ARCHITECTURE PRACTICE IN THE DIGITAL AGE: HOW TECHNOLOGY WILL CHANGE THE PROFESSION

Abstract

Technology has a profound relationship with architecture practice, with each technological progress comes a paradigm shift for how architects operate. Thus it is no doubt that the technology of digital media, having progressed so rapidly since the beginning of this century, would also impact the profession. A new vision for architecture practice will arise as digital media begins to transform urban lifestyle and communication. Architecture practices around the world have already begun to experiment with digital media, particularly social media, augmented reality and virtual reality. As the regional leader for architectural service, Singapore is relatively not participative in the virtual realm, even though recent efforts by some showed promising sign of warming up. Projecting ahead, architecture practice is expected to evolve from the current role of a service provider to one that actively engage with the community and society at large, collaborating with a wider range of specialists to bring about greater social good. The digital era will also bring about a new set of discourse and dilemma for architects.