Description: Founded in the early 1950s, Perspecta is the oldest and most distinguished of the student-edited American architectural journals that have appeared in recent decades. Perspecta 31 examines the relationship between architectural design and structural engineering through the processes and products of both disciplines. The contributing architects, engineers, and historians explore how structures reflect both the professions and the cultures that produce them. The authors' common approach to structure, which carefully considers context, reveals the politics, economic influences, design ideas, and chance circumstances that influence its configuration. The resulting series of articles and case studies shows how one can understand structures that are embedded in architecture. The journal looks specifically at issues of collaboration between architects and engineers. It also addresses the relationship of structural form to materials, the transition from conceptual to actual structures, and the cultural history of architectural and industrial structures.

Reflecting the theme of structure as process, the journal documents an ongoing conversation between the editors, contributors, and others. The twelve articles are followed by short responses, and major themes emerging from the articles are identified and explored by the editors. The journal concludes with the results of an informal survey of architects on the role of structure in the design process.

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