University of Virginia Library

Modulus/7: Dynamics Of Change

By Rob Pritchard
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer

It seems that one of the few
aspects of modern life that refuses
to change is the topic of change
itself. It has been, and will continue
to be, a popular subject of debate
and inquiry, partly because one can
observe alterations directly and
partly because there is a
comfortable intellectual distance
between debate and the realization
of its outcome.

But this in no way is to imply
that such inquiry is futile. Quite the
contrary: Modulus/7, the
Architecture School's latest
publication, is a well edited and
well written collection of articles
dealing with the full range of
change at the university level.

Divided roughly into two
categories - "State-U-ism;" the
"amorphous conglomeration of
buildings and people," and the
concept of " 'The University' the
ideas upon which Thomas Jefferson
founded his 'academical village' "
with emphasis placed on the
interaction between disciplinesModulus/7
examines where the
University is now, where it was,
and where it hopefully will go.

With respect to the past,
Christopher Baer's article on the
architectural history at the
University provides the critical
background necessary to judge
proposed expansion of the central
grounds. "In contrast to the tight
planning of the Jeffersonian
Grounds," Mr. Baer points out,
"subsequent development had been
random and spontaneous, like a
farm or small village."

The present, much like last
month's Playboy jokes, isn't very
inspiring. For here we have the
realm of facts and figures, and here
too, we have the well done,
necessary, but somewhat dry article
by Frederick Davidson. Acting
against the desirability of long
range planning and anticipation is
the ogre of reality - the horn of
plenty turned upside-down
resulting in the necessity of
quicksand expansion to
accommodate the products of the
population bomb.

As most of us realize, ideally the
future would bring the advent of
the residential college, but that
possibility is not likely, as Werner
Sansback illustrates in his article
"How Do College Students Want to
Live?" Pursing the matter further
than the added costs and planning
that residential colleges would
require, Mr. Sansback examines a
number of different methods of
housing students that go a step or
two beyond merely quartering
them (or us).

The remaining articles in
Modulus examine two broad areas
of concern - the problems facing
the modern architect, and the
contradictory demands dumped on
universities to expand madly while
maintaining an orderly program of
development and a degree of
personal relationship throughout
the institute.

Another article dealing with the
necessity of planning for future
expansion, originally submitted by
Robert Winthrop and Dennis Dugan
as their baccalaureate thesis,
presents an intelligent and logical
program of University
development. As central to their
thesis, they propose that "the
University should grow in small
increments at a rate corresponding
with its own growth requirements,
rather than a large chunks every ten
or twenty years."

Photo Courtesy Modulus/7

Classical Influences On Jeffersonian Planning