ABSTRACT
The architectural elements for supplying exterior light in Guild House are frankly windows. The mechanical systems of Guild House are nowhere manifest in the outside forms. To clarify further, the sign saying Guild House denotes meaning through its words; as such, it is the heraldic element par excellence. Denotation indicates specific meaning; connotation suggests general meanings. The same element can have both denotative and connotative meanings, and these may be mutually contradictory. It is true that in this case the heroic and original faade is somewhat ironical, but it is this juxtaposition of contrasting symbols the appliqu of one order of symbols on another that constitutes the decorated shed. Although largely forgotten by Modern architects, the historical precedent for symbolism in architecture exists, and the complexities of iconography have continued to be a major part of the discipline of art history. In iconographic terms, the cathedral is a decorated shed and a duck.
