ABSTRACT
Renaissance architects took the ordinary built environment all around them for granted. Today, by contrast, architects concern themselves with the existence and quality of everyday environment. Ordinary environment is now viewed as a problem to which the architect must contribute a solution. This shift in perspective has had tremendous consequences for the environment in which we live and the profession we have become. To facilitate the discussion of built environment in this context, I use the term field to denote the context as well as purpose of the architectural enterprise: the urban, suburban and rural environments in which and for which we act when we design and build. Fields are autonomous entities. Their complex dynamics extend beyond any single discipline or area of study.
