Housing, Louviers, France, 2006, Edouard Francois
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REP ET I TI ON
Residential Care Unit, Hokkaido, Japan, 2004, Sou Fujimoto
Rhythm is a natural outcome of the way we lay
out the repetitive units of housing complexes.
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RE P ET IT ION
The radial segments of a nautilus shell spiral outward in a reverberating manner
from its center and maintain the shell’s organic unity through this pattern of
additive growth. Using the mathematical ratio of the Golden Section, a series
of rectangles can be generated to form a unified organization wherein each
rectangle is proportionate to the others as well as to the overall structure. In
each of these examples, the principle of reverberation creates a sense of order
among a group of elements which are similar in shape but hierarchically graded
in size.
Progressive, reverberating patterns of forms and spaces can be organized in the
following ways:
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RE PE TI TI ON
Hasan Pasha Han, Istanbul, 14th century House of the Faun, Pompeii, c. 2nd century B.C.
Jester House (Project), Palos Verdes, California, 1938, Frank Lloyd Wright
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R E P ET IT ION
Plan and section: Central circular structures of the Guachimonton Complex, Teuchitlán, A.D. 300–800
Garden elevation
Art Gallery, Shiraz, Iran, 1970, Alvar Aalto
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RE PE TI TI ON
St. Theodore (now Kilisse Mosque), Constantinople (Istanbul), c. 1100
Tjibaou Cultural Center, Nouméa, New Caledonia, 1991–1998, Renzo Piano
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RE P ET IT ION
Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia, designed 1957, completed 1973, Jørn Utzon
Section
Plan
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REP ET I TI ON
Cultural Center, Wolfsburg, Germany, 1948–1962, Alvar Aalto
Plan
Church at Vuoksenniska, Finland, 1956, Alvar Aalto
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