Section 9 Elevation and Section

Architectural Design I: Elevation & Section

Dr. Lijian Ma, PhD

  • Assistant Professor in the Civil and Architectural Department at Tennessee State University.

  • Course: AREN 2011, Architectural Design I.

  • Topic: "Elevation & Section" for Fall 2024.

What is an Elevation in Architecture?

  • Pivotal Role: Elevations are fundamental to understanding buildings and structures in architecture.

  • More than 2D: They are not just two-dimensional representations but essential tools for architects, designers, builders, and clients.

  • Definition: At its core, an elevation is a scaled, flat representation of one side of a building or structure.

  • Comprehensive View: It offers a thorough view of the exterior façade.

  • Key Features Highlighted: Elevations emphasize crucial architectural elements such as:

    • Doors

    • Windows

    • Materials

    • Proportions

  • Visual Language: Despite appearing as simple drawings or renderings, elevations serve as the visual language through which architectural concepts are communicated and brought to fruition.

Types of Elevations

1. Front Elevation

  • Other Names: Also known as the "principal elevation" or "facade elevation."

  • Purpose:

    • This is the most frequently depicted elevation.

    • It provides a view of the building's front-facing exterior.

    • It represents the side typically most visible to the public and from the street.

  • Role:

    • Showcases the building's primary design features, architectural style, and aesthetic character.

    • Crucial for initial design presentations, offering an immediate impression of the building's overall appearance.

2. Rear Elevation

  • Purpose:

    • Offers a view of the building's backside or rear façade.

    • Particularly relevant when a building possesses a distinct rear entrance or when specific design considerations pertain to the rear of the structure.

  • Role:

    • Helps ensure that the building's design maintains cohesion from all perspectives, even if the rear is less visible to the public.

    • Essential for planning aspects such as access points, landscaping, and any unique features intended for the back of the building.

3. Side Elevation

  • Other Names: Also referred to as "side views" or "side elevations."

  • Purpose:

    • Provides a view of one of the building's lateral sides.

    • Typically utilized when the building's sides hold architectural significance or when particular design elements or features require emphasis.

  • Role:

    • Delivers valuable information regarding the proportions, fenestration (the arrangement of windows and doors), and materials employed on the building's less prominent sides.

    • Contributes to ensuring design consistency and aesthetic appeal throughout the entire structure.

What is a Section in Architecture?

  • Definition: In architectural drawing, a section generally describes a cut made through the body of a building.

  • Orientation: This cut is perpendicular to the horizon line.

  • Section Drawing: A section drawing illustrates a vertical cut that typically transects an object or building along a primary axis.

  • Simultaneous Revelation: The section uniquely reveals both:

    • Its interior and exterior profiles.

    • The interior space.

    • The material, membrane, or wall that separates the interior from the exterior.

  • Unusual View: It provides a perspective of the object that is not normally perceivable.

  • Representational Techniques: This technique takes various forms and graphic conventions, each developed to convey different architectural knowledge:

    • Building Sections: Often use solid fill or "poche" to emphasize the profile of the form.

    • Construction Details: Depict materials through lines and specific graphic conventions.

Significance of Architectural Sections

  • Embodied Experience and Architectural Space: Section drawings demonstrate the interplay among multiple aspects of embodied experience and architectural space.

  • Vertical Dimension Insights: They make explicit the intersection of:

    • Scale and proportion.

    • Sight and view.

    • Touch and reach.

    • All these relationships are rendered visible in the vertical dimension, contrasting with a top-down view.

  • Interior Revelation: In a section, the interior elevations of walls and surfaces are revealed, allowing for the examination and exploration of:

    • Structure

    • Ornament

    • Envelope

    • Interior

Comparison: Plans vs. Sections

  • Similarities:

    • Both are similar representational conventions.

    • Both depict a relationship between a building's mass and its space that is not directly perceivable by the human eye.

    • Both describe cuts through a building.

  • Differences:

    • Plans:

      • Represent a horizontal division.

      • Primarily cut through walls, not floors.

    • Sections:

      • Represent a vertical cut.

      • Are capable of showing cuts through both walls and floors.

      • Organize space in alignment with the size and scale of the standing human figure.