Shape grammars: an assessment of their utility in architecture

Shape grammars are generative formalisms that allow spatial computations to be carried out on shapes. This paper examines the assumptions, methodologies, and formalisms underlying shape grammar research in relation to architectural form and its making. The paper first establishes the criteria for evaluating the adequacy of a given generative system. Then, it applies them to the evaluation of the shape grammar formalism. Issues of the representation of style and language, procedural and declarative knowledge representation, as well as, the specificity and generalizability of the formalism will be addressed. The paper argues that, in its present state, shape grammar leaves a great deal to be desired in terms of its descriptive power and generalizability. The paper concludes by exploring some of the desired characteristics for languages of architectural form