A vision-intelligent framework for mapping the genealogy of vernacular architecture

Abstract

The study of vernacular architecture involves recording, ordering, and analysing buildings to probe their physical, social, and cultural explanations. Traditionally, this process is conducted manually and intuitively by researchers. Because human perception is selective and often partial, the resulting interpretations of architecture are invariably broad and loose, often lingering on form descriptions that adhere to a preset linear historical progression or crude regional demarcations. This study proposes a research framework by which intelligent technologies can be systematically assembled to augment researchers' intuition in mapping or uncovering the genealogy of vernacular architecture and its connotative socio-cultural system. We employ this framework to examine the stylistic classification of 1,277 historical shophouses in Singapore's Chinatown. Findings extend beyond the chronological classification established by the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore in the 1980s and 1990s, presenting instead a phylogenetic network to capture the formal evolution of shophouses across time and space. The network organises the shophouse types into nine distinct clusters, revealing concurrent evidences of cultural evolution and diffusion. Moreover, it provides a critical perspective on the multi-ethnic character of Singapore shophouses by suggesting that the distinct cultural influences of different ethnic groups led to a pattern of parallel evolution rather than direct convergence. Our work advances a quantitative genealogy of vernacular architecture, which not only assists in formal description but also reveals the underlying forces of development and change. It also exemplified the potential of collaboration between studies in vernacular architecture and computer science, demonstrating how leveraging the strengths of both fields can yield remarkable insights.