Industrial Beauty The Great Wall Of China

Industrial Beauty

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Part 1

Introduction

This treatise presents a reflective account of the theme of industrial beauty. Herein, an

elaboration of the topic will be undertaken along the lines of my understanding of the pertinent

subject matter and how the issue relates to modern life in the 21

century. Additionally, the Great

Wall of China will be used as a case study to exemplify the relationship between industrial

beauty and an existing work of art. Finally, an annotated bibliography consisting of scholarly

sources that buttress the relevance of the theme under study will be presented.

Industrial Beauty

Industrial beauty is a theme that is interrelated with industrial art and industrial design. In

essence, it refers to the aesthetic quality of ordinary or extraordinary functional and structural

objects in the environment. Although there is no fixed definition or specification of what an

industrial work of art entails, industrial beauty can be defined broadly as the aesthetic dimension

incorporated in the design and creation of functional objects.

The endeavors made towards

achieving the aesthetic quality can also be succinctly described as efforts directed towards

making the practical beautiful. Industrial beauty is thus the quality of vision or the artistic class

that can be deduced from the design of functional objects as can be perceived in a broad array of

architectural creations, appliances, gadgets, and similar works.

Don, Norman. The design of everyday things: Revised and expanded edition. Basic Books (AZ), 2013.

Industrial beauty considers the artistic element in conventional forms of design and

creation. It is linked to the process of design and applied to objects that can be created or

manufactured through engineering, architecture, and mass production. In essence, it is a theme

that is characterized by the notion that design should ideally be separated from the process of

building. Industrial beauty is, therefore, concerned with the creative process that occurs before

the construction, structure, or engineering commences. Whereas the latter often consists of a

method of automated replication, the former is concerned with the aesthetic considerations that

are made in the planning of the end product. It is the definition of a product’s features and forms

in advance of the physical act of making it. However, the primary difference between industrial

beauty and craft-based beauty, industrial beauty is not determined by the product’s creator at the

time of creation.

An evaluation of the theme of industrial beauty generates some questions. One of the

central issues concerns the relevance of the idea to the modern processes of industrial design and

industrial art. Secondly, it raises the question regarding how different works of art reveal

industrial beauty in their design and execution. Third, an additional issue is the apparent trends

that can be deduced in the development and evolution of industrial beauty in different works of

art dating from the historical to more contemporary designs.

All functional products in the modern age result from a process of product development

at the core of which is the design process. By definition, the design process involves aesthetic

considerations. Therefore, industrial beauty is a theme that dominates the spheres of industrial art

and design in the 21s century. There are different processes and approaches taken in the

contemporary practice of industrial design. It can take many forms including individual

execution or designed by a large team of experts. It can also involve an emphasis on the creative

process or a focus on calculated scientific decision-making, or combine any of the elements

aforementioned. Although the process may differ, the result and the intended objective is often

the same: achieving industrial beauty. As such, the theme is relevant to the 21

century because

it informs the development of insight on the artistic dimension that is involved in the various

processes of industrial design to yield industrial beauty, to make the functional beautiful.

The Great Wall of China

One of the most significant works of art that depict the power of industrial design is the

Great Wall of China. It is a historic work of architecture, design, and engineering that is

classified as one of the World’s Wonders. In structure, it is a series of substantial barriers

constructed of stone, wood, brick, and other materials built along China’s historical Northern

borders. The purpose of the construction was to protect the ancient Chinese empire from

invasions by external powers and influences. The exact date of the commencement of

construction is unknown, but the building of the wall is estimated to have begun as early as the

century BC.

The building process consisted of erecting small walls before they were later

joined to form the formidable structure that was together fortified into what is presently defined

as the Great Wall in 220-206 BC by the first Chinese emperor, named Qin Shi Huang. From

then on, several of the subsequent dynasties revamped and fortified the wall with the majority of

the current structure attributed to the remnants of the refortification designs undertaken during

the Ming Dynasty that spanned the period between 1386 to 1644. An image of the section of the

Wall is provided in Appendix 1.

Ellen Marie Braae. Beauty redeemed: Recycling post-industrial landscapes. Birkhäuser Verlag GmbH, 2015.

Early construction of the wall occurred mostly in the periods of war during the Qin and

Han dynasties. The structures consisted primarily of rammed earth, which although may initially

be perceived as flimsy materials for such extensive building, the available remnants of fragments

reveal that they are sturdy. The earliest construction styles using rammed and tapped earth were

techniques that were used by the Chinese from as far back as 5000 BC. Archeological evidence

suggests that the Chinese empire had enhanced its practice of using the materials to building

different structures primarily designed for housing and border fortification.

Additionally, the Chinese territory enjoyed an abundance of clay-rich soil prompting the

initial construction to commence by use of the loess soil material. The historic structures also

reveal the characteristics of wall-building techniques referred to as “huangtu.” The practice

entails pouring earth and gravel into wooden shutters similar to the application of concrete to

building in the modern context. The layers are then tamped one at a time to a 7-inch level before

the process is repeated and until they were 5 inches tall. The technique was particularly viable in

arid areas where the walls were more erected efficiently.

However, it is notable to observe that construction of the Wall occurred in China’s

variegation of climatic and physical conditions. Due to the length of the wall, its structure

spanned several regions during different eras with different construction techniques,

technologies, and the available raw materials.

