Dome

View of the kitchen wall, depicting the chimney; Central to Kahn's architectural philosophy was the concept of institution, by which he understood not the momentary state of a client but rather the underlying social responsibilities and potentials of social organizations. At the root of the archaism often recognized in Kahn's buildings was his desire to probe the beginnings of social commitments and to redefine what an institution should continue to be. He used the words 'order' or 'form' for the fundamental organizations that animate an institution and thus are to be maintained through the exigencies of design, of realizing a particular building. A clear demonstration of this process is his 'form diagram' and successive designs for the First Unitarian Church, Rochester, NY (1959-1967). Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.groveart.com/ (accessed 1/3/2008)