Meaning
The Salk Institute’s open environment teeming with empty space is symbolic of an open environment for creation, the symmetry stands for scientific precision, and submerging crevasses allow warm, natural light to enter the buildings like the intellectual light that leads to discovery. The contrast between balance and dynamic space manifests a pluralistic invitation for scientific study in structures developed to accommodate their respective functions as parts of a research facility. Although modern in appearance, it is essentially an isolated compound for individual and collaborative study not unlike monasteries as sanctuaries for religious discovery, and they directly influenced Kahn in his design. Ultimately, the Salk Institute’s meaning transcends function and physical place as a reflection of Western Civilization’s pursuit of truth through science instead of God: it is Louis Kahn’s masterpiece reinterpretation of the monastic “intellectual retreat” in our day and age.
Read more about this topic: Salk Institute For Biological Studies
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