In the desert, for example, the construction

approach was entirely different from the approach taken in other spheres. The builders in the

historic Chinese desert had little to go by except lots of sand. Consequently, they had to

improvise using other available materials as can be evidenced by the current remains that

demonstrate the use of gravel and native desert plants, specifically the tamarisk plant, in different

Julia, Lovell. The great wall: China against the world, 1000 BC-AD 2000. Grove/Atlantic, Inc., 2007

structural elements. Through the unique combination, the builders were able to create a

surprisingly strong structure owing to the extra fibrous support provided by the decayed plants

and additional fortification by a layer of branches between the arrangements principally

composed of gravel. Despite the damage caused by erosion and other forces of nature, the ruins

of the Han-era walls can be found in the Chinese desert, standing up to three meters long.

Other sections of the wall are principally composed of stone walls built over thousands of

years. An examination of the material used in the construction reveals that the earliest forms

mainly were drywall structures without the addition of mortar. However, the careful arrangement

of stones on top of each other shows not only an aesthetic focus but also a scientific approach to

design that resulted in sturdy rock walls that reached as high as 6 meters. To increase the

sturdiness and to prevent the growth of plants in between the rocks, mortar was later added to the

structure. Later additions to the structure in the 15

and 16

centuries included walls that were

built from large granite blocks, limestone, and marble that was quarried locally and used as the

primary materials.

Some sections of the Wall, although rare, spot ornamental carved bas-reliefs and plaques.

Notable examples of such artistic incorporations that can be viewed presently are those located

on the Yun Tai Cloud Platform as well as the Yanhencheng Wall. The overarching observation

that can be made regarding the construction of the wall is a visible depiction of the evolution and

sophistication of industrial beauty and creative ingenuity over the course of the history

underpinning the building of different sections of the wall. Beginning from the earliest eras

John, Brock. "The great wall of China: the world’s greatest boundary monument." International Federation of

Surveyors (June 2014) (2014): 1-13.

where clay, earth, gravel, and plants were used as the primary construction material, there is a

dramatic shift in the science and aesthetics incorporated into the building process. One can

deduce, for example, a gradual change in the beauty of the wall as the construction transcended

the older materials and building techniques to include much more contemporary approaches. It is

evidenced by the use of standard-sized bricks, huge granite rocks, and other locally quarried

rocks with specific measures of standardization. The impressive sections that mark this quantum

leap in sophistication were able to reach more than 7 meters high with a base width of more than

4.5 meters. Most importantly, an essential artistic focus can be deciphered from the addition of

carvings and other works of art that were commissioned on the walls.

The choice of the Wall of China as an object for introspection under the theme of

industrial beauty is informed by the elaborate depth of relevant subject matter that it provides for

exploration. The Wall is a result of industry and aesthetic design and thereby offers a lot of

material for reflection on the historical drivers that informed human ingenuity in the design

approach. It presents the chance to understand the artistic perspective that yielded one of the

most significant historical sites in human history. Therefore, an examination of the underlying

creative process is a learning opportunity in industrial beauty for modern-day inventors,

industrial designers, and artists.

Conclusion

The paper commenced with the objective of conducting a reflective account of industrial

beauty as a theme in art and design. It has been succinctly defined as the aesthetic dimension of

functional objects drawn from a variety of fields including architecture and industrial design. To

conclude, the discussion has conducted an object-theme reflection, using the Great Wall of China

as a case study of industrial beauty and has deduced that it offers a learning opportunity for

modern industrial designers and creators in different industrial fields.

Bibliography

Brock, John. "The great wall of China: the world’s greatest boundary monument." International

Federation of Surveyors (June 2014) (2014): 1-13.

Brock’s article presents a historical account of the development of the Great Wall of

China. The author terms it as the only artificial structure that can be perceived from the moon

and takes a survey-perspective in analyzing the physical characteristics of the Wall including its

construction and materials. Additionally, he investigates the archeological evidence that has been

used to bolster the assertions made by several scholars regarding the wall. The article also

includes photographs that illustrate the thematic concerns that the author comprehensively

explores.

Braae, Ellen Marie. Beauty redeemed: Recycling post-industrial landscapes. Birkhäuser Verlag

GmbH, 2015.

Braae offers an analytical introspection on the topic of industrial design. She uses

different historical illustrations to provide a glimpse into the evolution of human industry driven

by industrial design. She also analyzes the trends that shape creative thinking in various sectors

and connects these with the concept of industrial beauty by examining how pre-industry

perspectives can be used to redeem modern landscapes.

Lovell, Julia. The great wall: China against the world, 1000 BC-AD 2000. Grove/Atlantic, Inc.,

2007.

Lovell examines the Great Wall from a functional perspective. Using a historical and

retrospective approach, she traces the building of the Wall through different geographical and

historical eras. She also examines the contribution of various Chinese dynasties to the

construction and fortification of the wall and analyzes the political drivers and implications of

the development. The book also evaluates the aesthetic dimension that was incorporated into the

design of the wall while attempting to quantify the extent of human labor that yielded successful

completion of the structure.

Norman, Don. The design of everyday things: Revised and expanded edition. Basic Books (AZ),

2013.

In this book, Norman explores how simplicity and beauty have become part and parcel of

modern industrial design. He defines industrial beauty as the process of making the functional

beautiful. The book offers a variety of case studies and examples that illustrate the production of

satisfactory designs and the overall operations underpinning individual and group design.

Appendix 1

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