BEYOND URBAN SUCCESSIONISM Classification of building species
proceeds much in the same way as it does for plants or animals.
Differentiation between the species must be definite, yet must
be open enough to allow for a degree of variation within the
species. If all dogs are the same species, for example, how are
the different breeds distinguished from one another. The use of
a simple differentia following the genus and species name could
solve this: A Proposed Taxonomy for Building Species: Thus the
house pictured above, Case Study House #16 by Craig Ellwood,
could be called: Domus casestudiana "Craig Ellwood" The task of
identifying and naming the various native and non-native
building species in a city like Los Angeles is fairly daunting.
Yet when approached from the perspective of Urban Successionism
as outlined in my previous post, such an effort could result in
a history of the city told in its buildings, making it visceral,
alive, relevant. A FIELD GUIDE TO THE ARCHITECTURE OF LOS
ANGELES (www.afgala.or