Form or Function?
Here’s an interesting question: Which is more important, the décor of the room (form) or the purpose (function)? It’s a bit of a trick question, because both are important. We’re wrestling with this right now as a committee.
Here’s what happens with church buildings: At some point, both form and function are in harmony. First Trinity went through this process back in 1996 and 2000 when the lobby was expanded and then the gym was added. The form reflected (and enhanced) the function of the room. During the last building campaign, the committee worked to align form and function.
Over time, however, programming (function) changes as the church grows. The longer it goes without being addressed, the farther apart form and function drift. If you’ve been here a while, you can look around and see furniture or rooms that had one purpose in 2000, but are serving a different one now.
So here are the two key questions we’re dealing with as we consider renovation projects and form/function:
- How do form and function interact with each other? It seems to make sense that the program people express the needs for a particular area and the design people find the right furniture and look to accomplish the purpose.
- How do we minimize drift? The building committee will disband one day. Who works to keep form and function in harmony? Is it an aesthetics committee or something else?
What do you think? What other issues should we be considering?
