Starchitects and their ways of interpretation : an experimental study of the individual design processes of five highly appreciated contemporaries

Abstract

Architects, in general, play a significant role in our changing society. The fashion of culture is in a state of constant transformation amongst urbanized civilizations thanks to the last century's technological innovation. Both present and hypothetical future changes have to be addressed by the creators of the built environment to allow for the growth of standards and conformity to the needs of the site as well as the comfort of people. These concerns are not just functional - numerous other aspects have to be taken into consideration, from ecological and materialistic perspectives to the aim of providing aesthetically pleasing environments. Indeed, being an architect is an all-inclusive role that has to satisfy a significant list of requirements, though there is always an additional creative spark that acts as the distinguishing mark of professionals in the field. This quality of differentness is the extraordinary attribute that makes an architect a starchitect. Yet, the nature of this feature remains unknown. Whether this particularity is related to education, creativity, luck, intelligence, hard work, determination, attitude or uncommon ways of thinking is a challenging question. However, the validity of a starchitect's success is proven through the materialization of their ideas.