Mathematical Thinking and Properties in Architecture: Palladio, Le Corbusier, and Eisenman

by Ju Hyun Lee, Michael J. Dawes, Michael J. Ostwald

Overview

This monograph explores the profound connections between architecture and mathematics through the works of Andrea Palladio, Le Corbusier, and Peter Eisenman. Combining historical insights with computational analyses, it examines the social, spatial, and aesthetic properties of twenty-six iconic designs. Advanced methods such as Space Syntax, isovists, fractal analysis, image segmentation and semantic linguistic analysis reveal the mathematical principles underlying architectural thinking and properties.

Richly illustrated with over 100 visuals, this volume is an essential resource for senior undergraduates, postgraduates, practicing architects, and historians seeking a deeper understanding of mathematical thinking in architectural design and analysis.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783031863905
Publisher:	Birkhäuser
Publication date:	06/30/2025
Series:	Mathematics and the Built Environment , #10
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	42 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Ju Hyun Lee is Associate Professor of Architecture and Computational Design at UNSW, Sydney (Australia). He is co-author with Michael J. Ostwald of Grammatical and Syntactical Approaches in Architecture (IGI Global 2020), co-author with Michael J. Ostwald and Ning Gu of Design Thinking: Creativity, Collaboration and Culture (Springer 2020) and co-editor with Michael J. Ostwald and Mi Jeong Kim of Multimodality in Architecture: Collaboration, Technology and Education (Springer 2024).

Michael J. Dawes is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at UNSW, Sydney. He completed his PhD in architecture at the University of Newcastle, where he investigated design theory and mathematics in the work of Christopher Alexander. He is a co-author with Michael J. Ostwald of The Mathematics of the Modernist Villa (Birkhäuser 2018).

Michael J. Ostwald is Scientia Professor of Architectural Analytics at UNSW, Sydney (Australia) and Editor-in-Chief of the Nexus Network Journal: Architecture and Mathematics (Springer Nature). Some of his recent books include The Fractal Dimension of Architecture (Birkhäuser 2016) with Josephine Vaughan, The Mathematics of the Modernist Villa (Birkhäuser 2018) with Michael J. Dawes, Grammatical and Syntactical Approaches in Architecture (IGI Global 2020) with Ju Hyun Lee, and Computational Design (CRC, Taylor and Francis 2021) with Ning Gu and Rongrong Yu.

Table of Contents

Mathematical Thinking and Properties in Architecture.- Mathematics and Andrea Palladio.- Mathematics and Le Corbusier.- Mathematics and Peter Eisenman.- Intelligibility and Cellularity.- Natural Beauty and Expressive Freedom.- Language, Harmony and Diversity.- Piano Nobile, Promenade and Program.- Squaring the Circle.