Americas, India, and China

 

    

Summary: 

    This week, I read Mark Hinchman's chapters of "History of Interior Architecture" that focuses on the Americas along with China and India. The Americas are special for many reasons, and I focused the majority of my blog on this section specifically. One is that while it was disconnected from the other worlds and architectural developments happening, the area and its design were still influential. Another important idea I learned is that the Americas had some of the biggest urban cities and developments in the world, even though there was a lack of trade and other communication. Furthermore, the Americas often get forgotten about in a design sense because very little artifacts remain. The materials originally used have since decayed or been destroyed, making it much harder to analyze the furniture and daily life. This also being the land we inhabit today, it is important to understand the history of the area. 

Designs and Current Applications: 

    One design that stuck out to me was the jaguar throne from ancient Maya-Toltec. This piece of furniture was zoomorphic, meaning that animal parts were incorporated into the form of the object. While there was little to no contact outside of the Americas, this concept and value of animals reminds me of Egyptian designs. Lions, Sphinx, etc. were incorporated into the form of countless Egyptian furniture pieces and architectural structures. A modern day example of a zoomorphic chair is seen below. 

Temple of the Jaguars | Chichen Itza, Mexico | Zoomorphic Throne of a Jaguar

Modern Day Example of a Zoomorphic Chair | Represents a Male Deer 

    To continue, another design that stands out to me is the Royal Tomb in Machu Picchu, Peru. The Incan Empire who created this masterpiece was known for their craftsmanship in stone. For this specific design, they used "outcrops of rock as the foundation of the structures they built." They used nature alongside architecture to complete their designs in the most efficient manor. The process was time consuming, and repeated numerous times. The world today puts much less focus on the individual craftsmanship of stone carving and rather the technological advancements that have replaced human work. The Grand Hyatt Playa de Carmen, while it looks very different from the Royal Tomb, is also built on outcrops of rock used for the foundation. 

Royal Tomb | Machu Picchu, Peru | Shows Outcast Rocks Used as Foundation

Grand Hyatt Playa de Carmen, Mexico | Shows Outcast Rocks used As Foundation 

Another influential design is the Throne of Montezuma. This is known as one of the most important pieces in Aztec furniture because it also provides an insight into the life, religion, and art of the Empire. It gives a representation to Huitzilopochtli, a very prominent god in Aztec culture. It was monolithic, that consisted of two rectangular. The fascinating part was what was carved onto the seat. The backrest has a representation of the god and shows how it fits into the idea of god and ruler. A modern day example is the Catholic Pope's chair. This chair has a symbol carved at the headrest that is pivotal in the Christian faith. 

Throne of Montezuma | Tenochtitlan, Mexico | Representation of Huitzilopochtli

The Pope's Chair | Represents Figure Important in Christian Faith 

One Step Further: 

While this time period has many interesting and influential designs, there is little information about who the architects were and what other projects they worked on. One project that really impacts me is the ball courts of Mesoamerica. They were an important part to the life and culture of the Aztecs. Monte Alban has two rows of seats (or modern day bleachers) that look down onto the field. These designs were incorporated for ceremonies and were also important in religion. The fascinating aspect about these ball courts is how we have incorporated this idea into many different stadiums and arenas across the globe. My own high school for example, Triopia Jr. Sr. High School, had two sides of bleachers with a basketball court in the middle. This idea of ball courts has impacted my own life today, thousands of years later. The video below explains more about Monte Alban and the Ball Courts. 

Monte Alban Ball Courts

Monte Alban Ball Courts | Shows Side Seating 

Triopia Jr. Sr. High School | Side Seating Inspired From Ball Courts 

Conclusion: 

    While there is little remaining artifacts and information about Mesoamerica, it is still very important to design history. There is much to learn from the Empires and civilizations, and many of the design elements have been incorporated into our daily lives whether we realize it or not. While I did not focus much of my paper on China or India, they are still very influential. These land were inhabited for thousands of years with flourishing communities. They were built off of tradition and related heavily to the Buddha religion. There were also large populations, and with that came influential designs.