Ornamentation as a Means of Expression in Contemporary Architectural Narrative

Architecture is not only functional spatial formation but also a distinct medium for cultural and social connection-making. Ornamentation, as a visual element of connection, played a narrative role in architecture for centuries and, after its marginalization during modernism, has reappeared in various forms. Consequently, it has deeply rooted historical origins, and in today’s architecture, designers have diverse possibilities for its application.

My proposition is that a kind of search is underway to reinterpret and apply the possibilities of ornamentation. I assume that through its use, an architectural formal language can emerge that, in its own pragmatic way, strives to create an identity-expressing, connection-making, narrative work through the materiality, structural formation, or emphasis-creation appearing on façades.

The aim of the study is to shed light on the social and cultural significance of ornamentation in today’s architectural practice, as well as to reveal what architectural tools and methods designers use in practice.